† A MINIATURE GILT-LACQUERED WOOD ZUSHI (PORTABLE BUDDHIST SHRINE) CONTAINING A FIGURE OF AMIDA NYORAI, 18TH CENTURY

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† A MINIATURE GILT-LACQUERED WOOD ZUSHI (PORTABLE BUDDHIST SHRINE) CONTAINING A FIGURE OF AMIDA NYORAI, 18TH CENTURY Japan, 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868) The figure is finely carved and depicts the seated Buddha in kekka fuza (dhyanasana) on a lotus dais, itself resting on an elaborate, tiered plinth. His hands are held in seppo-in, the teaching mudra and his body clad in a loosely draped monastic robe with a geometric diapered ground, opening at the chest and cascading in voluminous folds. The rounded face conveying a meditative expression, distinguished by downcast eyes beneath gently arched brows, backed by an openwork foliate nimbus. The shrine of typical form, the exterior finished in a lustrous roiro ground with gilt-metal fittings with floral designs including shaped hinges, while the interior is richly lacquered in gold and centered by images of meditative bodhisattvas, one holding a ruyi scepter and the other a sword and sutra scroll, heightening the sacred presence of the image within. HEIGHT 10.8 cm Japanese Buddhist images are frequently housed within zushi, portable or fixed wooden shrines equipped with doors that permit the deity to be alternately disclosed or concealed. These casket-like enclosures embodied a distinctly Japanese adaptation of Buddhist devotional practice. Scholars have posited that the custom may ultimately derive from Shinto precedents, wherein sacred presences are seldom represented in anthropomorphic form and are traditionally veiled from direct view. This iconographic representation of Amida corresponds to Buddha Amitabha, a central figure in Japanese Buddhism. Worship of Amida was established in Japan during the Nara period (710–794) and became one of the principal practices taught in the Tendai school during the Heian period (794–1185). Amida is revered as the one who welcomes the faithful into the celestial realm. Despite human imperfections, those who embrace Buddhist doctrine and invoke the name of Amida at the moment of death are believed to be reborn in the Pure Land Paradise. 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU.

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