“Hotei rides a boat to go out moon viewing”¹

The convention of traveling monks crossing rivers has a long history in Zen and Zen painting, which Hakuin references in this work, though the painter does not show Hotei undertaking a pilgrimage. Instead, Hakuin shows him engaged in idle travel on a pleasant boat ride to view the moon. As with other works, Hakuin’s style of calligraphy could perhaps lend itself to a different reading, which implies that Hotei, while out viewing the moon, has somehow transcended his current place and time. Indeed, the placement of Hotei’s sack, silhouetting the jolly monk, makes it appear as though Hotei is on a celestial plane.

—Bradley Bailey