The 153rd nahan (arhat)—a disciple of the Buddha—is depicted in this hanging scroll as a bigu, an elderly Buddhist monk. Typically illustrated as elderly monks with shaved heads and loose robes, it is said that the Buddha selected 16 arhats to promote his teachings. They were role models for followers on their path to enlightenment, and worship of the arhats became popular in Son (Zen) Buddhism. The 153rd nahan is shown seated on a rock and reading a sutra. His position facing the left is significant—it, along with the rock and nimbus, tells us that the artwork was influenced by compositions produced during the Goryeo period.

As their popularity in East Asia grew, the number of arhats worshipped by Buddhist practitioners grew to 500. Some Buddhist monasteries even dedicated separate halls to them. This particular arhat portrait was part of a set of 200 made for Hyanglim Temple of Mount Samgak in 1526. It is the only one from the set that survives today.

Deoksewi, 153rd of the 500 Nahans (Arhats) is currently on view on the second floor of the Hammer Building. Check out LACMA's Collections Online and download a free high-resolution image.

This year marks LACMA's 50th anniversary. We're celebrating all that we've done while looking forward to what's in store for us in the next 50. Check back every week on Unframed to find a highlight of an artwork from LACMA's collection, which features over 120,000 objects that span time, the globe, and all cultures. This is 4/50 of the series.