Seated Arhat

Shōun Genkei Japanese

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 229

Arhats (Japanese: rakan) are disciples of the Buddha who have achieved enlightenment, serving as role models for Zen monks. They are often portrayed with highly individualized facial expressions, suggestive of an extreme ascetic lifestyle. This statue is one of five hundred created over nearly ten years by the monk-sculptor Shōun Genkei for the Ōbaku temple Gohyaku Rakanji, originally on the eastern outskirts of Edo (present-day Tokyo).

Seated Arhat, Shōun Genkei (Japanese, 1648–1710), One of a set of five hundred; wood with lacquer, color, and gold leaf, Japan

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Seated Arhat, Shōun Genkei (Japanese, 1648–1710), One of a set of five hundred; wood with lacquer, color, and gold leaf, Japan
Seated Arhat, Shōun Genkei (Japanese, 1648–1710), One of a set of five hundred; wood with lacquer, color, and gold leaf, Japan

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