Obaku monk's long scroll at Tokyo National Museum

Displays in a national museum in any country are not a small matter. They are reflections of a nation's historical memory. During my recent stop in Tokyo, I went to Japan's National Museum at Ueno Park to see how the Obaku art by immigrant Chinese monks is displayed. To my surprise, Yinyuan and other Chinese monks' works are featured prominently as the art of Japan. One of them is this long scroll of calligraphy by eighteen Chinese monks led by Yinyuan. Apparently, Yinyuan and these Chinese monks wrote at the same time on a long piece of paper. It must be a magnificent event. This piece of art has been adorned by late Edo Confucians as well and became the collections of Saitō Setsudō  斎藤 拙堂（さいとう せつどう) and Koga Seiri 古賀 精里（こが せいり）.