[Tea utensils/tea ceremony tools Matcha tea bowls] Shigaraki ware brushed pattern with Ten Oxherding figures, set of 10, made by Nishio Koshu

The Ten Oxherding Pictures are ten pictures depicting in stages the actions of a herder searching for his runaway cows.
It is the story of a young man who loses himself in mundane life and sets out on a journey to find his true self.
The "cow" is a symbol of one's "true self," and the shepherd searching for the cow is a metaphor for "oneself searching for one's true self."
The painting depicts the journey of searching for "who I am," and represents the path to Zen enlightenment.

Figure 1: Searching for cows (jingyū)
Figure 2: Finding cow footprints (kenseki)
Figure 3: Finding cows (kengyu)
Figure 4: Catching a cow (Tokugyu)
Figure 5: "Cow farming" - taming cows
Picture 6: Riding a cow back home (Kigyūkike)
Figure 7: Living as you are, "Bogyū Zonjin"
Figure 8: The blank "Jingyugubo"
Figure 9: Returning to the origin
Figure 10: "Human Tensuishu" living in the human world

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Quantity: 10 sets
Size: Approx. diameter 12.2 x height 7.2 cm
Author: Nishio Koshu
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[(Real name: Shigeru)] Name: Koshu
Sanko Member
Born in Shigaraki, Shiga Prefecture in 1950
The third son of Nishio Hikoshiro (real name Miyoji)
Graduated from Shigaraki High School in 1969
In 1969, he studied under Mr. Osamu Tezuka in Kyoto.
In 1973, he started his family business of making tea pottery in Shigaraki.
In 1983, he became independent in Shigaraki.
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Note: There is some iron burnt mark on the matcha tea bowl.
Box: Paper box