Interview with Matthew Welch
Curator of Korean and Japanese Art
1. What kind of figure is this?
This is a bodhisattva known as Jizo (pronunciation: "jee-ZOH"). In the Buddhist pantheon, a bodhisattva is a divine being who is fully enlightened, but who forestalls his passage into nirvana in order to help others achieve enlightenment. So such deities are typically depicted as extremely compassionate beings but often—unlike Buddhas, who wear simple monastic robes, often no jewelry, and very simply dressed hair—Bodhisattvas will be shown in human-looking garb, jewelry, diadems, and other trappings that suggest their attachment to life on earth.
Jizo became particularly popular in China and also in Japan, whereas he's not such an important deity in Tibetan Buddhism, Indian Buddhism, Southeast Asia, and so on.
This image of Jizo is a particularly beautiful rendition of the deity, and one of the highlights of the collection here at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
2. What are Jizo's distinguishing characteristics—as distinct from those of other Bodhisattvas?
Jizo is a deity who is dedicated to helping those souls condemned to the torments of Hell.
In Japan, he is typically depicted as a young monk who carries a long walking staff.(1) Some painted images of Jizo show him lowering the staff into the depths of Hell, allowing languishing souls—depicted as small naked figures—to clamor up the staff and presumably to salvation.
He also holds in his other hand what looks like a small ball.(2) In fact, it's a Buddhist wish-granting jewel. On one level, this jewel represents spiritual wealth—the treasure of Buddhism. On another level, it symbolizes the deity's power to answer the prayers of languishing souls.
3. Who made it, and when?
It dates to the 13th century and is carved in the elegant and super-refined style of sculptors associated with the Kei School active in the cities of Nara and Kyoto at that time. The reason this school came to the fore was that many of the great Buddhist temples and the sculptures that they contained had been destroyed in the warfare at the end of the preceding era. And so artists of the Kei School were commissioned to create a large number or Buddhist images to replace those that had been lost. Consequently, many of their works are smaller, but often they're exquisitely formed.
4. You've talked about what he's holding. Tell us about some of the other details.
One of the wonderful things about this image of Jizo is that it's complete. That is, often the statue has been detached from its base.
Just like with other Buddhist deities, compassionate beings are often shown standing or sitting on a lotus blossom—a symbol of purity. But in this case, the swirling white stuff that you see around the lotus blossom is meant to represent clouds.
So, in fact, it animates this sculpture, in that it's meant to represent Jizo descending from the heavens—actually floating down on the clouds—on his way to the Netherworld to help languishing souls.
5. What kind of condition is it in?
Well, the other aspect of this image that's particularly wonderful for us as a museum is its state of preservation. It's suffered very little damage other than darkening with age.
One aspect that's particularly beautiful is the so-called kiri-kane (pronunciation: "KEE-dee-KAH-nay") or "cut gold" that remains. Japanese artisans would pipe very thin threads of paste or glue onto the surface of the image, and then lay a single sheet of gold leaf over the paste. Next, they very carefully cut away all the gold that doesn't adhere to the glue. This sounds like a simple process, but in fact if you examine this sculpture closely, you'll see that it's done with just remarkable finesse. Very, very minute and thin threads of paste and gold create these wonderful decorations on the robes of this deity.
6. Tell us more about the other materials—the wood, for example.
Almost all Buddhist wood sculpture in Japan is produced from Japanese cypress, known as hinoki (pronunciation: "hee-NOH-kee"). The reason for the Japanese preference for hinoki is that it is a very soft, easily carved wood that is virtually sapless once it has cured.
After carving an image, artisans typically covered them with several layers of a gesso-like paste made from crushed and powdered shells. This helps stabilize the surface and provides a smooth ground for applying pigments.
7. Can you say more about who Jizo is?
While Jizo's official role in Buddhism is to save souls from the torments of Hell, in Japan he is also worshipped on a popular level as a savior of the souls of deceased children or unborn children lost to miscarriage. So mothers who have lost children often offer prayers to this deity. It is a fairly common sight in Japan to see roughly carved stone images along the roadways draped with children's clothes or small bibs.(5) These simple statues are erected and dressed by women and grandmothers in hopes that Jizo will attend to the souls of lost children.
8. Can you remind us how Buddhas and Bodhisattvas differ?
Bodhisattvas are fully enlightened deities who forestall their own passage into nirvana in order to help sentient souls to achieve salvation—or at least to follow the Buddha's law. Buddhas, on the other hand, have passed beyond the realm of the living. Having achieved enlightenment, they have passed into nirvana—a state beyond the cycle of death and rebirth associated with life on earth. As such, Buddhas are awe-inspiring examples of the efficacy of the Buddha's teachings, but are also removed from the mundane concerns of humankind. Consequently, artists portray Buddhas as somewhat reserved and withdrawn, seemingly deep in meditation, whereas they depict bodhisattvas as compassionate beings in human-looking garb, jewelry, and crowns that suggest their attachment to life on earth and to helping floundering souls.
9. You mentioned the artists as being from the "Kei" school.
Yes, they are particularly known for the exquisite refinement of their carving and finishing of sculpture. The drapery falls in very soft folds, and the hem of the sleeves delicately ripples, as if a gossamer fabric is moving in the breeze.(6) The application of kirikane—or cut-gold—patterns is astonishingly precise. There are little floral sprays and clouds rendered in this technique on the robes of the museum's Jizo. Despite the small size, the sculptor carved openings for the eyes and backed them with bits of glass, giving the realistic impression of moist eyes. Even the lotus pedestal on which Jizo stands is not just a lotus, but a fanciful, multi-petaled blossom with each of the petals meticulously ridged and elegantly shaped.(7) It is this level of craftsmanship that characterized the work by Kei school artists.