56 fine brush, ink, and gray-wash drawings in the text. 24.5 folding leaves. 8vo (276 x 196 mm.), orig. semi-stiff yellow patterned wrappers, new stitching. [Japan]: late Edo.

Zeshinken 是心軒 (1734–80), scholar monk, was a master of ikebana 生け花 (flower arrangement) and created a school — the Shōgetsudō koryū 松月堂古流 — devoted to this art (which still exists and thrives). He devised a seika 生花 form based on a belief in five elements called Godai 五大 (地大 earth, 水大 water, 火大 fire, 風大 wind, and 空大 air) in esoteric Buddhism.

This handsome manuscript contains 56 quite fine brush, ink, and... More