He is a hōshi, who possesses a rather unusual curse. His right hand has a slowly expanding Kazāna that sucks in anything nearby if it's not kept covered by a cloth and strand of japa mala beads. This curse was placed on Miroku's grandfather by Naraku and passed down to him. His father died because the wind tunnel grew so large that it sucked him up. Eventually, the curse will cause Miroku to be sucked in as well, unless Naraku is defeated, and the curse is broken. He is, therefore, one of the main reasons the group is after Naraku.
Miroku meets InuYasha and his friends after walking away from a town after cheating a rich man there out of some money. While bathing in a hot spring, he sees Kagome naked, also taking a bath. He discovers she has shards of the Shikon no Tama (The Jewel of Four Souls) while staring at her breasts and takes them (the jewel shards) and her bike with the help of his tanuki friend, Hachi. InuYasha and Kagome catch up to him and InuYasha attacks him, but Miroku uses his Kazāna in return. Kagome, realizing that the monk will not harm humans, stands in its path and causes Miroku to quickly cover it with his prayer beads. Miroku explains his situation, and InuYasha reluctantly allows him to join them.