木庵性瑫賛　隠元隆琦像|Portrait of Yinyuan Longqi

Muan Xingtao|unidentified artist

1676 · Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper · Asian Art

This portrait depicts Yinyuan Longqi, the Chinese Chan master who, in 1661, founded the Manpukuji Temple outside Kyoto. Likenesses such as this one would have been displayed and venerated during Buddhist ceremonies and memorial services. The eulogistic inscription is by Yinyuan’s direct disciple Mu’an Xingtao, whose celebrated calligraphy recalls both the religious and the brush-writing mentorship of his master. It reads: Firmly grasping a staff, he directly points out that a person has no perceptible form. Nor does a name reflect one’s true identity, which is imperceptible. This truly benevolent person naturally reveals his inherent moral virtue. Upon a sudden understanding of monastic teachings, we can start to perceive things beyond the workaday world. —Adapted from Jonathan Chaves

Artist

Muan Xingtao|unidentified artist

Date

1676

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Purchase, Brooke Russell Astor Bequest, 2015