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

　　This is a diagram of a rite praying for rain (shou kyoho) held at the Shinsen’en in Kyoto, hosted by the chief priest of Daigoji Temple Jitsugen (1176–1249) in En’o 2 (1240). The original diagram drawn at that time has been lost and this one is a copy of the original. There is a pond a little above the center of the image, in which there is an island. The swirling current of the pond is drawn in black ink and paints by the opal green. Below the pond (north) are temporary shrines (Kariya) for holding the rites praying for rain and thirteen Buddhist banners (ban) are also drawn there. The image of Kujaku Myoo (Skt. Mahāmāyūrī) was hung as the principal icon of worship in the service. The enlarged banners are drawn again above the pond. Among the old copies of Shinsen’en, some are older than this copy, but none are more elaborate than this one. Thus, it is very valuable as a picture of Shinsen’en, as well as material for understanding a rite praying for rain in the Kamakura period (1185–1333). The red-inked text written at the upper left of the diagram says that this was written by the priest Eison (1201–1290), who was the restorer of Saidaiji Temple in Koan 2 (1279), nearly forty years after the service by Jitsugen. It is uncertain whether Eison really drew it, but there is almost no doubt that he played an important role in the creation of this picture.