"Amitabha and the Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas Arriving to Welcome You"

Japanese: 《阿弥陀二十五菩薩来迎図》 - あみだにじゅうごぼさつらいごうず

...The scene in the third section of the second volume, in which the princess is welcomed and goes to paradise, is a large composition that is appropriate for the end of the volume, depicting the Amida sages' arrival. Its composition is very similar to that of the Amida Twenty-Five Bodhisattvas' Arrival, also known as the "Early Arrival" in the Chion-in Temple collection, and the lines that depict the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are drawn smoothly and without delay, suggesting the involvement of a Buddhist sculptor. The Buddhist-like arrival scene, as well as the free-spirited style of each section and the calligraphy of the legend, suggest that the work was created in the mid-13th century. However, the background to the creation of this work may be the belief in the Taima Mandala that began in the Middle Ages, such as the repair of the shrine in the Taima Temple Mandala Hall around that time and the writing of Shokei's "Taima Mandala Engi." ...

From Chion-in Temple

...1639, Important Cultural Property), and past the "Uguisu-bari Corridor" at the rear are the large-scale shoin-style buildings from the early Edo period, the Daihojo and Kohojo (both 1641, Important Cultural Property), which feature sliding screen paintings by the Kano school, as well as the sutra storehouse (1619, Important Cultural Property), which houses the Song edition of the Complete Sutra (5,969 volumes, Important Cultural Property). On the upper level is the temple's oldest building, the Seishi-do Hall (1530, Important Cultural Property), formerly the Goei-do Hall. The temple has many treasures, including paintings, calligraphy, sculptures, and crafts. Among them are the 48-volume "Eden of Honen Shonin" (Kamakura period) that tells the story of the life of the founder of the sect Honen, the "Amida Twenty-five Bodhisattvas Raigo-zu" (Kamakura period), known as "Hayarai-go", the oldest copy of the biography of Prince Shotoku, "Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Tei-setsu" (Heian period), which has long been kept at Kangakuin Temple in Hōryū-ji, and imported works such as the "Bodhisattva's Womb Sutra" (Western Wei period) and the "Dairō Dankyo" (Tang period), all of which have been designated as national treasures. [Tani Naoki]. …

From "Raigo-zu"

...The Genpei War at the end of the Heian period saw a rise in end-of-the-century anxiety, and Pure Land faith entered a new era. The Kamakura period was the heyday of Raigo-zu paintings, and new styles appeared. A representative relic from the period is Chion-in Temple's "Amida Twenty-five Bodhisattvas Raigo-zu," which shows a line of Amida Buddhas descending in a straight line from the edge of the mountain on the left to the residence of the deceased on the lower right, with a natural landscape in the background. Among contemporary works, the style of this kind of diagonal composition to explain the necessity of Raigo was mainstream....

*Some of the terminology used in reference to "Amida and the Twenty-five Bodhisattvas Coming to Welcome You" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

Japanese:

…下巻第3段の姫君が来迎をうけて往生する場面は，巻末にふさわしく阿弥陀聖衆来迎のありさまを大構図にまとめている。その構成は，知恩院所蔵の〈早来迎〉と称される《阿弥陀二十五菩薩来迎図》の系統に酷似しており，仏菩薩を描き出す描線も遅滞なくのびやかに引かれ，絵仏師の参画をも想定させる。この仏画的な来迎場面をはじめ，各段のおおらかな画風や詞書の書風から，制作年代は13世紀中ごろと考えられるが，本作品成立の背景として，そのころの当麻寺曼荼羅堂厨子の修理や，証慧の《当麻曼荼羅縁起》の撰述など，中世に入っての当麻曼荼羅信仰があげられよう。…

【知恩院】より

…1639，重要文化財)，〈鶯張りの廊下〉を経て後方には狩野一門の障壁画を配した江戸初期の大規模な書院造建築の大方丈･小方丈(ともに1641，重要文化財)，また《宋版一切経》(5969帖，重要文化財)を納める経蔵(1619，重要文化財)などがあり，上の段には当院最古の建物で旧御影堂の勢至堂(1530，重要文化財)が建つ。寺宝は絵画，書跡，彫刻，工芸など数多いが，宗祖法然の生涯を48巻にまとめた《法然上人絵伝》(鎌倉時代)，〈早来迎（はやらいごう）〉として知られる《阿弥陀二十五菩薩来迎図》(鎌倉時代)，聖徳太子伝の最古本で永く法隆寺勧学院に蔵せられていた《上宮聖徳法王帝説》(平安時代)，渡来品では《菩薩処胎経（ぼさつしよたいきよう）》(西魏時代)，《大楼炭経（だいろうだんきよう）》(唐時代)がともに国宝に指定されている。【谷直樹】。…

【来迎図】より

…平安末期の源平争乱を境に世紀末的不安はいっそうの高まりを見せ，浄土信仰は新時代を画するが，鎌倉時代は来迎図の盛期であるとともに新しい形式のものが登場した。当代の代表的遺品は知恩院の《阿弥陀二十五菩薩来迎図》で，自然景をバックに阿弥陀仏の一行が向かって左の山の端から右下辺の往生者の邸に直線的に下降する様を表す。当代のものにはこのような斜構図により来迎の必然性を説き示す形式が主流をなす。…

※「《阿弥陀二十五菩薩来迎図》」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について | 情報

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