No Amida in the South, second half 18th century
Kan Tenjūexpand_more
Ink on paperexpand_more
Gift of the Clark Center for Japanese Art & Cultureexpand_more 2013.29.1013
On View in Gallery APSexpand_more
A skeptic of Buddhism, Kan humorously plays with the literal interpretation on the phonetic translation of a Sanskrit Buddhist chant, namu amida butsu (“I take refuge in Amitābha Buddha”) to indicate his doubts about this religion. He writes that as the Amitābha Buddha is neither in the North nor the South, Buddhism is a practice in vain. Kan’s cursive brush visibly thins out starting from “No Amida in the north;” we might ascribe this physical fading to his mild uncertainty and caution for altering the standard chant. Accompanying Tenju’s criticism of Buddhism in the final two clauses, his writing
also suddenly becomes visibly looser and less inhibited.
南無阿彌佛 北無阿彌佛 南北維過
去 畢竟無這物
No Amida in the south
No Amida in the north;
South and North certainly exist
But there is no such thing [as Buddha]
Original chant:
南無阿弥陀仏
I take refuge in Amitābha Buddha
Details
- Title
- No Amida in the South
- Artist Life
- 1727 - 1795
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2013.29.1013
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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