Jōi Monju 縄衣文殊

Also read Jōe Monju (Ch: shengyi wenshu). Lit. rope-robed *Monju 文殊. A pictorial theme found in Daoist and Buddhist paintings *dōshakuga 道釈画. During the Yuanfeng 元豊 era (1078-85) in the Northern Song dynasty, Lu Huiqing 呂恵卿, while traveling in the mountains of Wutaishan (Jp: Godaisan 五台山), met a young boy with long hair, wearing a dress made from rushes, gama 蒲, and holding a sutra scroll in his right hand. While discussing Buddhist theories, Lu Huiqing was surprised to discover that the boy was Monju, the bodhisattva *bosatsu 菩薩 of wisdom.