On the body of a white crackle-glazed bowl, a Zen phrase moves in bold ink: "Ancient pines speak the Prajnaparamita. Hidden birds play with true suchness." The bowl is both vessel and text — a ceramic scroll that holds tea.
This chawan was inscribed by the twelfth-generation head of the Yabunouchi school of tea (藪内流), known by his title Iiisai (猗々斎, Chikufu Josho, 竹風紹智). The Yabunouchi school is among the most historically significant of Japan's samurai tea traditions — founded in the Momoyama period, it carried the aesthetic of warrior restraint through the Edo era and into modernity.
🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ] ▸ Type: Tateyama-yaki chawan with Zen calligraphy ▸ Inscription: "古松談般若 幽鳥弄真如" (Ko-matsu dan Hannya, Yuchō rō Shinnyo) ▸ Calligrapher: 12th-generation Yabunouchi Iiisai (猗々斎 竹風紹智) ▸ Dimensions: H approx. 9.1 cm × D approx. 11.2 cm ▸ Condition: Good. Crackle glaze intact, calligraphy bold and legible. Interior spiral motif clear. ▸ Box: Tomobako with calligraphy and orange artist seal
Tateyama-yaki is the kiln tradition of Toyama Prefecture — a regional ware of restrained character, white and grey in its range, defined by controlled kannyu (crackle). Here the crackle pattern works with the calligraphy rather than against it: the fractured surface gives the inscription a quality of age and inevitability, as if the words were always there, waiting to be uncovered.
The phrase inscribed is drawn from the classical Chinese Zen poetry tradition. "Ancient pines speak the Prajnaparamita" — the Heart Sutra recited not by monks but by trees, by things that exist without intention. "Hidden birds play with true suchness" — the nature of reality experienced through the ordinary sound of birds in leaves. Both lines point to the same teaching: what you seek is already speaking. The spiral in the bowl's interior — the well — amplifies this. It is the form of a question with no outside.
▸ SHIPPING & PACKAGING Each piece is wrapped in traditional Japanese washi paper, cushioned with bubble wrap, and double-boxed for international transit. We ship from Japan via Japan Post EMS or DHL. Estimated delivery: 5–10 business days. Tracking provided. For any customs duties or import taxes, buyers are responsible per their country's regulations.
🔹 [ SHIPPING & PACKAGING ] • Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days • Carrier: Japan Post EMS / UPS (with tracking) • Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials • Insurance: Included for all shipments • Note: Import duties and taxes may apply depending on your country's regulations
