Ito Jakutu, Vegetable Parinirvana, c. 1780
Hanging scroll, ink on paper, Kyoto National Museum
Parinirvana refers to the death of the Buddha, here represented by a reclining white daikon raddish with various fruit and veggie bodhisattvas and Queen Maya (the Buddha’s mother) as a quince descending from the heavens. This painting perfectly captures the irreverence, at once humorous and profound, of eighteenth century Japanese Zen art.