If I understand the premise behind Shinseist and Fortunist Monks correctly does that mean that every Great Clan each have a small Shinseist and/or Fortunist Shcool?

the monks are not "part" of a clan, but they definitely are allowed to build their monasteries on Clan Lands. And most of them probably have political preferences/agendas.
so while not technically in a clan, they can be part of a clan for the political scene. kind of ?

Does EE not clarify more about non-tattooed monks? I don't have my copy yet.

8 minutes ago, nameless ronin said:

Does EE not clarify more about non-tattooed monks? I don't have my copy yet.

It is one of the main chapter.

8 hours ago, Alisair Longreach said:

If I understand the premise behind Shinseist and Fortunist Monks correctly does that mean that every Great Clan each have a small Shinseist and/or Fortunist Shcool?

Kinda yes and no.

You will find Shinseist and Fortunist Monks in the lands of every Great (and most Minor) Clan. However, the Monasteries where they learn their techniques are not actually Great Clan schools. Have you read the section in the core book about peasant characters? It points out that a non-Samurai caste PC still picks a Clan and Family to represent the lands where they grew up, since the predilections of the Samurai in a province naturally spill over into the pastimes and traditions of the peasantry even if they are not literally part of the family.

In my opinion, just the same is happening with the Monks - before joining the sohei of Osano-wo, you grew up in the lands of the Hida, or the Shosuro, or even the Doji.

There is also a side bar that explains that clan samurai can retire into one of those monastic orders. I guess it can be an early retirement too... in that case you could pick a GC family, get their ring and skill increase and proceed to a Monk school.

There's also a discussion of samurai families sending excess children to train at temples along with a sizable donation for their room and board which can keep a temple or shrine funded for several years on it's own. So also reasonable to be a GC family samurai from a sizable household who was basically the Rokugan equivalent of sent to the clergy.

I think it should be noted that the ratio of Fortunist to Shinseist Monks varies by land as well.

For example, as I understand it, the teachings of Shinsei are not well promoted in Lion Lands. This comes up pretty clearly in the fiction for the Living Card Game (Akodo and the Little Teacher did not see eye to eye). A shinseist monk probably doesn’t have any special problems traveling in Lion Lands...but I don’t think you find any large Shinseist monasteries there either. But potentially plenty of Monasteries dedicated to Fortunist teachings and or ancestor worship).

Other lands have other skews. Osanowo is particularly prevalent in Crab and Mantis Lands. In Crane Lands Shinsei is largely seen as a hero and the Thunder Dialogues are popular. In Phoenix Lands Shinsei is primarily seen as a philosopher and the original Tao is most popular.

While all Great Clan Lands have monasteries, which ones they have varies, and they are usually independent to some/various degrees.