National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

The priest Myōkū (dates unknown) is shown here wearing a black surplice over a black robe while holding Buddhist prayer beads in his hands. He is seated on a tatami mat edged with colored bands backed by a large partition which rests on a platform. The sutra desk in front of him holds the three main Pure Land sutras. These are the Longer Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Skt. Sukhāvatīvyūha sūtra), the Contemplation Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Ch. Guan Wuliangshou jing) and the Amida Sutra (Skt. Amitābha sūtra). The portrait offers a vivid rendering of Myōkū’s facial features, presenting the figure with a large nose, pursed lips, and high cheekbones. The line work and use of color reflect a skilled and professional execution.

Adherents to the True Pure Land sect (Jōdo Shinshū) produced many large portraits with similar compositions of the sect’s patriarchs, and though they date somewhat later, portraits in the same style have been preserved at Kōrinji Temple in Kyoto, Kōyōji Temple in Osaka, and Hōden-in Temple in Hiroshima. The ink inscription in the rectangular inset in the upper section has largely flaked off over the years, rendering it mostly indecipherable. However, the phrase 必得往生 (“assured rebirth”) can be made out, suggesting the inscription is an excerpt from Notes on the Inscriptions on Sacred Scrolls (J. Songō shinzō meimon) by the priest Shinran (1173–1263) that is comprised of eight lines starting with the phrase 言南無者 (“I devote myself fully”), which is itself a quote from writings by the Chinese priest Shandao (613–681).

To the viewer’s right, there is a narrow section with an ink inscription labeling the portrait “Priest Myōkū.” Little is known about Myōkū’s life. Some scholars believe Myōkū was the Kamakura shogunate’s vassal Miura Tanemura (1225–1297), who joined the Buddhist priesthood when the Miura clan was wiped out in Hōji 1 (1247) to become Shinran’s disciple and later found Kōmyōji Temple in Ojima, Shimotsuma, Hitachi Province (now Ibaraki Prefecture). Another theory suggests Myōkū was the founder of Busshinji Temple in Shiga Prefecture, described as “the nun Zenmyō—Myōkū” in the List of Disciples of the Venerable Priest Shinran. This portrait was preserved at Busshinji Temple.