Birds in Tree, Xiang Guang, ink and color on gold flecked silk

Birds in Tree

Xiang Guang

Qing dynasty (1644-1912)

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Chapter 46 Beneath the Oak, from the series Lingering Sentiments of a Late Collection of Genji, Utagawa Kunisada, Published by Ebisuya Terifuricho, ink and color on paper, diptych
the standing Buddha Amida accompanied by a choir of 25 celestial attendants--flanked by Kannon and Seishi to welcome a dying individual to the Western Paradise—a Buddhist Pure Land where all will eventually attain enlightenment. The dynamic composition and large scale of the shrine (zushi) bring the full power of loving welcome to console the dying. This format became so popular it has its own name, raigo, denoting a welcoming descent. Two small sculptures of monks are placed on clouds in the interior, close to Amida. The gradient shading of gold on the left figure’s clothing signals this is Zendo (Ch. Shandao; 613–81), a 7th century Chinese monk, whose teachings were revived by the Japanese monk Honen Shonin Eden (1133–1212) as part of his founding of the Jodo religious order. Honen is most likely the monk depicted on the right. The transmission of teachings across time and space from the 7th to the 12th century demonstrated in this shrine.
Birth of Buddha, China, clay, pigment, gold
Pine and Rock, Li Bingshou, ink and color on silk