Description
The popular, Kamakura Period painting theme of Amida Coming over the Mountain, usually shows the central image of Amida facing forward with both hands held over his breast. This pattern can be seen in the Zenrinji and Konkaikomyoji Amida Coming over the Mountain scrolls. In this scroll, however, Amida comes not over a mountain but across a valley, accompanied by six Bodhisattva attendants. He faces not forwards but to the left, with his right hand raised and his left hand down. <P>Though this posture is atypical of Amida Coming over the Mountain paintings, it is common in other <I>raigozu</I> (Decent of Amida Buddha paintings). Since this work contains no other narrative elements, such as the pious Buddhist on his deathbed awaiting Amida's salvation in the Chion-in <I>raigozu</I> scroll, it can be categorized as a variation on the Amida Coming over the Mountain theme.<P>The composition of this work is well-balanced and its portrayal of the figures is elaborate and reverential. It can be counted among the representative Buddhist paintings of the Kamakura Period.
Data source
ColBase
"ColBase: Integrated Collections Database of the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan" is a service that enables a multi-database search of the collections in the four national museums (To...
Contents holder/Provider
Aggregator
National Institutes for Cultural Heritage
The National Institutes for Cultural Heritage (NICH) comprise four National Museums (Tokyo National Museum, Kyoto National Museum, Nara National Museum, and Kyushu National Museum) and two National Research Institutes for Cultural Properties (Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, and Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties), as well as the International Research Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (IRCI) in Sakai City, for a total of seven institutions.
Last updated
July 20, 2026