Stand-in Fugen
late 1700s–early 1800s
Medium
hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions
painting only: 114.3 × 56.2 cm · including mounting: 186.7 × 76.2 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Japanese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
The Kelvin Smith Collection, given by Mrs. Kelvin Smith
Accession Number
1985.277
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
About this artwork
Here, a woman dressed as a man replaces Fugen, a bodhisattva—a being among those considered enlightened in Buddhism—who symbolizes learning as a path to awakening and typically rides an elephant. The painting teaches the lesson of impermanence through the petals falling from the lotus flower the woman holds. It also alludes to the legend of Eguchi, a 12th-century courtesan who, following an encounter with a Buddhist monk-poet called Saigyō, revealed herself to be a manifestation of Fugen.