Ch: Pan Lang. Chinese Zhou dynasty recluse,
originally a retainer of Muwang (Jp: Bokuou 穆王, ca.1001-972 BC). When Pan
Lang's judgment about a horse angered the ruler, he banished him to Mt.
Hua (Jp: Kazan 花山). Later, when the ruler realized his mistake, he ordered
Pan Lang to return to court service. As he reluctantly left his place of
banishment, which he had come to love, Pan Lang turned backwards on his
donkey for one last look at the landscape of Mt. Hua. It is in this pose
that he is depicted. The pictorial theme was known in Japan by the early
Muromachi peirod, and was painted several times by Unkoku Tougan 雲谷等顔
(1547-1618; Museum of Fine Art Boston).
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