Sutra of the Great Demise (Mahaparinirvana Sutra) in standard script

Object Details

• Description

  Sutra written in standard script on nine pieces of paper with eight seams. The standard length of each sheet is about 19 3/8" with 29 lines of text; the first and 9th pieces of paper are much shorter. The scroll is not in its original unmounted state. It was mounted in recent times in a standard handscroll format with blank frontispiece paper and silk border.

• Inscriptions

  There are three collector's seals added to the sutra.The one at the beginning reads "Hsi Hsu Chung-fu yu lung so-te (Mr. Hsu Chung-fu of Anhui obtained this when he traveled to Kansu)." The two seals at the end read: "Pai-yun hung-shu-lou tsang (collected in the study of white clouds and red trees)" and "Pang-nai chen-tsang (treasurely collected by Alice Boney)."

  The scroll is neither dated nor signed by the calligrapher.

• Label

  Sutras are sacred texts believed to preserve the actual words of the historical Buddha, the Indian prince Siddhartha Gautama (ca. 563-483 B.C.). The text on this scroll is the thirty-third chapter of the Mahaparinirvana sutra (Sutra of the Great Demise), which contains the teachings given by the Buddha to his disciples just before his death. It was translated from Sanskrit into Chinese between A.D. 414 and 421 and quickly gained wide popularity.

  Sutras were transcribed by professional calligraphers, either monks or laymen, for donation to Buddhist shrines and temples. Believers often commissoned transcriptions of a selected chapter or group of chapters to acquire spiritual merit. Using a sharp, resilient brush, the calligrapher of this scroll applied great energy and concentration, varying the pressure of his brush, the speed with which he wrote, and the size and form of the characters. All the stokes are vividly written, the square corners are sharp and sturdy, the round turns are smooth and springy, and each character has its own rhythm, composition, and center of gravity. For protection against insects, the paper was dyed with a yellowish liquid prepared from the seeds and bark of the Amur cork tree (Phellodendron amurense).

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Writing, Carving and Rubbing: China’s Calligraphic Arts (April 4 to October 25, 2009)

  The Idea of China in Japan: The Tea Ceremony in Japan (December 19, 1999 to June 11, 2000)

  Masterpieces of Chinese Calligraphy (June 7, 1994 to March 20, 1995)

  From Concept to Context: Approaches to Asian and Islamic Calligraphy (July 28, 1986 to February 6, 1987)

• Origin

  Dunhuang, Gansu province, China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Calligraphy

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  600s, 500s

• Place

  Gansu province, China, Dunhuang

• Topic

  Sui dynasty (581 - 618), Mahaparinirvana Sutra, Art, Parinirvana, Chinese Art, Sutra, Standard script

• Culture

  Buddhists, Chinese

• Object Type

  Calligraphy (visual works)