Taima-mandara and the Legend of Chujo-hime : The Role of Narrative Picture Scrolls in Popular Culture(<Special Issue>The Backgrounds of the Production of Medieval Literature)

Abstract

The legend of Chujo-hime is a story of faith and miracle which had been circulated and handed down not only among religious activists but also widely among the public. This article examines the relation between the legend and the narrative picture scrolls, for the works of visual art served as a very important medium in popular culture. Here the figures of "Taima-mandara-engi" in Taima-mandara, a narrative picture scroll supposedly of the early Muromachi Period, will be focused on for that purpose.