The Concept of Zushi: On Enshrinement and Mobility of Buddhist Art in Japan

Abstract

Miniature shrines (zushi) are one of the most common formats for installing Buddhist art in Japan. A critical analysis of its etymology, however, reveals multiple currents beyond the Buddhist context that constitute its form and efficacy. This paper delineates three scenarios that register the polysemy of zushi and its development across time. First, it connects zushi with Chinese funerary culture and meditative practices, which deploy architectural forms to communicate the process of mental transcendence. Second, the article turns to eighth-century Japanese court documents that specify zushi as ceremonial receptacles for the transfer of royal treasures, which transform zushi into symbolic vessels for legitimizing rulership. Next, the paper examines the factors that contribute to the formal and linguistic amalgams between Buddhist portable shrines and zushi in Japan. The discussion concludes by arguing that the efficacy of zushi is predicated on the varying modes of mobility associated with their scale, materiality, and social actors that serve as their vehicles of movement.