Five Hundred Arhats No.247 · The Venerable Mikkaka the Seer | Traditional Hand-Painted Chinese Ink Zen Buddhist Figure Painting | 100×50cm

Five Hundred Arhats · No.247 The Venerable Mikkaka the Seer

Mikkaka (Mikkaka), with the added title 'seer', is the sixth Indian patriarch in the Zen transmitted lineage who renounced and realized the way as a sage; listed among the five hundred arhats, the name signifies succeeding the patriarchs and passing the lamp. The venerable has the air of an Indian seer with an archaic, noble look; the title is kept objectively without miraculous legend, conveying only succession to the lineage and the bearing of stepping clear of the dust.

Painted by Li Zongyi in the freehand Chinese ink (xieyi) tradition, the brushwork is fluent and the ink tones layered from dense to pale, capturing the arhat’s spirit in a few assured strokes. The blank paper itself breathes Zen; figure and spirit are one, blending monastic solemnity with the literati’s ease. Each of the Five Hundred Arhats bears its own name and practice, uniting faith, art and collectibility — an original, non-reproducible hand-painted work.

Size: approx. 100×50cm (4.5 square chi) | Traditional hand-painted Chinese ink Zen Buddhist figure painting | On paper