Hotei
Medium
hanging scroll; ink on paper
Dimensions
85.7 × 35.3 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Japanese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund
Accession Number
1978.48
Tags
male
About this artwork
Hotei is a semilegendary figure who may have lived from the late 800s to the early 900s. He later became prominent in Chan (or Zen, in Japanese) Buddhist literature. He epitomizes the freewheeling figure outside the mainstream monastic system—in which people strive for enlightenment through prescribed methods—who nonetheless attains a high level of spiritual awakening. The inscription warns against seeking enlightenment by conscious effort: Big stomach, gaping garment, Treasures gathered deep in...