Todaiji Temple: Master Jiaxiang Jizang

JAPAN, Nara; Kamakura period

This is one of 18 portraits of the patriarchs of Three Treatise school kept in the monastic quarters of Todaiji Temple. It was listed as an Important Cultural Property in 1959. Master Jiaxiang Jizang was a monk during the Sui dynasty (581–618). He was born in Jinling (present day Nanjing, Jiangsu), and being a descendant of the Parthians, he was given the alias Hu Jizang. He later recieved the name Jiaxiang after Jiaxiang Jizang Temple in Huiji (present day Shaoxing, Zhejiang), where he often gave talks and composed writings. Jiaxiang successfully systematized and spread the teachings of the Three Treatise school. His Korean disciple, the monk Hyegwan of the Goguryeo dynasty (37 BCE–668 CE), was the first to bring these teachings to Japan.
Jiaxiang Jizang stands alone, wearing a patched monastic robe and holding an incense burner with both hands. He is turned slightly to one side and gazes off into the distance. The robe and the face are depicted with fine lines and colored with a gentle wash. Inscriptions are written in the upper corners.