Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains
Ink and color on silk
Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains
CHINA; Southern Song dynasty
This painting of Sakyamuni leaving behind ascetic life was listed as a National Treasure of Japan in 2007. It is signed by Liang Kai, a Southern Song dynasty artist who was known for painting with fine, cutting strokes. Sakyamuni walks alone in front of a distant mountain. He has an emaciated body, long eyebrows, and a full beard. The folds on his monastic robe are depicted with dense lines and dark shading. In the foreground, there are rocks and delicately painted dead trees. The bright figure of the Buddha within the dark, somber landscape suggests that enlightenment is not necessarily sought in deep mountains, but within one’s mind.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H, page 65.
Cite this article:
Hsingyun, et al. "Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains." Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H, vol. 14, 2016, pp. 65.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Youlu, Graham Wilson, Manho, Mankuang, and Susan Huntington. 2016. "Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains" In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H, 14:65.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Youlu, Wilson, G., Manho, Mankuang, & Huntington, S.. (2016). Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains. In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H (Vol. 14, pp. 65).
@misc{Hsingyun2016,
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Youlu and Wilson, Graham and Manho and Mankuang and Huntington, Susan,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H},
pages = 65,
title = {{Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains}},
volume = 14,
year = {2016}}
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Youlu and Wilson, Graham and Manho and Mankuang and Huntington, Susan,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Painting A-H},
pages = 65,
title = {{Ascetic Sakyamuni Emerging from the Mountains}},
volume = 14,
year = {2016}}