The Assembly of Tejaprabha Buddha

Unknown artist, 1878

Download3400 × 2080 px View on a wall Edit

Medium: Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk
Size: Overall: 223 x 226.4 cm (87 13/16 x 89 1/8 in.)
Culture: Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
Museum: Cleveland Museum of Art
Rights: CC0 — no rights reserved

The main deity seated at the center is Tejaprabha, the Buddha of Radiant Light. Blazing beams of light emanating from its celestial body are this deity’s weapon to crush all kinds of calamities. Coincidently, when this painting was created, Korea was experiencing a height of foreign military aggressions, including invasions by the French (1866) and the US (1871). The inscription at the bottom center states that a group of ladies from the royal court commissioned the scroll to wish for the well-being of their families. During the late Joseon dynasty, Korean women became largely marginalized. Nevertheless, they remained important patrons of Buddhist art and architecture, voicing their concerns for their country and families in peril.