Hakuin was fond of rendering the Zen eccentric Hotei in novel guises. One of them was as a street performer (mamezō) who holds a pole that typically balances a saucer filled with water on top. The subject plays on the word “Mamezō,” which was the name of an actual Osaka entertainer during the Genroku era (1688–1704), the period of Hakuin’s youth. Mame can also mean earnest and skillful, and the water in the saucer, like the mirror, is a common Zen metaphor for the true self. Hotei’s efforts thus can be likened to a sincere pursuit of self-knowledge.

 

—Yukio Lippit