Sōjō Henjō

Texto del museo

Two young women are ginning cotton. One runs the machine that separates the seeds from the fibers, while the other stands by with a basket full of cotton. Above them is a poem written by a Japanese Buddhist monk. The poem turns on the image of the monk’s black hair being cut when he entered the priesthood, comparing it to the color of lily seeds. In the print, cotton seeds take their place. Sōjō is a rank in the Buddhist clergy of Japan and is often translated as “bishop.”

Descripción original del museo, en inglés. Licencia: CC0