Prayer Beads are basically Sekiro’s version of finally admitting that maybe, just maybe, getting one-shot by a random bloke with a spear is not ideal.
Collect four Prayer Beads and you can increase your Vitality and Posture. There are 40 in total, which means ten full upgrades by the end of the game. Most come from mini-bosses, but a few are tucked behind hidden walls, sitting in dusty corners, or hidden in places that FromSoftware clearly expected you to miss the first three times.
If you want every bead in one run, here is where to find all 40.
Ashina Outskirts Prayer Bead Locations
General Naomori Kawarada
Location: Outskirts Wall, Gate Path
The first mini-boss in the game drops a Prayer Bead. He is standing just past the opening area near the broken gate.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Chained Ogre
Location: Outskirts Wall, Stairway
After speaking to the Sculptor and reaching the stairway above the first idol, you will find the infamous red-eyed giant tied up beside the stairs. He drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
General Tenzen Yamauchi
Location: Outskirts Wall, Stairway
Past the Chained Ogre and the group of soldiers, you will find Tenzen waiting in the courtyard.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Hidden Loft in Ashina Outskirts
Location: Ashina Outskirts, just after General Tenzen
Before the area with the Great Serpent, enter the house with the old woman inside. Climb into the rafters and open the chest.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Blazing Bull
Location: Ashina Castle Gate
The bull is not subtle. It is on fire, sprinting directly at you, and apparently furious that fences exist. Beat it and collect the Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Ashina Castle Prayer Bead Locations
General Kuranosuke Matsumoto
Location: Ashina Castle Gate
Just after entering Ashina Castle, this mini-boss stands at the top of the stairs surrounded by riflemen.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Hidden Room Behind the Painting
Location: Ashina Castle, Upper Tower Antechamber
From the Upper Tower Antechamber idol, head into the room with the two samurai. Hug the wall beside the hanging scroll to reveal a secret door. Inside is a chest containing a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Seven Ashina Spears, Shikibu Toshikatsu Yamauchi
Location: Ashina Reservoir
Return to the area where the game began. The spear-wielding mini-boss guarding the moonlit courtyard drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Lone Shadow Longswordsman
Location: Ashina Reservoir well
Drop into the same well where Sekiro started the game. The Lone Shadow inside drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Ashina Elite, Jinsuke Saze
Location: Ashina Castle, Upper Tower Dojo
Just before Genichiro, you fight this lightning-fast samurai. He drops a Prayer Bead after defeat.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Ashina Reservoir Secret Chest
Location: Near the Bottomless Hole entrance
After defeating Lone Shadow Longswordsman, continue through the tunnel. In the next room, there is a chest containing a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Hirata Estate Prayer Bead Locations
Shinobi Hunter Enshin of Misen
Location: Hirata Estate, Bamboo Thicket Slope
Found in the clearing beyond the bamboo forest. He drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Juzou the Drunkard
Location: Hirata Estate Main Hall
The giant drunkard in the courtyard drops a Prayer Bead. Frankly, he also drops your patience a few times first.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Hidden Wall in Hirata Estate
Location: Hirata Estate audience chamber
After defeating Juzou, enter the building behind him. Hug the wall on the right side of the room with the banner to reveal a hidden chamber with a chest.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Lone Shadow Masanaga the Spear-Bearer
Location: Hirata Estate, second memory
Only available after unlocking the Purification ending path. Masanaga appears near the bamboo path and drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Juzou the Drunkard, second encounter
Location: Hirata Estate, second memory
The second version of Juzou also drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Lone Shadow Masanaga Secret Room
Location: Hirata Estate, second memory audience chamber
Inside the burning audience chamber, there is another hidden wall room containing a Prayer Bead chest.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo Prayer Bead Locations
Armoured Warrior
Location: Senpou Temple bridge
The heavily armoured knight on the bridge drops a Prayer Bead after you politely introduce him to gravity.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Centipede Sen’un
Location: Gun Fort Temple
Inside the temple near Gun Fort, this frantic claw-swinging mini-boss drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Temple Grounds Hidden Bead
Location: Senpou Temple, Temple Grounds idol
Dive into the pond near the idol after learning the Mibu Breathing Technique. At the bottom is a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Sunken Valley Prayer Bead Locations
Snake Eyes Shirafuji
Location: Sunken Valley
Near the Gun Fort entrance, Snake Eyes Shirafuji drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Long-arm Centipede Giraffe
Location: Gun Fort
Hidden inside the building beyond the Gun Fort idol. He drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Gun Fort Shrine Floorboards
Location: Gun Fort shrine
Inside the room after Long-arm Centipede Giraffe, break the floorboards to find a hidden room with a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Under-Shrine Valley Pool
Location: Sunken Valley, Under-Shrine Valley idol
After obtaining the Mibu Breathing Technique, dive into the water below the valley and search the bottom.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Ashina Depths Prayer Bead Locations
Snake Eyes Shirahagi
Location: Poison Pool
The second Snake Eyes mini-boss in the poison swamp drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Tokujiro the Glutton
Location: Hidden Forest
The enormous ape-loving drunkard in the Hidden Forest drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Mist Noble
Location: Hidden Forest temple
Technically, Mist Noble does not drop a Prayer Bead. I know, shocking. He is somehow even less dangerous than the chickens. Move along.
O’Rin of the Water
Location: Water Mill
The ghostly musician near Mibu Village drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Water Mill Lake
Location: Mibu Village
Dive into the lake near the Water Mill idol after unlocking underwater breathing. There is a chest underwater containing a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Mibu Village Attic
Location: Mibu Village
In the village, enter the house with a hole in the roof near the river. Inside the attic is a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Late-Game Ashina Castle Prayer Bead Locations
Once Ashina Castle changes later in the story, several new mini-bosses appear. If you are cleaning up the final few beads before the ending, these are the ones people usually miss.
Lone Shadow Vilehand
Location: Ashina Castle, Great Serpent Shrine
Found after returning to Ashina Castle late in the game. He drops a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Ashina Elite, Ujinari Mizuo
Location: Upper Tower Dojo
The second Ashina Elite mini-boss appears where Jinsuke Saze once stood.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Chained Ogre, second encounter
Location: Ashina Castle bottom floor
Late in the game, another Chained Ogre appears in the castle beneath the Antechamber.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Seven Ashina Spears, Shume Masaji Oniwa and General Tenzen Yamauchi
Location: Ashina Reservoir
In the late-game version of Ashina Reservoir, this duo mini-boss encounter rewards a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Red-Eyed Ashina Elite in Dojo Side Room
Location: Upper Tower Antechamber side room
During the late-game invasion, enter the side room near the Antechamber idol. A red-eyed enemy guards a chest with a Prayer Bead.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Prayer Beads Bought from Merchants
Battlefield Memorial Mob
Location: Ashina Castle Gate
After defeating Gyoubu Oniwa, the Battlefield Memorial Mob merchant sells a Prayer Bead for 1400 sen.
Reward: 1 Prayer Bead
Offering Box
Location: Dilapidated Temple
If you miss certain mini-bosses because the story progresses, their Prayer Beads often appear in the Offering Box beside Hanbei at the Dilapidated Temple. This is your emergency backup plan, otherwise known as FromSoftware quietly admitting that yes, some of these are annoyingly missable.
Full Prayer Bead Checklist
By the end of the game you should have 40 Prayer Beads total:
- Ashina Outskirts: 5
- Ashina Castle and Reservoir: 11
- Hirata Estate: 6
- Senpou Temple: 3
- Sunken Valley: 4
- Ashina Depths and Mibu Village: 5
- Late-game Ashina Castle: 5
- Merchant purchase: 1
If your total is off by one, the most commonly missed beads are:
- The hidden wall room in Ashina Castle
- The hidden wall room in Hirata Estate
- The Gun Fort floorboard room
- The underwater bead in Mibu Village
- The bead sold by the Battlefield Memorial Mob
- The late-game chest near the Upper Tower Antechamber
Seven Swords Takeaway
Prayer Beads are easy to ignore when you are too busy trying not to get kicked off a roof by a shinobi in pyjamas. But fully upgrading your Vitality and Posture makes a huge difference, especially in the late game when every boss seems personally offended by your existence.
If you are aiming for all endings, a platinum trophy, or simply want to stop Isshin from turning you into decorative grass clippings, collecting every Prayer Bead is absolutely worth it.
