Chan Story

CHINA; Southern Song dynasty

This painting depicts a dialogue between a Chan master and a lay disciple. The inclusion of the vase on the rock in front of the master suggests that this is an illustration of a Chan story in which Li Ao, a Langzhou government official from the Tang dynasty (618–907), requests a teaching from Chan Master Yaoshan Weiyan. According to the Transmission of the Lamp, Li Ao asked Master Weiyan, “What is the path?” Weiyan pointed to the sky and then to a vase. As Li still did not understand, Weiyan replied, “Clouds are in the sky, while water is in the vase.”
In the painting, the Chan master sits on a rock with a vase beside him. An official stands before him, joining his hands within his sleeves in a sign of respect. This simple and unadorned painting is thought to date from the early Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279).