Poem and Begging Bowl

Personal loss marked the early life of Otagaki Rengetsu, who was widowed twice by the age of thirty-three and did not see any of her children survive childhood. She became a Buddhist nun and took the name Rengetsu, meaning Lotus Moon. Rengetsu achieved fame as a master of waka poetry and calligraphy, and supported herself through her art, which also included pottery and painting. Anthologies of her poetry were published during her lifetime and she became so sought after that she moved many times to escape incessant demand for her time and work.In this painting Rengetsu portrays a begging bowl, one of the few possessions of a Zen monk. The accompanying poem displays Rengetsu’s elegant calligraphy, which is both delicate and confident, possessing an inner tensile strength.