Dainichi Nyorai

Dainichi Nyorai — Vairocana, the cosmic Buddha of the Shingon tradition, the Great Illuminating One whose body is the universe itself — was the central figure in Munakata's landmark 1937 series based on the Kegon Sutra (Avatamsaka Sutra). Carved in 1937 when Munakata was working with extraordinary intensity on Buddhist subjects, this print exemplifies the direct, visionary approach that distinguished his sacred imagery: the figure not carefully rendered but almost erupted from the woodblock, the carving knife's energy visible in every line. Munakata carved with his face close to the board, working with a passionate speed that he described as the block carving itself through him.