Shōkadō Shōjō

Shōkadō Shōjō (松花堂昭乗, 1584-1639) was an Edo period Buddhist monk, painter, calligrapher and master of the tea ceremony. He is one of the "Three brushes of the Kan'ei period" (寛永三筆, Kan'ei Sanpitsu?).

Shōjō is the Buddhist name the youth was given when he entered the Hachiman shrine on Otoko-yama (Yawata) near Kyoto. He later served the Konoe family under Konoe Nobutada. At that time he also became acquainted with the Zen-monks of Daitoku-ji. In 1627 he became the head of the small Takimoto-bō temple nearby; ten years later, he retired to a hut on the temple's estate which he called "Pine Flower Hall" (松花堂, Shōkadō?). This became the name under which he is currently best known. (wikipedia, 2012-06-21)