- Gallery Text
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The Buddhist karmic cycle allows humans to generate merit over the course of their mortal lives, ultimately leading to enlightenment and rebirth in a higher spiritual realm. Written by those involved in the creation of the sculpture, the prayers shown here are devotional vows to observe the Buddhist way. The prayer at top left is signed by a nun named Kenkai. At top right, the three prayers written on a single piece of paper in three different hands are signed by nuns named Shōgan, Shunchi, and Kangyō. The prayers written on the sheet mounted at the bottom are dated to the ninth day of the fifth month of the year 1292.
Translation of Kenkai’s prayer (top left):
We take refuge in the Honorable Śākyamuni.
Our wish for our future lives is that
whether reborn in good or evil places,
we will never forget our aspiration to achieve Bodhi-wisdom.
—
Nun Kenkai
- Identification and Creation
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- Object Number
- 2019.122.11
- Title
- Four Sheets of Paper inscribed with Religious Texts, Poems, Charms [mounted on a board]
- Classification
- Calligraphy
- Work Type
- calligraphy
- Date
- Kamakura period, datable to circa 1292
- Places
- Creation Place: East Asia, Japan
- Period
- Kamakura period, 1185-1333
- Culture
- Japanese
- Persistent Link
- https://hvrd.art/o/96824
- Physical Descriptions
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- Medium
- Ink on paper
- Dimensions
- H. 30.5 x W. 40.6 cm (12 x 16 in.)
- Provenance
- [Yamanaka Shoji Co., Ltd, Awata Kyoto (1936)], sold; to Ellery Sedgwick, Beverly, MA, (1936-1960), passed; to his wife, Marjorie Russell, Beverly, MA (1960-1971), inherited; by Ellery Sedgwick, Jr., Gates Mills, Ohio, (1971-1991), inherited; by Walter Sedgwick, Woodside, CA, (1991-2019), partial and promised gift; to the Harvard Art Museums.
- Acquisition and Rights
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- Credit Line
- Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Partial and promised gift of Walter C. Sedgwick in memory of Ellery Sedgwick Sr. and Ellery Sedgwick Jr.
- Object Number
- 2019.122.11
- Division
- Asian and Mediterranean Art
- Contact
- am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
- The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request.
- Publication History
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John M. Rosenfield, The Sedgwick Statue of the Infant Shotoku Taishi, Archives of Asian Art (1968-1969), Vol. XXII / pp. 56-79
- Exhibition History
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Prince Shōtoku: The Secrets Within, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 05/25/2019 - 08/11/2019
- Related Works
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This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu