Ingen Ryūki. "Sakyamuni". c. 1670. Gift of the Kimiko and John Powers Collection in Honor of Ronald Otsuka. 2014.172.

mount height: 56 3/8 in, 143.1925 cm; mount width: 12 7/8 in, 32.7025 cm; image height: 26 1/8 in, 66.3575 cm; image width: 9 3/4 in, 24.7650 cm; overall width: 15 in, 38.1 cm

calligraphy and two red stamps at left; top right one red stamp

Arts of Asia

Arts of Asia

Ingen Ryūki
born Yinyuan Longqi in China, 1592–1673
Shakyamuni Buddha
About 1670, Edo period (1615–1868)
Ink on paper
Gift of the Kimiko and John Powers Collection in honor of Ronald Otsuka
2014.172

Born in China, Ingen immigrated to Japan in 1654 and established the Ōbaku sect of Zen Buddhists. In addition to bringing a contemporary style of Chinese calligraphy to Japan, Ōbaku monks introduced other aspects of Chinese Ming dynasty culture, like temple architecture, a type of vegetarian cuisine, and sencha tea. Forbidden to travel outside their country, the Japanese who encountered Ōbaku Zen Buddhists generally appreciated the access that they provided to current Chinese culture. The four large characters write out the Japanese for Shakyamuni Buddha, the Sanskrit name of the historical founder of Buddhism.