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Bestowing the Buddhist Name “Fumyō”

1425
Not on view
The two large characters brusquely brushed at the top of this scroll read fumyō, literally “not marvelous.” The Zen master Ichidon Shōzui bestowed this Buddhist moniker on Jumyō, an attendant monk at Kenchōji Temple whose original name meant “longevity and marvelousness”.

By citing various Buddhist sources concerning the term myō, or “marvelous,” Ichidon pointed out to Jumyō that attaining such a level of enlightenment was perhaps beyond his current capacity as a pupil. He advised that Jumyō, instead, commit to achieving a more fundamental fumyō stage of Zen practice, aimed at breaking down an overly rational, dichotomous manner of thinking.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • 一曇聖瑞筆　不妙号説
  • Title: Bestowing the Buddhist Name “Fumyō”
  • Artist: Ichidon Shōzui (Japanese, 1394–1428)
  • Period: Muromachi period (1392–1573)
  • Date: 1425
  • Culture: Japan
  • Medium: Hanging scroll; ink on paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 36 1/8 in. × 14 in. (91.8 × 35.6 cm)
    Overall with mounting: 67 1/4 × 14 1/2 in. (170.8 × 36.8 cm)
  • Classification: Calligraphy
  • Credit Line: Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, 2021
  • Object Number: 2021.398.9
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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