A dramatic calligraphy work in which characters dance across the paper performing eccentric contortions by Zen priest Chodo Ryuzenshi dating from the first half of the 20th century. Ink on silk in a patterned satin border with lacquered wooden rollers in a period kiri-wood box. The scroll is 60.5 x 200 cm (2 feet x 78-1/2 inches) and in excellent condition.
Chodo Ryuzenshi (1876-1947) was a famous priest and calligrapher from Fukushima prefecture; he would use both Ryuzenshi (Dragon Zen Child) or Dairyu (Great Dragon) as epithets during his career His life spanned the tumultuous era of rising fortune from the Meiji period through imperialism and defeat in the second world war. His training began at an early age, and in 1898 he was named to be head of Myorinji Temple. He would then be sent to study at the great temple complex of Hiezan in Kyoto. From Taisho 4 (1915) he would seek to blend the Ideas of the Swordsmanship of Miyamoto Musashi with Calligraphy, founding the Ryuzenkai in Tokyo. He would travel extensively in his lifetime throughout Japan, China and Korea, inspiring many great students.
Regarding calligraphy he said: Make your heart like water, attain a state of Mushin (without consciousness or reason) like a cloud disappearing from the mountain peaks, then you will express your true self with the brush. This is the basis of Zen and the study of your own humanity and the first step in becoming a calligrapher.
