Weizheng Riding on an Ox
1687
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1687
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Weizheng Riding on an Ox is a 1687 unspecified by Yamaguchi Sekkei, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
A man rides backward on a water buffalo, reading a scroll as the animal walks through misty hills. The scene is simple—just black ink on paper—but the brushwork feels alive, like the wind is moving the grass. This painting shows a Chinese monk from the 1000s, Weizheng, who became a symbol of wisdom in Zen Buddhism. The artist, Yamaguchi Sekkei, often painted religious figures, but here he adds a playful twist: the monk faces away, as if ignoring the world to focus on his book. The calligraphy at the top was added by a Chinese monk who moved to Japan, blending two cultures in one work. To see more quiet, ink-washed scenes like this, look up *Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)*.
The inscription at the top of this painting was brushed by Ōbaku school monk Nanyuan Xingpai (Japanese: Nangen Shōha), a Chinese Buddhist monk who emigrated to Japan in 1654, while the painting was done in ink by Yamaguchi Sekkei, a Japanese painter active in Kyoto who was known for his Buddhist subjects, many of which remain in temples today. The figure here reads a text while riding backward upon a water buffalo. Sekkei's painting depicts the Chinese monk Weizheng (986–1049), also known as "Zheng of the Yellow Ox" after his favored mount. Nanyuan's inscription is a poem about the monk.
The Ōbaku lineage of the Zen school of Buddhism in Japan is named for Mount Huangbo (Japanese: Ōbaku) in China.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Yamaguchi Sekkei (Japanese: 山口雪渓) also known as Yamaguchi Sōsetsu (山口宗雪) (1644/48, Kyoto - 22 October 1732, Kyoto) was a Japanese artist of the middle Edo period. He sometimes went under the names Baian (梅庵) or Hakuin (白隠).
See the richer artist page
