Kanzouin-Ryobu-Mandala

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Eisuke Somekawa, 1983-2001, color on silk, 2300mm*2100mm each

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Kobo-daishi, the patriarch of Shingon esoteric Buddhism, brought Mandala from China to Japan in 806. Since this introduction, many  Mandala have been presented in Japan. But almost all of them were copies of  the first dating to 806. Unlike others, the feature of Kanzoin-Mandala produced by Eisuke Somekawa is based on descriptions of many sutras. The silk on which Kanzouin-Mandala is painted is so large that a special weaving machine had to be made for this. At first, Eisuke Somekawa drew the design with ink, then he painted with pigment and put gold leaves on the exquisite design. During this work, he had to redraw his work lines many times, and as a result, it took 18 years to complete this great work.