![Casting a Mantra on the Waves at Kakuta on His Exile to Sado Island (Sashu rukei Kakuta nami daimoku), from the series "Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu)" by Utagawa Kuniyoshi — Japanese Color woodblock print; oban, c. 1830/35](https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/7861e903-25d0-c779-7382-7055de763691/full/843,/0/default.jpg)
Casting a Mantra on the Waves at Kakuta on His Exile to Sado Island (Sashu rukei Kakuta nami daimoku), from the series "Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu)"
- Date:
- c. 1830/35
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; oban
- Format:
- Oban
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Description
In 1271, Nichiren was exiled to Sado Island, embarking on a sea crossing that his followers saw as a trial of faith. This oban from the Nichiren biography series (c. 1830-35) depicts the priest chanting the Lotus Sutra's title as mantra over the rough ocean waves from the Kakuta shore, the words cast onto the water as an act of devotional assertion. Kuniyoshi's dramatic sea compositions bring the same turbulent energy to devotional narrative as he applied to maritime battle scenes.
More Prints by Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Woman as the Hero Taisō in Palanquin Holding a Pipe
c. 1830
Woodblock print (surimono), ink and color on paper
Yan Qing (Roshi Ensei), from the series "One Hundred and Eight Heroes of the Popular Water Margin (Tsuzoku Suikoden goketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori)"
Poem by Abe no Nakamaro, from an untitled series of One Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets
Hu Sanniang (Ko Sanjo Ichijosei), from the series "One Hundred and Eight Heroes of the Popular Water Margin (Tsuzoku Suikoden goketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori)"
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Casting a Mantra on the Waves at Kakuta on His Exile to Sado Island (Sashu rukei Kakuta nami daimoku), from the series "Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu)" was created by Utagawa Kuniyoshi (歌川国芳) in c. 1830/35.
Yes — Casting a Mantra on the Waves at Kakuta on His Exile to Sado Island (Sashu rukei Kakuta nami daimoku), from the series "Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu)" is part of the Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu) series by Utagawa Kuniyoshi.
Casting a Mantra on the Waves at Kakuta on His Exile to Sado Island (Sashu rukei Kakuta nami daimoku), from the series "Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest [Nichiren] (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu)" depicts landscapes, figures, and seascapes.