Five Hundred Arhats No.327 · The Venerable Sudāna | Traditional Hand-Painted Chinese Ink Zen Buddhist Figure Painting | 100×50cm

Five Hundred Arhats · No.327 The Venerable Sudāna

Sudāna (also 'good giver') is the name of the prince renowned for joyful generosity, giving away his wealth to aid others; listed among the five hundred arhats, the name is taken as title to signify the practice of giving and a detached, generous heart. The venerable appears as an Indian monk with a charitable look; the title is kept objectively without jātaka legend, conveying only the love of giving and the ability to aid others.

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