Special Exhibition

The Art of Zen: From Mind to Form
April 12–May 22, 2016, Heisei Chishinkan Wing

Zen is one of the words most commonly associated with Japan, but in reality it is atradition that originated in India with the First Zen Patriarch Bodhidharma, thought
to have lived in the late 400s and early 500s. From there Zen was transmitted toChina, where it was called Chan, later arriving in Japan during the Kamakura period(1185–1333). Originally Zen priests in Japan were patronized by members of the elite,
including feudal lords and warriors, the aristocracy, and even the imperial family.
Eventually this type of Buddhism spread to all levels of society. Throughout this time, itwielded considerable influence over Japanese culture. Since the twentieth century, thepopularity of Zen has spread to North America, Europe, and beyond.
Two branches of Zen in Japan, Rinzai and Ōbaku, trace their lineages back to theChinese Chan priest Linji Yixuan (J: Rinzai Gigen, died 866). The year 2016 marks the1150th anniversary of Linji’s death; it is also a year of grand rituals honoring the 250th
memorial of the death of Hakuin Ekaku (1685–1768), the Japanese Rinzai Zen priest
who revived the sect in the mid-Edo period. This exhibition The Art of Zen: From Mind toForm, commemorates these two milestones.
Zen places special emphasis on the transmission of Buddhist wisdom throughexperience and intuition, on understanding gained outside of words and text—transmission from heart to heart, teacher to disciple. One of the most cogent lines in
the fundamental Buddhist scripture the Heart Sutra is the phrase “form is nothing but
emptiness, emptiness is nothing but form.” What kind of artistic forms could possibly
express the emptiness grasped by an enlightened mind? This exhibition examines
the profound meanings of artworks produced in association with this sect over thecenturies. It touches upon Chan’s rise in China, investigates how it was transmitted toImportant Cultural Property
Portrait of Linji Yixuan
Inscription by Ikkyū Sōjun (1394–1481)
Attributed to Soga Jasoku
Shinju-an Temple, Kyoto, on view April 12–May 1, 2016

Japan, and attempts to give a comprehensive understanding of Zen’s development andinfluence within this country.
The Arhat Rāhula (Ragora Sonja) fromEighteen Arhats (Rakan)
By Fan Daosheng (Han Dōsei, 1635–1670)
Manpuku-ji Temple, Kyoto

National Treasure
Calligraphy, “Great PerfectEnlightenment” from Calligraphy for
Zen Temple Plaques and Steles
Tōfuku-ji Temple, Kyoto,on view April 12–May 1, 2016

Portrait of Oda Nobunaga, detail
By Kanō Eitoku (1543–1590)
Daitoku-ji Temple, Kyoto,on view April 26–May 22, 2016

Tea Bowl named Ameryū (Rain Dragon)
Rokuon-ji Temple, Kyoto,on view May 3–22, 2016

There are fifteen major Rinzai and Ōbaku Zen temples in Japan today, all of whom
have thrown their full support behind this project. For this reason, the exhibition willfeature a selection unprecedented in quantity and quality of portraits, calligraphy,sculpture, paintings, and decorative or ritual objects, including many of the greatest
masterpieces associated with Zen. There will be several rotations of the galleries inorder to show a total of over 220 works over the course of the exhibition. Over halfof these are registered National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties—a neverbefore assemblage of Japan’s rarest and most significant Zen-related artworks.
The exhibition is divided into five sections, “The Formation of Zen,” “TheIntroduction and Development of Rinzai Zen Buddhism,” “Generals in the Warring
States Period and Zen Priests in the Early Modern Era,” “The Deities of Zen Buddhism,”and “The Spread of Zen Culture.” Together, they provide an extraordinary opportunity
Important Cultural Property
Large Incense Container with Peonies
Nanzen-ji Temple, Kyoto, on view April 12–May 1, 2016

to experience in person the visual forms representing the spirit of Zen.
(By Hada Satoshi, Curator of Calligraphy; translation by Melissa M. Rinne)

Feature Exhibition Commemorating the 400th Memorial of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s DeathThe Tokugawa Shoguns and Kyoto Temples and Shrines
Treasures from Chion-in and Other Temples and Shrines
June 14–July 18, 2016, Galleries 1F-2 and 3

Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542–1616), the first shogun of early modern Japan, is
most closely associated with Edo (present day Tokyo), where he establisheda new military government. Lesser known is the extent to which Ieyasu andother Tokugawa shoguns patronized temples and shrines in Kyoto—longthe stronghold of Ieyasu’s rival warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537–1598).
This exhibition, four hundred years after Ieyasu’s death at age 75, examines
how rulers of the new Tokugawa regime protected and supported religious
institutions in the ancient capital. It introduces this history through important
artworks from Kyoto shrines and temples, especially the major temple ofChion-in, including a pair of seated portrait sculptures of Tokugawa Ieyasu
and his son Hidetada (1579–1632) collectively designated as an Important
Cultural Property in 2014.
(By Ōhara Yoshitoyo, Senior Curator of Buddhist Paintings; translation by Melissa M. Rinne)

Chion-in Temple, Kyoto

Important Cultural Property
Portrait of Tokugawa Ieyasu, Chion-in Temple, Kyoto

Important Cultural Property
Portrait of Tokugawa Hidetada, Chion-in Temple, Kyoto