“What merit is there to blowing out an image of Otafuku?”

In this rendering of two of Hakuin’s favorite subjects, the Zen eccentric Hotei smokes tobacco and blows out the figure of Otafuku, a popular female figure sometimes understood as the goddess of mirth. The name Otafuku literally means “abundant good fortune,” and her presence, combined with the character for “longevity,” inscribed multiple times on her robe, suggests that this is an auspicious image. The inscription likens Hotei’s act to that of the Chinese Pure Land patriarch Shandao (613–681), who, when chanting the name of the Amitabha Buddha, is said to have had each character come out of his mouth and turn into a Buddha. Hakuin, however, playfully alters this concept, asking: “If bringing Amida to life was a meritorious act, what about bringing Otafuku to life?”¹

Otafuku, known to bring good fortune, happiness, and mirth, appears in many works by Hakuin, including several versions of this scene, where she appears to emerge from the smoke coming from Hotei’s pipe.

—Bradley Bailey and Yukio Lippit