風外慧薫筆　指月布袋図|Hotei Pointing at the Moon

Fūgai Ekun

1650 · Hanging scroll; ink on paper · Asian Art

The portly monk Hotei is shown hoisting his satchel over his shoulder while he points a finger at the sky above, toward an unseen moon. The abbreviated brushwork and suggestive use of blank space were earlier associated with Zen monk painters of medieval times. The Zen monk Fūgai Ekun of the Sōtō sect followed in this tradition, and often inscribed his paintings in a highly cursive script. The inscription reads: 生涯不貧、大福無隣、 指月看月、途中老賓 Shōgai hin narazu daifuku rin nashi tsuki o sashi tsuki o miru tochū no rōhin Throughout my life, I haven’t been poor Nor have lived amid wealth. Pointing at the moon, looking at the moon, I’m just an old traveler along the way. —Trans. John T. Carpenter

Artist

Fūgai Ekun

Date

1650

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Fishbein-Bender Collection, Gift of T. Richard Fishbein and Estelle P. Bender, 2013