Mongaku at Nachi no Taki

Mongaku was a legendary Buddhist ascetic who performed severe penance under the cascading waters of Nachi no Taki — Japan's tallest single-drop waterfall, in Wakayama prefecture. The circa-1954 print depicts this act of extreme devotion, the figure standing beneath the pounding water in religious discipline. Kotondo's late kabuki-and-theater prints demonstrate his continued engagement with the dramatic male subjects of Japanese literary and theatrical tradition alongside his celebrated bijin-ga work.