Buddhist Painting of Heungguksa Temple (Sixteen Arhats)

Heungguksa Temple, on Yeongchwisan Mountain in Yeosu, was founded in 1195, the 25th year of King Myeongjong of Goryeo, by the State Preceptor Bojo Jinul; it is said to have been named Heungguksa ("temple of the flourishing nation") in the wish that the temple would flourish along with the prosperity of the nation. An arhat, also called a nahan, is a sage who has attained enlightenment through spiritual practice; the Sixteen Arhats of Heungguksa is kept in Eungjindang, the hall dedicated to arhats. The central Yeongsanhoesangtaeng, a painting of the assembly on Vulture Peak, has been lost, and only six panels of the arhat paintings now survive. There are three panels on each side; taking the principal Buddha at the centre as the reference point, the first, third, fifth, seventh, ninth, eleventh, thirteenth and fifteenth arhats are placed on the left, and the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth, twelfth, fourteenth and sixteenth on the right, facing each other in a distinctive symmetrical composition. All six panels are set against an ochre-coloured ground, with figures naturally arranged alongside rocks and old trees rendered with pronounced light-and-shade modelling, and the extensive use of soft, muted colours throughout gives the paintings a calm feeling. Of the six panels, the first on the left shows, in order, the Venerable Kasyapa (Gaseop jonja), depicted as an aged monk standing reverently towards the principal Buddha at the centre, followed by the first, third and fifth arhats. The second panel on the left is arranged with the seventh, ninth, eleventh and thirteenth arhats in order, and the third panel on the left depicts the fifteenth arhat together with the god Brahma (Daebeomcheon) and his retinue. The first panel on the right depicts the Venerable Ananda (Anan jonja), shown as a young monk standing neatly facing the centre, together with the second, fourth and sixth arhats, while the second panel on the right depicts the eighth, tenth, twelfth and fourteenth arhats. The third panel on the right comprises the sixteenth arhat, shown as a young monk sitting demurely with palms joined, and the god Indra (Jeseokcheon), attended by General Hawon and the messenger Jikbu Saja. This Sixteen Arhats painting clearly reflects the style of the monk-painter Uigyeom, who introduced ink-painting techniques into Buddhist painting, and it is valued as a notable work that became a model for later Sixteen Arhats paintings of the late Joseon period.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Yeosu, Jeonnam & Gwangju

Designation

Treasure · 보물