“The Hunchbacked Monk” from <i>Diseases and Deformities</i> 病草紙断簡(せむしの乞食法師)やまいのそうしだんかん(せむしのこつじきほうし)

Description

<i>Diseases and Deformities</i> (<i>Yamai no sōshi</i>) is a handscroll depicting people suffering from rare ailments and their symptoms. This segment features a severely hunchbacked beggar monk walking toward the left, a pilgrim’s staff in hand. The monk’s neck has stiffened in a position that makes him unable to raise his head, forcing him to walk with his head down all the time. This posture subjected him to ridicule from those around him. <i>Diseases</i> is believed to be a pictorial representation of strange illnesses resulting from past life karma, as taught in Buddhist scriptures. Its artistic style greatly resembles that of Tokiwa Mitsunaga, a painter who worked under Retired Emperor Goshirakawa (1127–92) in the late 12th century. Mitsunaga created the <i>Hell Scroll</i> (<i>Jigoku-zōshi</i>; National Treasure, Tokyo National Museum) and the <i>Stories of Hungry Ghosts</i> (<i>Gakki-zōshi</i>; National Treasure, Kyoto National Museum). As such, it is highly likely that <i>Diseases</i> was also painted at the same time and place as those works. Along with several other segments (including the National Treasure at Kyoto National Museum), this was once part of a single handscroll that had been passed down by the Sekido family in Nagoya. It has since been remounted into its current form as a hanging scroll.

<Translated by Rachel Lam, Edited by Sheila Ryan>