Myoshinji Temple: Characters - Kanzan

JAPAN, Kyoto; Kamakura period

This calligraphic work was written by Zen Master Shuho Myocho when he was 48 years old. Shuho, a master of the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism, was known to have attained sudden realization while working on one of Master Yunmen’s famous one word “barrier” gong’ans; these cases were known as “guan” in Chinese and “kan” in Japanese. When his disciple, Egen, inquired about the case, Shuho presented him with a gong’an asking, “How will we improve upon our school?” Egen struggled for some time before stating “kan” as his one word answer to the question. Pleased with the wit of this response and the realization attained by his student, Shuho bestowed the name “Kanzan” (Barrier Mountain) upon Egen and scripted the two characters of the name with an accompanying verse. The piece was listed as a National Treasure in 1952.
The two large characters of “Kanzan” appear across the top of the page in an arrangement that abandons stylistic flourishes in favor of a conventional and balanced presentation. In contrast, the smaller characters of the verse, composed in eight lines spread unevenly along the bottom half of the paper, are spontaneous and somewhat unrestrained, albeit appearing natural. The combination of these diverging styles enhance the beauty of the work. Additionally, the thought-provoking nature of the verse adds to its profound meaning and artistic value.