In 2016, Wakana Kimura's Nehan-zu project was honored with the Jodo-e ceremony at the Zenshuji Soto Mission. The project entailed painting a large-scale scroll that depicted the Buddha's Nirvana, which Kimura completed in 2023.
For the project, Kimura acquired traditional Japanese handmade paper, known as washi, from Kochi prefecture in Japan. The paper, measuring 96" x 108", was made by the late Mr. Ozaki, a highly skilled maker of Kochi Mashi paper, which is one of the largest papers in Japan. Kochi Mashi was his final creation in his 70-year career as a washi craftsman.
As a female artist, Kimura is the first in the United States to paint a project of this scale using traditional materials (paper) and imagery (the iconography of the Buddha's death scene) with contemporary painting techniques and a global approach to Buddhist teachings.
Jodo-e, also known as Bodhi Day, is a Buddhist holiday that commemorates the day that the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama (Shakyamuni), attained enlightenment (bodhi in Sanskrit and Pali). According to tradition, Siddhartha abandoned years of extreme asceticism and sat under a peepal tree, meditating until he found the root of suffering and how to liberate oneself from it.
The Nehanzu is unveiled to the public every year on the day of Nehane, the Nirvana ceremony held in February at Zenshuji Soto Mission in Downtown Los Angeles. For detailed information on the date, time, and ceremony, please contact Zenshuji directly.
Zenshuji Soto Mission
123 South Hewitt Street Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tel: 213-624-8658
Email: office@zenshuji.org
