Artwork
弥勒菩薩像|Miroku Bosatsu
弥勒菩薩像|Miroku Bosatsu is an ink painting. It dates from 1349 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This hanging scroll, titled Miroku Bosatsu, depicts the Maitreya Bodhisattva using ink, color, and gold on silk.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The scroll depicts Miroku Bosatsu (Sanskrit: Maitreya), the bodhisattva and future Buddha destined to succeed Śākyamuni in a future age.
The scroll depicts Miroku Bosatsu (Sanskrit: Maitreya), the bodhisattva and future Buddha destined to succeed Śākyamuni in a future age. The figure is shown with the bejeweled crown and flowing robes conventional to bodhisattva imagery, attributes aligning with Maitreya's identity as the savior of the next world cycle. The serene expression and refined detailing convey the compassionate, transcendent character of this figure in Kamakura- and Nanbokuchō-period Japanese Buddhist art.
Technique & Style
Created in 1349, the Miroku Bosatsu is a Japanese religious painting in hanging-scroll format. It is executed in ink, color, and gold on a silk support, a medium characteristic of its period and devotional function. Measuring 106.7 cm in height and 47 cm in width, the vertical format is typical of hanging scrolls intended for display.
The work is attributed to an anonymous artist. It depicts the bodhisattva Maitreya using traditional iconographic elements, combining ink outlines with colored and gilded areas to render the figure with clarity and reverence.
History & Provenance
The Miroku Bosatsu hanging scroll, dated 1349, was produced in Japan by an anonymous painter as a Buddhist painting depicting the future Buddha Maitreya. It is executed in ink, color, and gold on silk and measures approximately 106.7 × 47 cm. The work is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; no earlier owners are recorded, and its provenance traces directly to that institution within the mid-14th-century Japanese context.
Overview
This hanging scroll, titled Miroku Bosatsu, depicts the Maitreya Bodhisattva using ink, color, and gold on silk. The central figure is portrayed seated serenely on a cloud, adorned in luminous golden robes. This artwork was created for devotional display within a temple, designed to evoke a sense of spiritual presence and contemplation for worshippers.
Context
This scroll was specifically conceived as a sacred object, intended for veneration within a Buddhist temple rather than exhibition in a gallery. Its aesthetic choices and material composition were carefully selected to foster a profound spiritual connection for devotees. The artwork's design underscores its role in facilitating religious practice and contemplation.
Artist & collection
