Hell Scrolls, Hiroshima and the Cultural Revolution

I went to the Tokyo National Museum. It's Japans’ oldest and largest. We only had time to look in the main hall (Honkan). It contains exhibits chronologically arranged from 10,000BC-late 19th century. I thought the arrangement was of particular interest. The second floor was ‘highlights of Japanese Art: Jomon-Edo’ and the first floor was Sculpture, Metal art, Lacquer ware, Swords, Modern art…Swords and modern art?! I found this juxtaposition strange and thought-provoking.

The military attire on display was actually very old, dating from the Heian to Edo period (12-19C). Every piece was beautifully adorned and embellished. I am pretty sure that functional Army clothing in the UK has never been so heavily decorated. But the Heian period was a time of individualisation: Japan was creating its own identity away from China and therefore areas such as military prestige were of the utmost importance. This Cultural Revolution is apparent in every aspect dating from this time. Japanese Kana script was developed, which meant the beginning of literature. For example the Genji Monogatari, which is widely considered to be the first novel ever, is an account of court life written by Lady Murasaki Shikibu in the Heian Period.

Other markers of change in the Heian period include the Jigoku Zoshi, or Scroll of Hell (declared a national treasure in 1956). This animated and horrific piece was created in the 12-13th Century (late Heian-Kamakura period) and depicts the six realms in which damned souls reside, according to Buddhist beliefs. Each realm has a different title, including Hell of Excrement, Hell of the Flaming Cock (!) and Hell of Pus and Blood. Like many popular religions the idea behind the scroll was to induce fear into the innocent and therefore attract more believers to the movement of Buddhism. The actual scrolls are beautiful and awe inspiring. They look convincingly like complete other-worlds and are rather scary to look at.
I was struck by the similarities between the Scroll of Hell and the Hiroshima Mural, created by Maruki Iri and Toshi in response to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, a full 7 centuries later. I personally find their murals more explicit and heart-wrenching because the hell which they depict is a hell which happened; a hell closer to home and a hell which to me feels more real than the realms of Buddhist hell.

The final theme of the day was modern art. In particular, the changing style of painting during the westernisation of Japan. In any culture, I believe art to be a response to the happenings in society at the time. These ‘modern’ pieces were created in the Meiji-Taisho period, 1868-1926. This was a time of modernisation (westernisation). I do not believe that to be modern one has to be western, but this is the path which Japan was led down. The importance of this time of change can be seen in paintings such as Portrait of Reiko by Kishida Ryusei and Night at the Railway Station by Takamura Shinpu. These paintings wouldn’t look out of place in the European Renaissance, but here they are sitting in the Taisho period. Japan had to prove its worthiness to the rest of the world, regrettably altering its traditional style and adopting another. However this sense of regret lasts only a moment…I feel that Japan may honour/respect its traditional past more so than the west.