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

Grazing Ox depicts the tranquil scene of an ox quietly gazing on the grass near willow trees that are blowing in the cool mountain breeze with a house beside an expansive lake. The composition appears to convey the hope for peace and harmony, as cows symbolize tranquility.
The last line inscribed on the left reads, “Temple Secretary Bunsei’s Ox Painting,” indicating that this painting was by a Zen monk named Bunsei. Little else is known of the painter, except that he was a longtime attendant of Nankô Sôgen, one of the several inscribers of this painting. Nankô, also a Zen monk, later returned to secular life and was active in Kawachi and Izumi Provinces (present-day Osaka Prefecture). He was affiliated with prominent monks such as Ikkyû Sôjun of Daitoku-ji and Kôzei Ryûha and Shinden Seiha of Ken’nin-ji Temple, the latter two of whose inscriptions also appear on this painting.