"The Former Deeds of Bodhisattva Medicine King," Chapter 23 of the Lotus Sutra (Hokekyō)
Late Heian period, c. 1150
Description
Of the numerous sutras (Buddhist texts) brought to Japan, the Lotus Sutra (Japanese: Myōhō-renge-kyō; Sanskrit: Saddharma-pundarika sutra) became the most popular and influential. Revered above all others for the salvation it promised to all who recited, recopied, or even ruminated upon it, the Lotus Sutra became a focus of worship for generations of pious Japanese Buddhists. Reading from top to bottom and right to left, this hanging scroll displays a section of the twenty-third chapter of the sutra, which was originally mounted in the horizontal handscroll format. The extant text lists the disease-curing blessings promised to all who worship the Lotus Sutra and ends with the title. The sumptuous paper on which it is written exemplifies a Japanese fascination with sprinkled gold and silver decoration that found its ultimate expression in maki-e (sprinkled design) lacquer. Delicately painted lotus plants line the upper and lower edges of the composition. The lotus is the international symbol of the Buddhist faith, signifying the beauty and purity of the Buddha's teachings despite their origins in this impure world of illusions.
Dimensions
handscroll fragment only: H. 25 x W. 44 cm (9 13/16 x 17 5/16 in.) mounting, including cord and roller ends: 109.2 x 63.5 cm (43 x 25 in.)
Provenance
Mrs. Donald F. Hyde, New York (by 1977), gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1977.
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