Poetic Phrases
(a, right) Mu'an Xingtao (Mokuan Shōtō) Chinese
(b, center) Feiyin Tongrong (Hiin Tsūyō) Chinese
(c, left) Jifei Ruyi (Sokuhi Nyoitsu) Chinese
Not on view
The semi-cursive calligraphy on the flanking scrolls, featuring thick, curvilinear strokes, were brushed by by Mu’an (Mokuan), the second-generation abbot of Manpukuji, on the right, and his peer Jifei (Sokuhi), on the left. Both were esteemed Chan (Zen) monks who traveled to Japan at the invitation of their master Yinyuan (Ingen) to help establish what would become the Ōbaku school.. From right to left, the poems read:
日出天歡喜
At sunrise,
the sky rejoices.
扶桑日正紅
Above the Fusang Tree,
the sun glows red.
The inscribed five-character auspicious verses celebrating the rising sun are symbolic of Japan, known since ancient times as the “Land of the Rising Sun” due to its position east of the Asian mainland. Fusang (Fusō), the legendary tree said to grow where the sun emerges from the eastern waters, has been a poetic alias for Japan itself. The verses carry particular resonance coming from these two Zen prelates who had undertaken the perilous sea journey from China, their calligraphy thus honoring their new homeland.
The center scroll, now mounted as part of the triptych, bears signatures and seals attributing it to Chan master Feiyin (Hiin), who was controversial for his strict verification of Buddhist lineage authenticity. Though he remained in China his entire life, as the teacher of the Ōbaku monks, his calligraphy had been greatly desired in Japan, where his challenged texts, whose original woodblocks were destroyed in China during sectarian disputes, were republished by his disciples.
The inscribed verse comes from the anthology of Hanshan (Kanzan), the Tang dynasty’s eccentric monk-poet who dwelled near Guoqingsi monastery, describing an animated scene of nature:
巖樹舞青煙
Trees on the cliff
sway in the bluish mist.
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