Amida Raigo (Muromachi period 1392 - 1568)

The descent of Jizo (Nambokucho period 1333 - 1392)

Marishiten riding a boar (Muromachi period 1392 - 1568)

Zuzo (Iconographical) of Kongo Zuichin Bosatsu (Kamakura period 13th Century)

Aizen Myo-o (Muromachi Period 1400)

The arhat pindola Bharadvaja (Muromachi period 1350 - 1400)

The Honolulu Academy of Arts has some of the finest Japanese Buddhist paintings and woodblock prints in America.  Comprising more than forty paintings and a dozen prints, these images range in date from the twelfth to the nineteenth century, with the majority dating to the Kamakura (1185-1333), Nambokucho (1333-92) and Muromachi (1392-1573) periods. 

Buddhism was introduced into Japan from Korea in the sixth century and within a hundred years had taken root as a major force in Japanese social and cultural life.  Under the enthusiastic patronage of the imperial family, Buddhist temples and ideology spread throughout the country.  The lineage of Buddhism that first took hold was the Mahyana ('Great Vehicle'), which had evolved in northern India and Central Asia in the first and second centuries.  Mahayana philosophy held that all beings could become enlightened through their own faith and with the assistance of bodhisattvas.  The principal Buddhas of the Mahayana pantheon are Sakyamuni (Shaka) and Amitabha (Amida), while the most important bodhisattvas are Avalokitesvara (Kannon), Manjusri (Monju) and Samantabhadra (Fugen), symbolizing respectively compassion, wisdom and benevolence.

The earliest Japanese Buddhist painting in the collection is a twelfth-century illuminated sutra (Fig. 1).  In handscroll format, it begins with a frontispiece illustration and continues with the text, the third chapter of the Great Canon of Monastic Rules (Mahasangha Vinaya), written in the standard format of seventeen characters per line.  The frontispiece (mikaeshi), which is typical of many surviving examples from this period, depicts the historical Buddha Sakyamuni on a lotus throne.  Seated on the ground in front of him are two monks and two bodhisattvas, while three monks at the lower left, and two officials at the lower right listen to his teaching.  The official s are in Chinese court dress and hold symbols of rank in their hands.  The background is dominated by the Vulture Peak (Grdhrakuta), which is located near the Indian city of Rajagrha where the Buddha often preached.  Below the title of the manuscript, at the head of the text is a red seal that reads "Jingoji".  The presence of this seal indicates that the sutra was originally one of a large set consisting of the entire Tripitaka, or Buddhist Canon, which was kept at Jingoji, a Shingon monastery founded during the Heian Enryaku reign period (782-805) in the hills west of Kyoto.

The death of Sakyamuni is depicted in an eighteenth-century painting recently acquired by the Academy (Fig. 2).  The Buddha is shown in the center lying on a platform, and seated on the ground around him are his weeping disciples and other followers.  Included among these figures are several deities, for example the three-headed esoteric Buddhist figure in the background and the Dragon King in the foreground.  In addition, there are numerous animals, among them an elephant, phoenix, tiger, water buffalo, lion, tortoise, camel, boar, horse, deer, monkey, hare and numerous smaller birds, insects and frogs.  The painting thus presents a graphic image of the sorrow expressed by beings of each of the Six Realms of Existence at the Buddha's final passage into Nirvana.

The rare woodblock print in Figure 3 shows Kannon standing on two lotus flowers, dressed in flowing robes and scarves, and wearing a crown and elaborate jewellery.  The technique in which this woodblock print is executed is known in Japanese as ishizuri-e, which imitates the appearance of ink rubbings taken from stone engravings.  Kannon holds a small container and a willow twig, the iconography of which can be traced back to the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties in China.  (One of the earliest of such images known exists among the Buddhist banners on silk found at Dunhuang in Central Asia.)  At the top of the print is a short poem written by the Buddhist monk Gi'o (Yiying) directly onto the paper.  The poem describes Kannon as a manifestation of Amida, Buddha of the West, and mentions the "expedient methods" (upaya) whereby Kannon touches all beings.

Another principal bodhisattva, Jizo (Ksitigarbha), is depicted in the late fourteenth-century painting in Figure 4 descending from heaven on a swirling cloud.  Jizo vowed to assist beings in each of the Six Realms of Existence, symbolized by the six rings on his staff, and particularly to save souls in hell.  The scroll is executed in fine lines on dark, reddish-brown silk.  Jizo appears in the guise of a monk with a shaved head and dressed in a monk's robe (kesa) painted in red, dark green and gold pigments.  He wears a simple band of jewellery around his chest and bracelets on both wrists.  His left hand holds a transparent wishgranting jewel (cintamani) from which a wisp of gold-coloured flame emerges, and in his right hand is a gold priest's staff (shakujo).  The painting is in good condition, although the outlines of the lotus petals on which Jizo stands have been retouched in recent times with gold ink.

Arhats (rakan), believed to be the original followers of the Buddha Sakyamuni, became the focus of a cult in Mahayana Buddhism, and in Japan a group of sixteen arhats was the most prevalent.  The Academy is fortunate to own a complete set of sixteen arhat paintings (Fig. 5), each scroll bearing in the lower left-hand corner a rectangular seal of the Byodo Shinoin, a sub-temple of the Saimyoji in Kyoto.  These paintings are a copy of another set by the mid-four-teenth-century artist Ryozen.

The arhats were conceived as beings of exceptional transcendent wisdom who had attained enlightenment by their own efforts, but had not yet entered the state of Nirvana.  Their function in Mahayana Buddhism was to protect and maintain the Buddhist Law.  Many stories connected with the arhat Pindola Bharadvaja's (Binzuru Batsuradaja) miracles and magical powers, including his ability to fly, appear in the early Buddhist canon.  In Figure 5 Pindola, dressed as an Indian monk, with gaunt features and an expression of intense concentration, is seated outside.  He holds a miniature stupa, inside of which is a small statue of a Buddha.  An attendant in the guise of a crippled begger appears in the lower right-hand corner.

The Academy's collection also contains several superb examples of esoteric Buddhist painting, including the recently acquired depiction of the deity Aizen Myo-o (Ragaraja Vidyaraja) in Figure 6.  The cult of this deity, whose function is to transform human passions into a vehicle for enlightenment, was at its height from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century.    Aizen Myo-o, seated on a lotus throne, appears in the standard manner with red skin, six arms and a terrifying expression.  He holds two ritual objects a vajra (thunderbolt) and a ghanta (bell) - a bow and arrow, and a lotus flower.  Details of the figure's robe and sash are meticulously painted with floral designs and geometric patterns in gold; the throne is decorated in the moriage technique of raised gold lines.  At the base of the throne are a series of cintamani, and other jewels are scattered on the floor.  Behind the figure is a highly abstract and mysterious scene of gold clouds or waves on a deep blue-green ground.  An unusual aspect of this scroll is that the mounting, which would normally consist of brocade strips and panels, is painted in a tromple l'oeil technique on the same piece of silk as the main image.  It is composed of border of floral scrolls with an outer border of gold cakra painted on a pale green ground.

The zuzo (iconographic sketch) in Figure 7 depicts the esoteric deity Kongo Zuishin Bosatsu ('Bodhisattva whose Mind is in Accord with the Diamond').  Painted with a terrifying expression and long, wild hair, the deity stands on a dais with one foot raised holding a vajra aloft.  The figure is in a dynamic posture, with the fluidly curving lines of the muscles, hair and drapery strongly reinforcing the impression of movement.  Sketches of this type from the Heian (794-1185) and Kamakura periods have survived in large numbers.  Numerous examples were produced by ateliers at temples such as the Kozanji in Kyoto.  The Academy's zuzo bears the well-known rectangular seal of Kozanji, stamped on the back of the paper just below the deity's name.

Marishiten (Marici), worshipped as a protection against fire and as the protector of warriors, is sometimes included as one of the twelve Yaksha Generals associated with Yakushi (Bhaisajyaguru), the Buddha of Medicine.  While he rarely appears in Chinese Buddhist art, this deity often appears in that of Japan and Tibet.  In Figure 8, a woodblock print from the Muromachi period, Marishiten is dressed in armour and rides on the back of a boar.  He has three heads, each with a fierce expression, and a third eye in each forehead.  His arms hold a sword, a fan, a bow and arrow, and a long spear.  A halo of flames appears behind the figure.

Belief in Amida and his Pure Land (Jodo) can be traced to the Six Dynasties Period in China (317-589).  In Japan the cult became increasingly widespread during the Fujiwara period (898-1185) partly as a result of the belief in the impending age of mappo (decline of the Buddhist Law).  The Academy's holdings contain several paintings and prints that are key images of the Pure Land sect.  In the Raigo ('Welcoming Descent') in Figure 9, the large figure of Amida is shown descending from the Western Paradise to earth with his attendant bodhisattvas Kannon and Seishi.  The three figures stand on lotus flowers floating on swirling white clouds.  All three are dressed in gold robes decorated in the Kirikane (cut-gold) technique--the figure of Amida alone contains eight different kirikane patterns, including key frets, starbursts and floral scrolls.  Amida raises his right hand in the abhayamudra (semui-in), in this case meant as a gesture of welcome.  The execution of the painting is meticulous, and great attention has been paid to the juxtaposition of the patterns in the kirikane decoration and the subtle harmonies of green, white, red and gold pigments against the dark ground.  According to tradition, the first Taima Mandala, the central icon in the worship of the Buddha Amida, was a woven image created in the eighth century.  The overall effect of the large painted example in Figure 10, which depicts the Western Paradise of Amida, is one of opulent splendour.  Surrounding the central scene are smaller areas illustrating the 'Sixteen Contemplations of Queen Vaidehi' and the 'Story of Prince Ajatasatru'.  In the Amida-kyo, the Buddha Sakyamuni describes the Western Paradise;

...the gorgeous palaces, parks and gardens; the gem trees made of gold, silver, crystal and coral; the fragrant flowers and luscious fruits; the rivers and lotus lakes with their perfumed water that is either hot or cold as desired for bathing; the delightful soothing sounds of birds and angelic singers.

The central image is derived from Chinese depictions of the same scene dating to the Tang dynasty.  The Buddha Amida is seated on an elaborate lotus throne with the bodhisattvas Kannon and Seishi, also seated on lotus thrones, on either side.  The three figures, painted in fine outlines of red ink and coloured with gold pigment, are flanked by a host of bodhisattvas and lesser deities.  In the foreground is an elaborate depiction of a lotus pond with souls being reborn from the lotus flowers.  The souls who have just entered the Pure Land are greeted by Amida on the left and right-hand sides.

A pair of handscrolls in the collection, depicting the legends of the Yuzu Nembutsu ('Nembutsu in Communion' or 'Circulating Nembutsu') sect, are based on a similar pair dating to the early fourteenth century, now in The Cleveland Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago.  The paintings take as their subject the founder of the Yuzu Nembutsu sect, the monk Ryonin (1072-1132), who was originally a priest of the Tendai sect and taught that individuals could attain rebirth in the Western Paradise by merely chanting Amida's name (nembutsu).  The detail in Figure 11, from the second scroll, illustrates the following tale:

In Tang China, a certain Fang Zhu of Daizhou was taken to the court of the King of Hell after he died.  This Fang Zhu had once solicited an old man (to chant Amida's name) and had thus enabled him to be reborn in the Buddha's Land.  It is said that he, therefore, was turned back from the underworld being assured of his admission to the Pure Land.

Fang Zhu and two other small figures are seated on the ground, surrounded by the enormous Kings of Hell and their demon attendants.  To the right is a large flaming cauldron with lotus flowers emerging from the boiling water, symbolizing the saving of souls from hell through Buddhist faith.

One of the finest paintings in the collection is a fourteenth-century Shinto Buddhist scroll depicting the Kasuga Shrine in Nara (Fig. 12), founded in 709 as an ancestral shrine of the Fujiwara clan.  A tall torii gate stands at the entrance to the precincts, and in the upper background is Mount Mikasa.  Stylized white clouds and bands of mist appear throughout the scroll, painted in white gofun pigment.

The primary buildings, four shrines built in the traditional Shinto style with thatched roofs and crossed ornamens over the ridge beams, can be seen at the upper left in a courtyard surrounded by a covered gallery.  In the courtyard are the Buddhist deities Shaka, Miroku, Yakushi, Jizo and Juichimen Kannon (Eleven-headed Avalokitevara), each dressed in gold robes and standing on open lotus flowers.  The depiction of the deities directly in front of the Shinto shrines is unusual among surviving Kasuga shrine paintings.

The 'Events in the Life of Kobo Daishi' is one of the best-preserved Kamakura period narrative handscrolls in American collections.  In the classic Yamato-e style, it depicts key events in the life of Kukai (Kobo Daishi; 774-835), the founder of the esoteric Shingon sect.  In its original state the scroll included at least ten scenes, several of which are now in private Japanese collections.  The detail in Figure 13, shows Kukai as a young boy seated on a lotus flower.  In front of him are three bodhisattvas painted in gold, also seated on lotus flowers.  The brilliant azurite and malachite pigments painted over the ink lines of the landscape elements and architecture are typical of the Yamato-e style.

Another exceptionally fine painting of this type is a section of a narrative handscroll that tells the story of the founding of the Jin'oji, a Buddhist temple located southwest of Osaka (Fig. 14).  The temple was founded by the monk En-no-Gyoja in the seventh century, and became the centre of the Buddhist Shugendo cult of yamabushi ('monks who slept in the mountains').  The Academy's section, which is the sixth scene from the original handscroll, depicts the monk in an encounter with a Buddhist guardian deity, Hosho Gongen.

The scene takes place in the Korean kingdom of Silla, to which En-no-Gyoja was dispatched by the Shinto kami of the Jin'oji site, Jinushi Myojin.  The hermit is shown soliciting aid for the founding of the temple; in the next scene, now in the Mary and Jackson Burke Collection, New York, Hosho Gongen appears in the air at the Jin'oji.

Figure 15 illustrates the tale of Zegaibo, a tengu or goblin, which in medieval Japan were believed to be half man and half bird.  The story depicted here had its origins in the twelfth century or earlier, and is recorded in the Fujiwara period compendium of folk-tales entitled Konjaku Monogatari-shu.  Zegaibo was an evil tengu from China whose aim was to lead the clergy of Japan away from their devotion to Buddhism.  On Mount Hiei he meets Nichirabo, leader of the Japanese tengu, and disguises himself as an elderly priest in an attempt to ambush the leading clerics of Mount Hiei as they descend the mountain.  Because of the power of these priests, however, Zegaibo fails and is physically and morally beaten.  The scene in Figure 15 depicts the tengus' farewell feast for Zegaibo as he prepares to return to China, having been converted to Buddhism.

The Academy's small collection of Zen images includes a hanging scroll by kano Isen'in (1775-1828) depicting the Buddha Sakyamuni, Confucius and the Daoist sage Laozi around a large vat of vinegar (Fig. 16).  Each dips a finger into the vinegar, tastes it and puckers his mouth because of the strong taste--an illustration of the Zen doctrine that Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism are all equally significant, and that all three are but different means to the same end.

The collection of Japanese Buddhist painting and woodblock prints in the Honolulu Academy of Arts is exceptional in that it represents each of the major schools and many of the key functions of visual images in Buddhist practice.  The historical development of the Japanese Buddhist tradition is brilliantly reflected in works imbued with a profound faith and exemplifying the highest levels of artistic creation.