Wuzhun Shifan (; Wade-Giles: Wu Chun Shih Fan; 1178–1249) was a Chinese calligrapher, and

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

who lived during the late

Song Dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

(960-1279).

Life

Wuzhun Shifan was born in Zitong,

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...

province, China. He eventually became a Buddhist

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

at the Temple of Mount Jingshan. He was once summoned by

Emperor Lizong of Song Emperor Lizong of Song (26 January 1205 – 16 November 1264), personal name Zhao Yun, was the 14th emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the fifth emperor of the Southern Song dynasty. He reigned from 1224 to 1264. His original name was ...

(理宗; r. 1224-1264) in 1233 in order to share with him the doctrine of Chán (Zen) Buddhism, discussing Dharma with the emperor.Faure, 43. For this Wuzhun was given the title ''Fojian Yuanzhao Chanshi'' (Mirror of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

, Zen Teacher) as well as a gold-embroidered kaśaya that he wears in his portrait painting of 1238. Wuzhun had many disciples who studied under him. This included Enni Ben'en (圓爾辯圓 ; 1201–1280; Shoichi Kokushi), who studied under Wuzhun in China from 1235 to 1241 and later brought Wuzhun's teachings to Japan. Afterwards, Enni helped cement greater acceptance for Zen teaching in Japan and aided in the establishment of the

Tōfuku-ji is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan. Tōfuku-ji takes its name from two temples in Nara, Tōdai-ji and Kōfuku-ji.Japan ReferenceTōfuku-ji/ref> It is one of the Kyoto ''Gozan'' or "five great Zen temples of Kyoto". Its ...

temple of

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

in 1236.

Calligraphy and artwork

Some of Wuzhun's written calligraphy that was handed down to Enni is still preserved on plaques found at Tōfuku-ji, and a scroll of Wuzhun's calligraphy was even presented to the

Tokugawa family The is a Japanese dynasty that was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of this clan r ...

as a gift to the ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamak ...

''. There is also
written letter
of Wuzhun Shifan, dated to 1242, that is now preserved as a national treasure of calligraphy at the

Tokyo National Museum The or TNM is an art museum in Ueno Park in the Taitō ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the four museums operated by the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage ( :ja:国立文化財機構), is considered the oldest national museum in Japan, ...

. Wuzhun Shifan's written inscription appears on the 13th century

Chinese painting Chinese painting () is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as ''guó huà'' (), meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western style ...

''A Monk Riding a Mule'', housed in the Collection of John M. Crawford Jr.Embree, 113. It is possible that he painted the picture, although it is unknown if he is the true author of the artwork. Wuzhun's portrait was painted in 1238 by an anonymous artist, taken to Japan by Enni Ben'en in 1241, and is still located at Tōfuku-ji in Kyoto, Japan.The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei. DVD-ROM, 2002. . Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.Lauer, 31. It has been designated at National Treasure in the category ''paintings''. The painting also bears an inscription penned by Wuzhun Shifan. Bernard Faure writes that it is painted in the Chan priest portrait style, known as ''dingxiang'' or ''zhenxiang'' (Japanese: ''chinzō''). Like others of its style, the Chan monk sits in a lotus posture, donning in full monastic robes, with the monk's shoes placed at a footstool below and his right hand grasping a whisk or staff.Faure, 43–44.

Notes

References

* Embree, Ainslie Thomas (1997). ''Asia in Western and World History: A Guide for Teaching''. Armonk: ME Sharpe, Inc. *Faure, Bernard. (2003). ''Chan Buddhism in Ritual Context''. New York: RoutledgeCurzon. . *Lauer, Uta. (2002). ''A Master of His Own''. Stuttgart: Steiner. .

External links

MOA Museum of ArtTokyo National Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wuzhun, Shifan 1178 births 1249 deaths 11th-century Chinese calligraphers 12th-century Chinese calligraphers Buddhist artists Chan Buddhist monks Chinese Zen Buddhists Song dynasty Buddhist monks Song dynasty calligraphers Song dynasty painters Painters from Sichuan People from Mianyang Zenga

Life

Calligraphy and artwork

See also

Notes

References

External links