Amida Triad in the Form of Sacred Sanskrit Syllables
Not on view
As belief in Amida’s Western Pure Land became widespread in the Kamakura period, small embroideries like this one were produced for personal devotional practices. In this scroll, the Sanskrit characters of Amida’s name—as well as those of his attendant bodhisattvas Kannon and Seishi—stand in for pictures of the deities. The needleworker substituted human hair for silk thread in the Sanskrit, a common practice for scrolls used during deathbed rituals, when prayers were offered for a worshipper’s safe rebirth in Amida’s paradise. Inscriptions at the top explain the core beliefs of Pure Land Buddhism: Amida’s light illuminates the entire world and the recitation of his name will ensure that no one is left behind in the journey to his paradise. The scroll is purposefully designed to evoke an altar set with offerings so one could worship without setting up a physical shrine.
On view for rotation 1
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