Japan's Shinto belief system is not an organized religion, but rather a collection of beliefs and practices centered around the natural world and ancestry. Though it was originally not an image−based religion, the Shinto system appropriated Buddhist imagery when this newer belief system first came to Japan in the sixth century and started to communicate visually to its followers. Over time, Shinto and Buddhist beliefs became intertwined; Shinto deities were believed to be manifestations of Buddhist gods. Most Shinto shrines had a sister Buddhist temple, and though the two religions stayed separate, they started to form a symbiotic relationship.
This interconnectedness is explored in an exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) titled "The Way of the Gods: Shinto Shrines and Their Art," which displays a number of beautiful panel paintings highlighting the unique and delicate relationship between Shinto and Buddhism. The panel paintings, all dating from the 14th century, are displayed in a room with large statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva.
Although this combination creates an atmosphere that is truer to the paintings' original surroundings, it does chop up the flow of the exhibition. Nonetheless, the lyricism of the painted figures speaks to the similar lines found in the sculptures, and gives a better idea of the overall visual vocabulary of the culture that produced the panel paintings.
The painting entitled "Jizo, the Bodhisattva of the Earth Matrix" illustrates the fusion of Shinto and Buddhist systems. This painting is composed of panel, ink, color and gold on silk. This image uses a very simple composition: Jizo, the Bodhisattva, is portrayed in full length, floating down on a cloud from his mountaintop paradise to rescue sinners from hell. Around his head is a halo with rays emanating from it, forming a shape reminiscent of the sun. His robes flow behind him, and the sense of movement in the picture is emphasized by the trailing tail of the cloud that is behind him. The fact that Jizo is a Buddhist deity further underlines the connection between Shinto and Buddhism and the appropriation of elements of Buddhism into the Shinto belief system.
Another work in the exhibition, "Mandala of the Deer of Kasuga Shrine," also furthers this sense of cooperation between the two religions. Also done with panel, ink, color and gold on silk, it includes a large depiction of the messenger of the gods — a deer. The deer, delicately painted in brown with strong lines and a bright red saddle, takes up most of the panel space, and a tree grows on its back. This tree, a sacred sakaki tree, supports a round mirror, in which various deities important to the Kasuga Grand Shrine, a Shinto temple, are portrayed.
The strong, clear lines of the image emphasize the serenity of the composition. Though the mirror with the deities shown in it is badly damaged, the delicate figures can still be made out. Shinto has obviously taken the idea of religious imagery and used it to its full advantage in a work that delicately proclaims the connection between the deities and the natural surroundings from which they emerge.
One of the most beautiful panel paintings in the exhibition is the "Mandala of Kasuga Shrine and Kofuku−ji." The painting is done on silk as well and illuminated with ink, color and gold. The outside of the image is framed in a rich silk fabric, which is then hung on the wall. The painting portrays a Shinto shrine in its topmost portion, surrounded by a rich landscape filled with foliage. The shrine's associated Buddhist deities are placed above it, and, in the bottom portion, the buildings of the Buddhist temple are not depicted, but instead represented by the important Buddhist sculpture that was housed in them.
The placement of the shrine in a landscape is important to Shinto belief, since originally, deities were believed to come out of the land they inhabited, be it mountaintop or forest, and briefly occupy places of worship. Likewise, the Buddhist deities associated with the temple are shown in the landscape as opposed to in the temple. The placement of the image of the shrine with the Buddhist sculpture, a metaphor for the Buddhist temple, shows the harmony between the two religions, manifested in a single image.
"The Way of the Gods: Shinto Shrines and Their Art" explores the dynamic between Buddhism and Shinto in Japan. The beautiful, though unfortunately damaged, paintings illustrate the connection between two separate religions that share similar values.
Though perhaps a bit lacking in much needed background information, the exhibition still explores an interesting religious dynamic, particularly since, in the Western tradition, different religions could rarely find such a balance. Though the entire story is not told simply through these paintings, they effectively communicate the dynamic of this religious world.
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The Way of the Gods: Shinto Shrines and their Art
At the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, through Aug. 1
465 Huntington Ave., Boston
617-267-9300
