Page 227 - Edo: Art in Japan, 1615–1868

114 115 116
Scenes of Hell Shôun Genkei (1648-1710) Kano Kazunobu (1815 -1863)
Two Rakan Fiue Hundred Rakan
c. 1849
Two hanging scrolls from a set; ink c. 1695 c. 1854-1863
and color on paper Wood Two hanging scrolls from a set;
3
Each 157 x 87 (61 /4 x 3474) Height 85 (33 V 2 ) ink and color on silk
7
Chôtokuji, Tokyo Rakanji, Tokyo Each 172.3 x 85.8 (67 /8 x 332/4)
Zójóji, Tokyo
Illustrated page 208 Illustrated page 209
• The cult of the Five Hundred Rakan,
• Buddhist paintings such as these • Paintings of rakan, disciples of the
(rokudóe), which depict the ways in Buddha, became popular in China described in the previous entry,
22 6 which sentient beings are doomed during the Song (960 -1126) and Yuan was expressed in painting as well as
sculpture. Early Japanese depictions
to be reborn according to their deeds (1279-1368) dynasties and were then
during their lifetime, served as useful copied in Japan. Sets of sixteen, eigh- of rakan relied heavily on Chinese
painting models, but in the Edo period
didactic tools for the instruction of teen, and five hundred rakan were greater experimentation took place.
the believer. Usually made in sets of often depicted in painting and sculp-
six, the two scrolls seen here are ture. In Japan the cult of the Five That rakan were traditionally shown
in landscape settings or interiors
from a set of five, though it is known Hundred Rakan was especially popu- with objects of daily life allowed the
from a donation inscription on the lar during the Edo period, indicating
artist to break away from convention
back that there were originally six. those described in the Lotus Sutra who to a greater extent than with other
The inscription is dated 1849, thus achieved instantaneous enlightenment Buddhist subjects.
the scrolls were probably produced upon hearing the Buddha preach at
shortly before that time. Vulture Peak in India. The popularity In these two scrolls rakan peer down
of the rakan was partly due to their on two of the "six realms" of transmi-
These two scrolls both depict aspects foreign appearance (large noses and gration, the denizens of hell (left) and
of the Buddhist hells. The right one prominent foreheads) and super-
includes such traditional scenes as normal powers. fighting demons (right). In the hell the
the unfortunates beseech
scenes
the King of Hell deciding on the sever- rakan with outstretched arms for de-
ity of a person's punishment (center An array of rakan sculpture displayed
liverance from the fearsome flaming
left) and the "black rope" or tightrope within a temple hall was popularized breath of dragons and serpents. In the
hell (at top). In the other the King of by monks of the Obaku sect, the last other scroll the rakan gaze down with
Hell is shown at the top, while hap- Zen sect to reach Japan from China, varying expressions reflecting their
less souls are tormented by dragons in the seventeenth century. The two highly individualistic responses to the
and ogres at the bottom. sculptures seen here are from what violent scenes of carnage below.
was the largest Obaku Zen temple in
Although these paintings are not by Edo, called Rakanji or Gohyaku Rakanji. Kano Kazunobu was born and raised
a highly trained painter, their very Of the original 500 nearly life-sized in Edo and trained in the Kano school.
lack of refinement and sophistication, sculptures, 305 still remain today, These paintings, his greatest works,
together with their contrasting inky arranged in two six-tier groupings were produced late in his life between
black background and startling crim- flanking the temple's central image 1854 and 1863. In their shading and
son, yellow, blue and green pigments, of Shaka preaching the Lotus Sutra on modeling techniques and use of van-
imparts a power to shock that is Vulture Peak. One can easily imagine ishing point perspective, they reveal a
perfectly suited to the subject matter. the powerful effect such an over- heavy influence from western paint-
They are closely related in spirit to whelming presence would have stirred ing, which combines well with the
the eruptions of folk Buddhism and
in the viewer in the Edo period. intentional foreignness of the rakans'
other religious movements common expression, producing a weirdly suc-
among the masses at the end of the Shôun Genkai was the son of a Bud- cessful, if slightly disturbing, amal-
Edo period. RTS dhist sculptor in Kyoto. He became gam. For this, and for the sheer ambi-
a monk and was so moved by an tion of the entire project, this set of
assemblage of Rakan sculpture at a paintings constitutes a prime ex-
temple in Kyushu that he pledged to ample of a very late Edo religious
devote the rest of his life to carving expression. RTS
such works. It took him nearly four
years to complete the group of Five
Hundred Rakan to which these two
belong. RTS