河鍋暁斎 Kawanabe Kyousai 「地獄太夫と一休」

Japan: Jigoku Dayu, the 'Hell Courtesan', painted by Kyosai Kawanabe (1831-1889)
This print, by Kyosai, depicts a variation of the Jigoku Dayu tale. One day, when the monk Ikkyu came to the brothel, he sat to enjoy a meal of fresh fish and sake, which are forbidden to Buddhist monks. Jigoku Dayu, with her sharp mind, assumed that this person was an imposter claiming to be the famous Ikkyu. She summoned entertainment for him, and hid behind her screen to watch him. When she looked, she saw Ikkyu happily dancing along with skeletons, and knew that he was who he said he was. This can be interpreted in a number of ways: Ikkyu is famous for reminding everyone of the inevitability of death with his skull-stick, and had commented often that under our skins which we so earnestly protect, is only a skeleton which will one day be all that is left of us.
geography : ASIA / JAPAN
Person : IKKYU SOJUN