Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Hi everybody.

I just wanted to share with all of you pictures of this old Japanese in painting that depicts Fuke (Puhua) Zenshi with his bell. I felt that paintings depicting Fuke are quite rare so this was a good chance to share it with others. The painting is now framed and restored and the creasing has been removed. The calligraphy is the case # 24 of the Rinzai Roku. This is the last case in which Fuke is present in this record.

For the ones who are not familiar with this story it goes like this.

One day, Fuke (Puhua) went into the streets and asked people for a new one-piece robe. Everybody offered one, but Fuke declined them all. The master ordered the administrator of the temple to buy a coffin. Fuke came back. The master said, “I have prepared a one-piece robe for you.” Fuke put the coffin on his shoulder and circumambulated the streets, saying, “Rinzai found a one-piece robe fro me. Now I will go to the East Gate and depart from this world.” The townspeople rushed to the gate to watch him. Fuke said, “I am not ready today, tomorrow I will depart from the South Gate.” He repeated the same thing for three days. Nobody believed him anymore. On the fourth day, no one followed him to watch. He went outside the town wall all by himself, got into the coffin and asked a passerby to nail it shut. The news spread immediately. The townspeople rushed there to see. When the coffin was opened, Fuke had vanished, body and all. Only the sound of his hand bell could be heard fading away in the sky, fainter and fainter.

Here are the 3 links to the painting. You can click on the pictures to see the full version.

http://shunpukandojo.zaadz.com/photos/v … 6#comments

http://shunpukandojo.zaadz.com/photos/v … 7#comments

http://shunpukandojo.zaadz.com/photos/v … 8#comments


Hope you enjoyed them!