Artwork Page for Sacred Name of Tenjin

Details / Information for Sacred Name of Tenjin

Sacred Name of Tenjin

1500s

Sakugen Shūryō

(Japanese, 1501–1579)
Culture
Japan, Muromachi period (1392–1573)
Medium
hanging scroll; ink on paper
Measurements
Overall: 105.4 x 18.4 cm (41 1/2 x 7 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift from the Collection of George Gund III 2015.508
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print

Description

The story emerged in the early 1300s that the kami Tenjin had traveled to China and achieved enlightenment under a famous Buddhist meditation master. Paintings of the subject as well as written invocations of Tenjin’s name were highly valued by the monks of Japan’s Zen Buddhist communities, to which an invocation of Tenjin’s name brushed by Zen monk Sakugen Shūryō attests. Sakugen was both a poet and an official envoy to Ming China in the 1500s. Creating calligraphies of deities’ names was akin to painting religious icons.
A hanging scroll features a vertical column of bold black ink calligraphy on tan paper. Large, flowing characters with varying thicknesses run down the center, displaying textured brushstrokes that reveal the paper beneath. A blue and gold patterned border frames the scroll. Near the bottom left, smaller calligraphic characters and two red square seals are visible. The energetic brushwork dominates the entirety of the long, vertical composition.

Sacred Name of Tenjin

1500s

Sakugen Shūryō

(Japanese, 1501–1579)
Japan, Muromachi period (1392–1573)

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

Contact Us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please fill out the appropriate request form linked below:

Update or Correct Artwork Information

Imagery or Rights for Non-Open-Access Artworks

Report a Website Issue

Further Questions About This Artwork