Seated Buddha Amitabha (Amida)

This image depicts Amida, Buddha of the Western Paradise. The hand gesture of meditation (jo-in) and his half-closed eyes indicate that he is in a state of deep concentration. In front of his tiered lotus pedestal is an offering stand with a bowl of lotus flowers. Amida’s body is edged with the thin red outline traditionally used for Buddhist images. The elegant patterns on Amida’s robes were made using the kirikane technique, in which thin sheets of gold leaf are cut and applied to the painting surface. The sumptuous effect of the gold on the dark blue ground is a characteristic of many Buddhist paintings of the Muromachi period.