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ASIA
LIBRARY
ANNEX
2 ELEMENTS OF
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
All
books are subject
to recall after
Olin/Kroch Library
DATE DUE
two weeks
Cornell University Library
The
original of this
book
is in
the Cornell University Library.
There are no known copyright
restrictions in
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text.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924071128841
ELEMENTS OF HINDU ICONOGRAPHY.
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
3 1924 071
ELEMENTS OF
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY BY T.
A.^GOPINATHA RAO.
M.A.
SUPERINTENDENT OF ARCHEOLOGY, TRAVANCORE STATE.
Vol.
II— Part
I.
THE LAW PRINTING HOUSE MADRAS MOUNT ROAD ::
::
1916 All Rights Reserved.
KC-
28 841
/\t^iS33
PRINTED AT THE LAW PRINTING HOUSE,
MOUNT ROAD, MADRAS.
DEDICATED WITH KIND PERMISSION
To
HIS HIGHNESS SIR RAMAVARMA. Sri Padmanabhadasa, Vanchipala, Kulasekhara Kiritapati,
Manney Sultan Maharaja Raja Ramaraja Bahadur, Shatnsher Jang, G.C.S.I., G.C.I. E.,
MAHARAJA OF TRAVANCORE, Member
of the
Royal Asiatic Society, London,
Fellow of the Geographical Society, London,
Fellow of the Madras University, Officer de
L' Instruction Publique.
By HIS HIGHNESSS HUMBLE SERVANT
THE AUTHOR.
PEEFACE. In
bringing
Elements
out
of
earnestly
Hindu
trusts that
Volume
Second
the
Iconography, will
it
the
the
of
author
meet with the same
favourable reception that was uniformly accorded to the for
first
volume both by savants and the Press,
which he begs
dering his
to
the
Though the
make
abstruse
pains have of
the present publication
and interesting
as informing of
No
heart-felt thanks.
course been spared to
case
take this opportunity of ten-
as is possible in the
subject
Iconography.
of
appearing in the present
illustrations
volume are by no means inadequate purpose of the work, yet they are exhaustive as in the
first,
To
the great regret
of
not so
and a word
may
tion in that connection
the
for the
main
full
and
of explana-
not be out of place. author,
the liberal
pecuniary help offered for the preparation and publication of the
first
volume has been, owing
to
the somewhat straitened finances of the Travancore State at present, withheld from him on the present vn
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. occasion and he has, in consequence, not been able
embody
to
as
many illustrations
had intended
as he
personally to gather for the purpose from various parts of India with a view to present to the public
a series representative of the the
parts
different
of
sculpture of
varied
But
country.
this
the
Travancore Durbar have, in gracious consideration
and labour involved
of the trouble
in the prepara-
tion of the present volume, been pleased to permit its
publication by the author himself, for which he
begs to offer his respectful the
to
and grateful thanks
Dewan, Mr. Dewan Bahadur M. Krishna
Nair, b.a., b.l.
Mention may here be made worthy is
given a collective description of
ties of ohe tenets
and observances
Saiva
which
of
the
all
The
ftat have
nature
amined
Lihga
of
critically
gathered from
died
Itihasas,
sculpture of
all
and
of the
of certain
a trace.
has
light
original
of
important
been
sources
treatises,
and with reference
has
public
out without
Saivagamas, Saiva philosophical
and
some
worship
in the
such
the peculiari-
of
general
hitherto been practically ignorant,
other cults
few points
In the Introduction
of notice in the book.
sects
of a
extexts
as
the
Puranas
to the
extant
ages of this symbol of worship, and
the matter has been thoroughly discussed and, what viii
PREFACE. the author ventures to claim to be, an impartial
conclusion arrived several matters,
new even with
which
In the body will
to the informed
to cite
;
at.
the book,
of
be seen to be quite
Hindu, have been dealt
an instance, everybody knows that
Siva begged for food with the broken skull
Brahma ofi
as an expiation for the sin of having cut
one of Brahma's heads, but
known why
it is
it
doubtful
rid
of
His
sin.
has been found possible with the help
knowledge derived from a close study
of the
if it is
penance should have
this curious sort of
been resorted to by Siva to get Again,
of
of the
bulk of the science of Ndiya-^astra together with
commentaries thereon
to elaborate
and
treat fully
the manifold dances of Siva, though only eight or
nine modes are described in the S,gamic and other works.
many
The
reader
will, it
is
hoped, come across
other instances of fresh information being
furnished on matters that have remained more or less
obscure hitherto.
The author cannot Proprietors of the
Law
be too thankful
Printing
House
to
the
for
the
extraordinary care and trouble they have bestowed
upon the printing and general get up and
for their readiness
in
of
the books
coming forward and
generously offering their timely help but for which the volume could not have been brought out.
II
The
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. author cannot also omit to express his sense of
Anandakumaraswami,
gratitude to Dr. A. K.
D. Sc, to
him
for the
M.A.,
ready and willing permission granted
for reproducing the valuable article
on the
dance of Siva, contributed some time ago to the Siddhanta-Dlpika by the learned Doctor.
He
has
also very great pleasure in recording here his high
appreciation of the help cheerfully rendered by his
Pandit Mr. V. Srinivasa Sastri, Smritivisarada, but for whose untiring industry and intelligent collaboration this
work could not have been brought
to a successful completion so soon.
hurst, Stoney,
Kay and
Messrs. Long-
Beardsell, have been so very
kind as to assist the author with photographs of
images in their respective collections and to accord their
gracious
permission to reproduce them
these gentlemen,
:
to
the author offers his grateful
thanks.
For reasons which need not be explained it
was not
here,
possible for the author personally to super-
work throughout so as to ensure the presentation of an absolutely correct vise the printing of the
text
;
he had therefore to entrust the task to the
printers
themselves.
trouble
ungrudgingly
In
spite
of
the
care and
bestowed by them in the
midst of their multifarious duties, a number of errors
have unavoidably crept
in.
Though such
of
PEEPAOE.
them
as have been subsequently noticed are noted
in the errata
list,
it
likely
is
many more have
escaped detection, for which the author craves the indulgence of his readers.
Madras,
THE AUTHOE.
January 1916.
XI
CONTENTS. Pages.
Preface
vii
A General Introduction on I.
II.
Saivaism,
—xi
1—71 73—102
LiNGAS
lingodbhavamurti,
chandra
^bkharamurti, pl^upatamubti and
Eaudra-Pa^upatamurti III.
SOMASKANDAMURTI AND XIMAMAHE^ varamurti ... IV.
103—126
SUKHASANAMURTI, UMASAEITAMURTI
Samharamurtis :—
127-141 143—202
Kamantakamurtji
147—149
Gajasura-samharamnrM
149—156
(iii)
Kalarimurtii
156—164
(iv)
Tripurantakamurti
164—171
Sarabbesamurti
171—174
(i) (ii)
(v) (vi)
Brabma-sirasohhedakam ur ti =
174—182
Bhairava
(vii) (viii)
(ix)
(x)
(a)
Bhairava
(6)
Vatuka-Bhairava
(c)
Svamakarsbaiia Bhairava
(d)
Sixty-four Bhairavaa
177
177—179 179
180—182
Jalandhara-vadha-miirti
183—188 188-191
Mallari-Sivamurti
191—192
Andbakasuravadhamiirti
192—194
Virabhadramurti
Xlll
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Pages.
CONTENTS. Pages. (iii)
(iv)
(v) (vi)
Mahesamurti
...
...
379—386
Skadala Eudras
...
...
386—892
Vidyeavaras...
...
...
392—403
Murtyashtaka
...
...
403—407
Local legends and images based upon
(vii)
Mahatmyas XI.
XII. XIII.
XIV.
XV. XVI. XVII. XVIII.
XIX.
XX.
SUBRAHMAHYA
...
407-411
...
...
413—451
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
453—460 461—469 471—481 483—492 493—498 499—512 513—538 539—545 547—570 550—553
Nagadava and the Nagas
...
554
(iii)
Sadhyas
...
...
...
558—559
(iv)
Asuras
...
...
...
559—561 561
NandikI^vaea Chandb^vaea ... Bhaktas ... Abya ... KSHETRAPALA ...
Bbahma
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
A^viNiDBVATAS
...
...
Demi-gods
...
...
...
...
DiKPALAKAS
Vasus
(i) (ii)
(v) (yi) (vii) (viii)
(ix)
— 558
— 562
Apsaraaas
...
...
...
Pisaehas
...
...
...
Vetalas
...
...
...
562
Pitris
...
...
...
562—564
Rishis
...
...
...
(x)
Gandharvas
...
...
(xi)
Marut-ganas
...
...
Appendix
Index
...
562
564—567 568—569
A.
...
...
...
B.
...
...
...
569—570 571—578 1-279
...
...
...
1—37
,
...
XV
LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. PLATE I
TO FACE PAQB
—Three
different views of the
Bhita Linga
(A.S.U.P.)
65
...
—front, and back views and the section the Gudimallam Linga III — Bust the image Siva on the II
side
of
of
Gudimallam Linga Details of ornaments in the
IV
—Fig.
1,
— IV— Fig. IV—Fig. IV
Fig.
IV— Fig.
66
The head-gear
of the
Apasmara67
...
The kuridala in the ear of Siva ... 3, The ornamental band on the upper arm of the same ... 4, The details of the bracelets of the same ... 5, The details of the jatamaknta of the same ... 6, The details of the hara on the neck of the same ...
67
Apasmara-purusha.
67
7,
V—Fig.
1,
V—
...
2,
— Fig.
IV
66
Gudimallam Sculpture.
purusha
IV— Fig.
...
of
Fig. 2,
Do.
of the
The Chennittalai Linga The Parasu in the left hand
67 67
67 67 69
...
of the
image of Siva in the Gudimallam Linga ...
V—
Fig. 3,
The kamandalu
in the
same
69
69
...
A.S.M. Aichseologioal Survey T.S.A. Trivandram Sobool of Aits Madias A,S. My, Aiobasologioal Survey of Mysore A.S. Bo. ArohsaoA.S. I. Arobaeologioal Survey of India I.M, logioal Survey of Bombay India Muaeum and A.S.U.F. Arcbseologioal Survey of United Provinces. Tbe pbotogiapbs and drawings wbiob are not followed by any of the *
of
;
;
;
;
;
abbreviations given above belong to tbe author's oolleotion,
zvii III
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. TO PACE PAGE
PLATE
V— Fig. VI
— The
The ram held of the same
4,
...
Adhya, Anadhya, Sarvasama lingas
VII—Fig. VII— Fig. VII—Fig.
2,
VIII— Fig.
1,
1,
3,
hand
in the right
Suradhya and
The Trairasika Linga The Ashtottara-sata-linga The Mulihalinga Ashtottarasata
IX— Fig. IX— Fig, X—Fig, X— Fig. X—Fig,
...
93
...
95
...
95 95
...
Tiruvorri-
linga,
yut
VIII— Fig.
...
Do.
96
...
96
2,
Sahaara linga
1,
...
97
...
97
...
2,
Mukhalinga with a single face Do. Do. Linga with brahma sutras Mukhalinga with three faces
3,
Dhara-linga, Tiruvorriyur
... ...
98 98 98 98
...
101
...
109
2, 1,
...
— Mukhalinga, (Cuddappah XII — Bhadra-Pitha, Vajra-Padma, SrikaraPltha, Pitha-Padma XIII — Lingodbhavamiirti, Kailasanathasvamin XI
Joti
District)
...
temple, Conjeevaram
XIV— Fig,
69
1,
Do.
...
Dasavatara
Cave,
Ellora,
...
XIV— Fig. XV — Fig.
1,
Kevala-Ohandrasekharamurti,
XV— Fig.
2,
Uma-sahita-Gbandrasekhara-
2,
Ambar-Magalam.
Do.
Tiruppalatturai (A.S.M,)...
miirti,
Agaram Settur
XVI— Kevala-Chandrasekharamiirti,
...
Onakkiar,
110 110 121
121 122
XVII — Oma-Sabita- Chandrasekharamurti, Tiruvorriyur (A.S,M.)
XVIII— XVIII
Fig. 1,
— Fig,
2,
Do.
Madeour.
...
122
...
123
Alingana-Chandrasekharamurti,
Mayuranathasvamin
Mayavaram xvni
(A.S.M.)
temple, ...
123
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PLATE
TO FACE PAGE
XIX—Pig.
Alingana-Ohandrasekharamurtii,
1,
Pat^Isvaram, (A.S.M.)
XIX— Kg. XIX— Fig.
Do.
2,
3.
XX—
XXI — Fig.
1,
MarudantanallurCA.S.M.).
124 124
Do.
K5vilur
(A.S.M.)
124
Do.
Angur
(A.S.M.)...
124
...
Uma-sahita-Sukhasanamiirti,
Madeour
XXI— Fig.
2,
—Fig.
1,
XXII—Fig.
2,
XXII
Do.
Agaram-Setfciir
...
133
...
133 134
Somaskandamurti, Madeour ... Do. NeUore (Mr. M.K. Eangasami Ayyangar) ... XXIII Uma-mahesvaramiirti, Bagali (A.S.M.)... XXIV— Do. Aihole (A.S.Bo.) ...
—
XXV— XXVI— Fig. XXVI— Fig.
Do. 1,
Do.
2,
Do.
XXVII—
Do. Do.
XXVIII—
136 137
BUora EUora EUora
139 140 141
... ... ...
...
162
Do.
Valuviir (A.S.M).
...
154
1,
Do.
Darasuram (A.S.M).
155
2,
Do.
Tiruohchengattangudi.
XXXIII — Gajasara-sarhharamiirfci,
...
1,
155
Hoysalesvara
temple, Halebidu
XXXIV— Kalarimurti,
XXXV—Fig.
137
Amritapura
(A.S.My.)
XXXII—Fig. XXXII—Fig.
135 135
Trivandram (T.S.A). Haveri (A.S.Bo.) ... Ajmera Do. ...
XXIX— Do. XXX—Gajasura-sarhharamurti,
XXXI—
134
...
156
...
(A.S.M.)
161 162 162
Tiruohohengattangudi.
163
Dasavatara Cave, EUora
Eailasa Cave, EUora...
Pattisvaram (Mr.
R.
F.
Stoney's
CoUeotion)
XXXVII — Tripurantakamurt/i,
Dasavatara
BUora xiz
...
163
Gave, ...
170
HINDU ICONOGEAPHT. PLATE
TO FACE PASB
XXXVIII — Tripurantakamurfci, Kailasa temple, EUora
XXXIX
Do.
temple, Conieevaram.
XL— XLII
—
Madura
Do.
XLI — Bhairava, Fig.
178
(A.S.M.)
Museum,
Indian
Calcutta (A.S. Bo.).
XLII—Fig. XLII— Fig.
2,
Do.
3,
Do.
Madras Museum
179 179
Eoy. As. Soc. Museum,
Bombay XLIII
171 171
Pattlsvaram Bhairava,
1,
171
Kailasanathasvamin
179
—Atiriktanga-Bhairava, Kamesvara Cave, 182
Ellora
XLIV— Fig.
1,
Virabhadramiarti,
Madras
Museum.
XLIV — Fig.
2,
XLV— Fig.
1,
187
Virabhadramurti, Tenkasi
187
Daksha-Prajapati and his wife,
Angur (A.S.M.)
XLV— Fig.
188
Andhakasuravadhamurti, Dasa-
2,
vatara Cave, Ellora
188
XLVI— Andhakasuravadhamiirti, Elephanta Do. Kailasa, Ellora XLVII— XLVIII
—
Fig.
1,
Aghoramiirti,
192 193
Pattisvaram
(A.S.MO
XLVIII—
Fig. 2,
Aghoramiirti,
200
Tirukkalukkun-
ram.
200
XLIX— Fig.
1,
Chandesanugrahamurti,
XLIX— Fig.
2,
Chandesanugrahamurti,
Gan-
gaikondasolapuram, (A.S.M.)
L — Fig. L — Fig.
203
Kaila-
sanathasvamin temple, Conieevaram
208
1,
Charidesanugrahamiirti, Madura.
211
2,
OhaQdeaanugrabamiirti, Suohlo-
dram
...
911
LIST 01 ILLUSTRATIONS. TO PACK PAGE
KiATB
LI
—
Vishovanugrahamurti,
Fig. 1,
Conjee
varam
LI—Kg.
2,
Do.
—Kg.
1,
Kiratamurti,
LII
Madura
—Fig.
2,
..
210
Pasupatastra-danamurti,
..
—Bavartanugrahamurlii,
..
218
Dhumar Lena Cave
Do.
219 219
Ellora
LV—
Belur
Do.
LVI
Museum
Nataraja, Madras
LVII
LVIII—Fig. LVIII— Fig.
1,
2,
Do.
Kottappadi
Do. Do.
Eamesvaram (Ivory)
252 252
252
(A.S.M.)
Trivandram 252
(T.S.A.)
LIX—
Do.
LX—
Do.
LXI—NriUamdrti,
216
Dasavatara Cave Ellora
LIV
216
Sri
sailam (A.S.M.)
LIII
210
Tiruchohengattan gudi
LII
.
PafcMsvaram (A.S.M-).. Tenkasi
Tiruohohengattangudi
—Katisatna dance, Ellora —Lalita dance, Do. LXIV— dance, Tiruohchen gattangudi.. LXIV— Do. Conjeevaram LXV— Do. Tenkasi Taramangalam LXV— Do.
LXII LXIII
253
255
257 259 2C2
Fig. 1, Lalafca-tilaka
Fig. 2,
264 264
Fig. 1,
265
Fig. 2,
265
(A.S.M.)
LXVI — Fig.
1,
LXVI— Fig.
2,:
Ohatura-danoe, Badami
Do.
Tiruvarangujam
Do.
Nallur (A.S.M.
(A.S.M.)
LXVII— LXVIII
LXIX
—
267
Tala8kmipfa6t|iiia danoa,
Do.
Conjeevaram
..
..
Ofaangannor.. XXI
267
267 268 268
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. TO FAOB PAGE
PLATE
LXX- -Nrittamurti,
Conjeevaram Deogarh
LXXI- -Jnana-Dakshina-murti,
(A.S.
Bo.)
LXXII- -Fig. LXXII- -Fig. LXXIIILXXIV- -Fig. LXXIV- -Fig.
LXXV-
1,
Do.
2,
Do.
Aviir (A.S.M.)
Do.
Tiruvorriyiir...
1,
Do.
2,
Do.
Suchfndram ... Eaveripakkam.
-Fig. 1,
Do.
Tiruvengavasal (A.S.M.)
LXXV— Fig. LXXVILXXVIILXXVIII-
LXXIX-
LXXX-
...
Do. Mr. Kay's Collection.
2,
Yoga-Dakshinamiarti, Tiruvorriyiir
...
Conjeevaram Do. Conjeevaram Dakshinamurti, Nanjangddu (A.S.My). Do.
Madras
Yinadhara-DakshiQamiirti,
Museum
LXXXILXXXIILXXXIIILXXXIV-
LXXXVLXXXV-
Vadarangam
Do.
(A.S.M.)...
Kankalamurti, Darasuram (A.S.M.) Do.
...
Tenkasi (A.S.M.)
...
...
Fig.
1,
Suohindram Do. Kumbhakoriam
Fig.
2,
Do.
•Kankalamiiriji,
Tiruchchengafcfcan-
gudi
•
LXXXVI— Fig.
1
Bhikshatanamiirti,
Conjee-
varam
LXXXVI— Fig.
Tiruohchengattangudi
Kumbhakonam Tiruvenkadu (A.S.M.) Valuvur (A.S.M.) ... Pandananalliar
M.) ii,
Elephanta Triohinopoly Ellora
(A.S.
LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONB. FLATS
XCII
10 FAOE PAGE
—Kg.
2,
Gangadharamurti, Vaittisvarankoyil (A.S.M.)
...
XOIII— Do. Taramangalam (A.S.M.) XOIV— Arddhanarisvaramurti, Badami ...
XGV— Kg. XCV— Fig.
Kumbhakoriam ... Mahabalipuram ... Madras Museum...
Do. Do.
1,
2,
XCVI— Pig. XOVI— Fig.
2,
Do. Do.
XCVI—Fig.
3,
Do.
1,
330
...
330
...
...
330 330 331 334 336 344
... ... ...
— Kalyariasundaramurti, Tiruvorriyur Do.
328
gudi
Poona (A.S.Bo.)
Do.
01 Oil
327 328
Tiruehohengattan-
XCVII— Do. Oonieevaram XCVIII— Do. Madura XOIX — Haryarddhamiirti, Badami
0—
319 320
Eatanpiir Dfc.)
... ...
(Bilaspur
(A.S.Bo.)...
OIII—
Do.
Elephanta
OIV—
Do.
Eilora
345
OV—
Do.
Ellora
...
346 347 347
OVI—
Do.
Madura
...
351
OVII—
Do.
Madura
...
351
OVIII
—Vrishavahanamuriii,
(A. S. Bo.) ...
Vedarariyam
•
...
354
(From the Visvakama)... Taramangalam (A.S.M.)... Vrishavahanamiirti, Mahabalipuram ...
355 355
(A.S.M.)
CIX— CX
Do. Do.
CXI —
CXII—Fig. OXII— Fig. CXIII
—
1.
Do.
Halebidu
...
2,
Do.
Madura
...
Fig. 1, Sadaaivamiirlii,
2,
CXIV— Fig.
1,
Do.
Mr.
K.
Collection
Mahesamiirti,
Gokak
(A. S. Bo.)
XXlll
355 355
Mr. Beardsell'a
Collection
CXIII—Fig.
355
...
372
Kay's ...
372
Falls ...
382
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. PLATE
TO FAOB PAQB
CXIV — Fig.
2,
Mahasadalivamurfci,
Vaittis-
varankoyil (A. S. M.)
OXV—
...
382
Sadasivamurti, Elephanta (from Visva-
karma)
...
CXVI—Mahesamurti, Kavaripakkam ... CXVII— Do. Elephanta ... CXVIII— Chitorgarh Do. ... CXIX —Fig. 1, Ekapadamiirti, Jambukesvaram
OXIX — Fig.
2,
OXX— Fig.
1,
Siva
as
(A.S.M.)
...
sow suckling young ones.
its
a
...
372 380 382 385
410 410
Parvati doingi
L,
penance
, IPatfclsvaram
_.^_ OXX —Fig. „„. 2, Parvati _,.
.,
.
.
,;;.,,
r
v
...
409
Skanda or Velayudha Subrahmanya, Mr. M. K. Narayanasami Ayyar's Collection ... OXXI— Fig. 2, Kumara. Tiruppalatturai (A.S.M.) CXXII Subrahmariya with his consorts" Devasena and Valli, Kumbhakonam.
444 444
(A.S.M.)
embracing Siva.
OXXI— Fig.
1,
—
OXXIII—
Do.
CXXIV—
CXXV—
Tiruvorriyur
...
Do.
Ellora
...
Do.
with his consorts Davasena
and
Kumbakoriam
444 445 445
...
446
CXXVI— Fig.l, Do. TrivandramCT.S.A.) CXXVI— Fig. 2, Sikhivahana, Kumbhako9am. CXXVI— Fig. 3, Senapati, Madras Museum ...
447 447 447
...
447
... ...
448 448
...
448
Valli,
CXXVII— Shanmukha, Pattisvaram (A.S.M.) CXXVIII— Do. Nalliir (A.S.M.) CXXVIIIa
— Tarakari-Subrahmanya, Aihole
CXXIX—Devasena-Kalyal^asundaramiirti, Tirupparankunram xxiv
LIST OE ILLUSTEATIONS. TO PACE PAGE
PIiATB
CXXX — Dvarapalaka
Subrahmariya
the
of
shrine, Tanjora (A.S.M.)
...
CXXXI— Adhikara-Nandin, CXXXII—
Valuvur (A.S.M.) ... Nandi, Panohanadikulam (Tanjore Dfc.) '
(A.S.M.)
OXXXIII— Fig. CXXXIII—Kg.
1,
...
Chandesvara, Tirruvorriyur
460 468
Marudantanaimr
Do.
2,
...
...
468
Madras Museum. Siruttorida Nayanar and others, Tiru-
480
(A.S.M.)
CXXXIV— Kagriappa Nayanar,
CXXXV—
450 460
ohchengattangudi (A.S.M.)
CXXXVI— Alvars, CXXXVII — Fig.
1,
Tadikkombu (A.S.M.) nabhapuram
...
)
godu (A.S.M.)
CXL—Fig.
1,
(.Visvakarma)
.
480
Do. Tirupparaiyaru
480
...
480 490
...
490
...
Sasta, Sastankottai
Gajariidha
480
Padmanabha.
CXXXVIII— Manikkavaohakar 2,
480
| Tiruehchen-
puram 1,
475
...
Tirujnanasambandha, Padma-
CXXXVII—Fig. 2, Mapikkavaehakar CXXXVII— Fig.3, Apparsvamigal CXXXVII— Fig. 4, Sundaramurti,
CXXXIX— Fig. CXXXIX—Fig-
...
Valuvur
Sasta,
"
...
491
Tiruppalatturai (A.S.M.).
491
CXLI— Fig. 1, Kshetrapala, Ajmere (A.S.Bo.)... Do. Halebidu CXLI— Fig. 2,
498 498
(A.S.M.)
CXL— Fig.
2. Sasta,
...
CXLII
—Brahma, Madras Museum
OXLIII—Fig. CXLIII—Fig.
OXLIV—
1,
2,
Brahma, Tiruvorriyur Do. Madras Museum Do,
...
...
...
505 506
...
508
...
508 509 509
...
...
...
XXV IV
504 505
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY, TO FACE PAGE
PLATE
CXLVIII- -Brahma, Karachi Museum (A.S.Bo.^
CXLIX-
Do.
509 509 520 520 520 524
Tiruvadi (A.S.M.)
CL- -Indra, Chidambaram CLI- -Fig. 1, Indra, CLI- -Pig. 2, Do. CLII- -Agni, Kandiyiir
(A.S.M.)
Do. Do. (Travancore)
CLIII- -^'S-l'^^"'^} Chidambaram (A.S.M, ) CLIII- Fig. 2, Agni CLIV- Kg. 1, Kubera, Dohad (A.S.Bo.)
CLIV-
CLVCLV-
Fig. 2, Nirruti, Fig. 1, Fig. 2,
CLVI- Gate
Ahobilam (A.S.M.)
Gangs | Yamuna)
of
j^^
Fig.
1,
•Fig. 2,
Fig.
1,
Siva,
a temple, Kharod, Bilaspiir
531
Naga and Nagini, Halebidu Nagini, Madras Museum
...
Dvarapalaka of the temple Kaveripakkam
of
CLVIII- Fig. 2,Ap8aras,
OLIX- Figure
528 628 531
(A.S.Bo.)
District (A.S.Bo.)
CLVIICLVIICLVIII-
524
of
561 561
Srinivasanallur
Nataraja
showing
relative positions of the limba
XXVI
557 557
the ...
573
WORKS CONSULTED OTHER THAN THOSE MENTIONED IN THE FIRST VOLUME.
LIST OF IMPORTANT
Atiharvasirasopanishad. Bharafca-natya-sastira.
Brahma-mimamsa-lastra. Dakahitiainurtyapanishad
Dbarmasutras of Apastamba commentary. Halasya-mabatmya. Harivamsa.
with
Jlriioddhara-dasakam.
Eoyil-puraiiam (Tamil).
Kurma-purana. Euvalayanaada. Mallari-mahatmya. Malati-madhava. Manu-dharma-sastra. Mayamata. Nafcyaveda-vivriti.
Poriyapurariam (Tamil).
Prabodhacbandroday am Prastbanabbeda. Pratyabbijnasiitras.
Sankara-vijaya (Anantanandagin's).
Sarabbopanisbad. Sarvadarsana-sangraba. Satarudriya.
Sivajnanasiddhiyar (Tamil). Siva-linga- prafcisbtha- vidbi.
Siva-tatva-ratnakara.
Sata-sambita.
Tiruvarulpayan (Tamil).
Tiruvacbakam (Tamil), Yalodharakavyam xxvii
HaradaUa'a
Page
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Page
Line
For
Bead
86
20
Sfchavara lingas
105
19
fiowhieh
to which.
110
20
are sculptured
are not sculptured
.
Sthavara lingas
accordance
in
againsli
with
XIV
XIV.
111
1
Eig
113
8
119
16
and and tibe skull. makara-kundala .
and the skull makara-kundala,
121
18
The
.,
The
2, PI.
firsk
.
comes
Eig
1, PI.
first, fig. 1,
PI.
XV 125
19
131
4
137
11
carry on
carry an
a utpala flower
an utpala flower
with creeper orna-.
with
ment 140
20
145
2
or a pacific,
148
5
of
148
20
150
5
catching hold of
..
catching hold or as a pacific,
Siva
and in the com-..
of Kama by Siva, and being in the
company
pany said to
creeper
a
ornament,
have told
..
said to
have men-
tioned
152
17
piece of sculpture,..
piece of sculpture,
157
12
says, to Tirukka-..
says, Tirukkadaviir
161
20
see later on, the
163
6
164
12
PI.
XXX,
davur ..
with hands
see later on that the
with his hands
they desired and
..
they
and
desired
that
165
9
165
10
with a half stronger
with one half
of
than
all..
other
166
16
who
168
10
upon Apasmara-.. purusha
destroyd
stronger
of
than
all
the other
who
destroyed
upon the Apasmarapurusha
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. ee
211
Line
Foi
Bead
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Page
328
Line
For
Bead
HINDU IGONOGEAPHY. Page
463
Line
For
Bead
INTEODUCTION.
/^NE
of the oldest as also the
most widely spread
cult in India is that of 6iva.
once of several
sects, of
It consisted
which only a few have
survived to the present day.
Some
them had
of
the sanction of the Vedas while others were classed as outside the
some
Vedas
or as opposed to
them had milder forms
of
them
life,
sect to sect.
examine
in
again,
of worship, while
others practised horrible and shocking ideas about
;
The
rites.
action and liberation differed from
It will
some
not be without interest to
detail
the history,
the main
tenets and the ceremonies of a few of the leading sects of Siva in the following paragraphs. First, as regards the origin of the sects classed
as outside the pale of the Vedas,
the following
account taken from the VardJia-purdna will be
of
interest.
In the
middle
Bh^ratavarsha, the rishi Gautama had
his
of
dhrama
forest of
(hermitage),
Dandaka, situated
in the
round which, he
had
HINDU IGONOGBAPHY. abundant food-giving plants and raged
number
years' famine
twelve
a
of risliis
received with
and
for food
After the famine abated
and the country became again desired
to
start
famous
several
and were
shelter,
kindness and treated with great
all
by Gautama.
hospitality
which a
during
from various other ahramas flocked
Gautama
to that of
There once
trees.
out on
tirtlias ;
a
fertile,
the rishis
pilgrimage to
one of the
risTiis
the
named
Maricha, thinking that they should not leave the
asrama without informing Gautama, but fearing at the
same time that he might,
in his
extreme
kindness and hospitality, refuse permission for the pilgrimage, created from
maya an
enfeebled, old
cow and let it graze near Gautama's asrama. Gautama went near the cow to water it as he ;
went near the cow, ungrateful killing a
abode not
risliis
it
fell
attributed to
cow and refused
of
know
down and
died.
The
Gautama, the
sin of
any longer
in the
to stay
such a sinful one.
Gautama, who did
this trick of the rishis, really believed that
he had committed the sin and asked them how he could raise the cow from death. sprinkle on
it
Advising him to
water brought from the Ganges, they
departed on their projected pilgrimage. repaired to the
Himalaya and prayed
hundred years and got from
his
Gautama to Siva a
jaiamandala a
INTEODUCTION.
Ganga which he The water of this
small quantity of the water of the sprinkled on the dead cow.
cow and itself began to Godavari. Gautama at last
divine river revived the
flow as
the
river
perceived through his mind's eye that the death of
the
cow and other
incidents connected therewith
were a clear deceit practised on him by the
risTiis
and cursed them to become Vedabahyas or those
On
outside the pale of the Vedic religion.
their
entreaty to abate his anger- against them, he was pleased to assure
them that though they were
outside the Vedic cult, they would rise to heaven
through hhahti or devotional love
went
fallen rishis
to grant
to
The
Kailasa and prayed to Siva
them some kadras which had
rites at least.
God.
of
Thereupon, the
rishis
a few Vedic
were decreed
to be born to the Eaudras, the lovers of spirituous
liquors
and
flesh,
who sprang up from
the sweat-
drops which flowed from Siva while he was in the aspect of Bhairava,
and
to
these he
gave the
Pasupata Sdstra.
From clear,
the above account one fact becomes
namely, that some at least of the followers
Pasupata and other non- Vedic sects were at followers of the Vedic religion and gave it up
of the first
and joined the avaidika and a few other
cults.
That the Pasupata
sects are indeed very ancient
may
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The Atharoa-
be inferred frora ancient authorities.
Upanishad describes the Pasupata
siras
" This is the
Pasupata
rite
:
'Agni
is
thus
rite
:
Vayu
ashes,
is
ashes, water
is
ashes, all this is ashes, the mind, these eyes are
is
ashes, dry land
is
ashes, the sky
Having taken ashes while pronouncing
ashes.'
these preceding words, and rubbing himself, let a
man
This
touch his limbs.
for the
removal
is
the Pasupata
animal bonds."
of the
rite,
Again the
Bhita linga and the Gudimallam lihga bear clear sculptural evidence of the antiquity of the Saiva cults.
From
the
summary
of the
philosophy of a
few of the important Saiva sects given below
would be
clear that they
it
have played a prominent
part in the Eeligious History of India.
Let us take History of the
Agamanta
Agamanta or the Suddha Saiva sect. In the Agamanta Saiva first
the
/
works
it is
stated that the Saivas
Saivas.
flourished in a place called Mantra-
on the banks
kali situated
of
the Godavari river,
that there were four matjias, beginning with the
Amarddaka
matjia,
surrounding
Mantrakalesvara, that to the Granges
down
in
his
temple
of
when Rajendrachola went
on his victorious march in the north
he met there these Saivas,
back to his
the
capital,
whom
he,
on his way
induced to come and
settle
kingdom and that from that time
INTRODUCTION. the Saivas immigrated into
and the Cholamandala.
was given large
Since then an impetus
the spread of Saivaism and a very
to
number
Tondaimandala
the
works belonging to the
of original
Agamanta school of Saivaism was written. The Amarddaka matjia mentioned above is a famous one and had
its
branches
mention
is
made
For instance,
over India.
all
of this in the
and the Eriyakramadyotini,
Siddhantasaravali
as also in a
number
of inscriptions.
The members great authors
over
the
of
some
of these
mathas were
and exerted considerable influence
sovereigns of vaisious
countries.
The
EriyaJcramadyotini of Aghorasivacharya, the Sid-
dhantasaravali of Trilochanasivacharya, the Jlr-
noddhara-da§aJcam
of
Nigamajnanadeva, son
Vamadevasivacharya and many another work
of
will
bear testimony to the above statement regarding the literary activity of the in the Dravida country. in the
SaivaBrahmana settlers The first of these lived
Saka year 1080, the second
later, for
lived
sometime
he quotes the former, and the third in the
beginning of the fourteenth century A.D. The great Eajaraja, the builder of the Brihadisvara temple at
Tanjore,
is
stated to have appointed a Sarvasiva
Pandita-Sivacharya as the priest of that temple
and to have ordered that thenceforth the sishyas
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. and their the
belonging to the Aryadesa,
sishijas alone,
Madhyadesa and the Gaudadesa,
eligible for the office of chief priest.
of these
Saivacharyas became
preceptors of
kings,
shall
be
Again, some
^i'
rajagurus or the
and appear
to
have wielded
such great influence and power that they have
sometimes
set aside
and acted on
their
even the royal commandments
own
For example,
authority.
Kulottuhgacholadeva III appointed two Saivacharyas for the service of the temple at Tirukkadavur, but Svamidevar, order and
the king's
gum,
appointed two others,
of their hereditary rights.
(2)
AH
the
cancelled the in
recognition
Agamas
declare
that the Saivagamas flourished to the south of the
Vijidhya ranges, which
is
corroborated by the state-
ment made by Aghorasivacharya and ;
it
therefore
appears quite certain that Hajendracholadeva implanted in the south a large colony of Saiva Brah-
manas
of
Middle India.
These Saivas should be carefully distinguished from the Vedanta Saivas, who base their philosophy on the Vedas and the Upanishads. These two schools are diametrically opposed to each other (1)
S.I.I.
(2)
No. 40
,
Vol. II, Part II, of
1906
of the
p.
153.
Madras Epigraphist's
collection.
For an account of the origin and development of the Saiva mathas, see Eriydkramadybtini, Siddhantasdrdvali and other works.
INTEODUCTION. on many points.
From
the
Yasya-
statement,
nihasitani-vedah, of the Advaitins the followers of
Agamanta considered Vedas as inferior to the Agamas for they assert that the former came out the
;
of Siva as unconsciously as
His breath, whereas
Agamas were
the twenty-eight
consciously dictated by Siva.
and
personally
Besides, the Aga-
mantins consider the Advaitins and the
Mimam-
sakas as pasus or unevolved souls and to be therefore unfit for receiving
8aiva dlkshas or
The Agamantins
tions.
are
in their turn reviled
by the Vaidikas as being heterodox
among
bhatta classes them
Amarasimha accordingly
initia-
atheists
Kumarila-
;
and we read
classing Devalas
who
are
generally the Pasupatas, the Pancharatras and other
Tantrikas that are addicted to image
among
Sudras.'^'
At any
rate,
worship,
these Saivas did
not evidently hold a high place in the system of castes
;
the
Suta-samhita also states
that
very
low classes of Brahmanas alone underwent the dlJcsha or initiatory
ceremony in the Pasupata, the
Pancharatra and other tantras. clear that inferior
(1)
is
therefore
Brahmanas embraced some
the non-Aryan cults
Pancharatras.
It
At a
of
and became Pasupatas and later stage of
Amarakosa, Ka^da 7
II,
their history,
Sudravarga.
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. they probably adopted a few of the hdmas and the
them from the Grihya-
viantras appropriate to
some others
sutras and created for themselves
imitation of the mantras of the Veda. plains
the
eagerness with which
in
This ex-
these anarya-
sampradayas were somehow classed in the aryasampradayas.
But, their system of dlksha, Anku-
rarpana with which the ceremonies are begun, the philosophy of Shadadhvas
and many others are
not found in the Vaidik religions and therefore
mark
off
Agamanta
from the Vaidik freely
The Agamanta has philosophy of the Sahkhya and
religion.
borrowed the
the Yoga
as being different in essentials
schools.
Agamantins do
Unlike
not
shut
the out
Vedantins
women,
the
Sudras,
and the Pratilomas from participating in religious rites
They
and ceremonies.
to meditate
freely allow
upon the panclialiskara-mantra, and
who might, give dikslidi to others among them. is a naishthU:a (one who passes grant dlksha to Sudras,
without
women
undergoing
the
in their
turn,
" If the
Sudra
into
sannyasa
intermediate
stage of
grihastlia) he is entitled to consecrate the svartlia-
chala-lingas, offer dllislia
(l)
For an explanation
uo
of this
Sudras, might recite and
of a
sumnaary
of the
Saiva philoaophy see the beginning of the Chapter on Misoellaneoua Aspects of Siva (Xth).
INTRODUCTION. with proper svaras jnana.
If
he
is
all
mantras, and study Siva-
a grihastha,
he
is
privileged to
utter the nityeshti mantras,
and that too without
proper intonation or ?ia^a."
Though the Avaidika
Saivaism was essentially different
made
the beginning, attempts have been
times
to
identify
at
at later
Avaidikas with the Vaidikas.
Srikantha-Sivacharya
on
tenets
in
who
the Brahma-sutras
wrote
Bhashya
a
accordance with
in
Agamanta Saiva teachings
exclaims,
the
na vayam
veda-sivagamayorbJiedam pa§yam,ah vedasyapi siva-
gamatvat,
(we do not perceive
any
difference
between the Vedas and the Sivagamas, Vedas are also as authoritative as the later
stage, that
is,
Sivagamas)
;
and
at a
about the time of Appayya-
dikshita (16th century A. D.), the Vedantins began to study the
Agamanta philosophy and adopted
several of their customs
at this
;
anthropomorphic aspects
of
day several
Siva,
of the
which might,
with propriety, be called peculiarly Agamantic, are worshipped by the Vedic Saivas, and they also get themselves initiated into the meditation on the
PanchaJcshara mantra.
But they do not
receive
Tantric diksJia, nor do they interdine with those Tantric Brahmanas in
Siva
temples
;
who the
are at present only priests latter
sidered as low in the scale of
always
con-
Brahmanas.
The
are
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. multiplication of images, both Saiva and Vaishnava, is
due to the Tantrikas who have devoted a great
deal of
Tantras.
in their
to have possessed for
the description
attention to
worship at the earlier stages at any
The one
images
of
The Vaidikas do not appear so large a number of images
great peculiarity of
Saivas
is
their
all
rate.
the avaidik
dihsha.
In
per-
Saiva dlkslias.
forming this ceremony they need different
shaped kundas or receptacles
mandalas in their
detail.
Siva in humblias or vessels
They
(filled
he
who has
also invoke
with water), and
perform different kinds of honias or It is their faith that
and
which are described
or drawings, all of
works in great
for fire
fire
offerings.
not received the
Saiva dikshd does not attain mohslia or liberation.
They
believe that Siva personally presents
before the disciple in the form of an
granting him Siva-dlkshd.
family
and
life
is
For attaining
is
technically of
Baku
is
has renounced
the fittest person
this state of
requires the divine grace of ^akti. of this grace
for
expectant of gaining moksha by
constantly adoring his guru for dlkslid.
aeharyd
This dlkshd ceremony
He who
varies with the recipient.
Himself
The bestowal
by Bakti on the aspirant
known of four
as
mind he
Sakti-pdtam.
for dlkslid is
The grace
kinds, instantaneous, 10
rapid,
INTEODUOTION. and
slow given
very
slow,
with the
differ
which the grace
who
gets
Samaya
and
this
modes,
^akti
of
the
dlkshas
noted above, in
To him
received.
is
be
to
grace very slowly, that kind
dlksha
samayadiksha
the
called
of
diksba.
In
should be given.
this,
the guru
own
should invoke through mantras Siva in his person and perform several ceremonies
;
the sishya,
with flowers in hand kept in the anjali pose, taken see
blind-folded,
out,
sinners,
and
that
he might not
round the mandapa wherein
up the humhha or Siva,
so
vessel
after a certain
which
in
number
is
the flowers in
invoked
light
upon
asked to worship with
his hands.
Before he begins the
as fejorupa or the
embodiment
and also as the hand
of
own
right
hand
of enlightenment,
Siva himself, and uttering
the mida-mantra, should place
By
set
is
worship, the guru, considering his
Hshya.
is
rounds are
of
gone through, his eyes are opened to the humhha, which he
is
it
on the head
this act of placing the
the embodiment of enlightenment,
of his
hand which
first
is
on the head,
then over the whole body of the disciple the pa§as, bonds, the darkness of ignorance which enveloped
him, are dispelled. directs the sishya to
After this ceremony the guru
throw the flowers which he
holds in his hands on the Tcumhha. 11
The
disciple
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. shall receive his
on him on his
initiation,
on the top
fall
dlkshd-nama or the name bestowed
or
according as the flowers
on any one
of the four cardinal
directions round the Jcumbha, which correspond to
the position of the Isana, Tatpurusha, of Siva
the suffix, Siva or Deva,
;
names according
the
Thus,
Sudra.
as the disciple
and gana
or a Kshatriya, if
is
he
if
the flowers
etc.,
to be
Brahmana
a
is
aspects
added to
a Vaisya or a
is
on the
fall
side
Isana, the disciple should be called Isanasiva is
Brahmana, Isanadeva
a
Isanagana
if
if
a Vaisya or a Sudra.
he
if
Kshatriya,
a
of
and
If the disciple is
a female, she should be called Isana or Isasivasakti,
Isadevasakti,
she
of the
or
is
Sudra
Isaganasakti
according
Brahmana, Kshatriya, Those that have caste.
known To these
Samayis and
or,
as,
Vaisya
undergone
this dlJcsha are
as
Eudrapada.
are prescribed the perform-
ance of duties contained the agamas.
The
of
charyapada
the
of
description given above of the
Samaya-diksha reads als
in
will attain
like a
page from the ceremoni-
the Freemasons of the
present day; the
claims of freemasonry to remote antiquity do not after
all
an echo ancient
appear to be a pretension. of a
really
It is perhaps
ancient institution, like the
Agamanta Saivaism,
that
it is
after all
Eastern institution engrafted upon Western 12
soil.
an
INTEODUOTION.
The second kind
of dlksha is called the Vikesha
whom
the
grace of Sakti comes more rapidly than in
the
dlksha and
is
previous case.
conferred upon those to
In
d'dsha ceremony already described in this case is supposed
but the guru
;
to join the
sishya
from the Maya-garhJia to
and
made
is
similar to the
all its details, it is
to contemplate
soul of the
SaJcti-garbJia,
mind on
in his
external union of Vagisvari with Vagisvara.
the
this
guru teaches
charas or the creeds of
his
After
samaya-
disciple the
his
They
faith.
the
are
abstinence from reviling Siva, Sivasastras, Sivagni,
and the
gtiru,
from cr6ssing even the shadow
of
these and from eating oneself or presenting to others for eating the food offered to
Siva
doing pujd, to
:
Sivagni and to the guru to the end of one's so
on.
He who
would attain
known during
has received the
after death
life
and
vi§eshadlJ(sha
the Isvara-pada; he
is
These are
his lifetime as putraJca.
enjoined to observe the ceremonies and duties prescribed in the charya and the Jcriyapadas of the agama,s.
Samayi
The conduct and are
called the
duties of the
ds,samdrga.
life
of the
From
these
descriptions of the samayis and putrahas, to be clear that those
them
who
collect flowers
it
appears
and knit
into garlands for the temple services, that
people of the class of
Panddrams 13
etc., are to
is,
be
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY, considered as Samayis or Tadars (Dasas), while those that go by the distinct appellation of Pillais or Pillaimars, as putrahas-
The
cliksha prescribed for those to
grace of is
Sakti
comes instantaneously
Nirvana
called
body
material
strands
of string
sishya
mind
is
off ;
even when the sishya this
for
are taken and
the tuft of his hair in these strings,
or rapidly
of dlksJia, the fiction is that the
bonds (pasas) are cut his
the
dlJcsha.
In this kind
in
whom
to the
is
few
purpose, a
suspended from
toe of the right foot
the chaitamja (or energy) of the
invoked and the guru conceives in his
as having undergone, even then, the several
births
which the sishya has otherwise
absolve himself from the various bonds
to take to
known
as
mala, mUya, karma and kald, and then cuts the strings into pieces.
To check
of these pasas or bonds, the of
strings
into
the
guru throws the
is
also
bits
After these ceremonies
fire.
are over, the soul of the sishya
become equal
the further growth
to Siva in purity.
is
believed to have
Another formality
gone through to establish this identity
of the soul
with Siva, namely, the guru, yokes on
to the soul of the sishya, the six qualities
which
dis-
tinguish Siva, namely Sarvajnatva, (omniscience),
purna-kd,matva
(filled
with 14
love)
anadi-jnana
INTEODUCTION. (beginningless knowledge), apctrasakti (unbounded
power) svadhmatva (perfect freedom) and undimi-
There are
nishing power.
still
a few other minor
ceremonies belonging to the dlksha which need not be detailed here.
Those that have undergone the nirvana-dlkshd are divided into acJiaryas,
and
two
classes, the
for being called
sadhahas and the
by these names they
should once again undergo the ceremony of anoint-
ment
as sadhahas
and acharyas.
The sadhahas
are supposed to have attained the eight siddhis or
powers,
anima,
with
beginning
through the Yoga system
;
so
well-known
the sadhahas are entitled
to observe the nityaharmas or daily observances such
as bath, puja, japa,
dhyana and homa, and hamya-
harmas only whereas, the acharyas are ;
entitled to
perform, in addition to these, naimittiha ceremonies
such as performing the dlhsha ceremony on others,
and pratishtha ceremony or consecrating images.
The above classes,
described nirvdna-dihsha
respectively
known
as
is
of
two
Idhadhai-mini or
hhautihi and Sivadharmini or naishthihi.
Those
that have undergone the latter or the Sivadharmini
dlhiha should wear the tuft of hair on the top of the head, covering the
brahma-randhra, whereas
those that have undergone the former or the
dharmini dlhsha need not cut 15
oflf
the hair.
Idha-
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The Saivas may observe both the Vaidika and the Saiva
duties, but
if
some
the former are
of
opposed to the teachings of the Saiva tantras, they should be abandoned. the
and
bhantiJii
Those that have undergone
naisJithiJci
may
dlhshas
even
abandon the Vaidik sandhyd ceremony but never the Saiva sandhya.
The Agamas parts, the
are
alv^ays
divided
four
into
Kriyapdda, the Charydpdda, the Yoga-
pada and the Jnanapada the study and observance of the rules laid down in one, two, three or all four of these are enjoined
upon the Samayis, the
putrakas, the bhautihis and the naishthilcis respec-
The paths pursued by these are also known respectively by the names dasamdrga, futramdrga, tively.
sahamdrga and the sanmdrga
who have been
;
initiated in the
that
is,
the persons
samayi and other
dlhshas conduct themselves towards the Lord as a servant, a son, a friend or as the
The
Lord
himself.
paths prescribed are of varying grades suitable
to souls at various stages of religious evolution.
These
dlJcshds
were described in some
detail, in
order to give the readers an idea of the religious
ceremonials which are Saivas
;
it
is
meant
common
to all sects of the
also to give scope for the
com-
parative study of the religious ceremonial institutions of India
and
of other countries,
16
more
especially
INTRODUCTION. with Freemasonry.
As the philosophy
branch of Saivaism
is
dealt with
various authors elsewhere,
it
this
of
elaborately
by
need not be given
here.
The Pasupatas
are the next important class of
According to Eamanuja-
Saivas.
^j^^p
charya
it
included the Kalamukhas
Agamanta Saivas. There is for Eamanuja including all the
the Kapalas, and the
some
justification
four under one name, the Pasupata religion all
;
for
these four sectarians called the Jlvatman, pake
and the paramatman, also class these as
ded in Saivaism.
Pati.
The Agamanta Saivas
agachchamayams
or sects inclu-
As regards the antiquity and
history of the Pasupata sect,
little is
known. In
times the Pasupata sect
known
as the Lakulisa
is
later
Pasupata or the Pasupata sect founded by Lakulisvara,
who
himself. fix
is
considered as an incarnation of ^iva
An
attempt has been made by Dr. Fleet to
the age of Lakulisvara, the founder of the Pasu-
pata
sect. It is a
matter for surprise that even such
a circumspect scholar as Dr. Fleet has, perhaps in his desire to arrive at
upon
baseless premises
him
to
incorrect
some conclusion, proceeded which have naturally led
results.
Because
the
name
Lakulisvara-pandita occurs in an inscription at
Melpadi and in another at Baligami, and because 17
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. tradition asserts that he propagated his faith in
Kayarohana
N. India, Dr. Fleet concludes that
in
founder of the sect which goes
Lakulisvara, the
by
name, began his
his
activities first in Melpadi,
wherefrom he drifted on eventually settled India,
down
and that he
Kayarohana
The
bearing the
name Lakulisvara
ed
two inscriptions
the
in
were two
distinct
two
individuals
referred
above
to
named
personages and were ;
the conclusion
untenable for the following reasons.
is
Sankaracharya, whose age last quarter
Northern
Pandita, mention-
after the founder of their faith of Dr. Fleet
in
lived in the first quarter of the
A. D.
century
eleventh
at
Baligami and then
to
of
believed to be
the
century, reviews
the
is
the eighth
Pasupata
philosophy in his Sariraka
Bhashya.
Says he,
"
maintain
The
Mahesvaras
that the five categories,
pain
of
Lord Pasupati
{duhJchanta), (Siva) to the
bonds of the animals pati
is,
(pasii,
{Jcarya)
and
{vidhi)
were taught
end i.
e.,
of
cause the
by the
breaking the
the souls).
Pasu-
according to them, the Lord, the operative
cause."
In his masterly
systems
of
his
effect
viz,
union {yog a), ritual
{liarana),
end
(Saivas)
time,
treatise
on the
different
philosophy that were in existence
Vidyaranya gives the same
gories given above as those held 18
five
in
cate-
by the Lakulisa
INTRODUCTION. Pa^upatas
;
vati, also reiterates the
same statement
The Pasupata
thanabheda.* the
Madhusudana Saras-
the later author,
kara at
or
least,
perhaps
AtharvaHrasopanishad.
as
sect
name Lakulisa Pasupata
is
even
known by
older than as
The authors
Devaram hymns have sung
in his Pras-
old
^anthe
as
famous
of the
the praises of
the
Siva temples at Nagapattanam (Negapatam) and
Kumbhakonam, which were known even in their times by the name of Kayarohana or Karona, so named evidently after the more famous place of that name in Northern India. The age of these hymnists, is
settled to be the middle of the seventh century.
This fact pushes the limit
by one more century.
of the
Hence, Lakulisa the founder
of the faith, should not be
namesakes
of
first
quarter of bhe eleventh
The Kalamukhas
also appear to be a sub-
division of the Pasupatas, as
To substantiate of
confounded with his
Melpadi and Baligami, nor can his
date be taken as the century.
age of Lakulisa
this,
Eamanuja, but
we have seen
we have not only the
also that of
some
above.
authority
others.
The
Saivagamas sometimes divide Saivism into Saiva, Pasupata,
Somasiddhanta and
Lakula
;
and
in
other places divide Saivas into Saiva, Pasupata, *The Uttara-Kdmikdgama five categories
also states that
L&kula bad
and they are the same as given above. 19
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Kapalika and Kalamukha.
we
see that the first
cases
;
we
sects are identical in both
learn from the PrabodhacJiandrodayam
that Somasiddhanta of the
two
In the above groupings
is
the authoritative text-book
Kapalikas and the remaining Lakula
may
Kalamukha.
In
be inferred to praising certain
same
be the
as
Kalamukha gums,
inscriptions use the phrase
"a very Nakulisvara which
the knowledge of the Siddhantas",
proves that the
the Baligami
Kalamukhas were
in
clearly
with
identical
Lakulisa Pasupatas.*
*Eegarding the antiquity
of the
the faith that he waa an avatara
be quoted
Saiva teacher Lakulisa and
may
:
Hfleg: ^tr^rWTl
xT
^^m ^
l^^s^ 5rnfKWI
the following
of Siva,
^Wr^ft
"^ W
and
r
^I^^ IT^T'^:
I
Kiirmapurana, Chap. 53, Vv.
f^t
^ft gojTt
c^r
^^ 20
R[^^r
i
1,
9
&
10.
INTEODUGTION.
The
tenets of the Lakulisa
gather from
the
very briefly, are as follows
The end sorts
moTcsha.
:
of pain, their fifth category, is of
anatmalca
the
Of
moTisTia
and
these, the former
absolute freedom
we
Pa^upatas as
Sarvadarsana-Sangraha, stated
from pain.
two
the satmaka
defined as the
is
The
possession of
Kriyasakti and Jnanasakti, which are the attributes of
Paramesvara and which are described below,
called sdtmaJcamoJcsha.
smallest, the
Perception
even
of
most distant matters, hearing
kind of sound, being well versed in
all
The accomplishment
the
of every
sastras, the
possession of these and similar powers
Jnanasakti.
is
is
called
of every object,
quickly assuming every form according to one's
own
desire,
is
known
These two
as Kriyasakti.
Saktis constitute, as stated just now, the satmaTta moJcsha.
In every other system a karya or
effect
is
defined as that which follows a Jcarana or cause
JTi'^
mkm
^
iTfJRif^
M g^
ii
^^
ii
Sivapuraria, Tritiya-Satarudra-Samhita, Chap. 5.
Also compare pages 190 and 191,
Director General of
Arohseology's Annual for the year 1906-07.
21
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. the Pasupatas call
all
dependent objects as
in conformity with this their definition of
effect Jcdrya,
they bring Jivatman or fakt, which they admit as
under the category
eternal,
of
harya because
The
dependent upon the paramatma7i or Pati.
Being who
is
endowed with the powers of
it is
creation,
destruction and protection, the Lord Paramesvara, is
known
His
to their philosophy as the harana.
attributes are Jiianasakti
and Kriyasakti, which
are eternally with him, not as are acquired after a
stage by the perfected
The Pasupatas
human
souls.
believe also in divine dispensa-
tion which need not be based evil
upon the good or
Jcanna of the soul.
The category with Pati,
called
may
Yoga
or union of the soul
be attained in two ways.
In the
first, it is
attained through japa, dhyana, and other
Jcarmas
while in the second by exercising strict
;
control over
kinds
of
the senses.
molislia
By
Yogo, the
this
mentioned
above
could
two be
obtained. Vidlii or the
patas
is
Bathing lying
rules of conduct
of
the Pasu-
the most interesting part of their religion. bodies
their
down on
singing loudly
thrice
a
day
in
ashes,
making noise
like ahd, aha,
the praises of their
god, dancing
ashes,
either according
to the science of dancing or in 22
INTEODUCTION. any manner, curling the tongue and roaring bulls,
—
like
this noice is called hudukJcara or noise like
hu^u hudu, making bulation,
prostrations and circumam-
repeating the
constitute their vrata
these strange
acts
—
names
of Siva
all
these
or daily observances.
But
are
forbidden
strictly
to
be
practised in places where there are other persons
Besides these, the Pasupatas are advised
present.
mad men. For instance, when not actually sleeping,
to behave actually like
pretending to be asleep
begging for food, shaking
limbs
the
as
when
attacked by paralysis, walking like one with rheu-
matic pain in his
legs, or like a
lame man, exhibit-
ing signs of lust at the sight of women, doing other
making meaningless enjoined upon the Pasupatas. To
acts befitting lunatics such as
noise
—these are
get rid of fastidiousness, they are enjoined to beg for food, eat the
remnants
of the dishes of others
and do similar objectionable
"'It;
is
in
appears quite probable
responsible for
Hindu
acts.*
thai; this
vidhi of the Pasupatas
the origin and existence
temples.
In the majority
of
obscene sculptures
of cases,
such sculpture
consists of the figure of a stark naked male with his virile erect,
membrum
standing with his legs kept separated from each
other and with his hands held in the anjali pose over his head, and his head
down on
either side.
always covered with long jatas, banging In front
of this figure is its counterpart,
23
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The Saivagamas arrange the Saiva
sects in
Kaia-
^he following Order of superiority,
SomasTddhan""''
namely, the Saivas, the Pasupatas,
The *"^®'
the
Again we learn that the Kaulas worship
Lakulas. the
and
Somasiddhantins
the
Kshapanakas the actual
the
adharachaJcra,
yoni and the trikonas (or triangular yantras), and the Eapalikas and Digamhay-as both the objects
worshipped by the
mentioned two
first
The
sects.
various sects of Saivas hold the view that as there is
no diflerence between one animal and another,
there
is
man and man
none whatsoever between
and dlhsha might be given a female one,
whose
clothiog
ia
the waist, thereby leaving the
to
alike.
all
represented as slipping
pudendum exposed.
than certain that the matted haired naked
man
no other than a Saiva devotee belonging to one
It ia
The down more
could represent of the
indecent
sects of the Saiva religioQ, putting to practice the rules of the
vidhi taught by his philosophy.
In almost
and
in all
could meet attitudes
all
the later
additions to
more ancient temples
the temples built after the 14th century A.D., one
with figures of men in
— with
ill-kept,
all
manner
twisted and bent in most astounding postures
reproduced on PI. 69 in
kumarasvami. of
of
capering
but amusing faces and with the body
his
Visvakarma
:
one such
This sort of sculpture recognised by the
konahgis has also
its
origin in the vidhi of the
philosophy.
24
is
by Dr. Ananda-
name
Fasupata
INTRODUCTION.
Kalamukhas appear to be so called because they marked their forehead with a black streak, and they are said to be born of nara (human) and rakshasa (demoniacal) parents.
The Kapalikas appear but
The Kapalikas.
an extremist sect
They have
says
:
About the various Saiva
— " The
same
Sutras
reasons,
now
of
Ramanuja
that,
The adherents
view
four
to
the
for
Pasupati
has to be disregarded. belong
Kala-
of the
sects
declare
doctrine
the
of Saivas.
and ceremonies
rites
which are more revolting than those mukhas.
an ancient
to be also
classes
Kalamukhas, Pasupatas and Saivas.
the also this
of
— Kapalas,
All of
them
hold fanciful theories of Reality which are in conflict
with the Veda, and invent various means taining happiness in this
life
for. at-
and the next.
They
maintain the general material and the operative cause to be distinct, constituted by
and the
They
Pasupati.
latter
cause to be
further hold the
wearing of the six mudra badges and the
means "
to accomplish the highest
Thus the Kapalas
true nature of the
six
say,
'
end
of
like to be
man.
He who knows
the
mudras, who understands
the highest mudra, meditating upon himself as in the position
The
called bhagasana,
necklace, the golden 25
reaches Nirvana.
ornament, the ear-ring,
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. the head-jewel, ashes, and the sacred thread
He whose
called the six viudras.
with the
these
not born here again.
is
Kalamukhas teach
taining
all
body
marked
is
Similarly,
means
that the
as the next are constituted by certain
ob-
of
results in this world as
desired
are
well
practices
such as using a skull as a drinking vessel, smearing oneself with ashes of the dead body, eating the flesh of
up a
such a body, carrying a heavy
stick, setting
and using
platform for
liquor-jar
making bracelet
it
offerings to the Gods,
made etc.,
'
and the
—
skull,
all this is
well
sacred writings of the Saivas.
like.
known from
They
the highest asrama initiatory
Brahmana rite a
ceremony at
once
man becomes
We
:
learn a
;
the
also hold that
men
may become Brahmanas and '
A
smearing oneself
by some special ceremonial performance different castes
'
on the arm,
Rudraksha-seeds
of
matted hair on the head, a with ashes
as a
of
reach
by merely entering on the
{dikslia)
man becomes
a
a
by undertaking the Kapala
at once
little
an ascetic."
more about the Kapalikas
from stray mention made of them in a number of books.
For instance, Krishnamisra
bodhachandrodaya character in that
introduces
drama who
the following words
:
"
a
in his
Pra-
Kapalika as a
describes himself in
My necklace and ornaments 26
INTBODUGTION. consist
human
of
bones; I
my
the dead and eat look with
my
in the ashes of
live
food in
human
made keen with
eyes
world are
from God.
different rites
of
diflerent,
after fasting
:
Brahmanas
;
!
our
terrific
!
men which
God
human
are
is
not
skulls
kept
are
offerings
parts
listen to our
liquor from the
and the
their flesh,
appease our
yet the whole
sacrificial fires
with the brains and lungs of
up with
different
Digambara
we drink
I
the ointment of
yoga and I believe that though the of the
skulls.
are
up
mixed
by which we
victims covered
with gushing blood from the horrible cut on their I contemplate
throats.
the mighty
on the lord
God who creates, preserves and
the fourteen worlds whose
Vedas went
glory
destroys
revealed in
is
the
The SanharaAnantanandagiri states that when Sankara
as well
vijaya of
Bhavani,
of
as in
his deeds."
to Ujjayini, the foremost
came for Among them one
men
of all the sects
living there
a religious disputation with
him.
sect of Kapalikas
had the
following characteristic feature and doctrines.
wore sphatiha
(crystal beads), the ai'ddha-cliandra
(an ornament shaped like the crescent
theja^
(or
They
matted
heir).
Their
God
moon) and
is
Bhairava,
the author of creation, protection and destruction
they believe that him.
all
other gods are subservient to
Bhairava has eight 27
different aspects
namely
HINDU IGONOGEAPHY. Unmatta Bhai-
Asitanga, Euru, Chanda, Krodha,
Bhishma and
Kapala,
rava,
Samhara-Bhairava
corresponding to Vishnu, Brahma, Surya, Kudra,
Yama and
the Supreme
Being
This class of Kapalikas was
taken
Chandra,
Indra,
respectively.
by Sankaracharya, states Anantanandagiri, into
But another
the fold of Brahmanism.
subject of
Kapalikas headed by one Unmatta-Bhairava came
Sankara
to wrangle with
;
he had smeared his body
with the ashes of the dead and wore a garland of skulls
black
his forehead
;
The whole
stuff.
was turned into a
was marked with a streak
hand a
in his left
He was rava
He
jatas.
kauplna consisting
skull
He
Kalisa.
hair
and carried
skin
and in the right a
names
that
said
Living
class
this
with
one's
of
Kapalas
Parvati in heaven,
kas as moksha.
is
It
there
are
Bhavabhuti
Mddhaoa
literary
introduces
a Kapalika
his
who,
for
28
incorrigible.
this
world
by the Kapalithis
human
evidences in
Sankara
with his consort
certain that
Saivas were freely indulging in for
as
also considered is
moksha
their
wife happily in
as does Chandra^ekhara (Siva)
bell.
Sambhu, Bhai-
of
consisted in joining Bhairava after death. rejected
head
of his
wore a katisutra and
tiger's
of
calling out the
and
of the
of
to
this
drama
sect
of
sacrifices, effect.
Malatl-
having attained
INTRODUCTION. mantra-siddhi, attempted to sacrifice Malati to his god. Vadirajasuri in his Yahodharakdvya describes
the preparations for two
two pretty
human
which
sacrifices for
children were decoyed and taken
little
to the altar but fortunately saved
from the catas-
trophe.
Krishnamisra says that the Digambaras and the Kapalikas quitted
other countries and gra-
all
dually retired to the Malava and Abhira countries,
which are inhabited by low
class
men
The Saivagamas inform us
(pamaras).
that
the Saivas
worship Siva in the aspect of Tandava-bhushana the
Pasupatas,
Siva
with ashes and
smeared
wearing jatamakuta, the Mahavratas, Siva wearing
a garland of bones
;
the Kalamukhas, Siva
wearing sphatiJca and piitradlpa
(?)
beads
;
the
Vamacharas, Siva wearing the sacred thread and carrying
and the Bhairavas, Siva carrymg
fire
4amaru and wearing
anklets
;
and that
all
these
aspects of Siva should have three eyes.
From sects
of
all
that
has been said of the various
Saivas the
following
^aivaism naturally suggests of
all
the
ghora
in
a wild
itself.
forms
personality of Siva himself
conclusion about
of ;
The prototype
Saivaism
is
the
dancing and singing
manner on the burning ground and
smearing himself with the ashes of the dead and 29
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. adorning himself with the skulls and bones of the dead; or going about naked in
the
streets
of
householder rishis and tempting their womenfolk, living in bliss also with
forming severe austerities jatas
;
drinking and
killing, life
—
own
his ;
consort
;
wearing his
or per-
hair in
human
eating from
skulls
maiming and otherwise destroying animal
all
these acts of §iva were closely followed by
such sects as the Kapalas, the Kalamukhas and the
Vamacharas.
These sects which considered
and who consider-
living in close imitation of Siva
ed living happily with or bliss, are perhaps
women
really
in this
mohsha
life
Their teachings
old.
afforded ease and pleasure, indulgence in flesh-food,
drinking liquor and promiscuous intercourse at a time
when, as a result
Buddha and Mahavira, gave up
flesh
and
of the
and
preaching of the
the Vaidikas
liquor,
;
some
practically
of its
members
with a taste for lower passions not finding their surroundings
congenial
to
their
tastes
have turned renegades and joined the ranks Saivas, as
might of the
we hear from the Varahapurana and the
Suta-samliita, and have undergone the dlhsha and
other rites peculiar to
Saivaism.
This state
of
moral depravity attended with conduct unfit for
any society could not be tolerated by others and in the long run by the
members 30
of
even the Saiva
INTRODUOTION. sects themselves.
Therefore, after the fresh glam-
our passed away, these degraded Brahmanas apparently set themselves to cleanse their faith of its filth,
evolve a system of philosophy for
a line of conduct for
it
and
adherents and claim a
its
purer status equal to or identical with that of the
In this evolved Saivaism, also known
Vaidikas. as
Suddha Saivaism, we do not meet with any one
of the
in
evils
complained
Those that persisted
of.
the Kapalas and the Kalamukhas, have gone
it,
to the wall in the contest
The
Vaidikas at
and are
first
lost for ever.
never paid
so
much
attention to the details of temple building, setting
them of innumerable images and performing pompous ceremonials, but had one or two small up
in
images in their own houses their isMa devatds and hula devatas, and they were enjoined to meditate in silence
the image
upon the Supreme Brahman ;
as residing in
they took to resorting to temples and
attending to elaborate ceremonials held in them at a later stage
when the avaidika
their objectionable practices.
cults were purged of
And when
the non-
Aryan Siva was beyond contention welded on the Aryan Budra or Agni, even lihga worship was adopted by the Vaidikas
as
identical
with
the
worship of Rudra or Agni and at the present time all
Vaidika or Smarta Brahmanas are worshipping 31
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. the linga and are even seen dancing
and making
huduJclcara noise while worshipping in temples, a
strange survival of the Pasupata customs.
The
orgies
and
also the characteristic feature
which
phallic worship
was
lascivious acts
revels in
in all
was practised
countries in in Greece,
;
in Alexandria, in fact the whole of the Mediterra-
nean Coast the
revelries differed in
among
those in existence sects.
The
initiation
no way from
the early Indian Saiva
and other ceremonies be-
longing to these Priaptic cults, might possibly have
been refined by such intellectual and moral Socrates, Pytbogoras and others,
and very
men
as
likely the
reformed cults have descended to or been copied
by the modern Freemasons.
We forms
of
have
till
Saivaism
now been ;
Newer
since then.
but
discussing the earlier
India has not been idle
sects of Saivaism sprang
time to time and gathered a large following.
from
Two
such stand out prominently, namely the Virasaivas of
Southern India and the Pratyabhijnas
mere.
The former was started by Basava,
who occupied
Kash-
Brahman
a high position in the Court of theKala-
churi, king Bijjana or Bijjala.
Brahmana
a
of
parents
but
Basava was born
refused
to
of
undergo the
Upanayana ceremony, proclaiming that he was a special worshipper of Siva 32
and that he was born
to
INTEODUOTION. destroy the caste
Basava taught
system.
the
adoration of the lihga as the chief feature of his
system of
his followers were taught the importance
;
to the
guru; the lihga and the
They were
also taught that, as soon as
veneration
Sahgha. a Saiva
dies,
child-marriage
he becomes one with Mahesvara
was
discountenanced
puberty marriage was the
and
post-
among permitted. The
general
rule
them widow re-marriage was
also
Lingayatas or the followers
Basava carry about
;
of
their person a small lihga either encased in a silver
hung about the neck or tied up in a silk cloth which is bound round the right arm or on the neck. Under no circumstances should this casket and
lihga leave the person of the wearer
;
it is
like
the
Brahmana never bo be removed life-time of the wearer. The Lingayatas
yajhopavlta of the
during the
are supposed to have
no caste
distinction, but there
among them Brahmanas who are known by the name of Aradhyas nor is an Ayyanoru (their priestly class) known to interdine with low caste Jangamas (or congregation). They have a number of curious customs among them which it is not
are
;
possible to deal with here.
The Pratyabbijna
school had
have already stated, in Kashmere. the most
its origin,
as
we
It appears that
important of their religious works are 33
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. five in is
number;
these the Pratyabhijna-sutras
of
the oldest and
composed by
said to have been
is
Utpalacharya, the son (or disciple) of Udayakara.
The of
basis of the
work was the Siva-drishti sastra
The Pratyabhijna system is an easy and new system of religious Though comparatively new, the
Somanandanatha.
believed to be
philosophy.
Pratyabhijna school has
The
works.
foundation
sutras,
older
which are known
Laghu-Pratijabhijnavimarsani
the
in
great Abhinavaguptacharya has written
two commentaries on the as
its
Brihat-Pratyahhijna-vimarsani.
the inter-
the various works,
nal evidences available in inferable that this school
From
and the
became prominent
it is
in the
10th century A.D.
The power of recognising an object originally known to us but which had been lost sight of for long
called
is
followers
mesvara
of is
of
this
school,
is
energy and of
But the
maya.
own in
If
Paramatman
absolutely free and
distinction between
man.
According to the
that which exists always and
everywhere,
ment
Pratyabhijna.
one
latter
is
blissful light.
is
or
Para-
pervading
the embodi-
There
is
no
Paramesvara and the Jivatis
realises,
covered by the darkness of
by the help
omniscience, omnipotence
him the Paramatman. 34
of his
etc.,
guru, his
he recognises
This recognition by the
INTRODUCTION. Jivatman itself is
Paramatman
of the
illustrated
as
The
of
with
husband
is
wife learns every-
thing about her husband and vice
news
A
by an example.
separated from his wife.
of
identical
by means
versa,
But when
each brought to the other.
the husband returns after a very long time and stands before his wife, she
him and
till
husband, she
she is
is
is
able to
unable to recognise realise
in
him her
not conscious of the presence of
her husband near her.
Since the Pratyabhijna
philosophy does not involve severe practices
pranUyama
it is
like
held by Abhinavaguptacharya to
be an easy religion. All castes are equally admitted into
and
Its categories
it.
also easy
their philosophy are
enough though unnecessary
to be detailed
here.
Eegarding the caste marks
of
the various
schools of Saivas, Anantanandagiri says as follows
— The Saivas make marks
of the lihga
:
on both the
mark their forehead with the trisula ; the TJgras mark their shoulders with the damaru ; the Bhattas mark their forehead with the lihga ; the Jangamas mark their chest with the shoulders
irikula
;
the Baudras
and wear on
mark the forehead,
it
the
liiiga
and the Pasupatas
the two shoulders, the chest and
the navel with the lihga.
35
SIVA.
SIVA.
ONEMythologymost of the
the history of ^iva, the god
destruction
of
In the Bigveda,
among
the
Hindu
Trinity.
the Vajasaiieyi-samhita
White
and
Yajur-veda
Atharvana-vMa,
cefto^Rud^/a!^*^"
Hindu
interesting chapters in
is
the
of
the
in
the word
Siva,
meaning the auspicious, occurs an epithet not ^iva)
of
who
Rudra. is
It
praised in
presented in these
hymns
causing death and disease
and
is
all
Eudra, (and
hymns
;
he
is
re-
as a malevolent deity
among men and
cattle
therefore specially prayed to by the hymnists
for allaying his
their
only
is
as
families
damaging
their
wrath towards them, sparing them
and
cattle,
and
enemies and
attacking
their
and
belongings.
Eudra
is found in The physical description of a number of hymns in great detail. For instance, in some places he is said to be tawny in colour
and
in others of
a very fair complexion,
with a
beautiful chin, wearing golden ornaments, youthful
and having
spirally braided hair
39
on his head.
He
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. carries in his scribed, in
He
bolt.
fied
hands a bow and arrows and
some hymns, is,
as wielding
is
also said to
by his contact with Prishni (the
the thunder-
have given
earth), the
In the Atharvana-veda
that "
the sky,
the
filled
Bhava (Eudra) rules earth and Bhava hath
sphere "
;
in the
Andhaka
Rudra the of the
birth,
Maruts
it is
stated,
Bhava
rules
the vast atmo-
same work we come across the
names Bhava, Sarva, Sahasra-bahu, Pasupati,
de-
throughout the Vedic period, identi-
with Agni and
(the winds).
is
slayer
of
Mahadeva,
Ardhaka
(the
Puranic period), Ugra and Isana
used as synonyms of Eudra
these
;
names
are also
found in the Satarudrlya along with Aghora, Girisa, Nilagriva, Kapardin, Sabhapati, Ganapati, Senani,
Bhima, Sitikantha, Sambhu and Sankara. be remarked here that
all
the
It
might
names given above
are applied at the present time to Siva-Eudra,
who
Hindu triad. In the Satapatha-Brahmana we learn "Agni is a god. Sarva, as the eastern people These are his names
is
a later addition to the
:
call
him,
Bhava, as the Bahikas
nampati, Eudra and Agni.
Agni are ungentle
call
him, Pasu-
The names other than
{a§S.nta),
Agni
is
his gentlest
designation {§antatma)."
Prom it is
the descriptions of
patent that Agni,
who 40
is
Eudra given above the same as Rudra,
SIVA.
had
his abode in the sky as the sun, in the
sphere as the Ughtning and on the earth as
atmofire
;
in
other words, the sky, the atmosphere and the earth give birth to
Agni
the lightning, and
Tryambaka
in his triple aspect of the sun, fire
;
hence he receives the name
By
or Three-mothered.
the heat- of
the sun received by the earth winds are produced, a physical fact well-known even to school-boys. It is
this natural
phenomenon, the production
winds on the surface that
is
of
by sun's heat,
of the earth
hymns as Maruts. The
poetically expressed in the Vedic
the sun begetting on the earth the
winds cause the clouds to accumulate in the
at-
mosphere and lightning and storm follow next these
all
Rudra.
phenomena are traceable to Agni The stormy winds, the dark masses
or of
clouds with flashing lightning in their midst are all sufficiently
or
Agni who
phenomena
is
terrifying in their eSeot, is
all
these
fearful
naturally treated as a terrific and
malevolent deity
The
the cause of
and Rudra
always
sufferings caused to
requiring
man and
propitiation.
beast by storms,
thunder and rain should naturally have induced the Vedic bards to have attempted to the wrath
of
this
fearful
deity
appease
and to protect
themselves and their possessions by praises and offerings.
41
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The
identity of
Agni and Rudra
also appears
In nar-
from the Mahabharata. Beferences
to
Budra
in the Maliabharata.
rating the stated
is
Svaha,
that
birth
it
Vana-parvan,
the
in
assumed on
of Agni,
the wife
Skanda,
of
six
consecutive days the forms of the wives of six out of the
seven rishis and enjoyed the company of
her husband,
and
who had
previously abandoned her
to the forest, because
retired
he could not
succeed in securing for himself the company of the
whom
wives of the rishis with
The
seed
of
Agni gathered on the
Svaha was deposited Jcusa grass.
the form of
he had fallen in
in a pit
On the sixth day Kumara (that is,
ing with his consort
Uma
days by
six
and covered with the seed assumed
Skanda).
that Rudra,
later on, it is also said
love.
for a
Again,
who was
dally-
long time, was
prayed to by the gods to assume his other functions
;
he
asked to take effect
was
dropped
it
in
and develope
From
but
its
burning it
;
he
Ganga and Skanda was
in the river
born therefrom.
it,
he could not bear
so great that
it
Agni was
drop his seed on the earth.
let
these two statements, the
only conclusion possible
is
that Rudra,
who was
the same as Agni was the father of Skanda.
From occupying
the minor position of Agni in
the Vedic period, Rudra emerges into one of the 42
SIVA.
supreme
Puranic
deities in the is
and he
;
often found to claim superior-
1*7 O'^er
p^ani^period^^
period
Vishnu and Brahma.
In
the Puranic period also Eudra retains
his
terrific
attributes
he
;
the
described as " assuming the forms
is
Vishnu and Brahma,
of the gods
and
the destroyer
as
men,
of
of
bhutas and other beings, of beasts and of birds
he
the
is
through
it
a
sword
discus, ;
;
dwells
in
;
the
and pervades heart
their desires
all
of
he
;
all
car-
a trident, a club, an axe and a
he wears a girdle
composed pents
he
;
the universe
of
and knows
creatures ries
soul
of serpents
of serpents,
ear-ornaments
and an Yajnopavlta
of ser-
he laughs, sings and dances in ecstacy, and
number
plays on a
of
musical instruments
he
;
leaps, gapes
and weeps and makes others weep;
speaks like a
mad man or a drunkard, He dallies with the
sweet voice
and wives
of the rishis
;
he has erect
as also in
daughters hair, looks
obscene in his nakedness and has an excited look."
"Budra has
braided hair and matted locks,
quents cemeteries and performs awful
now
a mild yogi and
said to possess in
yana, that
is,
is
rites
also very terrible.
;
fre-
he
is
He
is
every age the nature of Nara-
his tamasic nature."
Such
descrip-
tions form the basis of the several puranic legends 43
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. regarding Siva, as also of the various images of this
For instance,
deity.
dancing in the
name
of
Siva
an ecstacy;
he
as
is
then known
by
Nataraja; as a naked figure engaged
when he
in begging for cooked rice,
Bhikshatana-murthi concerned
fore
represented
is
;
and so
forth.
immediately
is
called the
We
are there-
with
various
the
aspects of Siva described in the Purdnas.
The
birth of
Eudra
is
brdhmana '
Birth of Budra in the Brahma-
given in the Satapathafollows
as
(the lord of beings),
:
" Praiapati
who
is
identi-
nas.
Sun and
fied with the
year,
(the beings of
whom
he
seasons), desired to have a son
;
is
the
also
lord being the
he consorted,
for
was
that purpose, with Ushas and a son (Kumara)
As soon
born.
father asked
no name
as
The
he was born the boy wept.
why he
He
wept.
replied he
had got
away the evil from him. Prajapati gave him the name Eudra. Inasmuch as he gave him the name, Agni became his form, for Eudra is Agni he was Eudra because he wept to take
;
{arodlt,
from rud, to weep).
greater than one
name he
'.
who
does not exist, give
Prajapati replied
obtained
from
The boy
'
said
the
I
am
me another
thou art Sarva
Prajapati
'
'.
Thus
names Eudra,
Sarva, Pasupati, Ugra, Asani, Bhava, Mahandeva,
and
lasna
— eight
names 14
which are
associated
SIVA. respectively with the tattvas of agni, (the
(the lightning), parjanya
moon) and aditya
eights forms of
This
is
chandramas
(the rain),
These are the
(the sun).
Agni and Kumara
there are eight forms of Agni and
to Gayatri
forms.
This
'.
Men do
'
not see Agni as a boy
The same
:
for
story
it
:
into the is
these
found in the Sahhha-
yana and the EausMtahi-Brahmanas. forms the foundation for
all
given in the Puranas
the birth
This story
the later accounts
also of the Ashta-mt5rtisvaras of the
The account
pertains
he entered into these is
of
Since
the Gayatri
men say Agni boy Kumara entered
syllables,
forms that they see forms."
the ninth.
is
the threefoldness {trivritta) of Agni.
metre has eight
jala
vdyu (the winds), vidyut
(the water), the plants,
(the
fire),
of the birth of
of
Eudra, as
Saivagamas.
Eudra
as found in
the Vishnu-purana which
is
almost
In the Puranas.
identical
with that given in the
Markandeya-purdna runs thus of the Jcalpa (aeon)
At the beginning
:
Brahma was
meditating upon
begetting a son similar to himself. of blue
and red colour was seen
and weeping
was weeping.
loudly.
Brahma
The boy
At once a boy
sitting
on his lap
asked him
why he
answered 'Give
me
name'.
Brahma
Eudra.
But the boy wept again and again
conferred upon
45
a
him the name for
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. seven times more and obtained seven more names,
Bhava, Sarva, Isana, Pasupati, Bhima, Ugra and
Mahadeva. Another version
Kudra
of the birth of
is also
given in the Vishnu-pur ana. Sanandana and others vyho were
first
created by
Brahma
of creating the various beings
meditation, attained
became
free
for the
purpose
became absorbed
in
kinds of knowledge and
all
They
from love and hatred.
neglect-
ed the business for which they were brought into existence by
Brahma.
Seeing the indifference of
Brahma
his sons towards the creation of the worlds,
grew very angry and from the frowned forehead this deity
was born a son
The body
sun.
of this
size.
as resplendent as the
newly born being was half
male and half female and in
was
it
terrific
Brahma, commanding him
disappeared.
of
and large
to
divide,
This being, known as Eudra, divided
himself into two parts, of which one was male and the other female.
ed
itself
pacific
The male
into eleven bodies
and some
terrific
portion further dividof
in
which some were
nature
way, the female portion divided
;
in a similar
itself
in
many
forms some of black and others of white colour.
Here
is
the origin of the
Ekadasa Eudras
the multiform Saktis of the later period of
Mythology. 46
and
Hindu
A
Eudra
third account of the birth of
follows:
When Madhu
demons, attempted to
is
as
and Kaitabha, the two
kill
Brahma when he was
created by Vishnu in the lotus that issued from his navel,
Brahma prayed
to
Vishnu that he might
be saved from the demons. prayers of Brahma,
with the Bakshasas
;
Pleased with the
Vishnu
grew
fiercely
angry
from the frowned brows
of
Vishnu sprang forth a being named Sambhu, wielding a trident and possessing three eyes. see,
as in the case of
many
Thus we
other deities, there are
various accounts of the birth of Eudra.
Before proceeding with the systematic description of the images of Siva,
it
into the import of the various god. Explanation of the
names
different of Siva.
When
will be well to look
names given
to this
^iva was besought by
the gods to destroy the demons
were the dwellers of three
who
castles,
the Tripurasuras, he sought and obtained one half of their strength
from
all
the gods
Kahadeva.
he was thenceforth known among
Mahadeva or Mahesvara, because he became the greatest among them. Since he consumes flesh, blood and marrow the gods as
^^'"''
jatt'shfa,
(as Agni), is fiery is
called Eudra.
and
glorious,
He
is
he
termed
Dhurjati from his smoky colour, and since he makes 47
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY.
men
prosper in
their actions,
all
he bears the
appellation Siva (the auspicious). Siva
is
known as
The following are the stories connected with these names When the ocean of milk was churned for obtaining ambrosia for the gods, the first thing that came up from it Nilakantha and Sitikantha.
:
was the all-destroying poison
the gods afraid of
;
this dreadful poison Nilakantha.
the churning to the gods, took
but Parvati
withdrew from
/
.
;
Siva in his kindness
up the poison and swallowed
who was near
it
her consort would not
permit the poison to get into the stomach of Siva lest it
should
him
kill
she pressed the throat of
;
Siva and the poison remained there.
From
that
time the blue poison became visible through the the throat of Siva, and lent
fair skin of
lustre,
which accounts
kantha.* Again
when Siva
* In
meanings
known as NilaMahdbharata that
for his being
said in the
Aitareya-brdhmana, Eudca {visha,
of the
whioh
word
also
means
is
in the
phenomenon
Brabmana
is
said to
poison).
have
Of the two
the latter seems to have given
visha,
birth to the purdnio legend of the later period.
made
a blue
destroyed the sacrifice of Daksha, he
the
drunk water
it is
it
The statement
a poetic rendering of the physical
of Eudra, that
is,
the
water.
48
Sun
or the fire drying
up
SIVA.
flaming trident again
thrust his
and again
Daksha and the assembled Sitikantha.
gods, .
,
and thus burnt everything with
The
trident having done its duty flew
the djkrama (hermitage) of the
Narayaria at Badari with of the
weapon was
head of Narayana
and
at
fell
.
it.
near
Nara and
risTiis
The glow
terrific force.
great that the hair on the
so
turned green
the
like
mwiya
Narayana thereupon repelled the trident, which returned to its owner howling. Sankara, in anger, ran up to Narayana, when the latter, fearing grass.
injury at the hands
Siva, seized
of
him by
his
Hence the name Sitikantha (jnamapanyanhitas-ch^pi srlJcantas tvam bhavishyasi). the third eye came into Siva has three eyes throat.
;
existence
under
circumstances.
the
following
Siva was sporting
with his consort Parvati on the slopes of the
Himalayas, when she playfully closed with her
hands the two eyes
was
at once
activity
of Siva.
The whole
universe
submerged in cosmic darkness and
was suspended
;
sacrifices
all
stopped and gods
became quiescent. Mahadeva dispelled the darkness, by the
fire
bursting out of his forehead, in which a
third eye, as luminous, as the sun,
In a number
we
was formed.
of places in the purdnic literature
see a sort of fierce denunciation of Siva 49
and the
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. Saiva cult; this between vedic and
perhaps on account of some of the
is
revolting rites connected with the
Conflict
the the Saiva cults,
,
A graphic
worship of Siva.
descrip-
tion of these rites as has already
been
mentioned,
is
given by Bhavabhuti in his
Malati-Madhava.
At the time seem
to
have
sacrifices in the
of the
been
temple of Siva,
:
says he, "
systematically
offered
admonishing Jarasandha kings
Mahabhdrata, animals
for
for,
as
we hear Krishna
his cruelty to other
what pleasure can those princes
have in existence, when they have been consecrated for slaughter
and kept as victims in the temple
of
Pasupati....Thou king, hast set apart for sacrifice to
Mahadeva Kshatriya princes
you have resolved
In so
far as
kings to Rudra,
to offer these
the guilt committed by you by slaughtering
and we have never seen
will also attach to us
such a thing as offering
and thou seekest victims."
Daksha
them
human
to sacrifice
beings in to
sacrifice
Sahkara human
in his rage, denounces
Siva as
the " Proud abolisher of rites and demolisher of barriers,
such as by teaching the word of the Veda
to the Sudras....," as "
roaming about
in cemeteries
attended by the host of bhutas (goblins), like a
man, naked and with dishevelled
hair.
He
is
mad seen
laughing, weeping, covered with ashes gathered from 50
SIVA.
human
the funeral pyres and wearing a garland of skulls
and ornaments of human bones he pretends to :
be the auspicious (Siva) while in reality he
he
is
insane and
liked
is
by the insane
;
is
asiva
and he
is
the
Pramathaganas, beings whose nature
lord of the
Let
darkness
essentially
Bhava,
this
;
is
the
lowest of the gods, never receive at the worship of the gods like Indra, Upendra and others, any portion of the oblations with them."
might be
It
noted here that the conscious neglect of Daksha to offer a portion
of the sacrifice
great yajna
was certainly due
Siva and his
cult.
Mahadeva
to Siva in his
to his
hatred for
himself admits that
from the beginning he was not given any oblations in sacrifices
Uma, he
addressing
:
tice of the
gods has
custom, which,
is
along been that no portion
all
me
should be offered to
says " the old prac-
in
any
sacrifice.
By
this
established by the earliest arrange-
ment, the gods legitimately (dharmatah) decline to give
me a share in the
ments we
are led
to
sacrifices."
infer that
From
these state-
the Vedic Indian
looked upon Siva as a low class deity and was not offering
him any
other gods.
oblations along with Indra and
By the
entreaties of his wife Parvati,
Siva establishes for the
first
time in the yaga of
Daksha, his right to receive oblations of the gods " gets
up
;
this " lowest
to the level of the Vedic gods 51
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. at a later period
Hindu.
and
is
That the ways
indeed revolting
is
reconciled with the Vedic of the adorers of
Siva were
seen in the imprecation of Bhrigu
He
found in the 8rl Bhagavata.
says " Let those
performers of the rites of the Saiva cult be heretics
and opponents of the true Vedas.
Having
lost their
purity and misled in their understanding, wearing
matted hair, ashes and bones,
let
Saiva initiation, in which liquor
is
them undergo the Since
the deity.
you, the followers of the Siva cult, revile the Veda
and the Brahmanas, who are the only safeguards keeping intact the straying humanity, you have
become
heretics.
For, the Veda
is
the auspicious
[Siva) and the eternal path of the people, which has
been followed by the ancients and of which Janard-
dana
the authority."
is
We obtain
a glimpse of the
time from the quotation
real state of affairs at that
from the 8rl Bhagavata given above. cluding some Brahmanas, religion
Vedic
came
left
and joined the cult
religion, took
People, in-
the fold of the Vedic of
Siva, reviled the
to spirituous
liquors
and
be-
celibate mendicants, daubing their bodies with
the ashes of the cemeteries and adorning themselves
They threw
with bones.
and violated
the study of the Vedas
their sanctity by teaching
Sudras and others.
Brahmanas
off
The conditions
them
of the
to
Vedic
of that period is mirrored in the counter
52
SIVA.
imprecation pronounced by Nandisvara, a follower of the ^iva cult.
He
tells
devout
us that the
revilers of Siva are sunk, out of the love of carnal
pleasures, in domestic
are not
infrequent
life,
in
which bad morals
they practise a number of
;
ceremonies without understanding their real import
and are degraded by the smell strongly of liquor.
They
rules of the Vedas.
Nandisvara heaps up on
the heads of the followers of the Vedic religion the curse that these be ever sunk, deluded by the words in the mire of ceremonial ignorance.
of the Vedas,
The complaint
of the
8aiva against the
vaidiJca
that the latter pays greater regard to the
life
is
of a
house-holder and that he performs a number of
ceremonies without understanding their meaning. It is in fact
Vedic
rites
With
a rebellion against the ignorance of
and a denunciation
of family
life.
the admission of Siva into the fold of
the higher gods, there seems to have
come over
the followers of both the Vedic and Saiva cults a strong desire for a sort of reconciliation.
we
see Arjuna praising Siva, in the
of the
MaJiabharata, as follows
:
"
Thus,
Vana-parvan Adoration to
Siva in the form of Vishnu, to Vishnu in the form of ^iva
to
Again, in the Santi-
Hari-Eudra."
parvan, we see
it
stated by Krishna that,
the god of gods, Mahesvara, 53
is
when
worshipped, the god
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. Narayana, the Lord,
also be worshipped, that
will
he who knows and loves Rudra knows and loves
Narayana and that Rudra and Narayana are but one in principle, divided into two and operating in
The same spirit by which Hari and Hara are
the world in manifested forms. of
conciliation,
viewed as one,
is
found in the Harivamsa
also
wherein we hear Markandeya saying to "
When
you
I perceive
Siva
who
Vishnu as
that
there
exists
in the
Vishnu
show me
is
auspicious
of
Siva
Rudra
being)
half
He who
Bestowers
male
(Ardhanarisvara)....And just as fire
becomes nothing other than
tering
into
Vishnu
vision,
and
Vishnu
of
of
creators of the worlds, self-existent, they
(composite
:
no difference between
is
the form
in
form
this
Brahma
and
half
appears boons, are the
female
fire
entering
fire,
so
into
Rudra
en-
Vishnu should possess the nature
of
Vishnu, the highest manifestation of
Rudra, and Siva,
the
highest
manifestation
Vishnu, are only one god, though divided into
and move
continually in the world.
of
two
Vishnu does
not exist without Sahkara nor Siva without Kesava; hence, these two,
have formerly ciliation
of
Rudra and Upendra (Vishnu)
attained
oneness."
Siva with Vishnu seems
upon the re-discovery
of the identity of
54
This
recon-
to be based
Rudra, Agni
SIVA.
with Aditya, another modification
Agni,
of
as
found residing in the sky. The Vedic Agni becomes
Eudra
or
Siva and the Vedic Aditya becomes
Vishnu, in the Puranic period.
The hatred
of the followers of the
Vedic cult
towards the Saivas seems to have been also
attri-
butable to the worship by the latter of the phallic
emblem. sidered
The very touch
of the ^aiva
was con-
by the Vaidika as imparting pollution,
because the former set up, from the earliest known times, material representations their temples
and
of the phallus in
That
offered worship to them.
the phallic worship
is
foreign to the Vedic religion
becomes quite clear from the references we meet In one place
with in the Big-Veda. "
The
glorious Indra defies the hostile kings
those whose god
ceremony" and to the
is
to,
let
not
we read "Proceeding
and and
desiring to in
hostile
acquire
array
inaccessible places, at the time when,
slaying those whose god
is
conquered the riches
hundred gates."*
;
stated
the sisna approach our sacred
in another
conflict,
he has gone
craft
it is
them,
besieged,
irresistible,
the sisna, he by his of
the city with a
The worship
of
the Phallus
* " But, Sayaria, following Yaska, interprets
the
sisnadeva of these two passages as referring to those
55
word
who
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. which the non-Aryans
who
nations
of India shared
on the
inhabited
Mediterranean
has
sea,
with other
borders
survived
the
of
India
in
to
The Dhruvaberas in all Siva temples is the Lihga surmounted upon the Yoni or the this day.
pindika (pedestal). It
is
only in very rare instances
we meet with the anthropomorphic of
Siva set
up as the principal deity in Siva
This non-Aryan phallic emblem seems
temples. to
have been identified at a
Skambha ceived
representations
Vedas, wherein
of the
as
with
co-extensive
period with
later
Skambha
the
comprehends in him the various
is
con-
universe
and
parts
the
of
material universe, as also the abstract qualities,
such
as, tapas, faith,
Ha
is
truth and divisions of time.
from
distinct
the
universe upon him.
are
comprehended
in
is
"
The
founds
thirty-three gods
him and
non-entity, which forms well as entity
who
Prajapati,
out
arose
his highest
embraced within him
of
member, as
".
The gods
who form
part of
praise of
Skambha we meet with the following namely, " Where Skambha, generating,
passages,
sport with the sisna, gives the
those
him do homage
i.e.,
same meaning
who
:
unchaste men.
he says that the
are always dallying oarnally
saking Vedio observances."
56
to him.
In the
Durgaoharya
name
is
also
applied to
with prostitutes,
for-
^IVA.
brought Puranapurusha into existence" and "Skam-
bha
in the beginning shed forth that gold (hiranya,
out of which Hiranyagarbha arose) in the midst of the world" and lastly " reed standing in
the waters
From
the
ages quoted above,
we
Prajapati."
of
Skambha
is
He who knows
the mysterious
is
two
first
the golden
of the
three pass-
see that one of the functions
Hiranyagarbha, or Pu-
to beget
He
ranapurusha, the god of reproduction.
pours
The
forth his golden seed in begetting Prajapati. original of the third passage runs thus
hiranyayam tishthantam Prajd,patih.
salile
:
veda sa
Yd vetasam vai guhyah
In the Big-veda and the Satapatha-
Brahmana, the word vaitasa has the sense of membrum virile. Hence the word vetasa in the present passage also might be understood to refer to
Lihga and the non-Aryan worshippers might
phallus
Lihga
with
have
the
based the
Skambha
of
of the
identity of
the
Atharvana veda quoted above.
It
texts of this
is
the
the
same
Skambha
that has given birth to the purS,nic story
of Siva's
appearance as a blazing
pillar
Brahma and Vishnu when they were
between
quarrelling
about the superiority of the one over the other.
At a
later
is
given to
of
scholars
time a sort
of philosophical clothing
the primitive the
Lihga 57
Lihga
and
its
;
by a section pedestal
are
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. some
with
viewed,
sentation
the
of
justificatioD,
aranis,
the
the
as
two
repre-
pieces
of
wood which were rubbed together by the Vedic Indian in making fire. At that period the upper stick
was considered as male and the lower as
female, by the co-operation of which fire
was gene-
rated. If this explanation is to be taken, the object
generated
is
the
fire,
which the Vedic Indian
Rudra, same as Siva
identified with
of the later
mythology and the objects that gave birth
Rudra
to
cannot represent the hermaphroditic form of Rudra.
Hence,
Yoni of
the
in
its
it
is
undoubted that the Linga and the the
represent
Purusha and
Universe, earlier
Great Generative Principles
stages
That
Prakriti.
Linga worship was purely
phallic can be established by means of a number of
Sanskrit texts from various
works
of
autho-
rity.
are,
The earliest references to the phallic worship as we have seen above, to be found in the Big-
Beferences
to
Linga worship. later or the
and more
vsda,
where the phallus
^i^nadeva.
is
called
When we come
to the
puranic period the references are
explicit.
fuller
In the Markandeya-Purana there
occurs the following story
Rudra and Vishnu
:
Marhandeya says that
are the creators of the Universe
and they form the Ardhanari^vara aspect 58
of
the
SIVA.
former deity. Here the allusion
to the
is
Haryardha
form of Siva, in which the female generative principle is
That the male and the
identified with Vishnu.
female
principles
found together
in
are
inseparable
and are ever
cosmic evolution
is
the real
import of the Ardhanarisvara or Haryardha forms of Siva
way by
;
the same idea
is
also
conveyed in a
the symbols the lihga and the yoni.
Bhagavata-Purana (second
sJcanda)
" the
brief
In the
Mahadeva
is
described by
Brahma
lord of Sakti
and Siva, who are the womb and
seed respectively spider,
forms
it
as,
and re-absorbs
states that
and
Paramesvara
of the
it."
The Ling a-fur ana
the
is
is
the
called
Linga)
called the
also
Linga
Lingin
(the
and that the pedestal
Mahadevi (Uma) and the Lihga is Mahesvara. A more express allusion
Linga
the visible
one with himself), pre-
Pradhana (nature)
sustainer of
a
like
in his sport, through the agency of
Sakti and Siva, (who are serves
universe, who,
the
of
Parabrahman, the
is
to the generative power of the
Lihga and the
the emblems of the Saiva cult,
is
yoni,
found in the
Vishnu-purana, wherein we are told that
Brahma
asked Rudra, born of his anger, to divide himself
thereupon Rudra divided himself into two, a male
and a female
portion.
The
epithet
Urddha-keso mahasepho nagno 59
mahasepha
vikrita
in
lochanah
HINDU ICONOQBAPHY. occurring in the Mahabhdrata in this connection.
A
same work
to
standing
is
aloft,
also
fixed,
he
is
called
the
and since
Sthanu
his .
.
it,
"
point
remains continually in a state reverence
worth noting
further quotation from the
he consumes the
since he is fixed,
also
is
:
And
men, and
of
lives
Lihga
perpetually
is
and when
.
since,
of chastity,
his
Lihga
and people
God Maha-
this is agreeable to the great
The worshipper of the Lihga who
shall adore
the image {vigraha) or the Lihga of
Mahadeva,
deva.
It is the Lihga,
enjoys continually great prosperity. raised up,
which the
He whose
apsarases worship;" and " up,
whose Lihga
is
raised up,
lord of the suras (gods) of
the
united with Sakti, he
seed
is
raised
sleeps aloft,
Lihga, the
of the
Sahkaracharya 1) also
is
says "
in
his
When
Siva
able to create, otherwise
The Kuvalayananda
he
is
of
Appayya Dikshita begins with
unable even to move."
"
We
praise the
ancient pair, the parents of the universe
;
each
the end attained by the penance of the other." a work called Sakti
is of
Quhya
Anandanubhava
it
is
is
In
stated that
the form of the pleasure derivable from
(the female organ)
Lihga from the union ;
who
the lord of the seed, the
seed."
Saundaryalahari (verse IS
who
The Lord
abides in the sky
producer
gandharvas and
rishis, gods,
and that Siva
of these
60
two
is
is
the
the cause of
SIVA.
the joy that
is
found in the universe.*
an inscription found following given.t
in
salutation "
The only
the
Mysore and
Siva
to
god,
Again, in State,
his
victorious
ftr«fl^ rT^f%5!5ni5RT^ jwri^
is
Devi
Siva, the
Dish-icfc,
Mysore.
Ofcher references to the phallic nature of the linga are
^^;nfr iTfWRT:
^^^
iJUIwillTt rfSTT
m ^^wfi wr^j^ (^t*^fkik^'h\
:
(
II
Lingapurana, ch. 100, Vv. 6 &
5r%: f^i^w
^^
^
"K
S3n% Tiwf?^
5m^ PR^^ siffg^^qsT
is
11
No. 242, Shikaripur Taluk, Shimoga
1.
the
7.
II
2T«rT
ii
BhagaTatapuraoti" 3. 'TtPrfelTJl^l^ sPTc^^T^^RTH^
I
Yatulaauddhagama. 61
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. form of
all
wisdom, and also Devi
whose posses-
three worlds, unchangeable
sion are the universe, ever
united,
essence
things
of
;
all
which the world
the
through whose union the the seed from
mingled,
is
born
is
in
— do I
reverence."
In the
Siva-Lmga-Pratishtha-vidhi, the author AghoraSivacharya
gives
mantra which
a
Umayai hhaga-rupinyai
liiiga-rupadharaya
Saiikaraya yiamastuhhyam I
Uma
salute
Sankara
is
who
in the
is
form
runs thus
and which means
;
in the
of
bhaga and
We
learn from
form
Lihga.
of
cha
the Siddhantasar avail that the bringing about the
union
of the pltjia
which
is
the symbol of Sakti and
the linga, that of Siva, in accordance with the rules laid
down
in Saiva sastras is caWed pratishtha.*
In marking the
4.
stone lihga,
it is
stated that the part
it is
jj%
describing
required to be
human pudendum)
^nrrg^
:
—
f^S^Ti^IJ^"
Similarly in
Lihga,
of the
marked out thus should
resemble the nut of the (human) lihga
"
on the surface
isutras)
lines
We
the
made
form
in the
of
the pltha
for the
shape of the bhaga (the
— "
^^ts^^
Siddhantasaravali.
Eamikagama.
*^
(^ftii^Jiftra'^'Tt'ff^: sfcTsit^crr
62
f^«g^*.
SIVA.
can quote several such
but those already
texts,
given are more than ample to show the phallic
nature
So much about the
worship.
of linga
evi-
Let us now turn
dences gathered from literature.
our attention to sculptural evidences.
The
two
at present, are
now
known Lingas,
earliest
so far as
one comes from Bhita and
;
preserved in the
been described in a
Lucknow Museum.
Bhita Mr.
this liiiga of of
it is
of
has
the Director
— 1910.
About
Banerji writes, "
The top
Archaeology for 1909
of
It
is,
account contributed by
brief
Mr. K. D. Banerji to the Annual General
we know
shaped as the bust of a male holding a vase
in his left hand, while the right
is
abhaya mudra posture.
this bust,
Below
in the
raised
where
the waist of the figure should have been, are four
human
heads, one at each corner.
of dressing the
hair and the large rings
the lobes of the ears,
still
cation.
worn
in
appears that these are the are
more or
less
defaced,
retain suflS.cient detail to admit of identifi-
The upper
broken, only extant.
it
They
busts of females.
but
From the mode
part of the head of the male
the portion
The male
below the nose
figure wears a cloth
is
being
which
is
shown
thrown over the
left
by a double
running over the breast. The vase
held in the
line left
shoulder, the folds being
hand resembles 63
to
some extent, the
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. ointment vessel found in the figures of Bodhisatvas
Gandhara
of the
The
school.
which may be
figure bears the circular pendants,
In
earrings. of
front,
immediately below the heads
two females, the phallus
drawn
lines.
inscription to
To
male
ear of the
left
is
the proper
marked by deeply of
left
which I have already
this
is
the
The
referred.
lower part of the stone has been shaped as a tenon to be fitted in a mortice. "
The
inscription
vation, and with the letters,
is
in a
good state
exception of the last three
can be deciphered very
as follows
:
The Linga
of
tran-
by Mr. Banerji
the sons of Khajahuti,
was dedicated by Nagasiri, the son
May
The
easily."
slation of the inscription is given "
of preser-
of
Vasethi.
the deity be pleased."*
From
the description given by Mr. Banerji
evident that
it is
it is
a Muhhalihga having five faces
corresponding to the Isana,
Vamadeva and Sadyojata
Tatpurusha, Aghora,
aspects of Siva.
In the
description of Muhhalingas given elsewhere in this
book,
it
will be seen that the face representing
Isana
should be on the top, while the other four should face the east, south, west
and north
*
respectively.
The text of this inscription reads as follows Khajahutiputanam l[im]go patithdpito Vdsethi-putcna Ndgasirind piya:
ytaitk] d[e]vaid.
64
PLATE
I.
[To fac epage
65.]
SIVA.
The
four faces on the four corners which are
believed by Mr. Banerji might be of females are
male
really those of
figures. (See PI. I.)
The palaeography
of
the
engraved at the bottom of this Linga important feature,
for,
found
inscription is its
most
enables us to determine
it
the approximate age of this most interesting anti-
With
quarian object.
the help of the characters,
Mr. E. D. Banerji has correctly guessed the age the Linga to be the
discovered by
me
century B.C.
first
The second most at
ancient Linga
It is
one
of its class
the
most
and
history
Gudimallam
is of
and is
is
the one
Gudimallam some years ago
and which has not been described of the
of
in detail hitherto.
perfect pieces of sculpture
great value in connection with
nature of
worship.
the linga
a village situated at
a distance of
six miles to the north-east of Eenigunta, a railway
junction station on the Madras and Southern ratta Eailway.
In
that
temple, the
known from
an ancient
this place, there is
temple with several inscriptions in
it
Maha-
the god of
;
Linga under consideration,
ancient times by the
ramesvara and the linga
is
still
name
upon bathing the images, a
fact
of Parasu-
in puja.
badly managed temple, scarcely any
Being a
oil is
spent
which accounts
the linga being in the same condition as 65
is
for
when
it
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. was carved polish
is
there
;
no way
in
no
is
lost
here and there, and
on
oily dirt
and the high
it
but there are a few chips
;
not
it is
existed from the beginning or
known if they have came into existence
at a later period.
It is very probably the latter.
The
of a reddish igneous rock, very
liiiga is
brittle
made
and compact
very high polish and which
The Linga
vara. of
(see fig. 4, PI.
water-pot
(fig. 3,
upon the
head
of the figure of
PI.
turban, Ill
and
of
left
high
oblique eyes.
V)
two
has
Siva
of
is
held by
head hanging down-
and a battle-axe {para&u)
Siva
(fig. 2,
is
PI. V).
On
the
a covering, resembling
— not
matted,
The
PI. IV).
face
—hair
(see
is distinctly
with a somewhat snub
its features,
narrow
forehead
and
item agrees well
with
cheek-bones,
This
in
in the left one is held a
;
shoulder
plaited,
fig. 9,
Mongoloid in nose,
the
or
feet
five
which a ram
its
PI. V),
rests
exactly
figure
hind legs and with
wards
pindiJca
front portion a beautiful
in the right one of
arms,
a
its
This
Siva.
is
it
;
height and bears upon of
the floor
cut out in the form of a quadrangular
is
ridge on the ground
figure
Parasurames-
on
directly
set
is
of
shrine and the
the central
pedestal
its
found in the Tirupati
is
which pass near the temple
hills
which takes
in its composition
last
Virupaksha (he with oblique 66
eyes),
one
of
the
—
i^ja*fai**tii
PLATE
Bust
of the
image
of
III.
Siva on the Gudimallam Linga, [To face page 66
]
PLATE
IV.
Details ot ornaments in the
Fia,
Fig,
2
Fig.
4
1
[To face page
67.]
Gudimallam Sculpture
SIVA.
names
There are kun^alas in the ears
of Siva.
(fig. 1,
PI. IV), the lobes
so as
to
down
hang
on each
of
which are distended
of
as
the upper-arms
the shoulders
as
far
a highly finished
is
ornamental band {angada) and on the forearms five
bracelets of different patterns (see
Round
PI. IV).
lace is
of
rare
the neck
workmanship
noteworthy that there
(fig.
PL
8,
IV)
insisted
is
The image wears a
Agamas.
—
7,
;
it
no yajnopavUa, the
is
Brahmanical sacred thread, which in all
2
be seen a neck-
to
is
figs.
upon
cloth on the
loins, which, from its sculpture, appears to be of a
very fine texture, for the thighs and the organ are visible
through
it
very distinctly.
The
creases and
smaller folds of the cloth running across the thighs are very well executed,
and the larger and heavier
folds flow down between the two
The
figure of
Siva stands astride upon the
shoulders of a Rakshasa
who
is
sitting
—the Apasmara-purusha
on the ground on
supporting himself
wit;h
his
planted on the ground near the a sort
of
legs.
jatamakuta on
beads round his neck.
He
his
haunches and
hands which are feet.
He
too has
his head and a hara is
of
swarthy and burly in
the build of his body, possesses a pair of pointed
animal ears and
is,
withal, jolly
and happy,
evidenced from the broad grin on his 67
face.
as is
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. The Linga
composed
itself is
nut and the shaft
them shaped exactly Uke the
of
On
in a state of erection.
PI.
two
parts, the
virile,
original
each
model,
II are given the
and the back views
front, the side
of
membrum
the
of
of the
Linga, a
reference to which will enable the reader to form
an excellent idea
of
the exactitude with which the
sculptor has modelled this
human
the
The
phallus.
Linga
in imitation
of
longitudinal facets on
the erect organ (urddhava-retas) are also represent-
ed in this Linga.
There of Siva
on
is
a very close resemblance of the figure
this
Linga
to that of a
yaksha in the
Sanchi Stupa, figured on page 36 of Grunwedel's "
Buddhist Art in India
and Burgess)
;
"
(translated by Gibson
the face, the ear and the ear-orna-
ment, the arms and the ornaments thereon, the necklace the details of the workmanship of these jewels and the peculiar arrangement of the drapery, particularly the big folds that descend between the legs,
of
—
^all
these are exactly alike both in the image
Siva on the Linga at Gudimallam and in the
picture of the of the
Yaksha
referred to above.
The date
sculpture represented in the latter picture
has been fixed to be the second century B.C.* *
" 143 Before Christ (dr.).
gateways."
Grunwedel,
p. 5.
68
Probable date of Sanohi
PLATE
V.
[To face page
69,]
SIVA.
This naturally leads us to the inference that the
image
might also belong to the
of Siva
at least of the Christian era,
from the exact likeness
period. Again,
mallam Lihga
human
to the
that Linga worship (linga),
nor
not to a
if
was not
earlier
still
Gudi-
of the it is
certain
a mere symbol
of
simple pillar (sthdnu), but
a
of
phallus,
century
first
beyond doubt phallic in
That
nature.*
its
is
this is
the real origin of Lihga worship even at the present day
the
is
easily seen
Agamas
for
from the rules laid down in
making a Lihga,
innumerable sculptures
of
Lihga, found throughout
the length and breadth of India.
Lihga,
treatment of
tive
from the
as also
(For an exhaus-
Chapter
the
see
on
Lihgas).
Because nature,
established to be phallic in its
it is
some may be inclined
There
worship obscene and immoral. it
to be
,
ashamed
of
the two
;
Principles of the Universe,
Purusha and
*
the
nothing in
and Sakti,
Siva
and mother
and matter
or
of all
of the physical
symbolised briefly in the form of the
For a third ancient linga which
human
is
Lihga
great Generative
Prakriti, the father
creations, the energy scientist, is
to consider
phallus,
see
central shrine of the Siva
fig.
1,
Temple
Central Travancore.
69
PI.
V.
is
also sculptured like It
is
set
up in the
at Chennittalai, a village in
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. lihga and the yoni.
For the past two thousand
years at least, the Hindus, males and females, have
been offering worship to this symbol
of
the Great
Architect of the Universe, without in the
least
adverting to or feeling conscious of the so-called obscenity of this pure symbol of the fatherhood and
motherhood
supreme deity
of the
symbol and nothing more in
connection with
its
there
;
worship
them
to
;
is
it is
a
nothing obscene
the simplest and
;
the purest materials, such as water from a well
reserved for ceremonial
and freshly cooked
purposes, flowers, incense
and cakes, are used
rice
the worship of the Lihga.
If
there be
any the
and purity on the part
slightest lack of cleanliness
would be passed over un-
of the officiating priest, it
noticed in a Vishnu temple
but never in a Siva
;
temple, where absolute purity and rigorously
in
demanded from the
cleanliness are
Thus, what-
pujari.
ever might have been the original setting and the
import of the symbolism, at the present time they are
forgotten and lost
Lihga and the * little
The book
Phallio
yoni,
attentiou
and the worship
the reader
Messrs. Geo. Eedvay
Hodder in
of
the
absolutely* and thoroughly
entitled " Prinaitive
Worship" by
collected
of
is
;
may
here be drawn to a
Symbolism
M.
London.
as illustrated in
Westrop, In
this,
published
by
the author has
information about the existence, in the past and
70
from even the remotest associations of any
free
kind of immorality or indecency.
The
great antiquity of §iva worship
lished
by a number
tions
some
;
of the
is
estab-
of references in ancient inscrip-
of these references are given
on page 8
General Introduction in Volume I of this
publication.
Having considered and nature
at
some length the history
of Siva worship,
I
now
proceed to a
systematic description of the various images of
6iva in the subsequent chapters.
present;, of pballio
worship in several countries
Borne, Assyria, Ancient Ameroia, &c.
— Greece, Egypt,
Linga worship or wor-
ship of Priapus, or fascinum or Pripe-gala continued to exist,
according to Boudia,
till
81avonia and France. tal
the 12th century A.D. in Germany,
In France a document entitled Sacerdo-
Judgments on Crimes,
contain the following
:
before the fascinum, let
of the 8th
century A.D.
is
said to
"If any one performs enchantments
him do penance on bread and water
during three lents."
71
LINGAS.
10
LINGAS.
SIVA
worshipped in a number of anthro-
is
pomorphic forms, as also in the symbol Linga. latter.
of
The more common representation is the As has been said already, the chief image in
the central shrine of a ^iva temple,
is,
in a large
majority of instances, the Lihga. Very rarely do
meet with anthropomorphic images shrines,
central
some temples
of Siva
and where they are
of the Pallava period in
we
in the
seen,
as in
South India,
they occupy a position subordinate to the Lihga.
Lingas are broadly divided into two namely, the chala-lingas and the that
To
is,
classes,
acliala-lingas,
the moveable and the immoveable Lingas.
the latter class belong the large and heavy stone
Lingas which are permanently shrines
of
Siva temples.
A
set
up
in the central
description
different varieties of the chala-lingas,
be given
first
of
the
had better
before proceeding to deal with the
important class
of achala-lingas.
75
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The
(those
made
lohaja (of
of earth),
ratnaja
metals),
jlglmaLfnVs'
mrinmaya
divided into
chala-lingas are
precious
(of
stones), daruja (of wood), 'sailaja (of stone)
and
JcshaniJca ling as, (those
made
for the
occasion and disposed of immedi"'^"^^^^
ately
Lingas.
or
use
their
over).
is
The
mrinmaya lingas may be of baked unbaked clay. For making an unbaked clay
lihga
it is
stated in
clay, gathered of hills
Eamikagama
the
from pure places,
and banks
of rivers,
such as the tops
should be mixed with
milk, curds, ghee, as also the flours barley, the barks of
paste, mercury, etc.,
well
milky
trees,
of
wheat and
powdered sandal
and the whole mass
mixed up and kneaded and kept
or, at
that white
the most, a month.
The
The baked
abMcharika purposes; that
linga
is
as those
made
clay linga
is,
then
for a fortnight
then shaped
according to the instructions given in the for that purpose.
is
is
Agamas used for
for incantations
such
to bring about the destruction of
an
enemy.
The lohaja The
Lohaja
Lingas and the Katnaja Lingas.
lingas
ing
may
eight
silver,
be
metals,
may
of the follow-
namely,
gold,
copper, bell-metal, iron, lead,
brass and tin.
ja-lihgas
made
Similarly, the ratna-
be carved in pearls, coral, cat's-eya 76
LINGAS. (vai^urya)
quartz
emerald
and bluestone
precious
stones employed
that
;
liingas.
lingas
are
made
lingas are
manduJca,
and udumbara
pippala,
timber
the
making
in
JcarniMra,
these,
the ratnas or
of
the timber of the kami, madhuTca,
Daruja
arjuna,
(pushyaraga),
is,
The Daruja
seven in number. The
topaz
crystal,
of
all
tree is the jack
for
and
trees
when
besides
;
such trees
barks which exude a milky latex
mentioned as good
tinduha,
as
have
cut, is also
making lingas; one such very largely employed in
it is
the Malabar Coast for carving very fine specimens of
The Kamikagama adds many more
images.
trees,
such as the Tihadira, the chandana, the
sdla,
the bilva, the badara and the devadaru, the timber
which
of
L^gL.^*^^*""*
lingas.
the
in
is
also
The stone class
of
fit
for
making
Zm^^as included
chala-lihgas are
perhaps those small ones which are worn on the person by the people of the sect of Saivas as the
Jangamas, Lingavantas or Lingayats, or
Vira Saivas. The Kshanika
cast
away.
(sand),
known
The are
made then and
They may be made
uncooked
cow "dung,
hshai^Uca-lingas are those that
rice,
cooked
of
saikatam
rice, river-side clay,
butter, rudraJcsha seeds, 77
there for puja
sandal paste,
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. kurcha grass, flowers, jaggery, and Effect of worshipping various kinds of Lingas.
linga
made
; >
cooked
of
plenty of food
;
grants the worshipper
rice,
made
a lihga
river banks, grants landed
removes
all
temper
of
;
disease
gathered from
of clay
estates
;
cow-dung,
of
gives one a jovial
of butter,
;
BudraJcsha seeds^ grants knowledge
one of sandal paste,
prescribed for
is
desire saubhagya, while that
seekers after soul-liberation flowers grants long fers all desired * In the
It is said
flour.
that worshipping Imga made of J FJr& a gold grants wealth (sripradam) f \ / ^ ^ one of uncooked rice, vibhava ; a
life
of
a
;
who
kurcha grass
for
linga composed of
one made
;
those
jaggery con-
of
ends and that made of flour strength.
Uttara-kdnda
of
Bdmdyana
the
it is
stated that
wherever Eavaria went, he carried with him a golden linga for his worship
sand,
:
placing that linga in the midst of a
Eavana made pujd
smell
iyatra
yatra
to
cha
with incense and flowers of fine
it
Bdvano
ydtisma
jdmbunadamayam lihgam sthdpya Bdvanah gandhaischdmrita
gandhibhih).
" that the golden lihga
worshipped
it
pedestal of
The
was intended
from the desire
of
rdkshaseivara
archaydmdsa
commentator remarks
for constant worship.
sovereignty.
For
it is
He pre-
scribed in the Tantras that a golden lihga should be worshipped
when any one
mayam
desires
sovereignty.
nitya-pujd lihgam
aisvarya
(TaZ -lihgam jambunada-
kdma^idya hi tal-lihga-
pUjd Bdvanasya aisvarya kdmasya sauvarna- lihga-pujdyastanifeshuktah.)
78
LINGAS. It is further stated that the
metals,
precious stones
Imgas made
should
etc.,
the puja,-bhaga or the portion which
have is
of
only
projecting
above the pedestal in achala-lingas, together with the pindika or the pedestal in other words, these ;
need not be made with the Brahmabhaga
liiigas
and the Vishi}u-bhdga and then pindika
which
name
;
is
set
up
in a separate
the pindika and that portion of the linga
and which
to be visible
Budra-bhaga
of the
is
known by
the
are to be either carved
out of a single block of precious stone or cast in metals.
No
rules need be observed,
of achala-lingas in
as in the case
shaping the chala-lingas and
they need not bear on them the lines that are
marked on the achala-lingas. The achala or sthavara-lingas are, according
required to be
The Achala
*o '^16
or
sthavaraLingas.
^^^g^.
Suprabheddgama, ^-^^
Svayambhuva, the Purva
j^^^^^^^
classified
namely,
the
(or Purana), the Daivata,
the Granapatya, the Asura, the Sura, the Arsha, the
Rakshasa, the Manusha, and the Bana lingas.* *Tbe Mdnasdra has another
olassifioation acoording to
Of
whioh
the achala-lingas are of eixkinds, namely, Saivalinga, FasupataLifiga,
a variety
any
Kalamukha-Lihga, Yama-Linga, Bbairava-Linga and
whioh
is
not mentioned
of these lingas.
;
fellTRf^
79
but
it
gives
^n^riSf^ot
no description
^Sg^rr
I
of
Irt
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Svayambhuva,
these, the
are said to belong to the
uttamottama (most superior) variety
Their ciaesifica*'^°"'
of lingas
;
those belonging to the
Daivata and the Ganapatya
Uttamamadhyama
classes,
(middling
of
are
the
variety
superior)
whereas the Asura, the Sura and the Arsha lingas belong to the
nUamadhama
(lowest
among
the
The Manuslialihgas belong to the madhyamadhmna (middling among the inferior)
superior) variety.
variety.
The Makutagama of sthira-lingas,
recognises only four classes
namely, the Daivika, the Arshaka,
Manusha
the Ganapa, and the
most authoritative
of all the
lingas,
whereas the
Saiva Agamas, the
Kamihagama
states that the sthavara-lihgas
divided into
six
classes,
the
are
Svayambhuva, the
Daivika, the Arshaka, the Ganapatya, the
Manusha
and the Bana
apparent
diversity
Agamas
among
of
Though
there
the statements of
is
the
various
in the classification of the sthdvara lingas,
practically
some
lingas.
there
is
no difference at
them include the minor
major heads and swell the
all in
varieties
list,
them
under the
while others are
somewhat more rigorous in keeping apart the major and the minor divisions among the sthavara lingas.
The Svayambhuva Linga is described in the K&mikagama as one which rose up and came in 80
LINGAS. into existence by itself and
had existed from time
As
immemorial. these
bhuvaLinga,
are
fire,
inundation or encroachment of religion
the
like
possessed by devils, (jirnoddhara).
If
wild elephants,
rivers,
enemies of
madmen
Tulushkas, *
if
damaged by
slightly
causes such as
even
such,
men
or
they need no re-setting up
anything at
all
is
necessary,
it
*While oommenting on the word ripavah, Nigamajnanadeva, son of Vamadevasivaoharya says, ripavah iatruvastulush-
kddaya called
:
Yamadeva was
Sambhuvaraya.
varayas, (that
themselves
of
There
members
is,
whose
initial
dynasty
whom
of
Vamadeva seems date
is
it
the
Sambhu-
who
styled
Sambhuvaraya,
A. D.
1322-23.
me
Tiruvamattur and
is
dated 1335-6 A.D.,
four
of chiefs
Eajanarayana Sambhu-
to be
the inscriptions discovered by
which
three or
are
of a
Sambhuvarayas),
the patron of varayar,
a contemporary and protege of a king
at
one
that the Turukkar
said
is
In
invaded some time previously and caused ruin to the country
and that the puja
in the
Siva temple at Tiruvamattur was
suspended for want of funds and that Eajanarayana Sambhuvarayar granted some lands and money to revive the pujas.
This Bajanarayana constructed a gopura lesvara temple at
Vamadeva wrote dhara dasaka.
Tiruvannamalai
the original and
;
in
sitting
the Arunaohain
commentary
this
gopura,
of the Jirnod-
Hence, the invasion and havoc caused to the
temples by the Mussalmans under Malik Eafur, the general of Alla-ud-din Khilji, were fresh in the
mind
of the author
therefore, includes in the term ripavah, the Tulushkas.
81 11
who,
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. is
but a few ceremonials that might be done to
purify the linga from pollution.
Svayambhuva Linga required,
if
is
broken, the
possible, to be
broken part
is
if
however, the damage
such as to prevent the pieces being bound together
may
the broken part
a
the
bound with the main part
with bands of gold or copper; is
If a portion of
be thrown away.
Svayambhuva Linga
is,
completely removed from
however,
by some cause or other, its
setting
and thrown
would cause the king his destruc-
out, the event
kingdom, perhaps because he
tion as also of his
and
If,
his officers, responsible for the safety of
such
objects of hoary antiquity, were negligent in their
In
duty.
so sacred that
Agamas
the
a
fact,
Svayambhuva Linga is considered above all the rules laid down in
it is
for the other
classes of Lihgas,
such indeed be the superiority
Lihgas over others, claims
village
it
is
of the
Svayambhuva
no wonder that every
Svayambhuva nature
the
If
for the
Linga
set
which
are situated in various parts of India, are
said to
up
in
possess
of these places,
its
temple.
Svayambhuva Lihgas and a is given in the commentary on
list
by Nigamajnanadeva
of
Jirnoddhdia-dasakani
Vyaghrapura, son *
The
Sixty-eight places,
of
sixty-eight
are said to be found are
his
VdmadevaHvacharya*
places wherein :
82
Svayambhuva Lingas
LliJGAS.
The Daivika Lingas The Daivika Linga.
No.
to
the
are recognised,
according
MaJcutagama,
by
characteristic
shapes.
their
They may
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY, be of the shape of a flame or resemble
No,
a pair of
LINGAS.
hands held in the anjali pose No.
;
they
may have rough
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. with
exterior
elevations
and depressions,
deep
and
hollows and scars resembling taiika (chisel)
The Daivika Lihgas do not
sula (trident).
possess
the brahma or the parsvasutras.
The Ganapa-lihgas to have been set
The Ganapa
are those that are believed
They
by Ganas.
are of the shape
cucumber, citron, — wood-apple Or palm. The Arsha
of the
Lingas and the
Arsha liingas.
Lihgas are those
set
fruits of
up and worshipped by Kishis
they are spheroidal in shape, with the top portion less
broad than the lower portion
they are the
Ganapa
Daivika
an unhusked cocoanut
like
lihgas
lihgas, are
words,
in other
;
and the Arsha
fruit.
lihgas,
Both
like
the
without the brahma-sutras. The
Kiranagama informs us
that the
Svayambhuva, the
Arsha and the Daivika lihgas have no shape (rupa)
and no measurements {mana) and are recognised only by their respective shapes.
The
largest
Manusha
The ^^^^*®'
number
of
the
achala or the
stJiavard lihgas, are of the class of
Manusha
lihgas.
As the name
indicates, this class of lihgas consists
of those set
up by human hands. They are sculptured
in accord-
ance with the rules definitely laid down in the
Agamas and ment
of the
The measureManusha Lihgas depend upon any one consist of ten classes.
of the following,
namely, the height of door-way of 86
LIl?fGAS.
the central shrine, the length of one side of the central shrine (which
is
generally cubical in shape)
The
or the natural unit, the hasta or the cubit.
Manusha
lingas are
the lowest which
is
made up
square in section and
the Brahma-bhaga,
as
known
section,
of three parts,
;
is
known
the middle of octagonal
Vishnubhaga and the
as the
most, of generally circular section,
Eudrabhaga
namely,
known
top-
as the
the lengths of these parts vary with
the different classes of lingas.
On
the Eudrabhaga
Manusha lingas are carved certain lines called brahma sutras, and the tops of the lingas technically known as sirovarttana are fashioned in a number of forms the rules for tracing the of
all
;
hrahma-sutras and for making the iirovarttanas will
be described in a subsequent portion of this
chapter.
The
lingas
whose measurements depend upon the length of the side of the central
Lengths of the Sarvadesika Lin-
shrme are
called the Sarvadesifca
&»•
lingas are fractions such half, of
;
different proportions
which
as three-fifths, five-ninths, or
the length or breadth of the central shrine
are prescribed for the lengths of the lingas,
are further classed under uttavia,
adhama
or the
superior,
inferior varieties.
87
which
madliyama and
the middling and the
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The second
class of the
Of sarvasama ^"^^*'
called the
Mayamata and
the
Manusha
Sarvasama
liiigas
linga.
also called Sarvatobhadra
is
It is
in the
K^mikagama.
In the Sarvasama* class of lingas the brahmabhaga, the Vishnubhaga and the
Rudrabhaga
mliJist^^^'
equal in length;
are
whereas in the class known as the
Varddhamana ing to the linga,
linga, t
which
is
known, accord-
also
Siddhantasdravali,
as
the Suredhya
the proportion of the Brahmabbaga,
Vishnubhaga and the Rudrabhaga are as 5,
6,
7,
or 6,
proportion
8,
7,
6
4, 5,
is
or
7,
9.
8,
prescribed for
4, 6,
the 6 or
Of these the
Brahmanas and
the other three for the Kshatriyas, the Vaisyas '^"^^'^^
Li°iatf
and the Sudras
respectively.
The
lengths of the
Brahmabbaga
etc.,
in the Saivadhikaj: lingas are ac-
cording to the Kamihagama, the the
Mayamata
Karanagama and
are 7, 7, 8 or 5, 5, 6 or 4, 4, 5
and are meant
for the four
castes respectively beginning with the
Brahmanas.
or 3, 3, 4, respectively
* Literally +
Literally
I
Literally
'
'
'
all-equal
;
'.
of ascending order of lengths.'
with the Saiva part
of larger length.'
LINGAS.
Anadhya
as the
linga of the 8id-
The proportion of Brahmabhaga and other parts
dhantasar avail. the
linga, is given in the
mata Of
same
T^^^^ class appears to be the
Svastika
Of
"^^*®'
the lengths of in the Svastika
KamiJcagama and the Maya-
as 2, 3, 4 respectively.
In the class known
^^ ^^^ Trairasika or Traibhagika
Trairasika
"^^^^-
lingas, the lengths of the various
parts are given as follows: dividing the whole length of the linga into nine equal parts, the periphery of
the
Brahmabhaga should be equal
Vishnubhaga seven and that
parts, that of the
the Rudrabhaga
six.
is
not given and
we have
to
from the periphery supposing that the total ;
length of the liiiga division
of
It should be noted here that
the diameter of the linga
deduce it
to eight of these
is
one
is
nine
feet,
the length of each
we have
foot. If, as
already said, the
periphery of the square section of the brahmabhaga is
eight times one division, the length of a side of the
square will be two
feet.
The same
is
the length of
the diameter of the octagon and the circle inscribed in this square.
Mathematically the proportions of
the periphery of the square, and the octagon and the circle inscribed in it are * 8r,
approximately
16 tan 22 '5° and 2Hr, respectively
radius of the circular Eudrabhaga, to be
= l. 89
8, 6.
where
»'
624*
= tbe
which we have assumed
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. and
6.3 times one division.
Thus
there
(See
down
the KamiJcagama,
those
All the works, such as
Raranagania, the Supra-
the
bhedagama and the Mayamata
are uniform in giving
tbe same proportions to the three ^ "^ parts of the Trairasika-lihga. There
« jv. Adhya
yet one
Agamas and
in the
obtained mathematically.
is
VII.)
a slight discrepancy between the
is
proportions laid
«^ Of j.^ the Linga,
PL
fig. 1,
more
class of lingas, the
the Siddhantasar avail
Adhya-lihga
the lengths of the
:
Brahma-
bhaga, the Vishnubhaga and the Sivabhaga
of this
variety are given as 8|, 8 and 7J respectively.
the lengths of the
far about
I shall
lingas.
now proceed
various to the
of
So
classes of
general rule
regarding the width of lingas.
The Siddhantasdravali .^...r.
Widths
lays
down
the foUow-
rule for fixing ing ° the widths of the _°
r
of
Lingas.
Adhya, the Anadhya, the Suredhya
and the Sarvasama lingas
:
divide the total length
of the lihga into sixteen equal parts
;
the width of
Adhya liiiga should be six of these parts that of the Anadhya liiiga, five that of the Suredhya liiiga, the
;
;
four
;
width
and
lastly of the
of the three parts
section
the octagonal of
the linga
is
Sarvasama
liiiga, five
;
the
having the square section,
and the circular section
obviously 90
the
same throughout.
LINGAS.
The Mayamata
gives the widths
of the various
lingas in greater detail.
The
central
shrines
Hindu temples
of
are
roughly divided according to their ground plans
and superstructure into three
Nagara, the Dravida, and the Vesara
The width
Unga
of the
given
jg
Lingas^
follows
the linga, (which
one side parts in
it
6,
with a width of
The
4 or 3
depends upon the length of
of these
to be set
is
parts.
known
of
the
up
adhamddhama
Jayada
as the
or the most inferior
Nagara type
in the
Uttamottama or the most
of central shrine
superior liiiga
extreme limits are seven varieties
adhama-madhyama, adhamottama yama-madhyama, madhyambttama
madhyama
;
;
;
is .6.
of
and that
Between lihgas,
the
madhyamadhama, madhuttamadhama and uttama-
these have lengths obtained by adding a seventh
part of the difference in length between
adhamddhama
temples
up
The one
the length of one side of the central shrine
these two
the
as
divide the total length of
five parts is
linga that might be set
of the
Nagara variety
central shrines of all Siva temples are square in
The length
is .5 of
in the
of the central shrine),* into sixteen equal
might be
plan.
itself
up
Mayamata
the
in
the widths of the linga that
:
*
:
classes.
to be set
central shrine of the
Nagara
namely, the
classes,
varieties,
which
is .1.
91
the uttamottama and
in the case of the
Nagara
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. or the victory-bestowing variety
;
that with a width
the strength-
of four parts is of the PaushtiJca or
bestowing variety and that of a width parts, the
three
of
SarvaJcamika or the all-desires-bestowing
variety. of the lihgas to
In the case
Gravida form
Of Dravida ^"'^*^-
widths
:
the
following
of
be set up in the central shrines, their
gives
rule
divide the total length of the lihga* into
twenty-one equal parts the lihga whose width
is
:
six
of these parts is called the
Jayada lihga
whose width
Paushtika and that
whose width
five parts is
is is
four parts
is
;
that
Sarvakamika.
The Jayada, Paushtika and S&rvakamika Of V e s a Lingas.
proportions *
r
a
Hhgas
up
in the Vesara class of
central shrines have the following if
:
The length
the total of the
in the Dravida temple of the oentral shrine
the difference
Set
is
;
is
length of the lihga\
Uttamottama class
of the linga set
is
up
13/21, part of the length of one side
that of the
3/21 or 1/7.
adhamddhama
is
10/21 and
Dividing this difference into
seven equal parts and adding one, two, smaller parts to the length of the
etc.,
of these latter
adhamadhama
lihga
we
obtain the seven varieties of lihgas of intermediate lengths. ^
The length
of the
Uttamottama lihga
of the
Vesara type
of the garbha-griha is 16/25 of the side of the central shrine; that of the is
3/25
adhamadhama, 13/25 and the ;
difference in their lengths
this difference is divided into seven equal parts
92
;
by the
Plate
VI.
< if)
a:
<
CO
tQ
< >
lO
liSgas. divided into twenty-five equal parts, the width of
the Jayada Ivhga
is
PaushtiJca, seven parts
;
eight
parts
and
of the
that
;
of
the
Sarvakamika,
six parts.
A
few of the lingas described above are drawn
to scale
and are reproduced on
PI.
VI
it
;
might be
noticed that they have different types of tops, some
resembling
half-moon
a
;
umbrella and others, shaped process
known
the
some,
the egg.
like
rounding of these tops
of
as the
making
rules are laid
down
about which
it
of the
top of
is
an
The
technically
Minute
sirdvarttana.
producing the various tops,
for
necessary to give here a brief
is
account.
The
tops of lingas are of several kinds, the most
important of which are
The tops of ^^^^*®'
according
named
ing
to
the
to
the
five,
Mayamata, and
Siddhantasaravali.
respectively
They
four are
tripushdkara,
chhatrakara,
arddha-chandrdkdra
kukkutandakdra,
accord-
and
bud-
buda-sadrisa meaning the umbrella-shaped, the cu-
cumber-shaped, the egg-shaped,
shaped last
and
named
the
bubble-like
variety
has
been
the
respectively.
omitted
Siddhdntasardvali, probably because addition of one, two,
dhama
variety
we
etc., of
half-moon-
its
The
by
the
author
is
these smaller parts to the adhamd-
get seven lingas of intermediate lengths.
93
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. inclined to include
in
it
conic sections
and
the
cian than to the iconographer
;
the mathemati-
they are of great
investigation into the various curves
known
to the
study of
for the
Hindus and furnish some materials
As
Hindu mathematics.
History of
their
These rules would help an
use to the sculptor.
the
to
relating
rules
of greater interest to
formation are
difierent
forms represent
These different
class.
the arddha-chandrakara
these
rules are extremely
minute and are not quite easy
to understand they
have been omitted here
;
but the
have been inserted in the appendix
original texts
who can make any
for the benefit of those
use of
them.
There
yet one
is
more
detail in the
making
of
a lihga, without which the liiiga Brabma-sutras
does not become complete for
worship
;
it is
the tracing of certain lines
as the hrahma-sutras on the lihga. lines are (or the
and
Two
fit
known
vertical
engraved on the surface of the iJttdraft/ia^a
pujabhaga, as
Agamas). The length
it is
often
referred to in the
of these lines*
should be, ac-
cording to the Siddhantasdravali, determined by the
*
in
These
lines are oalled
Mayamata ; manirekhd,
names
by the name of lakshanoddhdrana
pdrsva-sutra,
of these.
94
etc.,
are
also other
f=5
CD
C8 •fl
c3
c3
CD
CD
LI^GAS. following rule of the
divide the length of the pujabhaga
:
linga into three equal parts
divide further
:
the two lower parts into eight equal divisions
:
now
the distance between the two parallel vertical lines
should be one of these smaller divisions
;
the thick-
ness and depths of the lines, should be one-ninth of this division
either side, of
:
two
lines are to be traced,
one on
which should begin from near the tops descend sloping down and
the vertical lines,
removed farther aod farther
from
the
central
double parallel lines until they reach a distance
which
is
two divisions from the lowest portion
the pujabhaga
;
then the two sloping
of
side-lines,
{pdrsva sutras), should be traced in a horizontal
plane so as to meet each other at the back. fig. 1,
PI.
VI, PI. VII and
fig. 1, PI.
X).
(See
The two
central vertical parallel lines should be joined at their tops
by a curved
line
resemble that of the top or
Among
the linga.
(siras) of
the Manusha-lingas are included five
more sataLinga?***''*
varieties,
namely, the Ash-
tfittara-sata-Unga, linga, the
veshtyalinga and the first,
whose curvature should
the
Sahasra-
Dhara-linga, the 8ai-
Mukha
linga.
Of
these, the
the asMottara-sata-lihga or the 108 minia-
ture lingas are required to be carved on the -puja-
bhaga
of the
Suredhya
linga.
95
They
are produced
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. by cutting four equidistant horizontal deep
on the surface
of the
pujdbhaga
;
lines
at right angles to
these and parallel to the axis of the lihga are to be
carved twenty-seven deep
The portions
lines.
of
the surface of the main liiiga formed by the inter-
and horizontal
section of the vertical
lines
are
small oblongular blocks, which are later on shaped into the form of the pujdbhaga of the ordinary
lihgas by rounding the sides
and the
top.
Thus
are formed a hundred and eight lihgas (practically
main lihga
hsM-lihgas) attached on the back to the (See
fig. 2, PI.
VII, and
fig. 1,
PI. VIII).
The Sahasra-lihga is obtained in same manner as the lK.^*^^^''*
^^^'^^"^^^-
"^^^
exactly the ashtpttara-
carving of
the
thousand and one lihgas should be
done on the surface linga.
In the case
of the of
the
pujdbhaga
an Adhya-
of
Sahasra-linga the hori-
zontal lines are eleven and the vertical lines ninety-
nine (See
The
fig. 2,
PI. VIII).
of
^The
Dhara
which
has
round
fluted facets ranging
sixty-four in number.
bheddgama prescribes facets for
pujdbhaga
Dhdrd-liiigas are lihgas, the
Dhara
mentions only 16
it
from
while the
five to
The Supra-
5, 7, 9, 12, 16, 20,
lingas,
vertical
24 and 28
Kdrandgama
But the Mayamata
facets.
96
lays
l>LATe Vlll
hi on'
-mi' S3 ct-
S3
er
O a o
< o
tej
CO so
tr S3
aTO S>
«-
o d
o
[ ;/g
o
aS-ed 90BJ
ox]
LIISIGAS.
down
number
the rule that the
of facets in the
Brahmabhdga, the Vishnuhhaga and the Budrabhaga should be either or 16, 32
and 64
iKamiJcagama lays
down on
is
4,
8 and 16
The
respectively.
16 and 32
8,
;
text of the
corrupt and hence what rule
this point
Dharalihgas should be made out
of the
it
The
unintelligible.
is
;
Sarvasama
lingas.
The Mukhalinga The Mukhalinga.
one of the varieties of
is
Manusha-lingas and
is
distinguish-
.
ed from bears one or more
all
human
Regarding the making
of
.
other lingas in that faces sculptured on
a Mukhalinga
all
it it.
the
Agamas and Taniras have detailed descriptions. The substance of these is that a Mukhalinga should be made on the pujdbhaga of the Sarvasama-lihga and that
it
might have one, two,
three, four or five
faces corresponding to the five aspects,
Vamadeva,
Tatpurusha, Aghora, Sadyojata and Isana, If the central
of Siva.
shrine has only one door-way in
its
front or the east side, there should be carved only
one face and that on the front side of the linga facing the door-way (See
two door-ways one
fig.
in front
1,
sides,
if it
is,
has
at the
on the eastern and
there should be two faces carved on
the front and back of the linga 97 13
;
and the other
back of the central shrine, that western
PL IX)
;
there should be three
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. faces on the lihga, is,
on
all
if
there are three door-ways, that
sides except the west (See
lastly, there are four
faces or five
;
fig. 2,
PI.
IX)
;
if,
doorways, there should be four
in the former case, the faces are turn-
ed in the four directions of the quarters
in the
;
latter case, in addition to the four faces, there is to
be one on the top of the lihga and facing the east.
The Isana
aspect of Siva
on the top
of
the lihga
;
is
represented by the face
the Tatpurusha, by that
facing the east, the Aghora,
south
;
by that facing the
the Sadyojata, by that facing the west and
the Vamadeva, by that facing the north.
In the
four faces carved on the four sides of
case of the
the Mukhalihga they should be attached to bodies
which ought
to be represented only as far as the
chest {stana-sutra) Fig.
2, PI.
X).
(See
Each
fig. 3,
PL VII,
of these figures
PI.
XI and
should have
only one pair of arms and be fashioned in
all
respects in conformity with the rules laid
down
other for
the making of images.
From
the descriptions of the
given above,
it is
easily seen that the
sents a phallic emblem, of
ing above the pitjia
viemtrum
virile
Manusha
is
lihgas
symbol repre-
which the part project-
the representation of the
and the brahmasutra makes
of
the nut from the shaft and the rounded top completes its
likeness to the 98
human
phallus.
The
LINGAS,
Brahmabhaga and signed to
fix
the Vishnubhaga are
only de-
Of
the linga firmly in the pedestal.
the component parts of the pltha, that slab of stone
with a square hole, in which the square portion of the
linga
member
and
in
fits
of the pitha,
which forms the lower
prevents
its rotation.
second slab with an octagonal hole in is
the second or upper
member
it
The
and which
of the pltha restricts
the vertical motion of the linga.
Lingas are almost always
known
set
up in pedestals
as the pindikds or pUhas.
Pithas.
These may be square, oblongular, octogonal, elongated octagon, hexagon, elongated
hexagon,
Forms of the plans of pithas,
duodecagon,
elongated
16 sided, regular or
duodecagon,
elongated, circular, elliptical, triangular and semicircular, in plan. (1).
In a square pltha, which
^
The Manasdra
lays
the pitha that should be used
forms
of
vimdnas
down
in the
it
the rule that the form of
is
the nagara, drdvida and
defines that the
nagara pitha is square;
thedrdvida pitha, oot&gonai and the vesarapiiha circular
s[Tf^ sri%i
*
aHR *
l-^ft
^c
cT«rr
*
99
the
Nagara, Dravida and Vesara
(central shrines)
vesara respectively and
is
ii
^
-f:
in plan
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Length
one commonly met with, the length of the
the
of side pithas.
of
one side
of
may
it
the length of the
equal to the
total length
words two-thirds the linga.
The
of the
be twice
pujabhdiga, or
linga
in other
;
of or equal to the total length of
whose
pltha, the length of
equal to the total length of the linga
is
side is
said to
belong to the TJttamdUama class and that whose side is equal to two-thirds the total
adhamddhama.
linga, of
the
linga into
length of the
Dividing the total length
twenty-four equal parts,
following classification of the pithas
Adhamadhama
pitha's side
is
the
obtained. parts.
PLATE
Xll,
k.
'd-
I
I
.
2
I
.
v>
I
I
.
I
1
I
I
I
I
I
^ ^
I
T
\3
!i)
i
I
.
°
I
.
-o
I
1
.
i^
I
.
00
-^^ ^
J.
L
Ire
tTo
.I
I
I
I
I
I
I
r-
I
^
tini.
c ^ oot«ir->5'oq-iOt
face page 101.]
"
<<
'J-lOC^JOiriOO'^'^'OT'^rV
„-•» Kl rJ
j'
Ojs^
LINGAS.
The length
of a side of the pitha
may
also be
equal to three times the diameter of the linga or equal to the periphery of the pujdbhdga or equal to the periphery of the
The height
theplth"^
*
°
of the
Vishnuhhdga.
pUha may come up
as far
as the upper end of
the Vishnu-
bhaga
or
of the
ling a
;
might
it
cover up the pujdbhdga to a height equal to a quarter or even half the height of the
Vishnubhdga.
These plthas are made
of one,
two
or three slabs of stones placed one over
another
and they are shaped with various kinds
of orna-
mental mouldings which are arranged in over another. Kinds of pithas. tha,
tiers
one
They are named according to the number and form of the different n p j it kmds 01 mouldmgs as 13hadrapii
•
-r->i
Mahambuja-P., Srikara-P., Vikara-P., Maha-
vajra-P.,
Saumyaka-P., Srikamya-P., Chandra-P.,
The various items of the mouldings are known as updna, jagati, kumuda, padma, kampa, kaiitha, pattikd, nimna and ghritavdri. Drawings made to scale of a few of the pithas are given on PI. XII. The upper surface of the pMha and Vajra-P.
from which the pujdbhdga water^cov^se.
lUiga juts out
is
of the
SO shaped as to
allow a free flow of water towards
the water spout, which
is
generally found attached
101
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. to the side of the pltha
worshipper of
the linga, as the
left of
(See the plan and section
it.
The length water-course which is known
a pltha reproduced on PI. XII).
of this
in
faces
on the
water spout or
Sanskrit as the nala, as also
origin,
is
its
The
and its breadth
three-fourths of its breadth at the
at the free end,
lip of
its
required to be one-third or one-fourth
of the length of the side of the pltha,
origin.
width at
side view of the nala should be like the
an elephant.
(See the end elevation at
CD.,
PI. XII).
The
liiiga
should be
made out
of
pum-sila or
the male stone, while the pin^ika or pltha of sila or
female stone.
A
strl-
very elaborate dissertation
on the male, the female or the neuter nature
and other
stones, timber,
agamas, but
it
is
of
objects, is given in all
perhaps unnecessary to detail
their descriptions here.
102
LINGODBHAVAMURTI. CHANDRASEKHARAMURTI. PASUPATAMURTI AND RAUDRAPASUPATAMURTI.
LINGODBHAVAMURTI AND CHAN DBASE KHARAMtJETI. 1"
T AVING let
described the various forms of lingas,
me now
LingodbhavamQrti.
proceed to a description of the
This
icons in Southern India,
Agamas
is
is
common
one of the
which according
to the
required to be placed in the niche in the
western wall of the garbha-griha or the central shnne.
Siva
is
said to have appeared in the form
of a blazing pillar of
pride of
immeasurable
size to quell the
Brahma and Vishnu.
almost identically given in
Eurma-piirana, the
The story, which is the Ling a-'pur ana, the
Yayu-purana and the Siva-
piorana, runs as follows
:
—Vishnu at the
end
of
a
kalpa was slumbering on the deep abyss of waters a great illumination occurred then near Vishnu and
from
it
emerged Brahma. Brahma saw before him
another person Vishnu
;
and introduced himself of the
Brahma approached Vishnu to
Vishnu as the creator
whole universe and demanded
who he was towhich Vishnu ;
105 11
of
Vishnu
replied that he
was
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. also the architect of the
Brahma
universe.
could
not brook the statement of Vishnu and a quarrel
At
ensued between them both. appeared a
liiiga
this juncture there
resembling the great cosmic
with hundreds of tongues of flames blazing out
set
of
it.
Brahma and
Instead of quarrelling with each other
Vishnu
fire,
about to find out the top and bottom res-
mass
pectively of this huge
which pur-
of fire, for
pose the former assumed the form of a swan {hamsa)
and flew up form
in the air
of a boar
The attempt reality
these two gods to
of
They then came or
while the latter took the
and burrowed down into the earth.
and measure
something
;
than themselves
they approached this it.
pillar of
them
in the
with a thousand arms and the
fire
called the pinaJca,
;
whose top
thus humiliated
:
fire
and began
body
legs,
with the sun, the
as his three eyes, bearing the
bow
clad in the hide of an elephant,
made
snakes and with a voice resembling the rum-
bling
of
the
clouds
or
the noise of the
drum,
— " You
Brahma and Vishnu thus both born from me, Brahma having come from my
addressed are
to
of this fiery lio'iga
carrying the trisula, wearing the yajnopavlta of
was
Pleased with their prayers Siva mani-
fested himself to
moon and
futile.
to realise that there certainly
bottom they could not find out
praise
proved
of this fiery pillar
far greater
the
discover
:
106
LINGODBHAVAMURTI. and Vishnu from the
right loin
of us are really one,
but
three aspects, namely, vara.
and
Brahma
now
are
loin
left
;
all
three
separated into
Brahma, Vishnu and Mahe^be born of Vishnu
will in the future
at the beginning of a Jcalpa, I myself will
Thus
born from the angry brow of Vishnu." laring,
came to be worshipped by While searching for the top
linga
Brahma came by asked
it
all
petal answered that
it it
fire,
flower
and
JcetaJci
was descending was
falling
Taking hold
descended and
lied to
of
this
;
to this the
from the head
Mahesvara, for what length of time
remember.
the
men.
of the pillar of
a petal of the
wherefrom
dec-
From this time
Mahesvara disappeared.
be
it
petal,
of
could not
Brahma
Vishnu that he had discovered
the head of Mahesvara and from this petal of the Tietaki flower.
it
had brought
For uttering
this
Brahma was cursed not to receive any worship from men on earth. Hence, it is stated, Brahma is never enshrined in a separate piece of falsehood
temple and offered worship.
In the Amsumadbheddgama
is
found the follow-
ing description of the Lingodbhavamurti figure of Siva in the aspect of
:
Chandrasekharamurti
should be carved on the front of a linga. stated in the
the Iviiga
Kdrandgama
should be
left
The It is
that one-fifth part of
out on the top and at the 107
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. bottom respectively without any sculpture. legs below
The
the knees of the figure of Chandra-
sekhara carved on the lihga should be invisible, that
is,
should be
left
and near
of the lihga
On the right Brahma should be
unsculptured. its
top
represented in the shape of a
swan
(Jiamsa) while
Vishnu should be carved in the form of a boar on the of
the foot of the lihga.
left at
Brahma and Vishnu should
the right and also facing
figures
the lihga and
respectively of
left
The
be sculptured on
with two hands held on the chest in
it,
the anjali pose.
The colour
of the figure of Siva
should be red, that of Vishnu black and that of
Brahma
golden yellow.
Over and above this de-
scription, a few additional details are
found in the
Kamihagama. The size of the swan, it is stated, should be the same as that of the face of Siva, while that of the boar, twice that of the face of Siva. figure of the
The
boar should be worked out as digging
into the earth.
The
figures of
Vishnu and Brahma
should be expressive of submission and be sculptured beautifully
the panel
;
;
or they
may
be altogether omitted from
in this latter case, the
boar should necessarily be there.
swan and the
The Silparatna
adds that Siva should carry the sula in one of his
hands
;
whereas, the
Karanagama
requires that of
the four hands, one should be in the abhaya pose, 108
PLATE
XIII.
'<" *%'
-
'^'^^
4
Liutoubbavamurti
:
Kailasanathasvamin Temple
[To face page 109.]
Stone: :
Conjeevaram.
LINGODBHAVAMUETI. another in the varada pose, a third should carry the parasu and the fourth a hrishna-mriga (a black
moon
buck) and that the digit of the kala) should adorn the
description
XIII)
in the
first
and is over twelve hundred years is
is
which
the is
photograph
that of the Lingodbhavamurti found
is
Kailasanathasvamin temple
sculpture
Such
of Siva.
Lingodbhavamurti,
of the
with three pictures. The
illustrated (PI.
crown
(chandra-
much
very
The
descriptions.
old.
at variance
figure of
at
Conjeevaram This piece of
with the textual
Siva-Chandrasekhara
has eight arms of which some are seen carrying the
an ahsTiamala and some other
parasu, the sula, objects,
while one
another
is
top
is
liiiga
not
upon the hip (katyavalambita).
resting
Then again
held in the ahhaya pose and
is
the one-fifth part of the lihga on the
unsculptured, nor
left
is
the part of the
lower than the knees of the figure of Siva,
equal to a
fifth of
But the sculpture
the total length of the linga.
agrees with the
Sanskrit texts
in that the legs of Siva below the knees are left
out unsculptured the digit of the ;
on the crown
of
Siva
with four hands out
;
moon
is
shown
the hoa,v-avatdTa of Vishnu, of
which two are shown as
digging the earth and the other two as carrying the saiikha and the chakra, and not an ordinary boar, as stated in the
Agamas,
is
carved out at the bottom
109
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Brahma
is
own form instead of as
a
space of the panel in his
;
as also that of the other
seen flying in the air
swan
deities
;
one of his
on the
left of
the
Brahma and
lihga, is horizontal, while the figures of
Vishnu each having four arms
legs,
are sculptured
on the
they have each one arm
right
and
left of
lifted
up
in the pose of praising, while the other
rests
upon the
the lihga
hip,
;
and the remaining ones carry
The top
their characteristic weapons.
of the niche
has got a highly artistically carved maJcara-torana.
The second photograph.
Fig.
presents the Lihgodbhavamurti
Amhar
wreath
of flowers
Siva
shown with four arms, one
is
in the
In
thrown over
abhaya pose, the other
this, its
XIV,
re-
temple
in the
Siva at
Mdbgalam.
2., PI.
of
the lihga has a
top of
;
the figure of
which
is
held
in the katyavalambita
pose (resting upon the hip), and the remaining two
The
carry the parasu and the black buck. of the figure of
Siva below the knees and up to the
ankles are sculptured against the rules laid
Agamas ;
On
legs
down
in
the feet alone are kept hidden in the lihga.
the right of the lihga and on
seen the swan whose beak
below and on the
left of
is
its
top
is
prominently visible
the lihga
is to
be seen the
boar, half
man and
This piece
of sculpture belongs to the mediaeval
period, that
is,
to be
half beast, burrowing the earth.
to the 11th or
110
Chola
12th century A.D.
PLATE
XIV.
2^^'~~'*!*«*««%n«i."
To
face page 110.]
LINGODBHAVAMtJETI.
The third picture,
PL XIV), is a pen and
(Fig. 2,
ink sketch of the Lingodbhavamurti from the Dasa-
vatara Cave at Ellora.
The whole panel is a remark-
work
able piece of artistic
pillar of fire at the centre,
emerging from the middle
consists of the blazing
it
;
with the figure of Siva
of
it,
having one hand in
the abhaya pose, another resting on the hip, while
the
others
mriga
are carrying perhaps the parasu and
(deer).
Since Siva
is
said in
some pur anas to
have presented himself before Brahma and Vishnu as a flaming pillar (the SJcambha of the Atharvanaveda), the artist has shaped the lihga like a pillar
with a capital.
Flames
on both sides of the is
are bursting out in tongues
pillar.
seen flying in the
air,
Brahma with
four faces
and Vishnu as Varaha
On
digging the earth with his hands and snout. the right and
left
are seen
is
Brahma and Vishnu
respectively standing in a reverential attitude, with
two hands clasped
and the other
in the anjali pose
two carrying the characteristic objects such as the sanhha, the chaJcra, the hamandalu,
two
deities.
The
details
in
this
etc., of
sculpture
executed in the most exquisite manner. be observed that in is
all
these
It
are
might
these cases, the figure of Siva
enclosed in a lenticular aperture on the surface of
the lihga.
Ill
CHANDEA^EKHAEAMUETI. *'
^HB name
I
•
Chandrasekharamurti implies an
image which has Chandra (the moon) as
How Siva
head-ornament.
came
its
to possess snakes
on his body, the black buck and the -parahu in his hands, the Apasmara-purusha or General characteristics of the
the
demon under
his feet,
to
images of Siva.
the skins of the lion and
on
his loins
up
in his
thus
:
and and the
skull
crown is described
wear
the tiger
and the moon tucked
in the
Suprabhedagama
—When §iva was passing by the slopes
of the
mountain Meru without any garments, the wives the Eishis
The
chastity.
incantations to
love with
in
fell
Eishis, wild kill
him and
of
lost their
with rage, performed
Siva, the seducer of their wives
from their ceremonial ground there came snakes, a Jcrishna-mriga, an Apasmara-purusha, a parahu, a bull,
a
tiger,
a lion and several other things.
destroying Siva
all
Eishis against him.
these were discharged by the
The
latter took into his
113 le
For hands
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. for his sports the black-deer, the
snakes and the
parasu ; the Apasinara-purusha was trampled under his feet
and
is
always serving him as a foot-stool
the lion and the tiger were killed by Siva and their
worn by him as
skins
and the
digit
his garments, while the skull
moon were
the
of
jatamakuta as ornaments. adds further that
all
placed on his
The Suprabhedagama
figures of Siva should
have the
following characteristics, namely, three eyes, four
arms, the crescent moon, the dliurdhura flowers,
crown {jatdmaJcuta), the
{datura), snakes on the tiger-skin
garment, the hara, the
Jceyura,
pavita and huTidalas adorning his person. figures of Siva
may have
yajnoSpecial
other objects about them
than those mentioned just now. In addition to these, other characteristic tures of the images of Siva are given in a cript
added at the end
name
is
not known.
of
fea-
manus-
the Silparatna whose
It is stated therein that the
colour of the figure of Siva,
if
it
is
painted on a
wall, should be white or of the red colour of the
or golden yellow.
shoulders, long lotus
;
sutras.
The image should
arms and eyes
possess high
like the petals of the
there should be three waist zones or
The appearance of the
sun
liati-
figure of ^iva should
be that of a youth of sixteen years of age, with a 114
chandeas'EkhaeamtJbti. blue throat,
handsome countenance, and wearing
hundalas in the ears
;
the neck should be somewhat
The figure may have four, eight, ten, sixteen or eighteen arms. The image is said to be a hantamurti or pacific in nature, when it has four arms stout.
:
arms two should carry the
in this case, of the four
trUula, and the damaru, while the remaining two
should be kept in the varada and the abhaya poses.
image has eight arms
If the
in the text in arrfcts)
—
(it is
not mentioned
what aspect Siva should have
should carry
it
—
all
eight
the objects which are in
the hands of the image of Siva with ten arms, except the hhadga and the
when he
is
The image
of Siva,
in the act of killing the Gajasura, should
have ten arms h'ands
JchetaJca.
;
when
has ten arms, the right
it
should carry an akshamala, a sword, the
§aMyayudha, the danda and the sula ; whereas the left
hands should carry the Jchatvanga, a snake, a
skull,
of
the hhetaka and the deer.
destroying the
three-castle
should possess sixteen arms.
Siva in the act
{Tripura-dahana)
In this instance, the
following six objects should be carried in addition to those of
Siva
mentioned
in connection with the
with ten arms
;
image
namely, the b^na, the
chahra and the gada in the right hands and the bow, a bell and the saiikha in the left hands. In the aspect of Bhairava, Siva has eighteen arms 115
;
the
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. hands
additional
Sankha
hold
(?)*
yifiid: "bt^jW^t ^Frr*RiiTj%r:
sre^^R^fNft Jft^S^l JT^l:
^(5T5rrfw\«r g%s^t^5ri^:
^ 5iwf^ a^wf^ gtg ^sR^m
Sfpii =q?5
=^
II
cr«n
^r^#
flRiyj 3Trt
^if^rfSr^
%^
^^^fl^^^r
^
^itg;
f^^^Prm:
^(?)^%^:^i^ft ^Tftrssr^ =^ ^«rr
ii
^oisVJTf^^ Vf^^
st^fT
w^-
3 s^jft^
=gT«inTn%^?m.
^TF^T^j^^^wrf^^^
116
ii
ii
vig^^ ^«n ^ST 5r^ ETRsf^^
^r^) 3^:
ii
jr«n^HH;
^fiit^rf^rgcT:
q^ %^
i
fjf^g;
g^ %w ^"Ti^ ^J^
nsni^^^TT^
^m
daniaru
the
11
I
II
ii
i
II
i
and
the
CHANDEAS'SKHAEAMtJETI.
The Purva-Earanagama states Siva in the Bhikshatana,
of
the
that the figures
Kahkala,
the
Haryarddha, the Arddhanarisvara, the Sukhasana, the
Kamantaka
and
the Dakshinamurti aspects
should not have near them the figure of the Devi while in
all
other aspects the Devi should be found
near Siva. in
The height
company with
of the figure of the
that of her consort ^iva, should
be up to the ear of Siva, is
of the
uttama
class
;
if
up
madhyama class, and up the adhama class. The
Devi,
the figure of the Devi
to his
mouth,
if
of the
to his uplifted hand,
colour, according to the
if
of
Karanagama,
of
the Nrittamurti, of the Kahkalamurti and of the
Dakshinamurti
is
to
be white
;
while that of
all
other aspects of ^iva, coral red.
The image
of
into three classes,
Chandrasekharamurti
is
divided
namely, the Kevalamurti, the
Umasahitamurti and the Alihganamurti.
All these
three classes are usually found in the temples of
Southern India and their descriptions are contained in all
Agamas. For instance, the Amsumadbheda-
gama
says that the
Kevalamurti
Eevala-mtirti.
should have one of his right hands
117
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. held in the abhaya pose, one of his
left
hands in the
varada pose, the other right hand should carry the tanJca
and the remaining
left
hand a black buck
Siva should be standing erect, without any bends in his body, that
hhahga.
is,
in the attitude
He should
be
shown
known
as wearing
as sama-
on
his
a jaiamahuta ornamented with a crescent also,
he should have three eyes, a beautiful
be adorned with
all
ornaments
;
moon
face,
;
and
he should be clad
garments {pltambara), the ends
in yellow
head
of
which
should descend as far below as the knees, while the bigger folds should pass between the two legs.
If
the hand held in the varada pose happens to
be
completely stretched out as in Vol.
should be kept so as to
I, it
fig
5,
PI.
make the
V. of wrist
reach the height of the hip, while the tips of the fingers should reach the msdhramula-sutra.
hand has
its
on the same
fingers slightly
plate, the
image.
is
If the
as in
fig.
4,
back of the hand should be
raised as far as the nahhi-sutra.
attitude
bent,
The samabhanga
expressive of the rajasa-guna of the
The
deer and the tanJca should be held in
the hands kept in the kartari-hasta pose
;
and the
deer
may
be facing the figure of Siva or be
from
it.
The
crescent of the
to the right or the left
of
moon may be
118
attached
the jatamakuta.
colour of the figure of ^iva should be red.
away
The
ohandeasEkaeamurti.
To the above description, the Uttara-Jcamikagama adds, that the right front hand may be held in the simhaJcarna, JcataJcahasta or the Jcatyavalam-
The two back hands which
bitahasta pose.
are
held in the Jcartari-hasta pose should not go higher
than the hikka-sutra, that
and the tops
and the mriga, higher
of the taiika
than the karna-sutra or the
might face the it,
above the shoulders
is,
While the deer
ear.
figure of Siva
or be
away from
the head of the tanka should always be turned
away from
In the
it.
left
ear of the image of ^iva-
Chandrasekhara there should be either the
ear-
ornament named the ratna-kundala, the hahkhapatra or the padtna-patra ear there
may
;
whereas in the right
be either the ornament
named
the
makara-kundala the simha-kundala, or the patra-
The curls of far down as the
kundala.
back as
hair should ear,
hang
at
the
while the jatds or
the braids or plaits of hair should hang on the right and left of the image as far as the shoulders.
The
figure
of
mented with
Chandrasekhara should be orna-
several
pearl necklaces {muktahara)
and Jewelled necklaces {ratnaharas), with
well
designed medallions (padakas) attached to them
and there
should also be yajnbpamta and
chhannaiHra and udarabandhana.
the
Besides, there
should be keyuras and other bracelets ikatakas) on 119
\
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. the arms rings
;
and the
adorned with
fingers should be
and the waist with a zone, and the ankles
with anklets. The figure
of
Chandrasekhara should
be standing upon a padma-pitha.
The second is,
variety of Chandrasekharamurti
we have mentioned
as
above,
Umasahitamurti. of
m^Ti*'**^^**
as the
the
image
If
Chandrasekhara has that
Devi by his
same pedestal
known
either
side,
{pitha) or a different one,
it
of the
on
the
is
said
with
to be Uma-sahitamurti, or Chandrasekhara
Uma. The third variety of Chandrasekharamurti is known as the Alingana-murti. In this aspect, Chandrasekhara
is
to be represent-
ed as embracmg theDevi With one of his left
side of the
arms
this
arm might
just
below her breast, or
:
Devi
placed upon the the par§va-sutra
hand a red
right
left ;
arm
rest
upon the it
may
lotus flower.
be
the Devi, outside
of
Devi should keep
the
left
in her
Or, the right
hand
of the
Devi may embrace Siva, in which case the
hand
of the
Devi should
of Siva a little
hand two
of the
rest
on the right side
above the waist zone
Devi should carry a
figures of Siva
and
120
left
and the
left
Or,
the
flower.
Uma may
each other, the one with the
;
be embracing
and the other with
'
PLATE
XV.
'3
J3
^\S ?
»
"^
p"
"^
•*
n
I
^i^
.
GHANDEA^EKARAMUETI. Thus there
the right hand.
which the
figure of Alingana
modes
are three
in
may
Chandrasekhara
be sculptured.
In
all
the above instances Chandrasekhara-
murti whether in company with his consort or not, should have around him the prabhd-mandala.
must
also be noted that this
image
of
It
Siva should
always be a standing one.
The
Srltatva-nidhi adds that the colour of
Siva in this instance should be that
The Devi
the colour of Devi, black. to possess three eyes
and
of coral,
while
here said
is
required to be standing
is
with three bends in her body {trihhahgd) her right ;
leg should be planted firmly
right
She should carry
slightly bent.
left leg,
hand the nllotpala
In
on the pedestal and the in
her
flower.
illustration of the descriptions given above
The
ten photographs are given.
first
Tiruppalatturai in the Tanjore district.
who produced
this
image
every detail
followed
in
descriptions of the
Agamas ;
the image
on a padma-pltha
and the abhaya-hasta as
The artist
Kevala Chandra-
of the
sekharamurti has
perfectly erect
comes from
;
its
is
the
standing
varada-hasta
also those carrying the
parasu and mriga are placed in the exact positions
required
sculptor
is
by
the
Agamas.
fact,
the
seen to exhibit in this piece of work such 121
16
In
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. scrupulous care to be true to the descriptions of
Agamas instinct, is
he has subordinated his
that
he had
if
any degree, and the
in
it
artistic
result
The long jata-makuta and
not quite pleasant.
the unhappy looking countenance of Siva together
with
its
really of PI.
ill-shaped
an
XVI,
stamp the work
legs,
inferior kind.
The second photograph,
that of a figure of Kevala Chandra-
is
sekharamurti carved in wood.
It is
Bhagavati temple at Onakkur
in
The
core.
figure
is
found in the
North Tra van-
about four feet in height.
holds the parasu and the mriga in the
and and
left left
as being
It
back right
hands respectively, while the front right
hands are in the varada and the abhaya
poses respectively.
The ornaments and the drapery
of the
image are carved out very elaborately.
image
is
one
of the best
specimens of wood-carving
of the medieval period found in Travancore.
third photograph, PI.
This
XVII,
is
of the
The
Umasahita-
Chandrasekharamurti belonging to the Siva temple at
Tiruvorriyur
near
The
Madras.
rules of the
Agamas are very carefully carried out but not so as to mar the beauty of the image the execution of the work is excellent. The head of the parasu, it ;
will be observed, is
turned away from the figure of
Siva and the deer has
The height
of
Uma
its face
comes up 122
turned towards Siva. to the
shoulders
of
PLATE
XVI.
Eevala-Cbandriisokbaramurti.
Wood
:
Oi^akkur (TravaDcora State).
[To face page 122,]
PLATE'XVIII.
[To face page 1231
CHANDEA^EKARAMtJRTI. Siva and the Devi
is
therefore of the
adhama
class.
Both the Deva and the Devi are standing upon padmdsanas as required by the Sanskrit texts. The fourth
a photograph of the Uma-sahita-murti to
is
be found in the Siva temple at fig. 2.,
Uma
PL XV). In
Agaram
^ettur (See
this case, the figures of ^iva
are standing each
and
on a separate pedestal and
are each surrounded by a prabhamandala of elaborate workmanship.
The Devi has
three bends in
her body and keeps in her right hand a nlldtpala flower.
one
The
first
figure of Siva
described
;
the
left
held in the varada pose, pose. is
The
also far
artistic
hand, instead of being held in the simhakarna
is
merit of this group of images
from excellent. Fig.
the photograph of the
temple at
almost similar to the
is
Madeour.
PI.
1,
Uma-sahita-murti This
a
is
fine
conceived and
sculpture
correctly
executed.
In this group Siva and
on two padmaplthas which are
pUha and
XVIII
fixed
of
piece
is
the of
very neatly
Uma
stand
on a hhadra-
are both surrounded by a single prabha-
mandala.
The next photograph,
fig. 2,
PL XVIII,
repre-
sents the Alingana-Chandrasekhara to be found in the
Mayuranathasvamin temple
at
Mayavaram.
in this piece of sculpture, carries in his
Siva,
two back
hands the paraiu and the mriga, while he keeps.the 123
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. front right
hand is
hand
in the
The
abhaya pose.
carried behind the Devi
and
is
front left
resting
on her
body below her breast. The Devi carries in her right
hand a flower. The figures of Siva and
shown with three bends
Uma are both
in their bodies (trihhanga).
This excellent piece of sculpture belongs to the
Chola period
In the image
A.D.) as
approximately 10th or 11th Cent.
(of
fig.
1,
XIX, which resembles
PI.
Kevalamurti
Pattisvaram reproduced
of
of Tiruppalatturai
(fig. 1,
which appears to be the handiwork sculptor, has its left
Devi
;
and Kovilur, the
of the
Devi
of
of
same
of the
of the
Marudantanallur
PL XIX,
Siva rests upon the
shoulder
— that
figure of Devi.
XV), and
2 and 3 respectively of
figs.
hand
left
PI.
arm taken near the waist
whereas in the sculptures
the
closely
is,
The
left
about the parsva-sutra of the
photograph
original of the
of
the Alingana Chandrasekharamurti reproduced on PI.
XX, belongs to
comes from Ahgur
the Chalukya-Hoysala school and in the Bellary District
extremely beautiful piece of art. carries
an akshamald, a
three of
its
arm placed on the carries in its left hand a near
is
the figure of Devi has
lotus flower.
the
feet
124
of
an
thrown over
right shoulder of Siva
right
left,
;
is
The image of Siva and a damaru in
hands and the fourth
the shoulder of the Devi
and the
tri'sula
and
On
its
and
the right
Siva and
Uma
PLATE
XIX,
^i^:^-^ o
f-^
PLATE XX.
Alingana-Cbandrasekhara-murti Stone
:
Angur
:
Bellary District.
[To face page 124.]
ghandea^Ekaeamubti. respectively are seated their
two
sons, G-anapati
and Subrahmanya on
the floor
highest praise
is
due to the
The
his peacock.
artist for the
on
excellent
pose in which he has sculptured the two images, the well-proportioned features of the male and female
and the splendid
figures,
effect
they produce on the
observer.
Closely allied to the Chandrasekharamurti are
the Pasupatamurti and a slightly different aspect of it,
The
the Eaudrapasupatamurti.
and Baudrapasu-
.rasupatamurti
patamurti.
t standmg ,
erect
should /
t t
also •
be
\
[samabhanga] as in
the case of the Chandrasekharamurti, should have three eyes, four arms and hair standing on the head
upright on
all
One
body.
sides,
and a large well-proportioned
of the right
abhaya pose, while the
One
of the left
hands should be held
in the
other, should carry a sula.
hands should be kept in the varada
pose and the remaining hand should carry on ahsha-
The
must be decorated with all ornaments and it must have a good look with a gentle smile playing upon its lips. The Amsumadbhedagama states that the image of Pasupata-miarti maybe mala.
figure
;
either standing or sitting, whereas the Silparatna,
wants Jcapala
it
to be a standing figure in
and substitutes the
the place of akshamala in the
description. According to the 125
above
Amsumadbhed&gama,
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. the
Pasupatamurti
be
to
is
used for the daily
services {nityotsavas in temples). If,
in the above description of the Pasupata-
murti, the following alterations are made,
the Eaudrapasupatamurti
:
The
it
becorties
colour of the body-
as also the eyes of the Eaudrapasupatamurti
to
is
be fiery red, the image of this aspect of Siva should
have sharp tusks, curling eye-brows, yajndpavUa
made one of
of snakes, flaming its
head and red garments
hands there should be
trisula held
downwards, and another hand should carry a Or, in the front hands
a
horizontal
position
must be held the
this
aspect
of
in
head
Icapala.
trisula in
and the other two hands
should hold the tahka and the sword.
upon
;
Meditating
Siva even once, destroys
all
enemies, but this aspect should not be worshipped in actual images, but in certain symbols such as a pltha.
126
SUKHASANAMURTI. UMASAHITAMURTI, SOMASKANDAMURTI AND UMAMAHESVARAMURTI.
SUKHASANAMtJETI, UMASAHITAMURTI,
SOMASKANDAMUETI AND UMAMAHESVARAMURTI.
'T^HE ^
four varieties of the images of ^iva
known
as the Sukhasanamurti, the Umasahitamurti,
the Somaskandamurti and Umamahesvaramurti are
met with in all Siva temples which lay claim some importance in Southern India. Of these,
usually to
the Sukhasanamurti
^sukhasana-
practically the
tion given in
is
three eyes, a very
described as
as the descrip-
The image
erectly
The
upon a bhadra-pUha
bent and resting upon the seat and
the right one hanging below
it.
It
must be clad
the skin of the tiger and also in silk garments its
back right hand
back
left
of
handsome appearance suggestive
rajoguna and of coral red complexion.
its left leg
is
a seated figure with four arms,
image should be seated with
same
other authorities.
all
SukhipSanamurti
of the
is
fgHows in the SUparatna, which
is
to be the parasu,
hand the mrlga ; the
and
front right
;
in
in
in its
hand
should be held in the ahhaya pose, while the front 129 17
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. hand may be
left
simhakarna pose.
varada or the
either in the
In the right ear there should be
makara-kundala or a simha-hundala and
either a
in the left ear, a patra-Jcundala
vritta-kundald,s
in
both the
may
be
The head
is
or there
;
ears.
adorned with a jatamakuta, the fore-arms with
kahkanas or bracelets shaped
serpents (sarpa-
like
kankanas) and the chest with yajnopavlta these, the
;
image should be decorated with
ornaments.
It is imperative that neither
besides
all
other
Devi nor
The
Skanda should be near the Sukhasanamurti.
Purva-Karanagama
from the above descrip-
differs
tion in one small detail, namely, right leg of the
upon the
seat
When
it
image should be bent and be resting
and the
left
one hanging.
seated alone as described in the previous
paragraph,
the image of Siva
Sukhasanamurti.
is
TJmasahita-
^^^
it
to be
left
hand
image
left
the group
is
;
of
in her right
lotus flower, while she
either in the
may
simhakarna pose or
Her head is karanda-makuta. The left
straight resting on the seat.
adorned with a
is
to the
She should have only two arms
hold her
also
Devi
hand she should keep a keep
of the
is
Umasahitamurti.
latter,
tion of the
Siva.
Devi
as the
known as The posi-
Siva and faces the
"'"*^'
known
If the figure of the
seated on the same seat by the side of
states that the
130
SUKHASANAMtETI. leg of the
Devi should be hanging down the
while the right one the seat. of the
the
to be bent
The Silparatna
and kept resting on
states that the right
hand
Devi should keep a utpala flower and the
hand held might
is
seat,
rest
left
varada pose, or the
in the
on the pitha a
little
left
left
hand
to the left of
thigh of the Devi, and that the colour of
the Devi should be grass-green.
quired to be adorned with
all
is
re-
ornaments, haras and
maJcuta and be clad in red
Purva-Earandgama adds
The Devi
silk
The
garments.
that the figure of the
seated Devi should be as high as the shoulder of
that of Siva.
The
aspect of Siva and TJma seated
on the same
seat
and under the same prabhs,-
mandala
as described above
is
known
as the
Uma-
sahitamurti.
In the case of the Somaskandamurti, the same relative positions are
maintained by the figures of
Siva and tJma, but between these, there additional figure of the child Skanda. of
Skanda may be standing,
The
is
the
figure
on the seat or
sitting
Umadevi, or dancing it should have a single face with a pair of eyes and two arms and be adorned with a karanda-mahuta on the head,
on the
lap of
;
;
nahra-Tiundalas in the ears, and chhannavlra on the body.
The
child
and bracelets.
Skanda should have a waist zone
The figure of Skanda 131
if it is
standing
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. simply, flower
may
carry in
and keep the
left
hand
right
its
hand hanging
Silparatna would have
it,
the
left
or the
;
hands may keep lotus flowers in them
a lotus
;
two
or as the
hand should be
held in either the varada, or the simha-karna pose
and the right hand carrying a book.
There should
be no clothing on the person of the child Skanda. If
the figure of Skanda
it
should carry in
represented as dancing,
is
its left
hand a
and the right
fruit
one should be kept in the suchi pose
;
or the left
hand might be kept stretched out and be without the
fruit.
The height of the figure of Skanda, says the Uttara-EamiMgama, may vary from one-tenth to four-tenths of
the
height
of
that of
Siva
;
and
quarter of
to the Earanagama one-eighth to a the height of Siva. The Silparatna
states that
it
according
should be as high as the bent hand
or the breasts of the Devi.
The Earanagama adds and Vishnu together with
that the gods
Brahma
their respective consorts
should be standing on either
side
of
the
Soma-
skandamurti.
The VishnudJiarmottara and the Bupaman-
umamahesvaramurti.
dana giYe the description Umamahgsvaramurti.
authority states that in this aspect, 132
of
the
The former
the image of
PLATE
XXI.
in (fl
L_.__
SUKHASANAMtJETI. Siva and
Uma
should
in
it
;
his
a
seat,
Siva should have the jata-
embracing each other.
mahuia on
on
be seated
head with the crescent moon stuck
he should have two arms, in the right one of
which there should be a nllotpala flower and the left
one should be placed in embrace on the
shoulder of
Uma.
some bust and hip
she should have her right hand
;
thrown in embrace on the right shoulder
and should keep in her figures of ^iva
left
Umadevi should have a hand-
and
left
hand a
Uma should
of §iva
The
mirror.
be sculptured very
beautifully.
The Bupamandana informs us
that
Siva
should have four arms and that in one of the right
hands there should be the trisula and a matulunga fruit (a kind of citron)
;
in the other
one of the
left
Uma
and
arms should be thrown on the shoulder
of
there should be a snake in the other
left
hand.
The colour of ^iva should be red like the The Devi should be as in the description
coral.
Vishnudharmottara given above. in this group the
Granesa, rishi
of the
There should be
Vrishabha or the bull of Siva,
Kumara and
a lean emaciated figure of the
Bhringi dancing,
all
arranged in an artistic
composition. Figs. 1
aspects
and
known
2,
PI.
XXI,
are to illustrate the
as the Uma-sahita-murti, as also 133
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. the Sukhasanamurti.
the Devi were absent in
If
both the instances, the image of Siva would have passed for the Sukhasanamurti; as they are, they are
In
Umasahita-murtis.
both the instances
the
back right hand keeps the para§u and the back hand, the mriga ; whereas the front right hand the abhaya pose and the front
left
siihhaJcarna pose. In the one case,
Devi
of the
the other
is
stone image
and
2,
PI.
the
ture;
is
the
is
in
in the
left
hand
kept resting on the seat, whereas in
is
it
hand
left
held in the simhaJcarna pose. older than the bronze one.
XXII
are
two splendid pieces
The
Figs, 1 of sculp-
belongs to the Siva temple at
first
Madeour and the second was recently discovered Both of them are as a treasure trove in Nellore. Somaskanda-murti.
very good specimens of the
The
accuracy
scrupulous superb.
Devi is
descriptions
textual
In the
rests
are
and the
first piece,
is
in the
the left
ear left
and
hand
the
the
of
is
the
piece,
it
In both, the child
dancing attitude, with both his
hands held in the siihhaJcarna pose. be drawn to
with
workmanship
on the pltha and in the second
held in the varada pose.
Skanda
carried out
makara-hun^ala
fatra
or
Attention may in
the right
vritta-Jcundala
in
the
ear of Siva in both the pieces of sculpture.
Illustrations beginning
from PL XXIII to 134
XXIX
PLATE
F.ig.
1.
Somaskandaraurti.
Fig. 2.
XXII.
Bronze: Madeour.
Somaskandamarti.
Bronze: Treasure Trove found
in Nellore.
[To face page 134,]
PLATE
XXIIf,
wmmt*"'riiir^ir
Uinamahesvaramurti
:
Scone
Bagali: Bellary District,
[To face page US.]
PLATE
XXIV.
Umamahesvaramurti
[To /ace page 135]
:
Stone
:
Aihole.
SUKHASANAMtJRTI.
XXIII
PL
Umamahesvaramurti.
represent
is
the reproduction of the image at Bagali in the Bel-
In
lary District. left lap of
in
Uma
this,
seated upon
is
Siva and has her right hand taken round
embrace and resting upon the right
chest of Siva, and carries in her
Iwhga
The
fruit.
in the
front right
left
shoulder of
and left hands are the up
Siva
of
front left
Uma.
trikula
is
held
hand
is
In the back
and the damaru
The Devi wears on her head the
respectively.
hair done
side of the
hand a matu-
left
hand
abhaya pose and the
placed on the right
the
On
in a fine side-knot.
vali are sculptured
the prabha-
minutely the figures of the ash-
ta-dik-palas or the guardians of the eight quarters. It should be of Ganesa, bull
noted that in this case the figures
Kumara, the not
are
sculptured.
photograph of a piece Aihole.
Here,
Siva
snakes, and in one
hand embraces
carrying
is
and
Uma keeps her right hand her other seat
arm
is
on which Siva and
in his left
on the
the remaining
on her shoulder. left
the
Uma
thigh of Siva
left
side of the
are seated,
lotus flowers
fruit
is
the
be holding
by their stalks
in the right one. 135
the
two hands
Kumara who seems to
hand three
and keeping some
rests
;
is
be found in
in
trisula
On
broken.
figure of the child
XXIV
PI.
of sculpture to
hand the
Uma
Bhringi and the
rishi
Below
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY.
rishi
two Apasmara-Purushas and the Bhringi. The figure of Ganesa which ought
to be
on the right
seat
the
XXV
PI.
are
of
Bhringi appears to be
lost,
one of the very best pieces of ivory
is
carving executed in the School of Arts at Trivan-
dram. The delicacy of the workmanship, the beauty of the conception
the effect
it
and execution, the grandeur of
produces are beyond
6iva
praise.
here represented as seated on a bhadrasana under
is
a tree and carries the parahi and the mriga in his
back hands
;
he holds his front right hand in the
abhaya pose and embracing the Devi with his
left
Uma
arm, keeps that hand in the varada pose.
is
embracing Siva with her right hand and keeps in her
left
snake ornaments
of
lobes,
On
There
one a lotus flower.
—on
the
is
a profusion
crown, in the ear-
on the arms, and round the chest,
the right and
the elder,
left
are the
Ganapati,
of Siva.
two children
of
Uma,
having an underwear and
the younger, Kumara, standing naked.
Ganesa
has four arms in which he keeps the ankusa, the pasa, the danta and the modaJca and behind is
his vehicle, the mouse.
in the left of
right
him
Kumara has two arms
which he holds the sakti and with his
arm he embraces the neck
vehicle, the peacock.
In front
of his
favourite
of the seat of
Siva
is
the seated figure of Nandi, the bull vehicle of Siva. 136
PLATE XXV.
Umamahelvaramurti
:
Ivory
;
Trivandram School
of Arts.
fLATE XXVl.
(D
O
t I XI J3
a
"
a 's .
CO
(To face page
137.]
w
SUKHASANAMtJETI. Fig.
1, PI.
XXVI, represents Umamahesvara temple at
found in the
Uma
is
seated on the
him with her
right
right side of his body
flower in her
left
left
In this
Haveri. lap of Siva
as
also
and embraces
hand, which rests upon the ;
she appears to have held a
hand, which is unfortunately broken.
Siva carries in three out of the four of his hands the
damaru and an akshamala and the remaining hand is thrown in embrace over the left shoulder of Uma. Around Siva and Uma is a nicely the
sula,
carved prabhavali with creeper ornament of the circular loops of the creeper
pala.
At the
is
in each
;
carved a
diJc-
right extremity of the bhadrasana on
which are seated Siva and
Uma
is
a tiny figure of
a seated Ganesa with four arms, carrying as usual the ankusa, the pa^a, the danta and a modaka. front of
him
sits
Nandi, the
bull
the seat the figures of
upon
his peacock
vehicle
of
Kumara with
vehicle,
Uma-P5rvati.
executed very skilfully and Fig. 2,
PI.
XXVI
is
Corres-
of Siva.
ponding to these, are to be seen on the six
and an
The
In
left side of
heads seated
alligator,
whole
the
work
is
tastefully.
another group almost
similar to the one described above.
Siva
is,
in this
sculpture, seen carrying a lotus, the sula, and a
snake in three of his hands and the remaining
one
is
embracing
Uma about her chest. 137
18
Both
Uma
HINDU iCONOGRAPHY. and Siva are wearing sankha-patra ktmdalas, that is,
Round
sections of concli-shelis.
Siva
is
a very well executed prabhd-mandala while
the hair of the head of artistic
Uma
is
fashioned into an
knot behind. The Devi keeps her right hand
resting on the left foot of her lord
carried a liower in her left
On the top Brahma in his
right
and appears
hand which
hand corner
to
have
broken.
is
of the panel is seated
the yogasana attitude and carrying in
hands the
on the
The middle
articles peculiar to him.
face of this deity has a peaked beard.
ingly
the head of
left is
Correspond-
the figure of Vishnu who, in
three of his hands carries the gada the chakra and
bhesankha and keeps the remaining hand in the pose
Both Brahma and Vishnu
of praise.
on a
full
blown
lotus.
There
are seated each
a distinctly notice-
is
Brahma and Vishnu. of Ganesa and two others, who
able smile on tbe faces of
Below
are the figures
are unidentifiable, in a
on the right
;
dancing attitude, in the middle
on the
left.
;
and Kumara
Both Ganesa and Kumara
sented as children and are nude. bull
the rishi Bhringi,
behind Bhringi.
There
The grouping
of
are repreis
the
also the
members
in the composition of this piece of sculpture
execution are indeed very good. Pis.
and
its
XXVII-XXIX
are the characteristic pieces of sculpture of the cave-
temples
of
the
Bombay Presidency. A certain amount 13B
tPLATE XXVII.
U
[To face page
tiftruahegvaramurti.
139.]
Stone panel
:
Ellora.
stjkhAsanamGrti. of family likeness could be noticed in these three
The Deva and
pieces of elaborately carved panels.
the Devi, the central figures are shaped rather larger
than the others, seated in the middle
them a number
and around
of other deities attending
In the lower section
them.
;
is
upon
the big bull of Siva
tended or rather overtended, by the most humour-
The
ously carved impish ganas.
artists of these
master-pieces have spared no pains to cover the panels with a profusion both
vigorous figure
of
sculpture and minute ornamental designs. short of the highest praise artists
In
is
due to the long gone
executed these immortal pieces of
XXVII
PI.
which is
who
is
Nothing
^iva has four arms, the
holding the right arm of
seen resting upon the seat.
left
art.
one of
Uma and another
What
the two right
hands carried cannot be guessed, as they are broken evidently, the one resting left fig.
upon the
right thigh
was
empty and the other perhaps carried a snake as in 2, PI. XXVI. Between the figures of Siva and
Uma
stands Kumara,
who
keeps both his hands
crossed on the chest. Ganesa is standing on the right of Siva.
a
There are two lady attendants, one carrying
chamara and another a water- vessel
side of the panel are standing
(?)
two divine
On either
figures,
who
cannot be identified as Vishnu and Brahma, because both of them ha,ve jaia-maJcutas on their head and 139
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. because neither of them has four faces.
two dvarapalaJcas.
in all probability
PI.
almost similar to the previous plate. are sculptured a
number
of
left of
Uma
servant.
is
worthy
It is
section of the panel
is
Herein there
of notice
woman
that to the
woman
a characteristic
is
In the lower
the bull in the centre.
dwarfish ganas are taking care of is
is
kinds of offerings
feature of the sculptures at Ellora.
worth noticing
XXVIII
seen standing a dwarfish
This dwarfish
are
Devas, shown as hover-
ing in the air carrying different in their hands.
They
it
;
The
one peculiarity
that these ganas are supporting
the legs of the bull
— an
idea apparently borrowed
from the Buddhist sculptures wherein the hoofs the horse of
Buddha
treading on
the earth,
are borne
by devas
of
lest they,
might produce noise and
awaken the guards and stop Buddha from renouncing the world.
The
sculptors of
all
these panels are
curiously agreed in representing one of the ganas as biting the tail of the bull, another as catching hold of of its horns, others
with each other.
extreme
left
tumbling about and playing
In
PI.
XXIX one is
and behind the
seen in the
figure of a lady, widen-
ing his eyes with both his hands, thereby to frighten all
others, while another in the
the figure oi another lady
an obscene manner.
is
extreme right over
exposing his back in
Of the lady attendants 140
in this
PLATE
XXVIII.
S a c3
A
a o
'0
a 03
03
a a
[To face page IHO 1
PLATE XXIX.
,/
J-
UiBamabesvaramurti.
[To face page
141,]
Stone panel
:
Ellora.
SUKHASANAMUETI. panel one
is
fanning Siva and another
of the hair of
Uma
and dressing
herein holding in one of his
left
it
is
taking hold
up.
6iva
is
hands the upper
part of the garment of his consort and keeps one of his right
hands in the suchi pose and the other ap-
pears to be carrying a book.
out to to
Uma
He is evidently
giving
one of the puranas, which are supposed
have been addressed by Siva
141
to Parvati.
SAMHARAMURTIS.
SAMHAEAMUETIS.
SIVA
represented in sculptures either as a
is
terrific,
destructive deity or a pacific, boon-
In the former aspect he
conferrer.
is
known by
several names, each one being indicative of the de-
struction of a particular malevolent and troublesome
demoniacal being; for example, he
is
known
as
the Gajahamurti, having killed an elephant-formed
asura of
Kalarimurti, as having killed Kala, the
;
Death
down
Kamantakamurti, because,
;
the
God
his austerities
he
is
—be
it
burnt
Love who came to meddle with and so on. In the latter or the
of ;
pacific aspect, Siva is represented as seated
consort,
God
with his
noted that the company of the Devi
always to keep Siva in a pacific turn of mind
bestowing boons
The
votaries.
and blessings on
is
called
:
for
example,
Chandesanugrahamurti, because he
conferred on Chand.esvara the
19
his deserving
various boon-bestowing aspects of
Siva are called the anugrahamurtis ^iva
—
boon
of being the
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. steward of the household of Siva
Vishnvanugraha-
;
murti, because he restored an eye to Vishnu,
who
had plucked the same
and
for
which act Siva
Vishnu with the
also presented
cTiakra or the discus
master in the arts
for offering it to Siva,
;
of
being the greatest
and so
Siva
forth.
is
a great
dancing and music, besides
Yogi and philosopher.
well-versed in the art of dancing, he
is
Being
often repre-
sented as dancing any one of the hundred and eight
modes
of
dances detailed in the Natyaiastras
as a master of music also he
is
portrayed as sitting
or standing and playing upon the vlna, perfect
of stringed Indian
In this capacity he Dakshinamiirti.
known
known
is
the Vinadhara-
as
As a yogi and
philosopher, he
as Vyakhyana-Dakshinamurti, etc.
the aspects above described there are of
smaller or greater importance.
the images of
the most
musical instruments.
is
Besides
many others To sum up,
Siva are of five classes, namely,
the SamhAramurtis (or destructive aspects), the
AnugraJiamurtis (or boon-conferring aspects), the Nritta-murtis (or dancing aspects), the Dahshinamicrtis (or
aspects)^
the yogic,
musical
and other minor
and
aspects.
philosophic
Let
me now
deal with each one of these aspects under a separate
chapter, noticing the
each
various forms comprised in
of these different aspects.
146
SAMHlRAMtJRTIS.
to
The circumstances under which 6iva is have destroyed Kama, the god of love,
are
Linga-
described as follows in the
After Dakshayani, other-
pw^a^^ia-
m^tL*"'**'**^*"
said
known
wise also
as Sati, the
first
wife of Siva committed suicide by plunging into
the
fire,
because
her father slighted her
Lord
Siva by not offering oblations to him, ^iva sat
upon the Himalaya and began to practice severe penance. The daughter of Himavan, Parvati, who was none other than Sati, who was reborn to
Himavan, began
to
attend upon Siva, the great
In the meantime the asura Taraka began to
yogi.
do havoc to the gods person
who
;
they knew that the only
could destroy
son born to Siva.
this
demon would be a
Since Siva had to be diverted
from his austerities and be induced to beget a son for the
god
of
purpose of destroying Taraka, Kama, the love
was deputed
to
thoughts in the mind of Siva.
create
lascivious
Kama
approached
Siva and attacked him with his flowery arrows.
Incensed at the disturbance caused by his mind, Siva
flames of
fire
the same, he
Kama
in
opened his frontal eye and emitted
and reduced fell
Kama
to ashes
;
but
all
in love with Parvati, married her
and begot Kumara or Subrahmanya and through the latter got Tarakasura killed, thereby satisfying 147
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. At the
the wishes of the gods. the wife of
entreaties of Eati,
Kama, Siva promised her
would be reborn as Pradhyumna. country of
believed
it is
Siva
took
place
that
Kama
In the Tamil
that this act of destruction
a
in
kurukkai in the Tanjore
village
called
Tiruk-
district.
Descriptions of the Kamantakamurti are given in the tJttara-Kdimikagmna, the
and
Purva-Edranagama.
the
Suprabhedagama Siva
should
be
represented in this aspect exactly similar to the figure
of
Yoga-Dakshinamurti, before which the
Manmatha or Kama should be sculptured as having fallen down at the mere glance of Siva. The height of the figure of Manmatha may range figure of
from one to seven-tenths
of that of
Siva
he should
;
be shown as decorated with golden ornaments
complexion should also be golden yellow.
;
his
He
is
required to be represented as carrying in his hands
the five different flowery arrows and the of
sugar-cane and in the
consort Kati.
company
bow made his dear
of
There should also be with him his
companions, Devabhaga
(?)
and Vasanta
spring season).
The names
Manmatha
given as the Lambiril,
are
of the five
Drdvinl, Mdrinl and Vedinl* *
The Kdrandgama
calls these,
mohini, Visvamardinl and Madinl.
148
(or the
arrows of Tdpinl,
The arrows should Tapani, Dahant, Visva-
SAMHSRAMURTIS.
Manmatha in the right hand and the bow in his left. The figures of the companions of Manmatha may or may not be represented so also, instead of five arrows, he may be shown as carrying only one. To this description the PurvaJcaranagama adds that the figure of Siva should have three be held by
;
eyes and four arms
with
a,
jata-maJiuta
his
;
head should be covered
he should have a
;
terrific
and carry a snake and an aJcshamala of his four
hands
:
the remaining right
be shown as held in (or
the
maining
hand held
hand
left
sucJii-hasia.
similar to
In
two out
arm should
the pose of pataka-hasta
and the
banner-wise)* in
the pose
known
other respects,
all
in
look
Yoga Dakshinamurti.
it
as
re-
the
should be
This authority
Manmatha should and that he may be
prescribes that the height, of
be one-half of that of Siva
;
represented as being on a pltlia or pedestal or in a chariot (ratha).
The banner
of
should bear on the chariot the device of a
names
of the
in the
EaranUgama
companions as
of
Manmatha
Manmatha fish.
The
are given
Mada, Raga, Vasanta and
Sisiraritu (the cold season).
The
story of the destruction of an elephant-
*
Or, should carry a banner.
U9
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. asura by Siva and his wearing the skin of the elephant as his garment 2 Gajasurasamharamurti.
^.j^g
is
found in
Kurviavurana while describing '
*
_
_
the linga
Kasi (Benares). Suta
is
named
Krittivasesvara in
said to have told that Siva
when an asura, who assumed the shape of an elephant, came near it to disturb the meditations of several Brahmauas who had gathered round it, and killed the elephant and made its skin But the Varahapurana gives his upper garment. came out
of this linga,
quite a different account which
Another version
elsewhere.*
of
is
already given
the story
found in the Suprabheddgama which
is
is
that
also noticed
in one of the earlier chapters of this volume, t
So,
the accounts found in different authorities, as usual, differ
from each other, but the fact that Siva
and had the
an elephant clothing
is
common to
district called
A
all.
Valuvur
elephant-skin
as his
village in the Tanjore
associated, in the
is
killed
Tamil
country, with this destructive act of Siva and this is
perhaps the only place which has a beautiful
metal image of Gajahamurti. Descriptions or
of the
image
Gajasurasamharamurti
* t
Hindu Iconography, Volume Do.
Volume 150
are
I. p.
of
Gajahamurti
found
379.
II, p. 114.
in
the
SAMHAKAMUETIS. Amsumadbhedagama, the
In the former it
Saivdffamas.
of Siva in this aspect if
Silparatna and is
other
said that the
image
may possess four or eight arms
;
there are only four arms, one of the right hands
should hold the pa§a, and the other the skin of the elephant, while the two left hands should hold the
tusk of the elephant and the skin respectively.
If,
on the other hand, there are eight arms, three out the four the
hands should
right
^amaru and
carry
the
left
pose,
irUula,
the pasa and the fourth hand
should be holding the skin of the elephant the
of
hands should be
another catching
held
hold of
in
;
one of
the vismaya
the skin of the
elephant and the remaining two carrying a kapala
and the tusk left
of the elephant respectively.
leg of Siva should be planted firmly
head of the elephant be bent and leg.
The
lifted
tail
;
on the
while the right one should
up above the thigh the elephant
of
The
of the other
should be visible
over the makuta of Siva and the artist
might
arrange on either side the position of the four legs of the elephant in
gests itself to him.
any
manner which sug-
artistic
The skin
of the elephant should
be so arranged as to look like a prabhaman^ala to the image of Siva.
adorned with
made
of silk
all
and
The image
of Siva
should be
ornaments and have the garments tiger's skin
151
;
the colour of Siva in
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. instance
this
is
This
deep red.
descriptions given in the
one
is
AmkumadhTiedagama
other one runs as follows:
—In the
right
the
of ;
the
hands
of
Siva there should be the trikula, a sword, the tusk of the elephant
and
in the last
elephant
;
shield, a
ghanta and the skin
left leg of
while in the
left
the skin of the
hands, a Jcapala, the of the elephant.
The
Siva must be kept firmly on the head of
the elephant and the right one bent and held as in the uthutiTtasana posture.
On
the
left side of
the Gajasurasamharamurti
Skanda
there should be standing the Devi with
in
her hands, trembling with fear at the ferocity of
her lord.
To
illustrate the descriptions of the
samharamurti
five
photographic reproductions are
Of these, the
given.
Gajasura-
first
piece of sculpture,
to
is
be seen in the mahanasika or the ornamented facade of the
Amritesvara temple at Amritapura in the
Mysore Province. a large
number
remains 'pasa,
it is
of
In
this,
Siva has sixteen arms,
hands being broken
;
from what
seen that they must have held the
danta, trikula, akshamald and Jcapala
;
two
of
the hands are seen holding the skin of the elephant.
Surrounding the figure
of Siva is
the skin of the
elephant in the form of a prabhamant^ala.
On
the top of this skin, and beginning from the right 152
PLATE XXX.
Xr
:.S'(:^M^r
*w*^
'T^^ -^^^\
.
^_-».-^-^<.
d»lf-"'.-'
——.«^-
'-<
"J'^'ft
^-T--
>^
^'
.
[To face page 152.]
SAliHiEAMtJETIS.
and ending on the
the figures of the ashtadik-
left are
On
palas or the guardians of the eight quarters. right of Siva
the four-faced
is
Brahma
the
playing on
the vina with two hands and carrying in the other the of
kamandalu and the
Brahma
is
a four
sruJc
armed
and sruva. To the
person,
who cannot be
identified (because the objects in the
hands are not
clearly visible in the photograph) sounding the
To
called, jantha.
the
left of
Siva
is
flute,
:
the remaining four carry the sanTtha, chaJcra, ;
there
standing to the
is
left
drum
standing Vishnu
with six hands two are playing upon the
and gada
left
while
padma
also another four-armed figure of
Vishnu, which
identifiable. All these four figures are so
is
also not
carved as to
suggest the notion of dancing. Within the fold of the skin of the elephant are the Devi and Ganesa to the right of Siva,
the
and Nandi, the
At the
left.
bull
and Bhringi, to
foot of Siva lies the
elephant killed by him.
The head
head of the
of Siva is orna-
mented by a mandala oijatas and the jatamaJcuta he wears,
is
garland
adorned with a garland of skulls
is
also
of very nicely executed
large
a similar
number
ornaments are on the per-
son of the image of Siva. of patiently
A
worn on the neck.
:
This
is
a unique piece
and elaborately carved sculpture.
The second
illustration,
PL XXXI,
is
taken
from the oiva temple at Valuvur,the reputed place of 153 so
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. the destruction of Gajasura. Thebronze,of which the illustration is a photograph, is a artistic its
of
work, both for
The very
execution.
round
is
ajatamandala
in
In the jatamaJcuta are the
skin, another trisula,
the right a snake.
durddhura flowers
The image
of Siva has eight
two carry a very
shaped
artistically
and a hhadga respectively, while what
in the fourth of the left (?).
is
not clear in the photograph.
is
held
Each
hands carry the kapala, Jchetaha and
Below the
right foot of Siva
of the elephant, while
One
skull,
left
one of the right hands holds the elephant-
;
tanJca
surrounding the
;
which are seen on the
moon and on
and other ornaments.
of
tusks, both indicative
nature of the deity
the crescent of the
arms
and the excellence
well-carved face has a pair
eyes, a pair of side
of the terrific
head
its size
remarkable piece of
its tail is visible
leg of the elephant is
front above the left
shown
hands of Siva.
as
is
the head
on the
top.
hanging in
On either
side of
§iva stands a gana each with four arms and playing
upon the drum and other musical instruments.
The
third
illustration
comes from Darasuram in this sculpture
is
In the right hands
fig.
1,
PI.
XXZII,
in the Tanjore district. Siva
represented with eight arms. of
Siva are seen the damaru,
hhadga, trisula and the elephant's skin; in three out of the four left
hands are the kapala, paka and the 154
PLATE XXXI.
Gajaaura-samhara-murti.
Bronze
:
Valuvur.
[To face page 154.]
PLATE
XXXII.
[To face page
155.
SAMHARAMtJETIS. elephant's skin, while the fourth
As
sucliihasta pose.
held in the
is
in the previous instances there
is
the jatamandala on the head of ^iva, in which
is
tied
up a
skull
;
and the whole person
of Siva is
adorned with a large number of well carved orna-
ments such as the
Jcundalas, haras,
As
keyuras and hatahas. the right leg
and the
left
is
in the
udarabandha,
image
of Valuvur,
planted on the head of the elephant
held up bent
is
an utJcutiJcasana in
direct opposition to the descriptions given in the
Agamas. This deviation from the 2.gamas appears to be a peculiarity of this aspect of Siva belonging to
the sculptures of the Chola period and country, as
might be seen also
in the figure of
ttangudi (see
PI.
fig. 2,
XXXII). In the Darasuram
sculpture, the artist has kept the tail of
two legs and the
the elephant vertically over the head of Siva.
Towards the child
Tiruchchenga-
left of
Siva stands the Devi with the
Subrahmanya seated on her loins both of them
are looking with
;
awe
at Siva.
The Tiruchchengat-
tangudi image of G-ajasurasamharamurti exactly similar to the
Darasuram image;
is
almost
in his right
hands Siva holds the damaru, the pasa, the §ula and the elephant's skin; one of the
left
hands is held in the
vismaya pose, another seems to carry a deer (?), the third having a Jcapala in
while the fourth
is
it is
held in the suchl pose,
holding the skin of the elephant. 155
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. The
fifth
photograph, PI. XXXIII,
that of
is
an image to be found in the Hoysalesvara temple Like
Halebidu.
at
the
first
illustration,
this
one also has sixteen arms, which carry a very large
number
of
the
Jchadga,
damaru, bana, gada, hhatv5,hga,
vajra,
aiikusa,
such as
objects
tanka ghanta,
sarpa,
dlianus and
kapala
;
two hands are seen holding the elephant's
As
in
the
sculpture
leg of Siva is
made
elephant and the lifted up.
The
of
Amritapura
to rest left
is
prabhd-mandala.
On
right
upon the head
of the
elephant
the right of
is
left of
slightly
kept like a
Siva are four
famishing goblins {dakinis) praising Siva the
skin.
the
bent and held
skin of the
the
;
and on
Siva are a few male and female musicians
sounding drums and other musical instruments.
Like the first illustration this belongs to the Hoysala style of sculpture of the 13th
Century A.D.
Siva once got angry witL\ Kala, the god of death
and kicked him on 3.
his chest.
The
Kalarimurti.
Circumstances under which this act
was performed by Siva are given m the puranas thus —The Eishi Mrikandu was long without a son. :
He prayed to God that he may God appeared to
be blessed with sons.
him and asked him if he would like number of useless sons or only one
to
have a large
remarkably intelligent but with his 156
life
limited to
PLATE
,
^/~%
XXXIII.
.jtr
/,
Mi Gajasura-satnhara-DQurfci.
Stone
:
Halebid.
[To face page 156.]
SAMHAEAMtJBTIS. sixteen years.
and
in
The
chose the latter alternative
risJii
due time his wife Manasvini bore him a son
who was
Markandeya. The child grew up to be a very intelligent boy even as his intelligence and behaviour grew to be more and more remarkcalled
:
able, the hearts of the parents
with
sorrow,
the
at
for
began to be weighted
sixteenth
year of his
The news
of the short
age he was fated to
die.
duration of his
reached Markandeya's ears.
He
life,
resolved to offer pujas to the gods at
all
import-
ant places of pilgrimage, and, in the course of his perigrinations, reached, the tradition says, to Tiruk-
kadavur and was intently absorbed in worshipping the liizga enshrined in
from the lord
call
emissaries soul
to
for
Just then the
temple.
Yama, came. His approached Markandeya to bind his
and carry
possible
its
it
them
of death,
to their master to
do
so,
Yama, who proceeded
operations against the
life of
;
not finding
it
they reported the fact in
person to conduct
Markandeya which was
not destined to continue longer than sixteen years.
He
all
but succeeded in binding the
Brahmana
lad,
but Siva burst out of the Lihga in great anger, and administered a kick on the chest of Yama, which
almost killed him.
Yama came to his senses,
realis-
ed that this great devotee of Siva ought not to have been submitted to the same rules as other ordinary 167
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. mortals and went away the wiser for his visit to
Tirukkadavur. Siva then blessed Markandeya to be ever of sixteen years of age, so that the destiny that
he should die at the expiry of his sixteenth year
might not operate on him and he exist as
one
Yama
This beautiful story stone and colour in
in
it is
is
known as
many
have the
its
descriptions
of
a temple.
In the Tamil
district.
Kalarimurti are given in
The image
right foot placed
left leg
Kalarimurti.
believed that this incident took place
the agamas.
all
Siva in
seen perpetuated in
often
is
Tirukkadavur in the Tanjore
The
believed to
of the cliiranjlvls (immortals).
the act of chastising
country
is
of
Kalarimurti
is to
upon a 'padma-pitha and
being lifted up so far high as to reach
the chest of the figure of
Yama, over which the
The figure
of Siva should rest.
of Siva should
toe
have
three eyes, lateral tusks, the jatamakuta adorning
the head and four or eight arms.
image has
If the
only four arms, one of the right hands carrying a sula should be lifted up as far as the ear right
hand may carry the parasu
varada pose of
;
if
;
the other
or be held in the
the hand holds the parasu the edge
the instrument should be
turned towards the
person of Siva and the height at which this hand is
to be kept raised
front
left
is
that of the hikTiasutra.
The
hand should be held with the palm 168
in
SAliHARAMUETIS. front,
at the height of
the navel and this hand
should be in the sucM pose.
The back
hand
left
should be kept in the vismaya pose in this case, the ;
ring-finger of the
hand should be
raised as high as
the ushnlsha or the lower portion of the crown.
If,
however, the image of Siva has eight arms, the right ones should bear in
them the
6ula, the paraiu,
the vajra and the hha^ga ; in two of the
left
hands
there should be the Jchetaha and the pasa, while the
two remaining hands should be held
and the sucM poses Siva in this aspect
is
respectively. also red,
Yama
The
though
and he should be adorned with Kala,
in the
all
vismaya
colour of
of the coral,
ornaments.
or the god of death should be re-
presented with two arms and two legs, with side
One
tusks and with a Jcaranda-makuta on his head. of his
hands should carry the pa§a and with
this
and the remaining hand he should be doing anjali to Siva, his
body covered with blood and trembling
with fear
his legs should be standing apart
;
each other (as though he himself).
Kala must
is
from
attempting to steady
also be looking
up
to Siva for
his grace.
The above description of Kalarimurti according to the AmhumadhTiedagama is supplemented by the Kamikagama thus the right leg should :
be shown, according to this authority, in the act of 169
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. kicking
Yama and
the
left
one should be placed on
In the right hands
the ground.
Siva there must
of
be the sula and the parasu and in one of the
hands the
left
remaining hand
ndgapd,sa, while the
The
should be held in the suchi pose.
eyes of Siva
should be so sculptured as to suggest the idea that their sight is directed towards
Kala and the §ula
should be turned head downwards and piercing the
neck of Yama.
In this work Kala
represented as fallen
with
He
tears.
down
is
required to be
fainted with eyes filled
should be clothed in red garments,
should have red eyes, red hair both on the head, the
moustache and the brows
The height
tusks also.
to the navel of Siva
and
he should have side
;
Yama
should reach up
his figure
must be shaped
of
according to the nava-tala measure.
There
is
another description given
in
the
Kamikagama according to which the figure of Siva may be represented as rising from the Linga which Markandeya was worshipping and the
figure of
Yama
In
fallen
prostrate on
instance, the lihga
the
ground.
and the image
this
of Siva should
be sculptured as in the Lingodbhavamurti already described above.
The body
of
Siva
should
be
covered with white ashes (vibhuti).
Markandeya should be seated near the linga with flowers for offering and his features should 160
PLATE XXXIV,
Kahu-i-murti: Stone panel
[To face page IGIJ
:
Dasavatfu-a Cave
:
Ellore
SAMHiRAMtJRTIS. the fear due to the approach of death
indicate
rather than happiness at the appearance of ^iva for his rescue.
The Karanagama adds hands
of Siva
must be
trident
this rule is
in
which are
which
meant
that
to hold the
down-turned
in the JcataJca pose.
Evidently,
to be applicable to bronze images
such implements, which are wrought
separately and not cast with itself,
the two front
the original image
and are generally inserted whenever they are
The
wanted.
kataJca-hasta pose will be seen in
metal images in whose hands different
meant
articles are
to be inserted at the will of the worshipper.
For example,
in the case of the goddesses
near their consorts, one hand
who stand
held in the Itataha
is
pose to receive a natural flower every day in
hands
all
of
it
;
the
Eama and Lakshmana are kept in the same
pose for inserting in them the in the case also of
bow and
the arrow;
Vinadhara Dakshinamurti, we
shall see later on, the
hands are held
in the kataka
pose.
Five
The
illustrations
first of
these, PI.
are given of Kalarimurti.
XXXIV,
is
a drawing of the
Kalarimurti to be found in the Dasavatara cave in Ellora.
In this panel Siva
from the
liiiga,
is
in front
represented as issuing
of
which
is
seen
the
boy Markandeya kneeling with his arms folded on 161
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. One
his bent knees.
the
left
which
trident
The
hands
of the right
hands and one
of Siva grasp a stout handled, sharp is
aimed
at the
hand
remaining right
abdomen
The
held in the vismaya pose.
Siva
the
hip
left
hand
on
rests
Yama.
of
{hatyavalambita hasta) and the remaining is
of
leg of
right
buried up to the knee in the lihga and the
is
left leg is
represented as kicking
adorned with
of ^iva is
has apparently fallen
Yama.
The person
Yama
many ornaments.
down
;
in this miserable plight
he praises Siva with his right hand uplifted and in the
left
hand he
still
had bound the neck
The second
grasps the yaka with which he of
Markandeya.
sculpture, Fig 1, PI.
belongs to Ellora, and temple. It
is
is
also
found in the Kailasa
almost similar in
panel described above.
XXXV,
its
details to the
Here Yama stands
prais-
ing Siva with one hand uplifted and holds in the
other the pasa bound to the figure of Markandeya.
The image before
of Siva issues
which
is
from the top
seen seated the figure of Markan-
deya with the head broken and Siva in kicking
him with
The
of a lihga
Yama
lost.
The
action of
with his foot and piercing
his kula is portrayed vigorously.
third
illustration,
Fig.
belongs to Pattisvaram in the
Herein the
treatment
of
162
2, PI,
XXXV,
Tanjore
district.
the subject
is
quite
PLATE XXXV.
[To lace page 162.]
PL\TE XXXVI.
Id
SAMHAEAMtJETIS. Siva
different.
is
upon the body
him his
standing with his
of the fallen
left leg
resting
Yama and is kicking He carries in
with the right foot on his chest.
hands the sula with
its
head turned downward,
the parasu, the mriga and the Jcapala. Markandeya
stands to the right of Siva with hands in the anjali
pose praising Siva.
The next of
Fig.
illustration,
1,
XXXVI,
PI.
is
an image to be found in Tiruchcheugattangudi
and
almost similar to the Pattisvaram sculpture
is
The only differences between the
described above.
two are that in the former the lifted
up
to kick
Yama, whereas
the right leg that
is
Tiruchchengattangudi
Yama
in the latter,
is
while
sculpture,
;
the
Yama in
in
the
foot is so placed.
left
on the
of
is
it
purpose
on the body
Pattisvaram sculpture, the of
leg of Siva is
lifted for that
right foot is planted firmly
The head
left
of
left
Siva in the
Tiruchchengattangudi image and on the right in the Pattisvaram one.
PL XXXVI, of a
is
The
last illustration. Fig. 2,
the reproduction of the photograph
bronze image kept in the collection of Mr. E. F.
Stoney, Executive Engineer, P.
In this instance, Siva lihga, within
is
seen
which his right
thigh.
The other
kicking
Yama
W.
D., Madura.
emerging from a
leg is buried
leg is lifted
up
in
up
to the
the act of
(whose image seems to have been 163
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. sculptured as a separate piece).
The back hands
carry the parasu and the mriga, while the front
ones are so kept as to hold in them a trisula.
On
one occasion Siva
who metals and who
killed three asuras
dwelt in three forts constructed of
caused great damage to the suras and the
The
story
is
given in detail in the Karnaparvan of
the Mahabharata, an abstract of which below.
rishis.
The
three sons of Tarakasura*,
performed great penances, obtained from
is
given
having
Brahma
the boons that they should occupy three castles
wherefrom they should move as they desired and thousand years the three
after a
castles should unite
multt^""*^**^*
into one
and
should be only destructible with a single
The asura
arrow.
them the three
castles,
architect
Maya
built
one of gold which was in
heaven, another of silver in the air and a third of iron
on the earth
:
each one of these was appropriat-
ed by one of the asuras, and they started out on their tour of harassing
them with
the gods.
Indra attacked
his vajra but did not succeed in putting
them down. The gods then repaired to Brahma to consult him as to the means of destroying these asuras. '*'
He
told
them that they could only be
These were named Vidyunmali, Tarakaksha and Kama-
laksha.
164
SAMHAEAMtJETIS. killed
with a single arrow and such a weapon could
Mahadeva and directed them to pray to him for help. They prayed accordingly and succeeded in inducing him to undertake be wielded only by
the task
demanded to
killing the
of of
them one
to
kill
powers (saMi)
half of their
add to his own strength,
impossible
Mahadeva then
asuras.
otherwise,
as,
was
They
demons.
strong
those
it
consented and parted with a half of their strength,
Mahadeva became now stronger than all other gods and hence came to be known by the name Mahadeva, the great god. The various gods served Mahadeva in other capacities also. Vishnu, became his
arrow, Agni
Mahadeva made his
bow-string.
With
its
the
Yama
and
barb
its feather.
bow and
Vedas his
Brahma became
Savitri
his charioteer.
the three-barbed arrow consisting of Soma,
Agni and Vishnu the
castles with their inhabitants
were destroyed by Mahadeva.
The
puraniJc account of the destruction of the
by
Mahadeva
three
castles
much
older accounts
Brahmanas. stated that
found in the Samhitas and
For instance,
of the Vajasaneyi
based upon very
is
Samhita
the asuras
in
the
of the
commentary
Yajurveda,
being defeated
gods, performed austerities
and
which were destroyed by Agni, 165
it is
by the
built three castles,
Similarly in
the
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY, aatapatha-Brahmana we are
told that the gods
and
the asuras fought together, though born of the same father, Prajapati.
The
themselves
latter built for
three castles which excited the envy of the gods.
destroying
them Indra
is
For
said later on to be prepar-
ing his thunderbolt with Agni as the shaft,
Soma as
the iron and Vishnu as the point.
The Taittinya The the lowest being made of
Sarhhita somewhat amplifies the story thus asuras had three castles,
:
next higher of silver and the highest of
iron, the
The gods were unable to conquer them therefore they made an arrow, consisting of Agni as the wooden shaft. Soma as the iron and Vishnu But then they needed one to wield as the point. this weapon their choice fell upon Rudra, the cruel, who dasbroyid the castles and drove out the asuras gold.
;
from these regions.
Similar references to the de-
struction of three metallic castles are found in the
Aitareya-Brahmana and other ancient Tripurantakamurti in almost
No
all
less
is
authorities.
described in great detail
the agamic authorities.
than eight different descriptions of the
Tripurantakamurti are given in the Amsumadbhe-
dagama
alone
;
but there are not
many
points of
material difference between one form and the other
given in this work
;
however, since a distinction
has been made by tbia authority, 166
let
me
adhere to
SAMHAEAMUETIS. its descriptions.
In the
first
image
Siva, the right leg of the
kept a
form
of Siva
while the
little in front,
One
bent, should be behind.
of this aspect of
should be
one,
left
slightly
of the right
hands
should be held in the simhakarna pose at about the
bow
height of the nabhi-sutra and be holding the string in
which the arrow
the arrow should be that of the
one
of the left
and raised up of the fist
of
The thickness
is set.
little finger of
Siva;
hands should be grasping the bow
in a horizontal position
bow ought
to
;
the thickness
in exactly into the closed
fit
Siva and should be tapering at both the ends.
The bow should be painted colours.
It
may have
beautifully with various
three bends (see
in Vol. I) or be like the crescent
The
fig. 3, PI. II,
moon and may bow
of
wood or metal.
is
given as one-third of the thickness of the
and
of
its
thickness of the
be
string
bow
length as seven-eighths of the length of the
The remaining hands should be held in the kartari-hasta pose in the right hand there should
bow.
;
be the tanka and in the
The
figure should be
and
all
the
left,
adorned with bhejata-makuta
ornaments should be
left of
the krishna-mriga.
of
red colour.
On
that of ^iva, there should be the figure
of the Devi.
The Uttarak&mikagama adds description the following
:
167
to
the above
the image of Siva should
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. have three eyes
;
in its right ear there should be
the makara-hundala
ornament
from the non-mention
;
has to
it
authority states that Siva
even two
bow and
may have
to
This
adorned by none.
be
any
we have perhaps
for the other ear,
infer that
of
four hands or
in the latter case, they should carry the
;
The body
the arrow-
of Siva should be in
the samahhahga attitude.
In the second form left
foot
purusha, exactly
the
left
of
Tripurantakamurti the
Siva must be kept upon ApasmSra-
of
while
the
rest
similar
to the
leg
Siva
of
description
the
of
is
In the third form,
first.
should
standing
kept
be
vertically while the right should be slightly bent.
In the
fourth
it
is
the
that
stated
should be placed upon the Apasmara dently a mistake for the right foot, is
;
foot
left
this is evi-
for,
as
it is, it
the description of the second form given above.
The
front right
and
left
hands
of Siva, in the fifth
form, should be held, so as the palm of the
might be facing up and that
of
down, grasping the point and the back right and tahJca
The
and
the
left
the former turned
tail
of the
arrow
;
in
hands there should be the
mriga
legs should be
latter
or
dhanus
respectively.
somewhat bent but there should
not be the Apasmarapurusha in this form.
should be the Devi to the
left of Siva.
168
In
all
There these
SAliHiEAMUETIS. five
forms of Tripurantakamurti there should be
only four arms and no more.
In the sixth form, Siva as the Tripurantakamurti should have eight arms, in the four right ones of which there should be the bana, the paraiu, the kha^ga and the vajra
;
whereas two of the
hands should be held in the vismaya and
left
the
kataka poses respectively, while the remaining two should carry the dhanus and the khetaka.
There
should be several bends in the body of Siva
which should add grace
bhaiiga)
beauty of the
In the seventh form, there
to the left of Siva. ;
general
There should also be the Devi
figure.
should be ten arms
to the
{ati-
in the right hands they should
carry the bana, the chakra, the §ula, the taiika and
the vajra; and in three out of the five
left
hands
there should be the dhanus, the sankJia and the
khetaka
:
the remaining hands being in the vismaya
and the suehl poses
respectively.
In the eighth form, Siva driving in a chariot. ly raised
to be represented as
His right
leg should be slight-
and be resting on a part
whereas the of the
is
left
chariot.
In the chariot there should be a
part called the mukula, which gible.
tied
It is
up with a
is
rope,
not quite
intelli-
mukula should be and Brahma, the charioteer
stated that this
169 i2
of the chariot,
one should be planted in the middle
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. should be seated in the middle of this mukula,
with a bamboo stick in one right hand and hamm
andalu in the other
;
and padma-pdsa
in
(?)
one
hand and the kundika (a kind of water-vessel) Below the mukula there should in the other. be standing a white bull. This bull is Vishnu left
who
down from
got
arrow temporarily to
the
steady the chariot which was giving the feet of Siva
and
;
Vishnu returned
after
steadying the chariot
to the arrow.
be shown as sailing in the
The common
way under
The
chariot should
air.
features of the eight forms of the
Tripurantakamurti are that they are
all
of
red
complexion, have one face and three eyes, and have the Devi on the
left
In this aspect Siva
side.
is
guided by a passion composed of the satva and the rajo gunas.
Four
illustrations are
The
murti.
first
two are
given of Tripurantaka-
to be found in Ellora
and
another in the Kailasanatha temple at Conjeevaram.
Of the two sculptures so-called
of
Ellora, the first
Dasavatara cave, PL
XXXVII.
is
in the
In
this,
Siva stands in his chariot with his right leg kept
forward and the
left
one, behind
;
the body of Siva
turned away from the objects aimed
and arms are turned castles
which h«
is
in the
but his face
direction of the three
about to destroy. 170
at,
is
He
seems to
PLATE XXXVII.
Tripurantakamurti
:
Stone.
Daa'avatara Cave
:
Ellora.
[To face page 170]
PLATE
XXXVIII.
Tripurantakamurbi
[To face page l7l]
:
Stone
:
Kailasa Temple
:
Bllora.
PLATE XXXIX.
Tripurantakamurfci
[To face page 1?1]
:
Stone
:
Conjeevaram.
PL\TE
:Tripurantakamurti
:
Stone
:
XL.
Madura.
[To face page 171]
SAMHAEAMtJBTIS. have had ten
arms
still
remain
unbroken are carrying the sword, and the
shield, a
third
arm
is
those that
;
holding the arrow strung in the bow-
string, while a fourth holds the bent is
driving the chariot which
The second photograph
of
is
yoked
the
left
;
the sculpture to
the right
quiver of arrows.
it.
this,
the
Siva has
the right shoulder
Brahma is
In front
is
be found in the
In
a
is
seen sitting in the front
portion of the chariot and driving
yoked to
two horses.
hand bears the arrow while
On
one the bow.
to
PL XXXVIII,
illustration,
Kailasa cave in the same place. only two arms
Brahma
bow.
the two horses
Tripurantakamurti are
of
the asuras fleeing before their pursuer.
In the third illustration,
PI.
XXXIX,
Siva
is
seated in the alidhasana posture in the chariot and
has eight arms, in which there ought to be the bow,
As
arrow and other implements of war. previous instances,
The
last
Brahma
illustration, PI.
tion of the photograph of
found in the mandapa of
the
is
the
in the
driving the chariot.
XL,
is
the reproduc'
beautiful
sculpture
in front of the central shrine
Sundaresvara temple
at
Madura,
which
belongs to the modern times.
Once Siva assumed the form animal called Sarabha.
which he was obliged
of
a mythical
The circumstances under
to take this form are given as 171
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. follows
:
Nrisimhavatara, destroyed
Vislin,u, in his
the asura Hirainyakasipu
causing
m-orti.
annoyance to the
great
Even
gods.
who was
after the destruction
asura, Vishnu did not abate his
of the
attitude,
which was causing damage
tants of the
terrific
to the inhabi-
They approached 6iva
world.
succour and Siva promised them his help.
He
for
at
once assumed the form of a harahha, an animal with
two heads, two wings legs of the lion
making
of resplendent beauty, eight
with sharp claws, and a long
tail
Sarabha approached
the
dreadful noise
Nrisimha, caught hold of him and tore him up the skin of Narasimha, he wore as his garment and
the head was worn on his chest
have
it,
came
or,
as
some accounts Vishnu
on his malcuta as an ornament.
and
to his proper senses
Siva, to his
own
retired, after praising
abode, the Vaikuntha.
thenceforth to be
known
as
Siva came
Sarabhesamurti or
Simhaghnamurti Sarabhesamurti
gama
as follows
:
of a bird of golden
described in
is
The body hue
;
it
which should be uplifted
:
of
Kamika-
the
Sarabhesa
is
that
should have two wings
Sarabhesa has two red
eyes, four legs resembling those of the lion resting
upon the ground and four others with sharp clawa kept lifted upwards, and an animal 172
tail
;
the body
saiIhSbam-Betis.
human
above the loins should be that of a
being
but having the face of a lion which should be
wearing upon
its
head a hirlta-makuta.
There
should also be side-tusks and on the whole a
Sarabhesa
appearance.
is
shown
to be
as carrying
The
with two of his legs Narasimha.
Narasimha should be the ordinary form
terrific
figure of
of a
human
being with the hands held in the anjali pose.
The Srltatvanidhi description.
somewhat
different
It requires that the figure
of Sara-
gives a
bhesa should have thirty-two arms, in the right ones of
which are to be found vajra, mushti, abhaya,
chaJcra, kahti,
danda, ahJcuia, hhadga, Jckatvanga,
parasu^ akshamala, a bone, dhanus, musala, and
agni ; whereas the
left
hands ought
to keep the paia,
varada, gada, bana, dhvaja, another kind of sword,
a snake, a lotus flower, Jcapala, pustaha, hala and
mudgara and one hand should be embracing Durga. The Uttarakaranagama says that by consecrating this image, battles
won,
achieved
;
all
all
is
and that the three eyes the
be
will
destroyed,
ailments cured and every good
6iva are the sun, the
tongue
enemies
moon and
subterranean
of this aspect of
the
fire
fire
;
known
that his as
the
badavanala; that his two wings are Kali and Durga his nails, Indra,
Kala
and
the belly,
Mrityu;
Kalagni
;
the thighs,
and his gigantic 173
strength
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Mahavayu.
Again, in the Sarabhopanishad
stated that sara
means the Jlva
Sarabha who
is
soul
;
is
Hari
is
Sarabha, and that Hari
shining in the limbs of himself
or
it
capable of granting
is
moksha.
An in Vol.
Sarabhesamurti
illustration of the I,
PI.
B, Introduction.
It is a
to be found in the Siva temple at
the Tanjore district.
Sarabha
;
bronze image
Tribhuvanam
In this piece
of the lion, a tail
hand
in the right upper
of
is
sculpture
the parasu, in the one, the
left
With the Nrisimha, who
in the lower left one, agni.
front leg, Sarabhamurti has pinioned is
in
and four human
lower right one, the p^sa, in the upper
mriga and
given
represented as having three legs, the
is
body and a face
arms
is
struggling against his adversary with his eight
arms.
The
following account
is
purdna regarding the cutting
Brahma 6.
Brahmasira-
t,
,
Kudra
schchiiedakamurti.
found in the Vardhathe fifth head of
off of
by Siva.
and
Brahma
addressing
Kapali, asked
him
created
him
as
to protect the
world.
Because he was insulted as Kapali, Siva
cut
the fifth head of
off
thumb-nail
would not
;
Brahma with
his
left
but this head stuck to his hand and fall
off
from
requested by Eudra to
Then Brahma was him how he could get
it.
tell
174
samhAeamurtis. the head stuck up in his hand, for which
rid of
Brahma
prescribed to
Kapalika
life for
Rudra the observance
twelve years, at the end of which
he promised that the head would
Rudra repaired Yajnopavlta of
to Mahendragiri
made
in the. jatamaJcuta
a skull the
At the end
and wearing an
skull tied
on
his
made
up as an orna-
head and carrying
with blood in his hand, went round
filled
earth
Then
oS.
fall
of hair, a garland of beads
bone and a piece of the
ment
of the
visiting
places
all
of twelve years
pilgrimage.
of
he arrived at Varanasi,
where, by the followers of Simachari(?) the skull of
Brahma was removed from the hand of Rudra. The place where the head fell obtained the name of
Rudra then bathed
Kapala-mochana.
in the
Ganges, worshipped Visvesvara at Kasi and returned to Kailasa.
A
somewhat
Eurmapurana.
Brahma Brahma
as to
different version is
found in the
Once upon a time the
who was
arrogated
it
rishis
the origin of the universe.
to himself.
Just then Siva
appeared on the scene and claimed to be the nator of the universe dispute between
asked
;
upon
Brahma and
this there
Siva.
origi-
ensued a
Even though
the Vedas came to declare that Siva was the greatest of all Gods,
Brahma would
not accept their verdict.
Then appeared in space a huge illumination in which 175
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. was
the figure of Siva.
discernible
ordered Bhairava to cut
Brahma which spoke
By
disrespect.
ofi
then
Siva
head
that fifth
of
him with haughtiness and
to
Brahma
the power of his yoga,
escaped death and he also learnt, at the sacrifice of
one of his heads, the superiority of Siva.
The
following description of Brahmasirasch-
chhedakamurti
The
found
is
the
in
Sritatvanidhi.
figure of this aspect of Siva should be of white
complexion, with three
eyes, four
and a
arms
jatamaJcuta on the head and the patraJcundala in the right ear and the nakrakundala in
In
one.
the
hand
right
are
and the paraiu and in the
Brahma and the the garments made
of
whose
left
left
the vajra
ones, the skull
It should be
^ula.
draped in
of tiger's skin.
The Siva-purana rupa or the
to be
the
calls
Bhairava the purna-
form of Sankara and that those
full
intellect is
darkened by
maya
are not able to
understand the superiority of this aspect of §iva and decline
to
worship
it.
Bhairava
is
so
called
because he protects the universe (hJiarana)
because he
is terrific (bhlshai^a).
as Kalabhairava for even
trembles before
him
;
and
He is also known
Kala (the god
of death)
Amarddaka because he
kills
bad i^rsouBimarddana) andPapabhakshana, because 176
SAMHSEAMtETIS. he swallows the sins of his bhaktas or devotees.
He
is
the lord of the city of Kasi.
The
description of Bhairava
is
Vishnudharmottara.
It
Bhairava.
(a)
found in the there
is
stated that Bhairava should have a flabby belly, round yellow eyes, side-tusks and wide
and should be wearing a garland
nostrils,
He
of skulls.
should be also adorned with snakes as orna-
ments
ments
;
besides these there should be other ornaalso.
The complexion
as the rain-cloud
skin
;
and
his
of
Bhairava
is
dark
garment the elephant's
he should have several arms carrying several
He
weapons.
should be represented as frightening
Parvati with a snake.
Bhairava has
forms such as the Vatuka-
Svarnakarshanabhairava and so forth.
bhairava,
The
many
features of each one of these forms are describ-
ed below.
Vatuka-Bhairava should have eight arms in six of
Bhairava.'^*
which are to be the
Jchatvaiiga
the pasa, the sula, the damaru, the Jcapala
and a snake
;
while one of
the remaining hands should carry a piece of flesh
and the other should be held in the abhaya pose. By the side of this Bhairava there should be a dog of the
same colour
upon
this
form
of
as that of its master.
Bhairava 177
23
is
Meditation
said to secure
all
the
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. So
wishes of the votary.
far for the
Bupamandana
given in the
description found in
the
description
the following
;
the
is
VatuJca-BhairavaJcalpa.
This aspect of Bhairava should have jatas of red colour, three eyes
hands the
in his
kapd,la
He
and a red body.
sula, the pasa, the
and be riding upon a dog.
should carry
damara and
the
Vatuka-Bhairava
should be stark naked and be surrounded on sides
by a host
Four
arms as given
of
of
which
is
Vatuka-Bhairava
are
Bhairava seen with eight
Bupamandana. The South Pattisvaram, PI. XLI, carries the
in the
Indian image of
damaru, the pasa and the kapala and
sula, the
naked.
demons.
illustrations
none
given, in
of
all
It
has jvalas or flames surrounding
jatamakuta and wears round
made of small
bells, besides
a
golden and other necklaces. katisutra or
its
neck a long necklace
number of well- wrought
Round
the loins
is
waist zone consisting of a snake.
show the terrific aspect
is
its
the
To
of this deity, the eyes of the
image are made round and there are shown large side-tusks.
Immediately behind the figure
of
Bhai-
rava is a dog also adorned with a number of necklaces
and other ornaments. later
This image belongs to the
Ch5la period (12th and 13th centuries A.p.).
The two Northern Indian images one
of the
Chalukya
style, figs. 1, 3
178
&
as also 2,
the
PL XLII,
Plate
Mli.
Bbairava
[To face page 178]
:
Stone
:
Fattisvaram,
PLATB
XLll.
a ID
W 3
T3
B
K.
/
Ali^ O 3 «= -i
D
IS
>
m
[To face page 179]
SAMHAKAMUBTIS. They the hhadga, the paia and the
are alike in their execution. sula,
carry the
all
have
Jcapala,
their jaias arranged in a circle (or mandala,)
and
They wear garlands of skulls and are of terrific appearance. The image belonging to the Indian Museum, Calcutta, fig. 1, PI. XLII, alone are naked.
is
Museum
smiling, whereas that belonging to the
of the
Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society,
fig. 3, PI.
ana
or
XLII, has a scorpion attached
mark on the
these two pisachas.
as a IdncJih-
front face of the pedestal
and
;
images are surrounded by emaciated
The sword
the Madras
Museum
dagger held with
its
in the
hand
(fig. 2,
PL XLII),
image of
of the
point downwards.
is
a short
All these
thr^e images stand on sandals, which are absent in the case of the South Indian image.
Svarnakarshana
Bhairava should
an
have
yellow coloured body, with four arms shana^BhaSava.
^^^ ^^^^^ ^ycs and should be clothed in yellow garments.
He should
be
adorned with all kinds of ornaments and be praised by all
gods.
The appearance of this
aspect of Bhairava
should be one which suggests perfect happiness coupled
with masterful
authoritativeness.
should be carrying in his hands a vessel
filled
He with
gold and precious gems, a chamara and a tomara and
a large iula should be resting upon the shoulder. 179
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY.
We four
have already seen
Bhairava's aspect has eight
difier-
named
Euru,
ent forms,
Bhih-amr
in the introduction that
Asitaiiga,
Chanda, Krodha, Unmatta-Bhairava, Kapala, of
Bhishana and Samhara.
forms
these
is
divided
further
Each one into
eight
subordinate forms, thus making sixty-four in All these are grouped into eight
all.
groups and are
described in the Budra-ydmala.
In the group coming under Asitanga are cluded
Visalaksha,
Marttanda,
in-
Modaka-priya,
Svachchanda,
Vighna-santushta, Khechara
Sacharachara.
All these are of golden complexion
and have good looking limbs, and carry the
and
trlsula,
the damaru, the pasa and the khadga.
The group headed by Ruru
consists of Kroda-
damshtra, Jatadhara, Visvarupa, Virupaksha, Nanarupadhara, Vajrahasta and Mahakaya. of the Bhairavas of this
should rubies
all
be
group
is
The
pure white
colour ;
they
adorned with ornaments set with
and should carry an akshamala, the
aiihuka,
a pustaJca and a vlna.
Bhumikampa, Nilakantha, Vishnu, Kulapalaka, Mundapala and KamaChanda, Pralayantaka,
pala constitute the third group. of blue colour
and have good
All these are to be
looks.
They should
carry in their hands agni, kahti, gada and knnda. 180
SAllHARAMUETIS. In the group headed by Krodha are included Abhrarupa,
Pingalekshana,
Dharapala,
Kutila,
Mantranayaka, Rudra and Pitamaha. are
All these
smoke colour and should carry
of
sword and
khetaJca, a long
Jcha^ga,
-paraku.
In the Unmatta-Bhairava group are Vatukanayaka, Sankara, Bhuta-vetala, Trinetra, Tripurantaka,
Varada and Parvatavasa.
white and they are in their
all to
Kapala,
is
be of good looks and carry
hands the kun^a, the
(a kind of club)
Their colour
khetaJca, the
parigha
and bhindipala. Hasticharmambara-
Sasibhushana,
dhara, Yogisa, Brahmarakshasa, Sarvajna, Sarva-
devesa and Sarva-bhutahridi-sthita form a group
and are
all to
same weapons
be of yellow colour and carry the as in the previous group.
The seventh group
consists
Bhishana,
of
Bhayahara, Sarvajna, Kalagni-Maharaudra, Dakshina,
Mukhara and
same weapons
They
Asthira.
all
as in the above group
carry the
and are
of
red colour.
In the group
of
Samharabhairava are Atirik-
tanga, Kalagni, Priyankara, Ghoranada, Visalaksha,
Yogisa and Dakshasamsthita
;
all
these are to be
of the colour resembling the lightning
and
to carry
the same weapons as in the previous group.
XLIII,
represents
the
Atiriktanga
181
aspect
PI.
of
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY, Bhairava and
found sculptured in one of the
is
Seated near his foot
cave-temples of Ellora.
emaciated figure of Kali
pose.
his
Though
the
round him are a number
and on
of blood-thirsty goblins
brahmana votary with
;
is
his
his
right stands a
hands held
in the anjali
grotesque, the sculptor has executed
work with great Virabhadra
skill.
a
is
form
Siva assumed
of
at
the time of the destruction of the yajna (sacrifice) of 7.
Virabhadra-
,
of
purana.
,
,
of the
murti.
On
The
Daksha. n
.
.
following account
•
r
Daksha occurs
in
Eurma-
the
one occasion Daksha with his consort,
In spite
paid a visit to the house of Siva. solicitous attentions of Siva,
pleased with
his
quarters.
On
his
-c
i.i
destruction ot the sacrifice
Daksha became
son-in-law,
and
another occasion
reviled Siva in the presence of Sati
Daksha
and also abused This insult
own house by Daksha smote
Sati so hard that she burnt herself to death
under the name
to
wife
Siva's
her and directed her to quit his house.
was afterwards born
dis-
returned
Sati went to her father Daksha's house.
offered to her in his
of the
to
Himavan
of Parvati.
of his consort, Siva cursed
she
daughter
Daksha
to be born as a
with
his
Daksha was born 182
;
Learning the demise
Kshatriya and to commit incest
daughter in that birth.
as his
own
as king
PLATE
XLIII
Atiriktanga Bhairava
[To face page 182]
:
Stone Panel
:
EUora.
samhAeamOrtib. Prachetas and was performing a yaga at Gangadvara, but owing to the hatred he coneeived for
Siva in his former existence he declined to dedicate a portion of the offering to Siva,
who had
received their portions did not intercede on
But one Dadhichamaharishi alone
behalf of Siva.
remonstrated neglect
cursed
All other gods
Siva
of all
the injustice of Daksha's
against
those
but
in
who were
vain.
Then Dadhicha
present to become veda-
hahyas and lovers of lower religious systems and even to lose the favour of Vishnu on which they so
much
He
counted.
presence of
invoked
there
the
also
was
Siva to destroy the irregular sort
requesting yd,ga that
Siva.
then
Just then Parvati
was being performed by Prachetas.
acceded to
her request and created
of
He
Virabhadra
with a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, powerful shoulders, a
brightness the
thousand arms, and resembling in that devours the universe at the
fire
end of an seon
having side-tusks, carrying the
;
sankha, the chaJcra and a bow and besmeared with ashes; this Virabhadra was sent to destroy the
yaga of Prachetas.
Parvati, in
her turn, created
sent her also with
Virabhadra,
^ith a body of gantis to help them.
Virabhadra
Bhadrakali and
d^troyed the yaga and
in the action that ensued
put out the eyes and plucked the teeth of Surya, 183
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. cut
ofE
the hands and the tongue of Agni, cursed
Indra's arm, that had been lifted up to strike,
remain
in the
stiff
same
to
Chandra was
position.
crushed by the toe of Virabhadra and Vishnu's vehicle
Garuda had
to his senses
pleased with
the ganas
to flee for
and prayed
to
Daksha came Siva, who became
life.
him and promised the headship over
at
the
end
that
of
and
aeon
dis-
appeared.
An
altogether different tale
Varahapurana. of
Brahma
;
the latter asked
him
Daksha and
Daksha begot a
grand-children.
to create beings,
to do, but lay in inactivity.
therefore created
Prajapatis.
found in the
Kudra was born from the anger
which he did not care
Brahma
is
lot
of
six other
children
and
Indra and other Gods, the grand-
children of Daksha, began to perform sacrifices for
Meanwhile Eudra who
the pleasure of Daksha.
was sunk of
in inactivity
animals
;
other gods
came and created
four species
in a short time the voices of Indra
came
to be heard
and
by Rudra who got
angry at the creation of these beings by some one
he himself took up the act
else before
This anger fire
of his
glowed in the form
issuing from his ears
number
of
and from
of of
creation.
tongues of
this fire
came a
demons which went against the Devas,
attacked and destroyed their sacrifices and compelled 184
SAliHAEAMUETIS.
them to offer him also a portion of the offerings. Daksha prayed to Eudra to appease his anger and gave his daughter Gauri in marriage to Eudra.
Brahma then
and his consort a
allotted to Siva
place in Kailasa.
of
The BhS,gavata-purana gives a fuller account the enmity between Daksha and Eudra. The
gods and the rishis were assembled at a
Daksha entered the excepting
hall
when
all
sacrifice.
the assembly,
Brahma and Mahadeva, rose up. Daksha obeisance to Brahma and sat down at his
made his command. But he did not like Mahadeva being seated when he entered the hall and so reviled Mahadeva in very strong and highly objectionable language alluding to his roaming in cemeteries and other repulsive acts and cursed
him that he should
never be given thenceforth a portion in the offerings in
yaga made to the delectation
departed from the hall of
Daksha began
of the gods.
Some years after, sacrifice known as
sacrifice.
to perform the
All the gods with their wives
the Brihaspatisava.
were seen going to attend the sacrifice;
which
Sati,
the
take her to her
He her
Siva
wife of Siva, pressed father's
house for the
seeing
him
to
sacrifice.
informed her of the insult offered to him by father
going to the
and
advised
sacrifice.
But she 185
24
her
not to persist in persisted in going,
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. and, as
by
was predicted by her husband, was slighted she
courtesy, of
On
her father.
being
committed
treated with
scant
The
news
suicide.
who
death of his spouse reached ^iva,
the
in his anger tore a lock from his matted
Bidden by
this lock of hair took a gigantic form.
Siva, this of
Being completely destroyed the
Daksha and brought him
hair
sacrifice
submission to
to
Siva.
The Srltatvanidhi contains a description image
of
Virabhadramurti.
arms, three eyes and a tusks.
In the
gadd and
left
It
should have four
terrific face
with
fierce side
hands should be held a bow and a
in the right ones a
It should be
of the
wearing a garland
hhadga and a hdna. of skulls
and should
By
the side of
be standing on a pair of sandals.
the figure of Virabhadra there should be the figure of
Bhadrakali
also.
should be
there
goat's head,
On
the right side of Virabhadra
the figures of
Daksha with a
two eyes and two horns, and with hands
held in the anjali pose.
The Kdranagama has
a
somewhat
description of Virabhadramurti. figure of eyes,
different
It says that the
Virabhadra should have four arms, three
head covered with jatds which emit
tusks,
and wearing garlands composed
skulls
and those made
of scorpions,
186
fire,
of bells
side
and
a yajnopavlta
PLATE XLIV,
mm L.
Virabhadramurti
:
Bronze
:
Madras Museum.
Fig. 2.
Virabhadramurti
:
Stone
:
Tenkasi.
[To face page 187]
SAMHARAMUETIS. and adorned with beautiful anklets
of snake,
should be standing upon a pair of
;
it
sandals and
should have short drawers as his underwear.
The
colour of Virabhadra should be red; he should have
a face indicating great
He
terrific.
anger and should look
should carry the hhadga, the khetaJca,
The
the dhanus and the hana.
image
believed to remove
is
cure people of
Two
all
of this
great sins and to
photographs are reproduced in illustration
of a bronze
The
XLIV, is Madras Museum
first, fig. 1, PI.
image belonging to the
hands are broken and
carried in
up
their ailments.
of Virabhadramurti.
its
all
setting
therefore the objects
them cannot be made
out.
The
has round eyes and side-tusks indicating the nature of this aspect of Siva. pair of sandals.
the same plate,
It stands
The second photograph, is
figure
terrific
upon a
fig. 2,
on
that of an image carved on a
pillar in the
mandapa
in front of the Siva temple
at Tenkasi
and
the
is of
15th century A.D.
In
this piece of sculpture Virabhadra has ten arms
three out of the five right hands carry the bana,
the parasu and the Tiha^ga
hands,
one holds a
;
of the
remaining two
long sword (partly
broken)
Daksha and the The other pulls out an arrow from the quiver. left hands keep in them the dhanus, the musala (?), which
is
thrust into the neck of
187
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. the p&ka, a round shield and an oblong one with a beautiful device it
on
The jatamakuta has round
it.
Virabhadra
tongues of flames.
is
standing upon
the prostrate body of Daksha-Prajapati. Fig.
and in
1, PI.
his wife
Angur
;
XLV,
this piece of sculpture is to be
found
and belongs
to the
in the Bellary district
Chalukya-Hoysala It is to be
well.
represents Daksha-Prajapati
school
and
is
executed very
noted that Daksha has the face
of a goat.
The Siva-purana
gives the account
of the
destruction by Siva of the asura hammurti*^*''*"
earned Jalandhara.
emanated
The
fire
that
from the forehead
of
Siva at the time of the destruction of the three castles of the
Tripurasuras was
where Sindhu joins
named Jalandhara.
into the sea
let
This rose up as a child
it.
When
he grew old he loved
and married Brinda, the daughter of Kalanemi and became reputed as the most powerful king in the world.
Once upon a time Eahu, with
body came
to the court of
his
maimed
Jalandhara he was asked ;
about the cause of his deformation to which replied that
when
Eahu
the Milky Ocean was churned, he
misconducted himself and was therefore punished,
and added that the gods then took away from the ocean a great quantity of gems. The news of 188
Plate xlv.
o a
PM
o a o is
m 1
I
-
53
'£3
tn icS
^
OB
[To face page 188]
'^
c3
> 11:3
SAMHSEAMtJETIS. the possession by devas of a
of riches
lot
induced
Jalandhara to wage war against them and he began
The gods comwho fought hard
in right earnest to attack them.
plained to Vishnu about their
but unsuccessfully with
lot,
Jalandhara
;
meanwhile
Jalandhara's might extorted Vishnu's admiration, as a consequence of which, Vishnu asked Jalan-
dhara to ask
for
any boon he
desired.
consort Lakshmi, to
come and
Vishnu was therefore obliged
The asura
Vishnu and
took this opportunity to request
his
reside in his capital.
to repair to the city of
Jalandhara. The gods then desired that Siva should
become
hostile to the
asura and
this purpose, they induced
Narada
kill
him.
to kindle
For
enmity
Narada went straight Jalandhara and told him that such
between the asura and Siva. to the palace of
a pretty damsel as Parvati, the consort of Siva, was alone the
fittest
partner in
despatched
Thus
battle
immediately
messengers to Siva
to
to
Siva forthwith set out
with this impudent asura, but very
soon the ganas of §iva were put to asura.
and
incited by Narada, Jalandhara
surrender Parvati to him. for
to Jalandhara
make every attempt
that he should therefore possess her.
life
flight
by the
^iva then appeared in person for a combat,
but did not succeed well.
In the meantime Jalan-
dhara created, with his maya, a host 189
of very pretty
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. Gandharvas and Apsarasas and made them sing and dance before Siva, who became absorbed in the
dance and music; he became unaware his
weapons dropped down from
of the fact that
his hands.
Seeing
that that was the best opportunity for him, Jalan-
dhara assumed the form Parvati to ravish her.
who was come
and proceeded
of Siva
to
But she knew the person
disguised as Siva and invoked Vishnu to
to her help.
Vishnu appeared on the scene
Parvati requested Vishnu to ravish Brinda, wife of Jalandhara.
out immediately.
;
the
Parvati's wishes were carried
Brinda not being able to bear
the indignity ofiered to her committed suicide and died, cursing
Vishnu that
in one of his avataras
he should suffer the loss of his wife by abduction
Jalandhara could not find Parvati at
by another.
her abode, hence he returned.
Siva had also re-
covered from the spell of the music in
which Jalandhara was
killed
;
a battle ensued
with the Sudarsana-
chakra which Siva obtained from the
ended the
The
life of
the asura Jalandhara.
is
given as follows
Siva in this aspect
the
is
red
;
:
The
colour of
he should have three
looking eyes, and only a single pair of arms
in the right in
Thus
description of the image of Jalandhara-
haramurti
terrific
sea.
left
hand he should carry an umbrella and a kamandalu. 190
On
his
head should
SAMHARAMtJETIS. be a dishevelled jatabhara containing in crescent
He
moon and Ganga.
with Ttundalas in the
ears,
it
the
should be adorned
haras on the neck and
anklets on his legs and the feet of Siva should
on a pair
The posture
of
Siva
should be such as to indicate his desire to
move
rest
of sandals.
quickly.
Jalandhara
and
arms,
(bracelets)
be
and
should be represented with two
adorned all
with
ornaments.
other
Icankat^a
Jcirlta,
He
must
have a sword tucked up below his forearm, while the two hands should be held in
On
the anjali pose.
the hands thus held there should be the Sudar-
The
sanachakra.
colour of Jalandhara should be
yellow.
Anantanandagiri in his Sankaravijaya states that 9.
.
Malla in sect of people
was a quarter called _. , Ujjaymi. In it dwelt a
there
Mallari Siva.
who were
,
.
.
adoring Siva in the aspect of
Mallari and conducting themselves like dogs, after
the fashion of the dog -vehicle of Mallari, barking like it
and putting on the appearance
adorning their necks with garlands
They
believed that Mallari
whole universe and were the
Supreme Being.
them that
made
was the ofiering
of the
dog,
of shells.
origin of the
puja to him as
Sankaracharya proved to
their appearing like dogs 191
and barking
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. them and other
like
characteristic
theirs were opposed to the sastras
them
and converted
aspect Mallari that
is
referred to above
described in the Mallari-mahatmya thus to
is
of
Brahmanas.
to the religion of the
The
customs
:
is
Mallari
be of the colour of gold, wearing on his jata-
mahuta, the crescent moon, in his ears white, shining Jcundalas, and round his neck, necklaces of rubies
and pearls and a garland
of flowers.
arms there should be bracelets
of
In his
snakes and he
should be clad in yellow silk garments.
The orna-
ments of Siva should be hidden here and there by the hoards of snakes and there must be a smile playing
upon the a
lips of Siva.
damaru and a
In the hands are to be seen
Jchadga.
His vehicle
is
to be a
white horse and he must be surrounded by seven dogs.
The pauranic
story of the destruction by Siva
of the great
sJavad^^mSrtt
l^^s
demon Andhakasura
already been given in connec-
tion with the Sapta-Matrikas
pages 379-382
in
Volume
I.
To
illustrate
on the
descriptions of the aspect of Siva as Andhakasura-
vadha-murti, three photographs are all of
which belong
Bombay
Presidency.
on
XLV—
Pis.
reproduced,
to the Cave-temples of
the
The sculptures represented XLVII, belonging as they do to 192
PLATE
V first-
;-
-, «^
A
Andhakasuravadhamurti
:
A
^-
XLVI.
-I
Stoue Panel: Elephanta [To face page 192]
PLATE
XLVII.
Andhaka3uravadhamurti Kailasa Temple [To face page 193]
:
:
Stone Panel
EUora.
SAliHARAMtJETIS. one school, bear a strong family likeness; the
have
artists
dwelt upon the subject in exactly
the same manner and
is
it
therefore sufficient
to describe one of these pieces of sculpture. all
which
pinned the body
is
of
trikula, at the
end
of
Andhakasura and from
The goddess
blood drops down.
it
has eight arms, in
the three instances, ^iva
two of which he carries a
In
Yogesvari,
squatting on the ground, holds in her hand a cup in
which she catches the blood-drops as they
Siva himself bears the hapala in one of his
down.
hands to
down from
collect in it the blood flowing
the body of Andhakasura.
In the other hands
the sculpture of the Dasavatara cave, Siva
keeping the damaru and the hhadga
hands
trickle
;
is
of
seen
two other
of his hold stretched the skin of the elephant
in the shape of a
prabhdmandala and the remain-
ing hand is held in the tarjanl pose.
Yogesvari or Kali carries in her other hand a short curved dagger
:
her body
very emaciated and her head
jataman^ala.
waiting for her prey
a
represented as
surrounded by a
Just above the head of Kali
human and half of human flesh.
figure of a 4aJcini, half
On
is
is
the right of Kali
is
is
the
bird, sitting
the Devi, seated upon
padmasana and viewing with awe the events that
are taking place before her. 193 as
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. The
sculpture belonging to the
Kail3,sa at
Ellora and that belonging to the Elephanta Cave are not different in their description, but
be noted that the latter of
workmanship
is
must
one of the finest pieces
of the period to
in this sculpture, one
it
hand
instead of the damaru.
194
of
which
it
belongs
Siva carries a ghanta
OTHER UGRA FORMS OF
SIVA.
OTHEE UGEA FOEMS OF
A
SIVA.
MONG the rites and ceremonies that
are pre-
scribed for kings for attaining success against their enemies is the adoration of
ll.Aghoramurti.
.
Aghoramurti.
mi
the rites that have to be performed
Lingapurana.
A
priest
-
The
who has
•
•
description of
is
given in the
attained mantra-
siddhi or the power of eflficaciously using mantras,
should for that purpose repair to a place where there is
a corpse or where there
is
a temple dedicated to
the Saptamatrikas (or the seven mothers), and construct five Tiundas (receptacles for fires), one
cardinal point and one in the centre.
teenth day of the dark fortnight
*
The fourteenth
of Fhalguni
those
is
known
who worship
tithi of the
as
*
On
on each
the four-
the ceremonies
dark fortnight of the month
Agbora-chaturdasi
;
it
is
said
that
Siva in the aspect of Agh5ra on this day
will be taken to Siva's abode.
(Apte's Sanskrit Dictionary.)
197
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. ought to be begun and continued to the eighth day in the succeeding bright half of the next month. During this period the priest
with four of his
have
mantra-siddhi, should
also attained
disciples,
who
sit
in
front of the kundas, himself occupying the middle
and the four
disciples
the kundas and perform
the
four
homa
quarters, before
sacrifices in the fire
Then the enemy
concentrating their thought upon Aghora.
they should king, place
it
make a wooden it
of
kundas with the head
in one of the
downwards and burn
effigy
with the
brought from
fire
There are a few other minor
the burning ground.
ceremonies of no great interest.
The
who is of
following
is
the description of the Aghora
required to be meditated upon.
Aghora should have eight arms
are to be seen the
sula,
danda, dhanus, bana
figure
;
damaru, pasa, kapala,
and khadga
Aghora should be blue and
He
The
in the hands
;
the neck of
his complexion black.
should be naked, or be clad in the skin of the
elephant and the lion and be adorned with orna-
ments composed
of
snakes and scorpions, and be
covered with the ashes of the dead bodies of human beings.
His face should be
and should have his hair
side tusks.
terrific in
A
appearance
snake should bind
and he should be surrounded by demons and
goblins.
198
OTHER UGEA FOEMS 0¥
ilYk.
Another description, according to which the Aghoramurti temples,
work he
generally sculptured and set up in
found in the Karanagama.
is is
is
known
as the Aghorastramurti
In this
and
it is
stated therein that the image of this aspect of Siva is set
up
gaining victory, for destroying such
for
great sins as hrahmahatya or brahmanicide and for
granting
Aghorastramurti should have
riches.
three eyes, eight arms and be of terrific look, with
The
side tusks.
He
dark.
colour of this aspect of Siva
to be draped in red clothes, adorned
is
with garlands
of red flowers,
rubies, a garland of skulls,
daggers
of short
scorpions.
is
ornaments
with
set
and another composed and
(khadgamala)
a third of
His hair should be flaming and
his
forehead marked with ashes in the shape of the crescent moon.
In his two hands he should carry
a trihula horizontally as though
with
it,
Jchadga,
A
about to charge
and the other hands should hold a
damaru, hapala and Jchadga
third description is
varatnaJcara.
According to
it
the
should have three eyes.
{gJiania
?).
given in the Sivatatthis,
single face, and thirty-two arms
jatU-makuia and in
vetdla,
;
Aghora has a on the head
crescent moon.
is
a
He
In his right hands are to
be abhaya, kha^ga, hula, chaJcra, damaru, a bone, bana, gadd,
a lotus flower, Jcapdla, jnanamudrd, 199
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. kunda, ankusa, ahshamala, khatvanga smipara^u; (shield), tanka,
kavacha
in the left hands, varada,
pa§a, mudgara, a snake, agni, mriga, ghanta, dhanus,
katyavalambita-hasta, ratnas or gems, a water a pitcher, musala and pustaha.
lily,
This Aghoramurti
should have also a garland of skulls and be standing
upon the severed head above description
is
An image
of Kala.
believed to grant
all
of the
protection
to its votaries.
Aghoramurti with ten arms
described as
is
possessing three eyes and a terrific AghorfmurtL"^*
body garments all
red.
The
countenance. is
blue
and
colour of his that
of
the
There are to be snake ornaments
over the body.
In his ten hands he should
carry the parasu, damaru, khadga, kJietaka, bana,
dhanus, sula and kapala and the remaining hands should be held in the varada and ahliaya poses.
Two photographs,
figs.
1
and 2 on
PI.
XL VIII,
are reproduced in illustration of Aghoramurti, both of
which belong to Southern India. The to be found in the oiva temple at
of
them
image
is
Tirukkalukkunram
and the other in the Siva temple
Both
first
at Pattisvaram.
are almost similar to each other
;
in
these pieces of sculpture two front hands bear the
trUula in a horizontal position, while the other
hands carry the ghanta, the pdsa, the khetaka, 200
:
PLATE
XLVIII.
at
03
o a o
OS
IS
a lO
<3
M S
|,:;;,„^ua^
rTn face oaee 200]
OTHEB UGRA FORMS OF
The head
khadga and the damaru.
kapcila, the is
SIVA.
surrounded by tongues of flames and the face, with
its
round eyes and the
terrific
side-tusks, indicates the
Eound the neck is a reaching down to the ankles
nature of this image.
large garland of skulls
and the prabhd-mandala surrounds the
An
figure.
named Dushdna was giving trouble to the Brahmanas residing in and near Ujjayini. They prayed to 6iva to relieve them from the asura
^iva pleased with
visitations of the cruel asura.
the prayers 13.
Iffiahakala
n
Brahmanas,
the
of
j
-l-u appeared on the spot and with a
with Mahakaii.
1.1.
i.
breath of his reduced Dushana to
The Brahmanas then prayed to Siva to stay away in their midst Siva assumed the form of a Jyotirlinga and the name Mahakala and stopped away at Ujjayini. Such is the account of Mahakala of Ujjayini as given in the Sivapurdna. The description of the image of Mahakala with
ashes.
;
his consort It is
stated therein that
bracing
The
Mahakaii is found in the Lalitdpakhydna.
Mahakala should be em-
Mahakaii and be wearing a black
colour of
Mahakala
is
black.
coat.
His eyes should
be red on account of the excessive drink in which
he is indulging he should be drinking from the ;
mdnda
(the colossal shell from
which Brahma was
born) used as a vessel to hold the liquor. 201 26
braJi-
His sight
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. must
itself
be resting fondly on his dark coloured
consort Mahakali, and both of them should be seated
upon a simhasana.
Mahakala, swallower
of the
Universe, should have by his side Kala and Mrityu.
He should
also be
meditating upon Lalita, doing
puja to her and bestowing long
202
life
on her devotees.
ANUGRAHAMURTIS.
ANUGEAHAMUETIS.
A
S we have already stated Biva possesses
*•
•^
and that in this aspect he murti.
some
Let
of the
me
is
said to be a
Anugraha-
proceed with the description of
anugrahamurtis
of Siva.
In the village of ^eynalur on the bank river 1.
also
the faculty of affording grace to his votaries
Chandesanu-
Manni
.,
,•
i
there lived
grahamurti.
of the
in the Chola country •
-,
a pious
,
,
and learned
Brahmana named Yajnadatta of the Kasyapagotra. He had a son by name Vicharasarman of great intelligence. One day when the lad
was going
assaulting
to the school, he
brutally
a
saw a cowherd
cow, that sacred animal
which deserves being worshipped.
Incensed at the
behaviour of the cowherd, young Vicharasarman took upon himself the duty of tending the cows of the village, to which the villagers acceded.
From
that day the cows became happy and began to yield
much more milk than
their udders could hold
and
naturally the extra milk began to flow out. Vicha-
rasarman seeing that the milk was wasted, collected 205
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. it
in
vessels,
set
up lihgas made
sand and
of
began to bathe them with this extra milk, with
The cowherd who lost his position on account of this Brahmana boy, found this a fine cause for denouncing him and immediaintense piety for Siva.
tely repaired
the village and reported to the
to
villagers that the
boy Vicharasarman was wantonly
milking the cows, drinks milk with his chums and spills
thus often
and
mounds of sand. repeated, made one of
The complaint
the rest on
the villagers go
see for himself the truth of the accusation pre-
ferred
by the cowherd and to his surprise he saw
young Vicharasarman actually pouring milk on sand mounds, but he did not pause to investigate
and
see that
boy, in
it
was only the extra milk that the
his intense devotion to Siva,
the sand-made symbol of the lihga.
was
offering
Forthwith
he complained to the father of the boy, Yajnadatta, about the wickedness of his son.
went one day
the father also to see
what
his
boy was doing
On this complaint to
the river side
and found him
in the act of spilling milk in the sand.
He
ap-
proached the boy and stood near him, but, in his deep devotion the proximity of the father was not perceived
by
Vicharasarman.
On
seeing
the
apparent mischief of his son, Yajnadatta, in anger, kicked the
mound
of
sand; whereupon the 206
son
ANUGEAHAMtJETIS.
woke up from
his reverie
and cut oS with
his axe
the leg that kicked the object of his worship with
^iva
who was
the devotion of this boy
Vichara-
the result that Yajnadatta pleased with
fell,
sarman appeared on the scene with Parvati and ofEered
him
boy that in his intense love
him
and made him the head
of his
name
of
the
Chan-
commanded that thenceforth the made to him must be given to Chandesclothes worn by him should be set aside
^iva
ofEerings
vara, the
and
for his devotee
tied
embraced him
ganas and
steward of his household under the desa.
the leg of
off
that thenceforth he
to him,
would be in loco-parentis
(Siva) he
for himself
even went to the extent of cutting his father, and promised
Siva told the
grace.
his
consort
his
in token of his favour he also
round the head
of
Vicharasarman the flower
garland then worn by him.
The scene representing Siva Chandesa
his
bhedagama.
grace
described in the
Umasahitamurti described already.
his face should be turned a little
his right
and the
hand should be held
left
Amkumad-
Siva should be seated with Parvati
as in the case of
But
is
as offering to
to
the
in the varada
hand be placed on the head
of
left
pose
Chandesa.
With hands folded in the ahjali pose Chandesa should be standing on a padmasana in front of 207
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Siva; the colour of Chandesa
The UttarahamikS,gama
is
golden
yellow.
and
states that Siva
Uma
should be seated as in the case of Chandrasekhara-
marti and Ghandesvara with hands in the anjali pose should be either standing or sitting before Siva,
who with
hand should be holding
his right
the end of a flower-garland and with the
tying
round the head
it
of the figure of
thigh,
of
Siva and
it
Chandesa may be up
should be
made
mouth
to the knee,
that
of
in accordance
The
measurement.
adhama-daha-tala
hand
The height
Chandesa.
navel, breast, neck or
left
haranagama and the Silparatna have
of
with the
Purva-
practically
the same description as that found above.
Four pictures
are reproduced to illustrate the
description given above. is
The
first fig. 1,
PL XLIX,
of a sculpture to be seen in the big Siva temple at
Gahgaikondasolapuram, built by Eajendrasola, the son of Kajaraja the great.
In this
is
seen Siva
seated with his wife Parvati on a seat, below which is
seated Chandesa.
are the parasv
In the two back hands of Siva
and the viriga
;
the right front hand
holds the end of a flower garland and the
one
is
tying
it
round the head
of
Chandesa.
fine piece of sculpture belongs to the
and
is of
the
first
left
front
This
Chola period
quarter of the eleventh century
A.D. 208
PLATE XLIX.
a
o
m
ANUGRAHAMURTIS. The
original of
PI.
XLIX
at
Conjeevaram.
right
is
raised seat.
clear
is
fig. 2,
found in the Kailasanatha temple
In this Siva
while the
leg,
which
the second illustration,
He
one
left
standing on his
is is
resting
upon a
has four hands, the right one of
held in the varada pose
;
it
is
not quite
from the photograph what objects are kept in
To
the remaining hands.
the right of Siva stands
ChaEide^vara with the axe with which he cut
down
the leg of his father resting upon his right shoulder.
Below him and
fallen
Chandesa, with his
The
on the ground
left
hand held
is
the father of
in the
vismaya
damaged condiIt belongs to the reign of the Pallava King tion. Eajasimha and is of the 7th century A.D. The third
pose.
sculpture
in a highly
is
and the fourth illustrations,
figs. 1
and
2,
Pl.L, are of
the Chandesanugrahamurtis sculptured on the base of the
gopura in front
of the
Sthanunathasvamin
temple at Suchindram and on the
pillar in
the front
mandapa of the Minakshi-Sundaresvara temple at Madura respectively. They both resemble the sculpture at Gangaikondasolapuram.
Vishnu obtained through the grace
of
Siva
the chaJcra and the circumstances grfhamStir^'^or
thereof are narrated in the 8iva-
murti^'^^'^^''^'
Parana.
On
one occasion Vishnu
found himself unable to 209 37
conquer
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. certain asuras,
and prayed
to Siva for the grant of
To
the chaJcra which was in Siva's possession. his prayer he
added a pujd in which he employed a
thousand lotus flowers puja with the required
One day he sat for number of flowers but at
daily.
the end he missed one flower, strength
Vishnu
of at
are always
once plucked one
compared
and threw the same presented
him with
secreted
which
his eyes
on Siva. Siva became
devotion of Vishnu
that
he
the chakra which was originally
This fact
in his possession.
the
test
(Jcamala-ldchana)
to lotuses,
in offering
so pleased with the
of
to
had
Siva
devotion
his
which,
is
also alluded to in
the Mahdbharata.
The Uttarakdrandgama and the SrUattvanidhi
The
give the description of the Chakradanamurti. first
eyes,
authority states that Siva should have three four
arms,
a pacific
jatdmakuta on the head. be bent
appearance, and
The
and be resting on the
right one should
hang down.
are to be the tahka
left
should
leg
seat,
the
while the
In the right hands
and the chakra, the
left
ones
being in the varada pose and holding a krisJina-
mriga.
Surrounding the head
prabhdtnandala and a
of
kirascliakra.
Siva
On
is
to be a
the
left of
Siva should be seated Parvati and on the right
Brahma
should be standing. 210
Vishnu, with hands
PLATE
LI.
'-0 oj
-a
O
a
a
a-
Oo
n
o ai g TO
>
[To face page 210]
PLATE
ig.
1.
Chaiidelanugrahamurti
Madura.
:
Stone
Fig. 2.
Chandesanugrahamurti
:
L.
Stone
Suobindram.
[To {ace page 211]
ANUGRAHAMUETIS. folded in the anjali pose, should be worshipping or
doing puja to Siva with lotuses and his eye.
The Srltattvanidhi is not particular about the taiiJca in the hand of Siva, but gives the alternative of carrying the parasu.
In this work
it
that Vishnu ought to be standing to the in such a
manner
receive the boons
puja
of
as
stated
left of
^iva
to indicate his readiness to
and the
cTiakra, after finishing his
Siva with lotuses and his eye.
be seen presenting
is
6iva should
Vishnu with a pitamhara
(a
yellow garment), the haustubha (an ornament) and the chakra, as also the
name Kamalaksha to Vishnu.
Vishnu should be black
in colour, clad in yellow
garments and adorned with of his
all
ornaments.
In two
hands should be the sanhha and the chakra
and the other two ones should be held
in the anjali
pose.
Two
illustrations of
reproduced.
The
first
Vishnvanugrahamurti are these,
of
PI. LI,
fig.
1,
belongs to the Kailasanatha temple at Conjeevaram.
Siva
is
seated on a raised seat with his consort,
having his two back hands raised up in astonishment {vismaya pose), the right front hand rests upon the seat, the
remaining
left
hand being held
in the
simhakarna pose. Behind §iva stands an attendant
and below the one
of his left
seat is seen
hands he
is
Vishnu kneeling
;
with
plucking out his eye, the
211
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. other
left
hand holding the
flower; the front right one
is
held in the kataJca pose,
while the remaining hand
The second
photograph. is
remaining lotus
last
not visible in the
is
illustration, fig. 2,
the Minakshi-
sculpture found in
of a piece of
Sundaresvara temple at Madura.
PL LI,
In
it,
Siva and
Parvati are seated upon a bhadrasana and Siva is
seen presenting the chakra to Vishnu,
standing reverently and receiving
Nandikesvara
is
Adhikara-Nandi
elsewhere in this volume.
Nandi's tenure to
to the
given in detail under
is
Nandikesvara or grlhamTrti^*''"'
is
it.
an important adjunct
family of Siva. His history
coming
who
of life
When
on earth was
an end, he prayed intensely to Siva to
him a longer lease of life. Siva appeared and granted him his prayer, as also the command grant
over a portion of his ganas, and complete exemption from old age
near him and
and
pain.
He
then took the boy
threw round his neck the flower
garland that was gracing his own.
came a duplicate arms.
of Siva,
be-
with three eyes and ten
Siva took a quantity of the water of the
Ganges which he had it
At once he
upon Nandi.
Jatodaka.
It
tied in his jata
began
to
flow
and sprinkled as
the
river
Siva ordered his consort Parvati to treat
Nandi thenceforth
as her
own
212
son.
She
also smelled
ANUGRAHAMtJETIS. the top of the head of Nandi* flow from her breast and
head
of
Nandi
name
the
;
in three spouts
fall
this milk also
Trisrotas.
and milk began
became a
Nandi out
then
like the bull.
river
named Vrishadhvani,
This noise also gave Siva
still
with Nandi presented him with his
on the
river
of joy
to
under
bellowed to a
rise
more pleased
own golden
maJcuta and ear-rings set with precious gems. Surya
Nandi was thus honoured and loved by Siva sent a cool downpour of rain. The water
seeing that
having come in contact with the gold of the makuta,
began to flow as two
and Jambunadi. where
all
named Svarnodaka
rivers
Thus near Japyesvara the
place
these events occurred, five rivers began to
Nandi was afterwards crowned as the lord of the ganas and was married to Suyasa the daughter of the Marut ganas. flow.
In this aspect of Siva, Vighnesvara seems to
have been blessed by Siva immenugTahamurtr*"
^lately after he
was restored
by placing on his
head
of
see Vol.
an elephant. I,
pp. 36-39).
to
life
shoulders the
(For this account of Ganesa, Siva should have, as usual,
four arms, three eyes and the head adorned with a
jata-maJcuta and he should *
Ad
be seated with
his
instincMve practice of mothers in regard to their
children.
213
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. coQsort Parvati.
hands
in the
be
the corresponding
;
left
of
hand should be
varada pose and the remaining hands should
shown
The
abhaya pose and placed on the head
in the
"Vighnesvara
should have one of his right
f^iva
as carrying the parasu and the mriga.
right leg of Siva should be bent
on the seat while the down.
The colour
should be
on the
left
one should be hanging
of Siva is to be black
ornaments on
all
and be resting
his person.
Near him
should be seated Parvati, smiling and
left
keeping in her right hand a utpala holding
and there
the
hand
left
Curiously enough,
it
is
should have three eyes.
bent and the
in
the
and
flower
varada
pose.
stated here that Parvati
She too has her right
leg
one hanging.
left
Vighnesvara,
of
red colour, adorned with a
kiritamakuta on his head, and carrying in his hands the p&sa and ankusa, should be standing reverently before Siva with his other two hands held in the anjali pose.
Arjuna was presented by Siva with the powerful
weapon named the pasupatastra ^5.Kiratarjuna-
gg^j.
gucCCSSfully
Kauravas. gift
of the
Vanaparian
The
weapon by Siva of
the
is
against
the
account of
the
narrated in
the
Mahabliarata
thus
:
Arjuna
being advised by Indra to beseech Siva to grant 214
to
him
ANUGEAHAMtJRTIS. the powerful pakupatastra, went north to the
Hima-
laya mountain, where he began to observe severe for
austerities
pleasing
alarmed at the severity
aware
already
rishis
were
the austerities of Arjuna
of
matter
and reported the
The
^iva.
to
Siva.
Siva being
reason for the penance of
of the
Arjuna, pacified the rishis and himself assuming the form of a Jcirata (hunter) approached Arjuna.
Just
that
at
of a
moment
an asura in the
boar was about to attack Arjuna;
form Arjuna
having seen the boar coming against him aimed his
arrow
against
but
it,
the
Jcirata
disputed
the right of Arjuna to shoot the boar which he was the
first
to
aim
claim of the
Arjuna not consenting to the
at.
they both simultaneously shot
hirdbta,
the boar and killed Jcirata as
Arjuna then reviled the
it.
an unsportsman-like person, upon which
a fight ensued between the hirata and Arjuna, in
which the at the
end
senses, he
and
fell
latter fell
was uniformly unsuccessful, and After he regained his
exhausted.
recognised in the hirata Siva himself
at his feet
and praised him.
Siva in his
turn admired the strength and courage of Arjuna
and promised the most powerful weapon which Arjuna was praying
for
namely the pa§upatastra.
and was
fit
to employ,
Thus did Arjuna procure
from Siva the pasupatastra. 215
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The Kiratarjunamurti
described as having
is
four arms, three eyes and a jatamahuta on the
He
head.
is
adorned with
ornaments and wears
all
His colour
nice garments and a yajnopavita.
He
red.
is
is
to be standing perfectly erect {sama-
hhanga) carrying in his hands the dhanus, the the parasu and the mriga.
Arjuna
is
bd,na,
to be seen
standing on the right of Siva and Gauri on the
left.
Arjuna should be represented as having only one face, set
with two eyes and standing with his hands
held in
the
anjali
His head
pose.
should be
adorned with Sijatamakuta and his person with
all
ornaments.
The
Two
illustrations are given of the Kiratamurti.
first
belongs to the Siva temple at Tiruch-
chengattangudi, in which Siva and Parvati stand
The former carries the para§u, the mriga and a bow. The photograph is of an image together.
to be found in
In this
SriSailam.
seen
is
Siva
portrayed in the act of giving the weapon paknpatastra to Arjuna.
(See PI.
LH,
The weapon pahupatastra Saivagamas as a person thus
:
is
figs. 1
and
2),
described in the
— The
Pasupatastra
should have four faces each with three eyes
should have four arms and tusks,
stiff
hair
and
fierce
it
terrific faces
with awful
moustache,
all
strongly the impression that 216
;
it is
a
terrific
lending aspect
PLATE
LII.
CO
a o 02
60
[To face page 2i6]
•-
00
•l-H
M
ANUGRAHAMtJETIS. In the four hands there should be the haMi, the mudgara, the sankha and the Jchadgaof Siva.
This image representing the Pa&upatastra should be seated upon a padmasana.
Ravana, king
Lanka, having gone to defeat
of
Kubera was returning
On
his
after achieving his purpose.
way he came
to Saravana,
He
which Karttikeya was born. hill,
griham^tL*'^"'
from the top
much more
^
the place in
ascended
of
the
which he saw garden
pleasant
whither he drove his vimana Pushpaka.
But when
move any
it
further.
neared the place
At
it
would not
Ravana met
this place
a
tawny coloured, monkey-faced and powerful dwarf, by name Nandikesvara, one of the strong adherents of ^iva,
able to
who, on being asked why the car was un-
move
further, told
with his consort
and had prohibited that way.
Ravana
that
Mahadeva
Uma was sporting on the mountain all,
even the gods, from crossing
In great anger Ravana asked who that
Mahadeva was and laughed contemptuously monkey-faced Nandikesvara.
at the
Nandikesvara,
who
was no other than a form of Siva, grew incensed at the insult offered to him by Ravana and cursed that he should be destroyed by monkeys
like
himself in
appearance and strength. Not being able to proceed further and being cursed by Nandikesvara, 217 28
Ravana
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. determined to pluck up the mountain Kailasa, from its
very roots, threw his ten arms round the moun-
and began
tain it,
to Hft
He was
up.
it
so that those that were on
it
able to
move
trembled and
Uma
actually began to shake out of fear
the real
Siva, learning
lord.
mountain with the great toe
and clung
to her
cause, pressed the
of his foot,
which
fixed
down his own
the mountain firmly as of old and also pinned
Ravana underneath
Ravana
it.
seeing
miserably helpless condition, and advised by his counsellors to
Mahadeva wept for a hymns in praise of Siva
propitiate
thousand years, singing
;
the latter was at last pleased with Ravana,
whom
he presented with a sword at his request and
him return given the
to
Lanka.
Because he
cried,
tion of this legend.
LIV to
third
The
and second.
the finest pieces
to be
of
sculpture
The natural proportions
of
the group, the great realism in
and the expression on the face are
it,
LIII
The
especially the
admirably
first
found in the Dasavatara cave
one
in
Pis.
Belur in the Mysore State.
is
India.
first
illustra-
belong to the Ellora rock caves and the
which of
he was
name Ravana.
Three photographs are reproduced in
and
let
fright
worked 218
extant
in
each image in their
of
is
moulding
many
a figure
of Parvati, all these
out.
In
this
group,
PLATE
LIU.
Eavananugraliamiirti [To face page 218]
:
Stone Panel
:
Ellora.
PLATE
LIVi
H p Hi
Ol
o a o
&
M
[To face page 219]
PLATE
LV.
Eavananugrahamuiti Stone
[To face page 219]
;
Belur,
ANUGRAHAMURTIS. Siva and Parvati are seated upon the mountain Kailasa
the artist
manner represented
tional
conven-
has in the
as a pile of rhomboidal
Surrounding this pair are seen two of his
pieces.
own
which
attendants
and two
female attendants of
Parvati and on either side are two of the ganas, dwarfish
little
Below
attitude.
Ravana,
fellows standing in a very reverential is
mighty strength trying
of
the Kailasa
mountain
the
His posture
hill.
is
seen
be
to
to up-root
suggestive of the
display of his strong muscular energy.
Parvati, in
great fear, embraces the well-proportioned and well-
body
built
of Siva,
and is seen in
who
his turn
is
calm and unperturbed,
embracing and reassuring his
frightened consort.
The second panel which is found in the socalled Dhumar Lena Cave, is almost similar to the above described sculpture, but utterly lacks the spirit
and realism
The other
of the former.
differ-
ences between the two are that in the latter there are
more ganas and a number
of
gods with their
consorts praising Siva and Parvati.
The
original of the third photograph
is
sculp-
tured on the south wall of the central shrine
Chennakesavasvamin temple
at Belur.
It is a
elaborately carved piece of sculpture and teristic of the
Hoysala
style.
219
is
of
most
charac-
The Kailasa mountain
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. is
so
minutely carved as to accommodate in
number
a large
sorts of animals,
On
snake.
mandapa
all
from the elephant down to the top
and
in
a
finely
carved
Mahadeva and Parvati, surnumber of other deities who are Below the mountain is to be seen
are seated
rounded by a praising
the
gods and goddesses and
of
it
him.
Rapvana in a kneeling posture trying to
mountain, as in the other photographs.
lift
up the
He
has a
sword in his hands, perhaps the one presented to
him by
Siva.
220
NR1TTAML3RTIS.
NEITTAMUETIS. we have
SIVA,
already said,
is
a great master
He was
in the art of dancing.
often dancing
in ecstacy on the burning ground with great glee,
accompanied by sweet music in which a
great expert.
also
he was
The Bharata-Ndtyasastra men-
tions a hundred and eight different kinds of dances
and
in the
in a
hundred and eight modes.
Saivagamas
stated that Siva danced
it is
hundred and eight kinds
of
Perhaps the one
dances mentioned in the
sdstra are identical with the one hundred
modes
of
dances of Siva.
mention the necessity
tinctly
males and females dancing
which that
is
is
all
;
and eight
The Ndtya-sdstras
in the
of
dis-
dancing for both
case
of
the
former,
said to give a suppleness to the limbs,
very useful in warfare.
It is very curious
the one hundred and eight kinds of dances
are sculptured on either side of a gopura in the.
Nataraja temple at Chidambaram with their descriptions in
Sanskrit
as they
are
found in the
Bharata-Ndtya-sdstras engraved below each one of
them.
These
sculptures and 223
the texts
are
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Madras Epigraphist's Annual
reproduced in the
Eeport
for 1913-14.
The Saivagamas, state that Siva danced in a hundred and eight modes but content themselves with the description of nine modes only as it is very difficult to describe all.
Of these the
first
variety
we see associated with the figure of Nataraja, commonly found in all §aiva temples of importance. According to the Amsumadhheddgama is
the one which
the image of Nataraja should be sculptured according to the Uttama-da§a-tala measurement. front left
hand should be held
in the
The
dandahasta or
the gajahasta pose across the body, and the back left
hand should carry agni
upon the palm
itself.
either in a vessel or
In either case the agni should
be at the end, middle or the root of the middle finger.
The
front
right
hand should be held
abhaya pose, the top
of
the
the middle finger of which
should be just touching the hikka-sutra. fore-arm of this
in
On
the
hand, there should be the sarpa-
valaya, a description of which
is
given on page 23 in
the Chapter on Definition and description of terms in Vol. I
;
it
is
there called bhujangavalaya and
means the same thing as sarpavalaya. The back right hand should keep a damaru. The right leg should be slightly bent and placed upon the back of the
Apasmarapurusha and the knee should reach 224
NRITTAMtBTIS.
The
the nahhisutra.
left leg
somewhat turned towards the across
On
it.
should be
lifted up,
right leg
and kept
the head of Siva there should be the
jatamahuta adorned with flower garlands, dhurdhura
and
a snake, jewelled ornaments, a
arJca flowers,
grinning
on the issue
human
side.
left
on either
and stand
skull
From
this
tied
jatamakuta should
side five, six, seven or eleven jatas
either
The body
circle.
and the crescent moon
horizontally or arranged of Siva
in a
should be adorned with
a yajnopavita, a urassutra (a chest band), rings on all
fingers except the middle ones,
on
all
toes except
the middle one and anklets on the ankles.
should
face
be
smiling.
The chest should be
smeared with saffron paste and the
body with ashes.
The
rest of the
The garment must be made
of
tiger's skin.
The Apasmara-purusha who
is
trodden on by
Siva should have his head on the right side and his legs
on the
in colour all
left side of Siva.
He
should be black
and be playing with a snake, by keeping
his fingers in
a cuplike shape, and resembling
the hood of a snake (naga-mudra).
On
the
left of
Nataraja should be standing
his consort Parvati, in the
manner described
Uma-sahita-Chandrasekharamurti. 226 S9
in
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. The measurements
of
the position
the
of
various limbs of this image are given in Appendix A.
This
mode of dancing of Siva as Amkumadhhedagama. The TJttara-
the
is
found in the
first
EamiJcagama gives a somewhat
detailed descrip-
which only those that are not already
tion, of
given above are noticed here, this authority, should
poses described and
^iva, according to
have four arms kept in the with the
objects
mentioned
above, three eyes and two legs disposed as in the
above
The
description.
These jatas might vary
around the jatamakuta. from
five to thirty,
one another.
each one being separated from
In the intervals between the
might be the flowers
The
plants.
brownish
half
colour
red.
should be
jatas should be spread
of
jdta,s
dhurdhura, arka and other these
of
jatas
should
be
In the jatas on the right side there
the
figure of
shaped in the form
Ganga with the upper of
a
woman and
the
lower half like running water, standing with hands in the anjali pose
;
on
\>h.e
jatas on the
should be the crescent moon.
left side
Round
there
the neck of
Siva there should be necklaces of different sorts one ;
should be snakes,
made
of pearls,
another should be
a third of vahula flowers
composed
of sea-shells, boar's tusks,
226
of
and a fourth tiger's
claws
NEITTAMUETIS. and beads, with a pendant
his left shoulder there should be
made
On
of a tortoise shell.
an upper garment
a deer's skin, or a very fine-
of tiger's skin,
textured cotton cloth.
On
his
left
earlobe there
should be a patra-Jcundala and on the right one a nakra-'kunciala
and
bells
another
The
designs.
on the ankles, anklets made
;
set
composed
of
of tiny
ornamental
colour of ^iva-Nataraja should be
The
milky- white.
rest of the description is exactly
that given in the AmhumadhTiedagama.
The Apasmara should be made tala
in the chatus-
measurement, with two arms, two eyes, with
the face downcast or looking up and should be
hand a cobra with uplifted hood. The height of Ganga should be equal to that of
holding in his
left
the face of Siva.
two arms held
She should have three
all
other ornaments.
the right side of Nataraja there should be
either the
risTii
Bhringi or Bhadrakali.
This dance, trdisa.
eyes,
in the anjali pose, adorned with the
Tcaranda-makuta and
On
(?)
it is
said, is
known
as
If the foot of the uplifted leg is
than the knee of the standing
leg,
Bhujahgakept higher
the dance
is
said
to be Bhujanga-lalita.
In the Natya-Sastra however that particular
dance which is
defined
is
known by the name of bhujahgatrasa
as follows: one 227
leg
being bent in a
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. triangular fashion and lifted up while the body about
the hip and knee being slightly turned on one side, called hhujangatrasa.
is
Abhinavaguptacharya, the
commentator of the Bharata-Natya-'sastra, explains the term hhujangatrasa in his Ndtya-veda-vivriti, thus
' :
This kind of dance
because in as
is
called hhujangatrasa,
the dancer suddenly
it
lifts
up
his leg
though he discovered a snake very near him,
and appears
to be of
an unsteady
gait-
In
this,
one arm should be in the dola-hasta pose and the
and the dola-hasta
in the
pose
defined in the Bharata-Natya-sastra thus:
is
JcataJca
pose
*
other
hand hangs down
If the
;
freely
from the somewhat
drooping shoulder, in the form of the patd,ka-hasta, it is
called dola-hasta pose,
The Silparatna adds
t
to the foregoing descrip-
tions of the Nrittamurti the fact that surrounding
f ^^ Ti^lc^^
*
^rrf^g^^f
Tflf
^ t
Tf^^^ *R^:
^ JT^T
(
g^r^rfiicTq;
^^
jrl%fSrQ?^
*1^
5r^i55
f
"TcTT^
^
I
^
i^^jsj gf^-
?"!^1?^: T^
^
Wf ^
i
^^^
3
ffct
228
^SZ^Wf
JR5^^
#^^:
II
ifcT
I
^^H
I
t^-
NEITTAMUETIS. the figure of the dancing 6iva there should be a
prabhdmandala resembling the orb of the sun and the Purva-Karanagama states that the eyes of Siva ;
should resemble the shape of the bird
that
Tcurari,
in the right ear of Siva there should be the naJcra-
kundala and in the
garment
of
ear patrahundala, that the
Siva should be a
agni in the or flames
left
left
tiger's skin, that
the
hand should have three tongues
and that between the two
left
hands there
should be a piece of tiger's skin to serve as the
upper garment.
It further
adds that the figure of
Apasmarapurusha should be made in the chatustala
measurement and should have three bends
in its
body.
The
descriptions given above of the
of the Nrittamurti, refer to the figures of
commonly occurring everywhere In
all
first
form
Nataraja
in Southern India.
Siva temples of importance a separate place
allotted to Nataraja
Sabha
or simply
these Sabhas earliest
is
which
Sabha.
known as the NatanaThe most important of
is
that at Chidambaram.
times Chidambaram
sacred by the ^aivas
who
is
From
the
has been held very
call it "
the temple
".
In
the days of Tirujnanasambandha, the Saiva saint, that it
is,
in the middle of the seventh century A. D.,
was already very famous.
immemorial the god
Further from time
in the temple at
229
Chidambaram
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. who were They had strongly ^aiva in their persuasions. covered the Sabha with gold and hence it came to be known as the Kanakasabhd (or the golden hall) and the image of Nataraja as Kanakasabhapati. The had been the family deity
Sabha
at
of the
Madura, the capital
of the
known
covering of silver and was sabha.
The Cholas might have
Pandyas
Cholas
Pandyas, had a as the Bajata-
desired to out-do the
in their regard for their family deity
hence covered the Sabha, not with
and
silver as the
Pandyas had done, but with gold and in the days ;
the king Parantaka Chola
was
regilt.
I,
of
the roof of the Sabha
At the present day the
(A.D. 908-948).
Nattukkobtaichettis have once again covered the
temple with gold. Chidambaram has been maintaining
its
importance from the earliest times and has
always been the seat of activity of several Saiva scholars.
For instance, the Periyapurdnam de-
scribing the lives of the sixty-three Saiva saints
was
written and published by Sekkilar in this temple
many
;
a work on Saiva Siddhanta was written and
published there.
The
the evening of his
saint
Manikkavachaka spent
in
Chidambaram and such Nanda and
life
great Saiva saints as Jfianasambandha,
others are said to have been absorbed in the figure of
Siva at Chidambaram.
On
associations, the temple at
account
of
Chidambaram
230
such holy is
clothed
nbittamGetis. with extraordinary sanctity and mysticism, and a good deal of philosophical significance
attri-
is
buted to the dancing immage of Siva that graces the Sabha in the temple.
The
significance
of
the
dance
mystic
is
explained in several ways.
The same materials
which were gathered by me
for the purpose of ex-
plaining the mystic nature of the dance of Siva
have been turmed
kumarasvami
in
beautiful article
to account
writing
by Dr. A. K. Ananda-
independently a very
which he contributed
to the 8id-
dhanta-Dipika (Vol. XIII, July 1912).
Since the
work has already been done by him and
if
in quite a splendid manner,
respectfully say so,
my
task
is
may
I
lightened and I have
much
pleasure in
reproducing with his kind permission, the whole of the article here.
THE DANCE OF "
The Lord
of Tillai's
performs
:
what's
SIVA.
Court a mystic dance that,
my
dear ?"
Tiruvachagam, XII,
A
great master-of-dancing (Nataraja)
The cosmos steps in
is
His theatre, there are many
His repertory,
He
audience 231
himself
is
is
14.
Siva
different
actor
and
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY.
When
the Actor beateth the drum,
Everybody cometh
When
show
to see the
:
the Actor collecteth the stage pro-
perties,
to
He abideth alone in His happiness. How many various dances of Siva are known His worshippers I cannot say. No doubt the
root idea behind
all of
these dances
is
more or
less
one and the same, the manifestation of primal
rhythmic energy: of
Siva
is
the
Eros Protogonos
Lucian, when he wrote It
would seem that dancing came into being at the beginning of
all
things,
and was brought
to light together with Eros, that
one, for
we
see this primeval dancing clearly
set forth in the choral
lations,
ancient
dance
of the constel-
and in the planets and fixed
and
their interweaving
stars,
interchange
and
orderly harmony.
I do not
mean
to say that the
interpretation of Siva's
minds
of those
who
most profound
dance was present in the
danced in
first
frantic,
and
perhaps intoxicated energy, in honour of the pre-
Aryan
hill-god, afterwards
motif in religion or all
things to
all
art,
men
;
merged
in ^iva.
A great
any great symbol, becomes
age after age
it
such treasure as they find in their 232
yields to
own
men
hearts.
NSITTAMUETIS. Whatever the
origins of Siva's dance,
it
time the noblest image of activity of :
/
any
art or religion
can boast
of.
became
in
God which
Of the various
dances of Siva I shall only speak of three, one of
them alone forming the main subject of interpretation. One is an evening dance in the Himalayas, with a divine chorus, described as follows in the
—
Siva Pradosha Stotra
"Placing the Mother
of the
Three Worlds
upon a golden throne, studded with precious gems, ^ulapani dances on the heights of Kailas, and the gods gather round
Him
all
:"
" Sarasvati plays on the mna, Indra on the flute,
Brahma
holds the time-marking cymbals,
Lakshmi begins a and
all
song,
Vishnu plays on a drum,
the gods stand round about
" Gandharvas,
Yakshas,
:"
Patagas,
Uragas,
Siddhas, Sadhyas, Vidhyadharas, Amaras, Apsaras
and
all
the beings dwelling in the three worlds
assemble there to witness the celestial dance and hear the music of the divine choir at the hour of twilight."
This evening dance
is
also referred to in the
invocation preceding the Katha Sarit Sagara.
In the pictures
of
this dance,
^iva
handed, and the co-operation of the gods 233 30
is
is
two-
clearly
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. indicated in their position of chorus.
is
no
So
far
There
prostrate Asura trampled under Siva's feet.
as I know, no special interpretations of this dance
occur in Saiva literature.*
The second well-known dance
of Siva is called
the Tandava, and belongs to His tamasic aspect as
Bhairava or Virabhadra. teries
It is
performed in ceme-
and burning grounds, where Siva, usually
in
ten-armed form, dances wildly with Devi, accompanied by troops of capering imps. of this
dance are
tures,
as
common amongst
Bllora,
at
Bhuvanesvara.
Eepresentations ancient sculp-
Elephanta,
This tandava dance
and
also
in
is
at
origin
that of a pre-aryan divinity, half-god, half-demon,
who
holds
ground.
his
In
midnight revels in the burning
later times, this
dance in the cremation
ground, sometimes of Siva, sometimes of Devi, interpreted in Saiva and Sakta literature in a
is
most
touching and profound sense. Thirdly,
we have
the
Nadanta dance
of
Nata-
raja before the assembly {sabha) in the golden hall of *
It is not
known upon what
authorities the varieties of
dances referred to here and the descriptions of images made in these dancing postures, are based. texts
which mention a two handed
the act of dancing.
(T.A.G.),
234
I
am
not aware of any
figure of Siva
employed
in
NEITTAMUETIS.
Chidambaram first
or Tillai, the centre of the Universe,
revealed to gods and rishis after the submission
of the latter in the forest of Taraka, as related in
The
the Koyil-Puranam. all,
no very
the dance,
direct connection
may
In the heretical
legend,
after
with the meaning of
be summarised as follows Taraka dwelt multitudes of :
forest of
risTiis,
Mimamsa. Thither
followers of the
accompanied by
proceeded Siva to confute them,
Vishnu disguised
The
^esha.
which has
as a beautiful
were at
rishis
woman, and Adiled
first
to violent
dispute amongst themselves, but their anger was
soon directed against Siva, and they endeavoured to destroy tiger
Him
Him
by means
was created in ;
wrapped
it
little
offerings,
A fierce
and rushed upon
seized
it
and, with
finger stripped off its skin, like
and
a silken cloth.*
failure, the sages
renewed their
and produced a monstrous serpent, which,
however, Siva like
He
about Himself
Undiscouraged by
neck
sacrificial fires,
but smiling gently,
the nail of His
of incantations.
and wreathed
seized
a garland.
Then He began
but there rushed upon
Him
at last a
about to
His
dance
monster in
the shape of a malignant dwarf, Muyalaka (the *
A
similar story
is
elsewhere related about an elephant
and these account for the elephant or tiger skin, which Siva wears
235
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Apasmarapurusha). Upon him the God pressed the
His
tip of
that
it
and broke the creature's back, so
foot,
writhed upon the ground
all
His
last
and prayed
Siva,
things for the boon, once more to behold
this mystic
dance
;
Siva promised that he should
behold the dance again in sacred
The dance
of the Universe.
baram
so,
rishis.
Then Adi Sesha worshipped above
and
resumed the dance, witnessed by
foe prostrate, Siva
gods and
;
of
Tillai,
the centre
Siva in Chidam-
or Tillai forms the motif of the
South Indian
copper images of Sri Nataraja, the Lord of the
These images vary amongst themselves in
Dance.
minor
details,
may
image
all
express one
fundamental
Before proceeding to enquire
conception. these
but
be,
of Sri
it
what
be necessary to describe the
will
Nataraja as typically represented. The
images then, represent Siva dancing, having four hands, with braided and jewelled hair of which the
lower locks are whirling in the dance.
may
be seen a wreathing cobra, a
In his hair
skull,
and the
mermaid figure of Ganga upon it rests the crescent moon, and it is crowned with a wreath of cassia ;
leaves.
He wears a man's ear-ring, a He is adorned with necklaces
In His right ear
woman's
in the left
;
and armlets, a jewelled and
toe-rings.
belt, anklets, bracelets, finger
The chief part of His dress consists 236
of
NEITTAMUETIS. tightly fitting breeches,
and
He wears
also a flutter-
One
ing scarf (angavastram) and a sacred thread.
hand holds a drum (damaru, uduMai), the
right
other is uplifted in abhaya left
mudrd
one
(do not fear):
hand holds fire, the other points downward
The
the lifted foot.
right foot is
to
down
pressed
upon the asura Muyalaka, a dwarf holding a cobra; the
There
left foot is raised.
is
a lotus pedestal,
from which springs an encircling arch (tiruvasi), fringed
with flame, and touched within
by the hands holding drum and are of
rarely
all sizes,
of glory,
if
The images
fire.
ever exceeding four feet in
total height.
Even without
reliance
upon
literary references,
the interpretation of this dance would not be cult.
Fortunately, however,
of a copious
contemporary
we have the
difii-
assistance
which enables
literature,
us to fully explain not only the general significance of the dance, but equally, the details of its concrete
Some
symbolism.
of
the
peculiarities
of
the
Nataraja images, of course, belong to the conception of Siva generally,
Such
are
and not
dance in particular.
the braided locks, as of a yogi
cassia garland
:
the skull of
Gahga, the Ganges diva's hair
to the
:
fallen
the cobras
:
Brahma
:
:
the
the figure of
from heaven and
lost in
the different ear-rings, be-
tokening the dual nature of Mahadeva, whose half '
237
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. is
Uma
':
The drum
the four arms.
also, is a general
attribute of Siva, belonging to his character of yogi,
though in the dance,
What
ficance.
then
it
has further a special signi-
is
the meaning of diva's dance,
as understood by Saivas
The dance
?
Nadanta. Its essential significance such as the following "
Our Lord
is
His power in mind and in their turn."*t
in fact, represents
{PanchaJcritya),
given in texts
the Dancer, who, like the heat
makes them dance
The dance,
called
:
latent in firewood, diffuses
matter, and
is
is
viz.,
His
five activities
Srishti (overlooking, creation,
Samhara (destruction, evolution), Tirobhava (veiling, embodiment, illusion, and also, giving rest,) Anugraha
evolution), Sthiti (preservation, support),
(release, salvation, grace).
dered,
are the
These, separately consi-
activities of
Brahma,
the deities
Vishnu, Rudra, Mahesvara and Sadasiva. *
atrL-i— ^io6r&)QuiTeo
^L-®aSa(^LD t
a_i_«D aeois^ B-UiSleiairO(ue\)e\)irLh
iBil.®isjm
IB
iJaweiRiraaiT
QeOsnrQaieesii^^uj.
Kadavul Mamuaivar's Tiruvdtdvurdr Purdnam Putta-
raivatil-venra-sarukkam, stanza 75, translated by Nallasvami Pillai,
§ivajndnabodham,
p.
74.
This could also be rendered
Like heat latent in firewood, he
Our Father dances, moving
all
fills all
bodies
souls into
action,
know
ye
Compare Bokhart,
" Just as the fire
infuses
the
essence
and clearness into the dry wood, so has God done with man." 238
NEITTAMURTIS. This cosmic activity
is
the central motif of the
dance. Further quotations will illustrate and explain the more detailed symbolisms.
TJnmai VilahJcam,
verse 36, tells us " Creation arises
from the drum
proceeds from the hand of hope destruction
mukti
is
:
:
from
:
protection
fire
proceeds
Here
the foot held aloft gives mukti."
the same as anugraha, release.
observed that the fourth hand points
It will be
to this lifted
foot, the refuge of the soul.
We
have also the following from Chidambara
Mummani "
Kovai.
O my
Lord,
Thy hand
holding the
sacred
drum has made and ordered the heavens and
earth
Thy
lifted
and other worlds and innumerable
souls.
hand protects the Chetana and Achetana Prapancha which Thou hast
created.
changed by Thy hand bearing
All these worlds are fire.
Thy sacred
foot,
planted on the ground, gives an abode to the tired soul,
struggling in the toils of karma.
lifted foot
It is
Thy
that grants eternal bliss to those that
approach Thee.
These Five-Actions are indeed
Thy handiwork." The Darsana
following
verses
from
the
Tirukuttu
(Vision of the Sacred Dance), forming the 239
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. ninth tantra of Tirumular's Tirumantram, expand the central motif further "
His form
:
everywhere
is
:
all-pervading
is
His
Siva-Sakti
Chidambaram
is
everywhere, everywhere His
dance
As Siva
and omnipresentj
is all
Everywhere
diva's
is
gracious dance
made
manifest. "
His
dances
five-fold
are
in
saJcala
and
nishhala form,
His
five-fold
With His This "
is
dances are His PanchaJcritya
grace
He
performs the
five acts.
the sacred dance of Uma-Sahaya.*
He dances with Water, Fire, Wind and Ether,
Thus our Lord dances ever " Visible to
those
who
in the court t
pass over
Mahamaya,
Q^ssrQ La IT ifiu rrsGsr ^(^Bi—LorrQQLH. f
:
aneSQajiru-iru^i searsrrf&i^^iTi^d A-eiflQcuiTi—m^d (^sueovu^Q^iuituf. iSif.iuiSir^'SireOiS&r
iBiTi^peuLDUei)^Q^
euiresBeai—iuni^ iun<SiBir^Qe!ir.
2iQ
Maya and
NEITTAMUETIS.
Our Lord dances His eternal dance.* " The form of the Sakti is all bliss (ananda) This united bliss is Uma's body
—
This form of Sakti arising in saJcala
And ''
uniting the twain
His body
is
the dance "t
is
Akas, the dark cloud therein
is
Muyalaka,
The eight quarters are His eight arms, The three lights are His three eyes, Thus becoming, He dances in our body assembly (sabha) This felt
is
when
within.
self
Everywhere
the heart.
Thus
LDiTiL\LnjSieS
Its deepest significance is
realised that
and the
the heart
".|
His dance.
it is
^a
also
miTiuseiit^dirSU
:
it
takes place within
the kingdom of :
si—i^'S^^'irsiTeim
iBU.^Qfiu\L\Ui euirQ/D.
Ou.ir^^euiresni^OLDir(^iBt^LDir(DLD.
QLDitsniuQfidsesiitsarQp^Q(irfefifiiT^a
241 31
God
God that Everywhere we find another verse
is
aULf/DLoneanB^
LD IT OB lULDirLDiraauj
as the
is is
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. "
The dancing
sound
foot, the
of the tinkling
bells,
The songs that are sung and the varying steps, The forms assumed by our Dancing Gurupara
Find out these within your fetters
To
this end,
must be
fall
all
yourself, then
shall
away."*
else
but the thought of
He
cast out of the heart, that
abide and dance therein.
alone
God may
Unmai Vilakkam,
In
we find "
The
silent
jnanis destroying the threefold
bond are established where their selves are destroyed. filled
There they behold the sacred and are
with
bliss.
the assembly,
With
this
This
is
the dance of the Lord of
"whose very form reference
to
compare the beautiful words
f
QLairesrisfi LDirQpesflaiiT
is
the
of
'
silent jnanis
Tirumular
QpLbiaeo^eiD^
242
Grace. "t
QioirQ^^^
NRITTAMUETIS. "
When
resting
they (the yogis
there
who
attain the highest place of peace) lose themselves
and become
Where
Space.
What
idle.. ..Where
the idlers
idlers find is the
Siva ground.
the
the idlers dwell
idlers
know
is
sport
is
the pure
the Light.
is
What
the Vedanta.
the
deep sleep therein".*
a destroyer and loves the burning
is
But what does He
destroy
?
Not merely
the heavens and earth at the end of a Icalpa, but the fetters that bind each separate soul.
and what
is
the burning ground
?
It
is
Where not the
place where our earthly bodies are cremated, but
the heart of the bhaJcta, the devotee, laid waste and desolate.
He brings
not peace but a sword.
The
place where their selves are destroyed signifies the place or state where their egoity or illusion
deeds are burnt away
:
that
is
and
the crematorium,
the burning-ground where Sri Nataraja dances,
and whence
He
is
named
Sudalaiyadi,
^(^iB^irir &mis!r OfiueSiuireaeuiLi QmitdSl
«^^
QfirtMuir
^(T^uugi
QfiTUDuir
Qi—uu^ »^fi
OeuafliiSQe\)
QwireiflaSQ&
Qfituauir s-emit&igi »(t^^ Qpi^ib
^ujh
Qfirwuir sami—irirS «q^^ssl. QaaQui,
243
Dancer
of
HINDU laONOGBAPHY. In this simile, we recognize
the burning-ground.
the historical connection between Siva's gracious
dance as Nataraja, and His wild dance as the
demon
of the
cemetery.
This conception of the dance
amongst Saktas especially
in
is
current also
Bengal, where the
Mother rather than the Father-aspect adored.
Kali*
is
here
dancer,
the
voices this prayer
fire,
A Bengali Hymn
is
whose
for
entrance the heart must be purified by
empty by renunciation.
Siva
of
made
to Kali
:
" Because
Thou lovest the Burning-ground, I have made a Burning-ground of my heart That Thou, Dark One, haunter of the Burningground,
Mayest dance Thy eternal dance. "+ "
Nought
Day and
else is
within
my
heart,
O Mother
night blazes the funeral pyre
The ashes
of the dead,
strewn
I have preserved against
all
:
:
about,
Thy coming,
With death conquering Mahakala neath Thy feet * p.
Fiie article on " "What
is
Kali ?"
in,
S.D. Vol. Ill,
13,— £d. S.D. f
8_6\)fflG'LD
iLKj^euLDiT'S
eSeo^Quififfn
Qiunesflai^^uu^iTs
(^rrcnrdQifleaiu iL^LLmamiLDira
aeOL^® Q^iri^e06sQeirn(B
244
ibitl^s
iBUf.uuasr
iBir^ar.
NEITTAMURTIS.
Do Thou
enter in,
dancing
Thy rhythmic
dance.
That I may behold Thee with closed
eyes".
Eeturning to the South, we find that in other
Tamil texts the purpose
of diva's
dance is explained.
In Sivajnana Siddhiyar, Supaksha, Sutra
we
5,
find,
"
For the purpose
fruit to five, is
v.
of securing
both kinds of
the countless souls, our Lord, with actions
dances His dance".
Iham, reward
Both kinds
of fruit, that
and Param,
in this world,
bliss in
MuUi.
Unmai VilaMam, vv.
Again,
32, 37,
39 inform
us "
The Supreme
Intelligence dances in the soul
purpose of removing our
for the
sins.
By these
darkness of
Maya,
burns the thread of Karma, stamps down
Mala
means, our Father scatters the
{anava, avidyci), showers Grace, and lovingly plunges the soul in the ocean of bliss (Ananda).
never see rebirths, * S7il®
who behold
uSjreaii(S(ip(T^euireBreS
lueuiriu
Lap
this mystic dance".*
eSeis^Qji
i9asr(ii/'(Sleuirssr.
fiiiueu QfisSuj(j^eir^irOesr(S^^-^QiEUj^^ireo
245
They
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The conception
of Llla, the world-process
the Lord's sport or amusement, in the
"
^aiva scriptures
;
is
as
prominent
also
thus, Tirumular writes
The Perpetual Dance becomes His
Play".
This aspect of His activity appears to have given rise to the objection that
who
those
dances as do
seek to please the eyes of mortals
which the answer tain the
He
life
is
of the
He
given that
;
dances to main-
cosmos and to give release to
who seek Him.
those
In another way, more arbitrary, the Dance Siva
to
is
identified
with the Panchakshara, the
syllables Si-va-ya-na-ma,
of
five
which have a peculiar and In TJnmai
special significance in Saiva symbolism.
YilakTcam, vv. 33-35 they are identified in the dance as follows "
In His
shoulders
ya
is
feet is
na
in
;
His naval is ma
Si ; in His face
is
va
;
in
;
S-etDjriLjeeariTeijd
e\)iresrLDiree>e>j^/SiT
esTQp^^ea
QsiLi—ir QeurrfT^eueir tSKSu^fird
sjr^fiireo euealTinsi—irBsiuir^
—
ueiDiruSi^LDiTiLa
sir^aCoui^Qiu sq^^uti^q^^ Qsirehi—in—io
Qu^ULDeurrd^esmQi—n *
iSlpuLf.
^(Sihui^Qs&r iBeoeoiMUeo^^iT iBir
^(T^wi^uSQeo
!B,sinJa
246
'SesnuQesr
8S._®
His
His head
.
^iBiEfiwiriP^aS
in
is
NRITTAMtJBTIS.
A shara
second
is also
way
of
contemplating the Panchak-
given, as follows
The hand holding the Drum is §i ; the hand held out is va ; the hand holding out protection {ahhaya) is ya ; the hand holding fire is na ; the foot holding down Muyalaka is ma".* The text continues " The meanings of the five letters respectively "
:
and
are God, 6akti, Soul, Tirobhava
Mala.... If this
beautiful Five-Letters be meditated upon, the soul
where there
will reach the land
darkness, and
is
there Sakti will
neither light nor
make
it
One with
Sivam".+
Another verse
Uij^mai
of
the fiery arch (tiruvasi)
VilaMam
explains
The Panchakshara and
:
Dance are identified with the mystic Om, the arch being the Jcombu or hook
the
Mird^ua
amS
lusjrLcuujairiM
iE6Birijoif.dQifi
jiieinesBieO
—uird3e9ei>ps
Qpiueoe^ii
Qp^eaiiuipen QsQg^ea^sgt
LoemessfieSjrirLj lUQ^efTiresrsi
UiseojbjSearu^Q^
^eu^Q^
—isemssS
luird^Lo^^eaeiJ
247
syllable of
the
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. ideograph of the written symbol
:
"
The arch over
Omkara and the aJcshara which is never separate from the Omkara is the contained splendour. This is the Dance of the Lord of Sri Nataraja is
;
Chidambaram".*
The Tiru-Arul-Payan, however,
(Ch. IX.
3)
explains the tiruvasi more naturally as represent-
ing the dance of Nature, contrasted with Siva's
dance "
The dance
one side
mind I
wisdom.
of
matter {Prakriti) proceeds on
of
in the centre of the latter", f
am
indebted to Mr. Nallasvami Pillai for a
commentary on this The first dance
the action of
is
material and individual energy. tiruvasi,
Omkara, the dance
Dance the Omkara
the
of
Fix your
the jnana dance on the other.
:
of Siva
—
—
called
This
of Kali.
is
matterthe arch,
The other
ardhamatra
or the fourth letter
The
the Pranava, Chaturtam and Turvyam.
first
dance
is
not possible unless Siva wills
dances Himself. *
^BsnirQui mp/S^eutrS tLjpp^esBeir
Ou/b(yyiT LSIpuup0'ir f
EEcaar
isi—snr
is
the ahshara inseparable from
iSleir.
Qu>iT(T^uir
Qeoir^uireon
248
it
and
NEITTAMtBTIS.
The arch
is,
general result of this interpretation of the then, that
it
represents matter, nature,
contained splendour, Siva dancing
praJcriti; the
within and touching the arch with head, hands
and
the universal omnipresent Purusha.
is
feet,
Between these stands the
as ya is between
soul,
8i-va and na-ma.
Now we
summarise the whole interpretation,
to
The Essential
find that
Significance of diva's
Dance is threefold : First, it is Bhythmic Activity as the Source within the Cosmos,
Arch
:
which
is
the
of all
of Illusion
:
dambaram,
his
Movement
represented by the
Secondly, the Purpose of his
Release the Countless souls of
image of
Dance
men from
the
is to
Snare
Thirdly the Place of the Dance, Chithe Centre of the Universe, is within
the Heart.
In these notes I expressly refrain from tic criticism
and have endeavoured only
all aesthe-
to translate
the central thought of the conception of Siva's dance
from
plastic to verbal expression,
to the
without reference
beauty or imperfection of individual works.
In conclusion,
it
may
not be out of place to call
attention to the grandeur of this conception
itself
as a synthesis of science, religion and art.
How
amazing the range of thought and sympathy of 249 sa
HINDU ICONOGBAPHY. those rishi-artists
who
first
conceived such a type
as this, affording an image of reality, a key to the
complex
tissue of
life,
a theory of nature, not merely
satisfactory to a single clique or race, nor acceptable
to the thinkers of one century only, but universal in its appeal to the Philosopher, the Bhakta,
the artist of
ages and
all
all
and
In these
countries.
days of specialisation, we are not accustomed to such a synthesis of thought
such images as sion of
but for those
;
who saw '
'
could have been no divi-
this, there
and thought into water-tight compartNor do we always realise, when we criticise
life
ments.
the merits of individual works, the
extent of
full
the creative power which, to borrow a musical analogy, could discover a raga
so
expressive of
fundamental rhythms and so profoundly significant
and
inevitable.
Every part
of
expressive, not of
such an image as this
is
directly
any mere superstition or dogma,
but of evident facts.
No
artist of to-day,
however
more exactly or more wisely create an that Energy which science must postulate
great, could
image behind
of
all
phenomena.
If
we would
reconcile
Time
with Eternity, we can scarcely do so otherwise than
by the conception
of alternations of
phase extending
over vast regions of space and great tracts of time.* [*
Oliver Lodge, Hibberfc Journal, Vol. X, No.
260
2,
1911.]
NBITTAMUETIS. Especially significant, then,
the phase alternation
is
implied by the drum, and the
which
fire,
'
changes,'
These are but visual symbols
not destroys.
theory of the day and night of
Brahma
In the night of Brahma, Nature
and cannot dance from His
lo
!
waves
of
Dancing,
phenomena.
In
dancing, he destroys
and gives new less,
He
:
rises
awakening sound,
matter also dances, appearing as a glory
round about Him. fold
it
inert,
is
and dancing sends through
rapture,
inert matter pulsing
and
Siva wills
till
of the
rest.
He
sustains
the fulness of
all
mani-
its
time,
still
forms and names by
This
is
poetry
:
fire
but none the
the truest science.
Again, but Love
this
the
for
:
Nataraja
is
not only
purpose of
His
Truth,
Dance
is
Grace, the giving of freedom to countless individual in
souls.
power and grace
appear to
all
how supremely
Lastly, also,
image
must
who
as artists have striven
to give
expression to their in-
those
in plastic forms
dancing
this
great
tuition of Life It is not strange that the figure of Nataraja
has
commanded
tions past
:
in tracing
the adoration of so
we, familiar with all
beliefs to
all
many
genera-
scepticisms, expert
primitive superstitions,
251
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. explorers
of
the
and
great
infinitely
small, are worshippers of ^ri Nataraja
infinitely
still.
A.
K C."
Five photographs are given in illustration of the Bhujangatrasa mode PI.
first,
LVI,
The
dance of Siva.
of
that of the beautiful figure of
is
now
Nataraja discovered at Tiruvalangadu and
Museum.
preserved in the Madras
specimens of bronze casting in South India
finest
and extorts our admiration design and execution.
4amaru
are broken
and
the
is
orna-
dhurdhura
a skull, a cobra and the crescent moon. PI.
which was found buried
LVII, the
in earth
at present kept in puja in
that village. is
The head
feathers,
The second photograph, is
round the chest and the
lost.
mented with peacock flowers,
for the excellence of its
The prabhamandala, the
jaias, the upper cloth tied
and
one of the
It is
at
original of
Kottappadi
the temple at
As required by the agamas, the Devi
sculptured as standing near Nataraja, but on a
separate pedestal. side
There are
and between each pair
flowers and the figure of
of
five
them
Ganga.
jatas on each are
worked out
The Devi
standing in the tribhanga posture and has her
hand
let
down and
the Jcaiaka pose.
the right
The
comes from Ramesvaram. 252
left
arm bent and held
illustration,
fig.
1,
is
in
LVIII,
The image has not got
PLATE
LVI.
Nataraja [To face page 252]
;
Bronze
:
Madras Museum,
PLATE
LVll
a C3
+3-
lO
C O
fTo face page 252]
PLATE LVMI
Fig
1.
Nataraja
:
Bronze
:
Eamesvaram.
Fig
2.
Nataraja
Ivory
:
Trivandram.
[To face page 252]
PLATE
LIX.
Nataraja with Davi
[f o face page 2531
:
Bronze
:
Patt svaram
Ni^ITTAMUBTIS. the jatas round the head; the head
a hiflta
like
is
adorned with
jatdmaJcuta and the back hands are not
fully stretched out as in the previous illustrations.
The work
lacks the vigour of action
which
is
well
portrayed in the other instances, and does not
appear to be altogether a commendable piece of Fig. 2
art.
on the same plate
is
a piece of ivory
carving executed in the School of Arts, Trivand-
ram, which rules.
PI.
is
made in
LIX
is
utter disregard of the agamic
a pretty piece of sculpture belong-
ing to the temple at Pattisvaram.
The
second, the third and the fourth varieties
of Nritta are not very different
from the
In
first.
Amsumadhhedagama figure of Ganga standing
the second form of dance, the states, there
should be the
on the jatas flowing on the right hands held in the anjali pose of this figure of the river
;
side of Siva
with
and that the height
Ganga should be
sixteen
ungulas, an ahgula being a hundred and twentieth part of the total height of the figure of
the third kind of dance
it is
Siva.
stated that the
of the Nrittamijrti should be placed
In
left foot
on the body
of
the Apasmara-purusha and the right leg lifted up.
A
jaUbhhara or jatd,mandala spread
crowned head circular disc
is
of the figure of
round the
Siva in the form of a
required in the fourth form of Nritta
or dance. 253
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. The
fifth
form of the dance
from
different
right leg
is
and the
head
of the
should be
straight
lifted
left
upon
resting
to the
crown
somewhat
bent,
up
leg,
the Apasmara-purusha
Siva in this aspect has eight arms of
somewhat
In this the
previous ones.
the
to be
of §iva is
three out
in
;
the four right hands are to be seen the §ula,
the pa&a, and the damaru,
should be kept in the abhaya pose
hands
left
to
is
right in the
one
while the last ;
one of the
be held crosswise, from
left
to
gajahasta pose, and the three other
hands are to carry the
Jcapala, the vessel of fire
and
a bell (ghanta).
In the sixth variety figure fifth
of
be as in the
Siva should
variety described above
represented here of
of dance, the legs of the
but Siva
to be
is
arms
having sixteen
as
the right hands
;
case of the
;
one
required to be held in the
is
abhaya pose and the remaining right ones to carry the
damaru,
{hasta
?)
Jchadga,
vajra,
and
a
snake
^amaru,
and the suchl
aula, ;
or,
pasa,
danda
taiika,
abhaya,
iula,
pUka
dhvaja {patdka-hasta?), vetala
pose.
One
of the left
arms should
be held in the gajahasta pose, being held across the
ones
body from carrying
left
to right, while the remaining
either
headed instrument
agni,
mithuna
like the vajra ?),
254
(a
double
valaya (quoit),
PLATE
LX.
Na^araja
[to face page isj)
:
Stone
:
Tenkasi.
NEITTAMURTIS. a banner,* ghanta, Metaka and Jcapala gajahasta, Jcapdla,
JchetaJca,
vismaya pose,
the
khadga and the suchl
To the
left of
;
or agni,
ghanta,
pose.
the dancing ^iva should be stand-
ing his consort, carrying in her
left
arm Skanda and
keeping her hands in the anjali pose, while the child
Skanda should, out
of fear at the sight of the
ecstatic dance of his father, be catching hold of the
breast
and abdomen
of his
On
mother, the Devi.
the face of the Devi the emotions of fear and
wonder and yet a
friendly feeling should be brought
out by the skilful
artist.
The photograph reproduced on illustration of the sixth mode of dance series of well-carved
life-size
^iva temple at Tenkasi.
hands
is
shown
In
PI.
LX,
in
belongs to a
stone images in the this,
one of the
left
as carrying a dhvaja with the bull,
the characteristic totem of diva's banner, sculptur-
ed on
To
it.
the right and
are the rishis tively
Vyaghrapada and
the figure of Siva Patafijali respec-
with hands folded on their chests in the
anjali pose. *
left of
This piece of sculpture
Here the word may be understood
to
is
one
mean
a banner or
the hand held in the form of a banner, pataka-hasta. these two
different senses are taken
accordingly.
of the
In
fact,
and sculptures executed
See the description of the illustrations to the
sixth nritta,
266
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Pandya period and
best specimens of the later
an excellent state
of preservation.
In the seventh form Siva
is in
image
of nritta, the
of
required to possess eight arms, three eyes
is
and an out-spreading ya^awawt^aZa; the
left leg of
Siva should be placed upon the Apasmarapurusha
and the
right leg lifted
One
as the head.
up
the
of
fully stretched, as far
right
held in the ahhaya pose, the §ula, the
others carrying the
Two
pasa and the damaru.
arms should be kept
maya
hands should be
poses,
in the gajahasta
respectively;
the
of the left
and the
remaining
vis-
two
carrying a Jcapala, and an agnipatra (or vessel of fire).
There should be a bend in the body of
ten angulas from the medial line {madhya sutra).
To
the
of the
left
dancing figure
of
^iva should
stand that of the Devi. If
mode
seventh
the
in
of
dance there be
substituted six hands in the place of eight,
the eighth form of the Nrittamurti. of the right
hands ought
In
this,
to be held in the
pose and the remaining ones to carry the
and the kula
;
and one
of
the
left
we
arms
get
one
ahhaya
damaru is to
be
kept in the gajahasta pose, another in the vismaya
pose and the third should carry a hapala.
Here images
it
of
must be the
fifth
particularly noted that the
and sixth 266
forms
of
the
PLATE
LXI.
NIlITTAMtETIS. Nrittamurtis should possess only two eyes, whereas the
all
rest,
and
described hitherto
hereafter,
should have three eyes.
The ninth form of Nrittamurti is described The image of ^iva should have four
as follows
:
—
arms, three eyes and a jatamakuta on the head.
One
of the right
and
pose
the
whereas one
hands other the
of
is
should left
carry
to
fire
in
In
it.
carry
arms
gajahasta pose and the
the
to
is
and should be somewhat the
A
right foot
damaru,
be held in
ought
particular dance,
this
Apasmarapurusha but
a
other hand
diva's left foot should not be placed of the
ahhaya
to be held in the
rest
bent.
upon the back upon a pltha
The
great toe of
should also rest upon the pitha.
photograph, PI. LXI, the original of which
is
found in the Siva temple at Tiruchchengattangudi, is
reproduced here in illustration of
dance of Siva.
There
is
this,
the ninth
a very close adherence to
the description in the making of this image and the
work
is
well executed.
From
a study of the so-called nine different
forms of the Nrittamurtis these do not really
it
becomes patent that
represent
nine varieties of
dances as described in the Natya-sastra. the dance of the
what
is
common form
technically
known 257
88
of
We find
Nataraja to be
as the bhujangatrasa
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. mode
of dancing.
Besides these nine varieties of
Am§vmadbheda-
the Nrittamurtis described in the
gama, we meet with several
Some
Natanamurtis in actual sculpture. matter of
do, as a
modes
of
represent
fact,
a
of
of
them
few of the
dance whose descriptions are found in
the Bharata Ndtya-sastra.
Since the art of danc-
which was very popular
ing,
images
different
twenty years ago,
is fast
so
till
recently as
going out of fashion owing
to the notion of a large section of the
English-
educated people of India that nautch ought to be discouraged owing to
dancing
girls
ideals
lofty
who of
its
association in practice with
have, quite contrary to the original
the institution, degenerated into
professional prostitutes, the study
one of
the Fine Arts
of
and]is least understood
India
is
and practice
of
gradually dying out
by the educated classes at the
The works dealing with the science have almost perished for want of appreciation, and present day.
it is
very
well versed with the
and practical
Ndtya4astra
aspects.
tions of the few
modes
in actual sculpture it is
meet a scholar who
difficult to
endeavour
is
really
in its theoretical
Consequently the explana-
dance
of
which
feared, likely to be
is
of 6iva
met with
are attempted below are,
somewhat inaccurate, but
made, with the help
mentary on the subject 258
of the only
written by the
comgreat
PLATE
LXII.
o
CM
> O u
a
o a
a C3
[io face pAge
iiSyj
NEITTAMtJRTIS. Abhinavaguptacharya,* to describe them as correctly as possible.
Plate
LXII
mode of dance which is called the Kaiisamam in the Natyaexhibits a
In
^astra.
^dancM*
this
mode, according to
the text of the Natya-idstra, the legs are required to be in the pose
svastiJcapasritam, while one of the
known
as the
hands should be
near the navel and the other on the hip
;
and the
The term the Ndtya kastra
pelvis should be in the udvdhita pose.
svastiJcapasritam * There
is
is
explained in
only one copy of this rare work hitherto
covered and this one also
now in
is
here and there damaged.
dis-
It
is
in the custody of the Curator of the Sanskrit Manuscripts
Trivandram.
If
other copies are found, the work deserves
being published by a competent scholar of the Natya-sdstra.
^f^d+KH'd^ j*i'diiii:
atiTirn:
t^
^«rH# ^jfesvqt
=^i5r
55[%5TTf%Hnrr STJRRgTT-
—^^^"r ^
ii
259
=?
^^rfe^
3i^^ ^^ ^^ i
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. but
it is
easier to
from a number
mology other if
is
make out
sculptures and from the
of
Two
of the term.
known
is,
in
;
ety-
each
legs kept crossing
as the svastika pose
the legs are kept a
that
the meaning of the term
this pose
apart from each other,
little
without touching each other, they are said Again,
to be svastikdpasrita pose.
the hands are
if
kept as described in the text quoted above, the pose is,
according to the Natya-veda-vivriti, the com-
mentary on the Bharata-natya sastra by Abhinavaguptacharya, this pose, is
is
known
as the
svastiha pose.
In
Abhinavaguptacharya says, the hand that
near the navel should be kept in the JcataJca-hasta
known
as the
in the latter pose the
thumb
pose and the other hand in what
arddha-chandra pose
and the other ble a bow.
that in
:
is
fingers should be kept so as to resem-
Again, udvahita pose of the pelvis
which one
side of
it is
technically
which
vaishnavastMnam, describes as follows
is
:
is
prescribed for
half
standing
known
as the
Abhinavaguptacharya
on the ground and the
other bent and placed across the
two and a
of
In the vaishnavasthana one
leg should be resting firmly
of
and the other
The mode
lowered proportionately. in the Jcatisama dance
raised
is
first
at a distance
angulas.
This sort of posture
men when
they are conversing
with other or throwing the discus. 260
NEITTAMtJRTIS.
In the
Of these, one
has eight arms. carrying a
on
illustration given
^amaru ; another
PI.
thrown a
is
held near the navel
One
broken.
is
is
down and on
upper garment of Siva,
fine cloth, the
and the fourth
hands
of the right
in the Ttataka pose, a third is lowered it is
LXII, Siva
of the left
raised in the tripataha pose, another
is
arms
resting
is
on
the thigh, and the hands of the third and fourth are broken.
The
The head
pose.
is
adorned with an extremely well
executed jatamakuta and
surrounded with a
is
The upper arms wear
prabhamandala. spiral
svastihdpasrita
legs are in the
bands resemblihg snakes.
On
around the neck hangs a necklace
and a yajnopavlta Besides
hatisutra on the
which
is
beauty
are
the udarabandha and
silk
and tiger's
loins.
The
skin, the latter
sculptured very distinctly and accu-
Parvati
rately.
of rare
abdomen and the
under-wear of Siva is of
the chest and
seen lying across the chest.
is
there
these,
beautiful
is
seen standing to the
with the baby Skanda in her arms.
left of
Siva
Between her
and her lord are two female musicians playing upon two musical instruments. a
man
Behind Parvati stands
with a big jatabhara bearing on
moustaches
fillet
and has a pair
he
one of the attendants of Siva.
are
is
the
four
of long
Dikpalas, 261
its front
Yama,
;
a
perhaps
Over his head Indra,
Nirruti
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. and Agni.
To
the right of Siva are three or four
male musicians flute,
another
is
of
whom
one
playing upon the
is
the elephant-headed G-anesa^ the is
The head
sounding the drum. first
of
son of Siva,
Over his
peering through from the background.
head are the remaining Dikpalas. This
also one
is
of the finest pieces of sculpture of its period.
The next mode of dance is Lalitam* In
technically called
the
this,
arm
left
Lalita dance,
should be held in the gajahasta
The
pose and the right in the pravartita pose.
former has already been described and should be familiar to those of this
treatise.
gajahasta
is
who have
studied the
first
volume
According to the Natya-sastras,
which both
a combination-pose in
hands are employed to produce the required
and
this is described thus
:
in the case of a
eflfect
human
^ ^^oi fc^ ^f^ft ^f^^ " ^rpftqff^ itf^^Fcfr f^RF#r," " %^^^ f^gg^tcft
55^
T^I^'jf
^^sR^rr ^ft^: =^^CT5:,^p%
"rarat
^:
^ ^ *R^«t tk^ %?ff^ra^:?rf^TSR-
?5gr^^n^ft"jr f^ffl^: g^r
262
iPL\TE
LXIll.
m
\
V Lalita
mode
of
dance
of
Siva
:
Stoae Pttnel
:
Ellora.
f
NBITTAMURTIS.
who has
being
stretched right
shoulder
other
thrice in the
arm
lifted
two arms,
only
the
across
and
the
if
one hand
if
chest
towards
other
arm
tripatalca pose,
that
is
the
bent
is
the upper
is,
up as high as the shoulder horizontally
and the forearm held at right angles
and the palm
hand bent
of the
to
it
at right
vertically
angles to
the forearm and facing upwards, the double-hand
pose
according to the Natya-
called gajahasta
is
This definition
sastra.
the explanation found in
but the one given here
no doubt,
is,
Volume
is
which if
is
is
I of this treatise,
Pravartita hasta
The
simply means uplifted arm. Lalita dance
from
applicable to the combi-
nation-pose of both the arms.
for the
different
leg pose required
technically called huttitam,
described in the Natya-vedavivriti thus
:
one leg rests firmly on the ground and the other,
resting
upon the
toe, strikes
the ground with the
heel, the leg pose is called niJcuttitam.
In the
ed as dancing in a of his
body
with the
PL LXIII, Siva is representvigorous manner. The trunk
illustration,
is
thrown on one
left side of
side depressed.
side
and
to the
the pelvis lifted and the right
His
left
leg is
standing on the
ground and the right resting on the toe the ground with the heel. carries the
back,
One
is
stamping
of the right
hands
4^maru, another the parasu, a third 263
is
HINDU lOONOGBAPHY. broken and the fourth while one arm
is
held in the gajahasta pose
kept
is
the tripataJca
in
pose,
another in the ordinary pataka or streamer pose (in
which
it is
kept
stretched horizontally,
away
from the shoulder), the third appears to be held in the tarjanl pose and the last in the Tpietty
are
sucM
pose.
A
jatamakuta adorns the head while the ears
ornamented with kundalas.
There
is
the yajno-
pamta, the hara, the udarabandha and a snake
On either
employed as hatisutra.
side are groups of
To the left of Siva is Parvati holding in her right hand the hand of her boy Skanda, while with her left hand she holds a portion of her garfour Dikpalas.
ment. the
Near her
right of
to her left is standing a gana.
Siva
Nandi sounding the drum,
is
another playing on
the flute and a
something which
not clear.
which
is
^iva dances, there
of Kali
seated in
its
previous
vigorous panel,
is
On
third doing
the seat on
the famished figure
an easy pose and witnessing
the dance of her lord. for
To
This panel
action.
This
is
one
belong to the rock
remarkable
and temples
the at
Ellora. Pis.
LXIV-LXV
Lalata-tilakam*
exemplify the dance called
In this mode
264
of
dance one
of
PLATE
LXIV.
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[To face page 264]
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PLATE LXV.
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NEITTAMURTIS. the legs
up (technically known as
to be lifted
is
the vrihcTiika pose) as
head with
its
going to mark the fore-
if
toe with a tilaka mark.
Abhina-
vaguptacharya informs us that that leg pose in
which the
vrischika pose, for
In Pig.
scorpion.
up behind
leg is lifted
is
then resembles the
it
1, PI.
LXIV, 6iva
is
ing on the Apasmarapurusha on his
he has his right leg
one of the
left
lifted in
arms
lifted
is
in the
abhaya pose.
figure of
the right
the
is
in the ^iva
the vrikcTiika pose
up in the pataJca
One
left of
Siva
is
of the
is
kept
seen the ;
on
a figure (who might be Nandi) sounding
This piece
of sculpture is to be
found
temple at Tiruchchengattangudi and
the same age as the figure on PI.
ing the ninth
mode
of
dance
LXI illustrat-
of Siva.
The sculpture reproduced as fig. is
while
Bhairava dancing in the Lalita mode
the drum.
is of
seen stand-
damaru and the other
On
of a
tail
left leg,
pose, while the other holds a Jcapala.
right hands bears a
called the
2,
on PI. LXIV,
to be found in the Kailasanathasvamin temple at
Conjeevaram. In this Siva has eight arms carrying various objects such as the -sula, the valaya and
^%^ ^%f^ f2ftf
265 S4
n)
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. the dhvaja
;
The
pose.
one of his right hands left leg
of
Siva
is
is
abhaya
in the
planted firmly on
the ground, while the right one goes up, from behind,
To
as far as the top of the crown.
Siva
left of
is
Nandi, also dancing, but in the Lalita
mode and immediately ;
half
the immediate
man and
half
Mnnara,
to the right is a
on a
bird playing apparently
stringed instrument.
On
the right and
niches
left
adjoining the central one of ^iva are the figures of
Brahma and Vishnu standing and praising The third illustration, PI. LXV, fig. 2, to the Kailasanathasvamin temple at
1am and
is
a very
The
Here, the
arms carrying various
right leg of Siva
the crown while the
left
belongs
Taramanga-
recent production.
figure of Siva has sixteen objects.
Siva.
one
is
is lifted
up as far
as
somewhat bent and
upon the back of the Apasmarapurusha. One the left hands holds a damaru which is sounded
resting of
by one
of the right
is lifted
up
to the
hands
;
also one of the left
the right of the figure of Siva
Vishnu sounding the drum.
and Siva
is
a figure of a rishi
The Apasmarapurusha
is
;
that of
is
sounding the cymbals and to the of
arms
To Brahma
head in the patdJta pose.
left
is
the figure
Between Brahma
who
it is, is
lying
with
not clear. his
towards the right and the legs towards the Siva and holds in his hands a snake. 266
head
left of
PLATE
*>•
LXVI.
1
a
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V
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a 13
C O
13
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PLATE
LXVII.
[To face page 267]
NEITTAMtJRTIS.
Another mode
of
dance commonly met with
in the sculpturing of the dancing Siva
is
known
The Bharata-Natya Sastra mode thus The left arm should be
chaturam* this
'
:
as
defines in the
anchita pose, the right one in the chatura pose, and the right leg in the Jcuttita pose.'
Abhinavagupta-
charya seems to be giving the term alapallava as a
synonym
follows
:
of ancJiita
that pose of the
are kept separated is
and explains alapallava as
called
and
alapallava.
hand
all
in
little finger is
Again,
the
thumb
is
is
chatura pose,
one in which
kept vertical, the three others
stretched at right angles to the
the
fingers
turned towards the palm,
according to the same authority, the
which the
little finger,
while
placed in the middle of the three
fingers.
Figs. 1
in a
and
2, Pis.
manner the dance
LXVI and LXVII, illustrate called chaturam.
267
Of these,
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. the
the reproduction of a very well executed
first is
piece of sculpture to be found in the lower cave at
Badami.
In
arms
sixteen
sula, the
the central figure of Siva has
this,
which are seen such objects as the
in
One
parasu and a snake.
arm
left
is
in
the gajahasta pose and the lowermost right hand is
in the chatura pose
from above Siva
is
is
whereas the third right hand
The
in the anchita pose.
figure of
adorned with various ornaments and a
prabhd-mandala graces the head, which
mounted with left leg is in
a neatly carved jata-mahuta.
the hiittita pose.
right of Siva
is
seen his bull-vehicle
to the left of
sur-
The
Behind and on the
Ganesa one
of
;
on
his left is
There are two
Ganesa, also attempting to dance.
drums
is
which
is
being
sounded by a male, perhaps Nandisvara. Fig. 2
is
almost exactly similar to
fig. 1.
mode of dance represented in sculptures of Siva is known by the name of talasamIn this mode of dancing the dancer sphotitam*. stamps vehemently the ground in front of him with One
other
3T^^RRT Pm d^ g: i
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"Ilfc^H
f^
^TT^st^ ggjj
268
fc^r
^hn^
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§HH
^
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it
PLATE
LXVIll,
Talasamsphotita mode
of
dance of Siva
Kailasanathasvamin Temple
[To face page 268]
:
:
Stone
Gonjeevaraic.
:
PLATE
Talasamsphotita mode of dance
Chengunnur
:
of
LXIX.
Siva: Stone:
Travancore State.
fTo face page 269]
PLATE LXX.
Nrittamurci
:
Scone
:
OoDJeevaram.
rXfi fare
naee 2691
NEITTAMtJETIS. one of his
In
feet lifted fairly high.
dance the hand pose pataka hasta
mode
this
of
also insisted
is
upon, according to the commentary Natyaveda-
Talasamsphotita mode of dance
vivriti.
LXVIII and LXIX.
fied in Pis.
the
photographic
first
The
is
exempli-
original of
reproduction
in
is
The
Kailasaniithasvamin temple at Conjeevaram. right leg of Siva is lifted
the
left
one and
ground ; the
up as high as the knee
the
Of the eight arms
held in the patdJca pose,
of
thumping the
act of
somewhat bent and
left is
upon the ground. is
in
is
the
is
resting
of Siva,
one
another in the abhaya
pose while the rest are in various other natya
From
poses.
jata on the
the jatamaJcuta of Siva issues one
left side
and on which
seated
is
with hands folded in the anjali pose.
shaded with Parvati
is
seated on a seat on the
and
is of
of the
it is
PI.
left of Siva.
LXIX,
Chengunnur
last illustration,
dance, which
is
The
also of
in Travancore.
PL LXX,
is of
a kind of
not easy to identify with any one
hundred and eight standard modes
enumerated in the Natya Sastra. ture, also
is
a piece of sculpture to be found
in the Siva temple at
The
Her head
the hood of a five-headed cobra.
photograph reproduced on this class
Ganga
In
of
dance
this sculp-
found in the Kailasanathasvmin temple
at Conjeevaram, Siva is seen suddenly
269
assuming
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. in the middle of his dance, a posture similar to the
He
dlidhasana.
carries the §ula,
snake and so on.
has eight arms,
of
which one
another the paraiu, a third one a
One
of the
hands
is
in the gaja-
hasta pose, another in the pataJca pose and a third in the chatura pose.
On the left side
niches in one of which
is
there are three
seen Parvati seated, in
another the bull of Siva couchant, and in the third
an elephant in
which
is
;
similarly
on the right are three niches
a figure which
is
unidentifiable,
some
musical attendants and an elephant respectively.
In a niche below the central one are three ganas imitating the dance of their lord.
270
DAKSHINAMURTl.
DAKSHINAMUETI.
A \ J'Et * ^
have already stated that §iva
a great
is
master of yoga, music and dancing and have
described in detail his dances in the chapter on " Nrittamurtis. "
other sciences he
One
namurti.
As a teacher
known by
is
account
of yoga,
the
gives
music and
name of Dakshian
explanation
name
regarding the etymology of this
;
states
it
when he yoga and jnana he came to be
that because Siva was seated facing south
taught the
known
risTiis
as Dakshinamurti,
This aspect of Siva
always invoked by students of science and
The
Sankaracharya, among
great
celebrities,
Siva,
have sung the praise
which
is
is
arts.
other
several
of this aspect of
as remarkable for its peacefulness
as the Nrittamurti
is
Dakshinamurti
for joyfulness. is
viewed in
four
different
aspects namely, as a teacher of yoga, of vlna, of
jnana and as also an expounder (VyaJchydnamurti).
one which
is
other Sastras
these, the last
form
most frequently met with
It has already been
Hindu
Of
of
is
in temples.
mentioned elsewhere that
temples, both Saiva and
the
in all
Vaishnava, the
niche on the south wall of the central shrine should
have the
figure of Dakshiriamurti enshrined in
273 36
it.
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY.
VYAKHYANA DAKSHINAMtTETI. As an expounder
of the
Sasfras, Dakshinamurti should be represented as seated on a secluded spot on the Himalayas, under a banyan tree, on a seat covered with a tiger's skin; or,
account has right
leg
it,
of
below the seat while the
left
across on the right thigh.
posture adopted here
back
the
of
one bent and rested
The kind
be kept
straight in the
the
Apasmarapurusha.
Dakshinamurti :
of these
the hand the
is
the varada pose
in
danda
in the
The back
varada pose
agni
account
right
a
upon
Even when
should rest upon
it
hand should hold tha
(fire)
it is
or
left
a
This
is
name whioh
aJcsha-
hand there should be
sarpa
(snake).
In one
stated that one of the left hands
be, as already stated, in the *
hand
stretched
pose, the elbow resting
mald, while in the back either
or
left
knee but with the back of the hand touching
left
it.
the
held in the jnanamudra or the
is
knee in that latter posture.
left
The
not rest on the
sandarsanamudra* pose and the front
may
sitting
may
or
should have three eyes and four arms front right one
of
called the vlrasana.
is
may
hanging down
leg
as another
on a white lotus {padmasana). The Dakshinamurti should be hanging
known
as the
varada or the danda
samdamsa
in
occurs also in the agamas.
274
may
the Nafcya-aastras,
DAKSHINlMUETI. pose
in the former pose,
if it is
;
the other
book,
left
hand holding a snake,
The
or a lotus or nllotpala flower. of the
bends will
body
of
might keep a
it
and
force of thought of the
of the resolute
god in the aspect
or the jatas might be held together with
In any case the mass
a patta-bandha.
should be embeUished with the flowers
durdhura (dhatura) and other wild with a serpent on the bells,
from
jatabandha, jatamandala or jata-
a jatabhara, ;
free
His head might be adorned with
of the teacher.
maJcuta
various parts
Dakshinamurti should be
—a rigidity indicative perhaps
fire
the
and with small tinkling
left
.
In the middle
should be visible
of
plants, as also
the hapala and the crescent
right side.
of jatas
moon on
the
jatabhara there
of the
the smiling face of the river-
goddess Oahga. The complexion of Dakshinamurti is
pure white, resembling a sphatika (crystal)
according
to
another
account
Dakshinamurti may be white,
the
colour
of
red, yellow or black.
His person should be adorned with
all
ornaments,
clothed with perfectly white clothes and tiger's skin, should
wear a white yajndpavlt'a and have on
his chest a coat of white sandal paste.
In his
left
ear there should be a Sankhapatra and in the right ear a hundala, or there
may
be only the sahhha-
patra or the Jcundala in both the 275
ears.
A
garland
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. of rudraJcshas should be
hanging round the neck and
The coun-
descending as far down as the chest.
tenance of the god should be absolutely free from
even a trace
of
must be
upon the
to the tip
of
aspect is
fixed
His sight
mental perturbation. tip of the
nose
;
according
Karanagama the sight must be fized on the the toe. The Silparatna adds that this of Siva which preaches the dharma or law
very auspicious to the devotees and grants
good to
its
all
worshipper.
Surrounding the great teacher-god, are to be
The names
rishis eager to learn the sastras. risJiis
of the
are given differently in different works
;
example, the Amsumadbhedd,gama mentions risTiis
dvaja,
for
the
Narada, Jamadagni, Vasishta, Bhrigu, Bhara-
Sanaka and Agastya.
The Kamikagama
mentions the names Kausika, Kasyapa, Bharadvaja,
Gautama and omits the names of two others though it gives the number of rishis as seven. The Karanagama gives the names of Agastya, Pulastya, Atri and
Visvamitra and Angirasa only. \ia>\e,
jatamaliiLtas
These
rishis
should
on their heads, the garland
of
rudrahsha seeds round their neck and white yajhopavltas on their person.
covered with
ashes {vibhuti or
clothed in white garments. rishis
should
Their bodies should be
not
exceed 276
hhasina)
The height that of
the
and be of these
chest of
DAKSHINAMtJETI. Dakshinamurti.
It is stated in the
Kamikagama
that the complexion of
the rishis Kausika
Kasyapa should be dark,
two others (unmentioned
of
in the text) yellow, of Bharadvaja red
and
and
of Atri
Gautama a mixture of dark and red. In grouping them on a panel around the figure of Dakshinamurti, two may be placed on one side and and
three on the other, or three and three on each side, or three and four on either sides.
The god Dakshinamurti should liinnaras, devas
and
be adored by
others.
The Apasmara-purusha should hold hand palm
in the of his
sarpa-mudra pose, that
hand
in the form of the
in front of the cobra
his right
is,
hold the
hood of a cobra,
which he should hold
in his
hand.
left
The Dakshinamurti Upanishad and the SutasamJiita give the esoteric
Dakshinamurti.
meaning
It is stated that
god who, at the end
of
of the figure of
He is the supreme
an aeon (kalpa) absorbs within
himself the whole universe and remains resplendent with joy.
Dakshinamiarti
Jndna (knowledge)
him
known
such
a deity.
also as daJcshina
and
ever in front of Siva and
is
gazing
in the aspect of Dakshinamurti, he
is
called
since daJcshina at
is
is
is
Dakshinamukha.
The Apsmara-purusha under
his
foot is the personification of the ignorance of the
277
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. which he keeps under subjection under
living beings,
The book he holds in his wisdom and illuminates the souls
the tread of his foot.
hand contains
The akshamald which he
of beings.
hand is
is
all
carries in his
His body
the representation of the tatvas.
composed
of eternal bliss
and eternal energy the ;
wide-spreading banyan tree casting deep shade
is
maya (illusion) and the vrishabha of Siva is dharma (law). Dakshinamurti is teaching the risJds who are already deeply versed in the the symbol of
Vedas the atma-vidya (knowledge
of self
and
soul)
He is
and rescuing them from samsara (bondage).
himself imperishable, without birth or death and
the kamaldsana or the lotus-seat upon which he seated
is
the symbol
of the sacred syllable
Eight photographs are reproduced in
illustration, PI.
its
first
This
sculpture.
central figure Dakshinamurti seated
on a raised platform placed under a left leg
illustra-
LXXI, comes from Deogarh and
represents a very fine piece of
panel has
Dm.
Of these the
tion of the above description.
is
tree,
with his
hanging and the right one bent and rested
upon the
On
seat.
his
head
is
a jatahandha
;
the
back right hand carries an akshamald and the front right
back
hand left
is
held in the
hand
jndnamudrd
carries a long object
easy to identify;
perhaps 278
it
The
pose.
which
is
not
represents a cadjan
PLATE LXXI.
JnauEL-DaksbiQamurtii [To face page 278]
;
Stone Panel: Deogarh.
DAKSHINAMUBTI. manuscript
or a bundle of kuha grass {kurcha) the
:
hand
front left
perhaps an amrita-
carries a pot,
He
ghata, as required in the Vishnudharmditara.
wears round his loins a garment which descend as far
down
as the knees
on
;
his
descending below as far as the
on
it is
left
shoulder and
thigh and lying
a krishnajina (or deerskin), the head and
being clearly visible there
front legs of the deer this
left
skin
worn
is
whole figure
the upavlta fashion.
in
slightly bent forward
is
portrays
insisted
beautifully
calmness
the
upon by the agamas and the
The
and a few
jatas are seen descending over the shoulders. face
:
The
that
sight
is
is
fixed
below.
Below two
and near
his seat
his left leg are seen
deer, also listening to this exposition of
dharma.
This brings to mind the analogy of the representations of
Buddha's preaching the dharma wherein
also the
same animals
of the audience.
are introduced as
members
Behind stands an ascetic with
crossed arms and legs and carrying on his
left
hand
an akshamala; he has a tapering beard and his jatas are tied up in a knot on the crown of his head.
To
the
left of
as tall as himself. tree
on a rocky
Dakshinamurti
He
seat.
is also
This 279
is
seated a person
seated underneath a
may
either be a rishi or
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Siva himself in the aspect of the Vyakhyana-
Dakshinamurti
on the
;
latter supposition the other
person (seated to the right) must be taken to be
However
Yoga-Dakshinamurti.
whom
to say definitely
hand
right
aJcshamala left
hand
head
and
is
its
upavUa and
is
is
this
of
is
not possible
it is
The
this figure represents.
though carrying an
image
cMn-mudra
held in the
pose, while the
held in the bhu-sparsamudra pose.
Its
adorned with a neatly execntedi jatamakuta,
body
covered with a deer skin in the
is
The
fashion.
right leg
and the
resting on the ground
and kept on the
down
is let
the seat
bent
left leg is
The garment covering the
seat.
lower portion of the body descends as far below as
As
the knees. is
behind
it
in the case of the other figure there
a smaller one,
also
an
right hand, holding an akshamala,
chinmudrd, pose and the
Below the
pot.
couchant with
its
seat
hand
left
of
this
shown
are
whose
kept
in the
is
devas and
water
carries a
image
head resting upon
which are kept crossed over each There
ascetic,
is
a lion
its
forelegs
other.
gandharvas,
who
as flying in the air over the heads of
two central figures carrying flower garlands in hands. is
are
these their
Higher up and in a separate compartment
sculptured
Brahma
as
seated on a
as usual, he has four heads 280
;
padmasana
but only two arms
;
PLATE
LXXll.
[To face page 281]
Plate
Jnaoa-Dakshinamurti
:
Sione
:
lxXiii.
Tiruvorriyur.
tTo face page 281]
DAKSHIljrAMUETI. the right hand
pose and the sides of
is
kept in the chinmudra or ahhaya
left carries
Brahma
On
a kamandalu.
are a deva
and his
both
d^vl, flying in
the air and praising him.
The second image whose photograph is reproduced as fig. 1, on PL LXXII, is to be found in the Siva temple at Avijr in the Tanjore It is also a well executed piece of this
district.
sculpture.
image the jatas are bound together by a
patta of elaborate workmanship.
In the
In
lalata-
left
ear
is
a patraJcundala and in the right a naJcraJcundala
on the chest are the yajnopavlta and a necklace rudraJcsha seeds
and the udarabandha and a cloth worn upavlta fashion.
The
front right
the chinmudra pose and the front rests
on the
right
hand
left
hand
left
is
is
and the
left
hand
is
in the
kept in
hand, which
left
In the back
knee, bears a book.
the sarpa (snake) while in the back
agni
the seat and
of
chhannamra
there are also the
;
;
is
(fire).
The
right leg
hangs down
placed upon the Apasmarapurusha
foreleg
rests
upon the
right
thigh.
This image belongs to the early Chola period.
The photograph reproduced on of a comparatively
PI."
modern sculpture
LXXIII
is
to be found in
a Siva shrine built in the second praJcara of the
temple at Tiruvorriyur. It 281 36
is
coarse in
its
execution
HINDU ICONOGEAPHT. and lacks
The jatas
effect.
in this case are spread
fanwise and are bound at their base by a lalata-
The image has the same objects in its hands the one noticed above (PL LXXII, fig. 1). But
patta.
as
there
is
in addition the figure of a rishi seated below
the seat of Dakshinamurti, with
The
the anjali pose. is
seated in
fig.
1,
a bhadrapltha
is
the mountain represented
it is
manner.
in the usual conventional
The fourth
hands held in
on which Dakshinamurti
LXXII,
PI.
LXXIII
while in PI.
seat
its
illustration,
exactly similar to the third
;
PI.
fig. 2,
LXXII,
is
but there are two rishis
sculptured separately and seated on either side of the central figure.
The fifth illustration, Suchindram of a
fig. 1,
PI.
South Travancore.
in
comparatively recent date.
It
a carefully worked wp jatamakuta jatas are seen flowing
down on
posture assumed herein
hand
right back left
hand a
in the
LXXIV, is from
is
is
;
The image has on
is
head
its
and a few stray
The
the shoulders.
the vlrasana.
In the
seen a lotus flower, in the back
sarpa, while the front right
hand
chinmudra pose and the front
left
is
held
hand
carries a book.
Fig. 2, PI. figure
of
LXXIV,
is
the photograph of the
Dakshinamurti found in Kaveripakkam 282
PLATE LXXIV.
Fig.
1.
Jnana-Dakshi^amurti Suohindram.
:
Stone
:
Fig. 2.
Jnana-Daksbi^amiarti
Stone
:
Eaveripakkam.
[To face page 383]
PL\TE LXXV.
2 pq
DAKSHINAMtJBTI. and belongs to the Pallava
Herein, the
period.
deity has on his head heavy curls of hair constitut-
ing the jatabhara ; he carries the aksTiamala in his
back right hand, agni
and a book in the front
hand
is
Eound
hand
in the back left
left
hand
;
the front right
The
held in the vyaJchyana-mudra pose.
is
right leg
one
(?),
is
hanging below the
kept bent
while the
left
utkutihasana posture.
the
in
seat,
the neck are two hards (necklaces) on the
and in one ear a
vritta-
the other ear wears no ornament.
Below
chest, the yajnopavlta
kundala
;
the seat are to be seen a deer and a cobra listening to his discourse.
PL LXXV,
Fig. 1,
photograph
of the
is
the reproduction of a
Jnana-Dakshinamurti kept
in the
southern niche of the central shrine of the Siva
temple at Tiruvengavasal in the Pudukottah State.
In
this case, the deity is represented as seated with
his left leg kept in the utkutikasana posture it is
stretched the front
plate is that of a
left
arm.
on
2,
and on
on the same
bronze statuette belonging to the
collection of Mr. Kay, Madras. to the figure
Fig.
PI.
LXXIII
;
It is almost similar
the only difference
is
that in the figure belonging to Mr. Kay, the back right
hand keeps agni and the back left one, a snake,
whereas in the Tiruvorriyur image the order reversed. 283
is
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY.
JNANA-DAKSHINAMtJETI. There
is
much
not
between the
difference
Vyakhyanamurti and the Jnanamurti. In the latter the general posture of Siva in the former,
is
exactly the
but in the back right
same
as
hand there
should be the ahshamala, and in the back
left
hand
The front right hand should be the jnanamudra pose, whereas the front left
a utpala flower. held in
hand may be kept
in the
abhaya or the danda pose.
YOGA-DAKSHINAMUETI. This form
of
Dakshinamurti may be sculptured
in three_ different ways.
In the
first,
the two legs
of the
image should be crossed as in the
sana
while the front right hand should be held
;
svastiJca-
near the chest in the ydgamudra pose and the front left
hand should
rest
istic yogic posture.
upon the lap in the characterIn the back right hand there
should be the akshamala, and in the back a lotus flower. of the nose
shoulders.
:
The gaze must be
fixed
left
hand
on the
tip
and a few jatas should hang over the This image
of
Dakshinamurti should
who should be adoring him. second mode of representation of Yoga-
be surrounded by rishis
In the
Dakshinamurti the
left leg of
the figure should be
bent in the utkutikasana posture 284
;
surrounding the
PLATO LXXVI.
^^^^'^^^^..i^.
Yoga-Dakshiriamurfci (locally
[To face page 285]
kaowQ
as Gaulisvara)
:
Stone
:
Tiruvorrlyur.
DAKSHINAMtJETI. body
of the figure
patta. seat.
and
should be a yoga-
its left leg
The right leg should be hanging down the The front left arm should be kept stretched
and be resting by the elbow on the knee of the bent
The
left leg.
rest of the description is identical
with that given for the
The third form thus The two legs :
is
first
form.
required to be sculptured
are bent
and crossed
in a
more
or less vertical position (as in the figure of Yoga-
Narasimha), and round these and the body
is
passed
a yogapaUa to keep the legs in position. The front
two arms are stretched and kept resting on the knees.
In the back right hand there should be the
akshamala and in the back
The
left
hand a Jcaman^alu.
jatas should be disposed of in the form of a
jatamandala and in
it
should be the crescent moon,
a snake and other objects. of this aspect of
The
Dakshinamurti
neck should be represented as
colour of the body is
white, but his
of black colour.
The
image should be adorned with all ornaments includ-
number of snake ornaments. The illustration on PI. LXXVI,
ing a
is
a well-
carved figure of Siva in the ydgS,sana posture. is
It
enshrined in a fane situated in the south praJcara
of the Siva temple at Tiruvorriyur.
The
inscrip-
tions on the walls of this shrine refer to the image set
up
in
it
as
Padampakkanayinar and 285
state that
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. it
was
set
up
in the fifth year of the reign of the
Chola king Virarajendradeva (about A.D. 1067-8).
From
main
the of
the position of this shrine with reference to
it,
central shrine, that
to the south side
is,
and from the posture and other features of
the image
itself
enshrined therein,
may, without
it
fear of contradiction, be stated to be the first of
form
The
Jnana-Dakshinamurti described above.
figure has a well executed
jata-mahuta ornamented
with jewelled discs and bands round in the ears
;
and hara and necklace
it
of
;
Jcundalas
rudrahsha
The forearms
seeds and yajnopavUa on the chest.
number of bracelets and the upper arm with Iceyuras. The legs are crossed one
are adorned with a
over the other so as to bring the soles up exactly
;
this is
the yogic asana called the svastiJcdsana.
In the back right hand there appears to have been a sula, whose shaft alone
being broken
;
in the
the front right hand
and the front istic of
left
back is
hand
an expounder
it
and
left
remains, the head
hand
is
the kapdla
;
held in the chinmudrd pose also in the pose character-
This image
of sciences.
goes by the inexplicable
near
now
name
to its proper right
of Gaulisvara is
set
now and
up in more
recent times the figure of Sankaracharya
;
on the
base of the seat of this latter are carved the figures of his four great disciples.
286
PLATE LXXVIl.
Yoga-Dakshigamurti: Stone: Oonjeevaratn.
TTo face oaee 2871
DAKSHINAMUETI. The second form
by PI. LXXVII.
is illustrated
original of this photograph is in the Kailasa-
The
sculpture Siva has his cally
Conjeevaram.
temple at
nathasvamin
left leg
on the seat and this
In
bent and rested verti-
and the body are
leg
bound together by the yogapatta. The front hand is held in the yogamudra pose, while the left
hand
is in
this
The back
the ahJiaya pose.
right front
right
hand keeps an aJcshamala, and the back left hand agni or a lotus flower.* The right leg is hanging
down the
seat.
Siva
is
as in the previous instances,
seated under the shade of a banyan tree and below his seat are deer lying, with their heads lifted
Below
Siva.
his right elbow is a cobra with
uplifted hood,
of Siva are seen seated a
bhutas on either
pair of
on either
situated
an
also gazing at the enchanting figure
Above the head
of Siva.
up to
On
side.
three
niches
respectively of Dakshina-
side
murti (not shown in the picture) are rishis sitting *
At some
later period of the history of this temple,
when
the surface of the stones of which the sculptures are composed
began to peel
off,
The
plaster.
nature of different
been covered with thin coat
all
plasterer not being able to
some badly injured things
required by the for the
they have
most
in their stead
dgamas seems
thus,
out the exact
has shaped slightly
objects :
make
of
a lotus
flower that
is
to have been evidently mistaken
likely object in the
back
agni,
287
left
hand
of Siva,
namely,
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. and listening to the preaching
Yoga by
of the
Vharma
The image whose photograph
Siva.*
or is
LXXVIII is almost similar to LXXVII the back right hand, in this
reproduced as PI. that on PI.
;
Dakshinamurti
instance, carries a cobra.
seen
is
upon a bhadrapitha placed upon a hillLXXIX is the photograph of the image of
sitting here Pi.
Dakshinamurti to be found in the Siva temple at
Nanjangodu represents,
the third form
asana
assumed with
posture goes,
The
form.
third
a
—namely,
*
Mr. Alex. Eea
its sitting
in
his "
legs
the
posture
aspects
all
Yoga,
is
;
:
the yogic
;
The Pallava Architecture " de-
who
is
and the
He
is
armed with
symbolical weapons, and seems to be preaching war" fairly
common
no serious refutation
;
on the
represented in a panel
side of the central shrine.
mistakes are
the
" in this panel, eleven seated sages are listening to
the exhortations of Siva,
north
the is
it
scribes a panel containing the images of Dakshi:Qamiarti rishis thus
are
But
yogapatta.
Vina-dhara and the Vyakhyana forms
Yoga form because
The
utJcutiJcasana
of
a combination of
is
Dakshinamurtis
of
form
that
is
the body with
in fact the image
This
Province.
its sitting
Yoga-Dakshinamurti.
the
described under the
bound
Mysore
the
in
only so far as
in his publications
nor are his drawings
288
Such
and hence need reliable,
quote an instance, a sankha in the hand of an image represented in the drawing as a padma.
different (!)
is
for,
to
wrongly
PLATE
Yoga-Dakshiriamurbi
;
LXXVIII.
Stone: Oonjeevaram.
[To face page 288J
PLATE LXXIX.
Dakshinamurti
[To face page 288]
:
Stone
:
Nanjangodu.
DAKSHINAMtETI. the Vinadhara because
in its back left
carries
it
hand a vma, and Vyakhyana because its hand
is
hand
carries a book.
in the
banyan
tree
chinmudra pose and the front
on the pedestal,
is
guru are
figure is seated
lihga.
prabhd,vali
is
seat
and in the
Lingayat priest who holds
On
either side of this
his disciples with their
A
below a
(the totemistic
Below the
in front.
hand a
left
carved in a counter-sunk surface
of it is seated a
in his left
pose.
The
and the Idmclihana
emblem), the bull,
middle
front right
hands
in the anjali
placed behind the figure of
Dakshinamurti on the jambs
of
which are standing
one on each side a rishi with the hands in the anj'ali pose.
VINADHAEA-DAKSHINAMIJETI. As a and
great teacher of music, both instrumental
vocal, Siva is worshipped in the
form
of
Vina-
dhara-Dakshinamurti. The description of the image of this aspect of Dakshinamijrti is
found in the
Kamiha, the Amsumadhlieda and the Karanagamas.
The Amsumadbheddgama should be kept in the
states that the left leg
utJcutiJca
posture and the two
front hands should hold the vlnd
;
the rest should
be exactly similar to the description of the Vyip-
khyanamurti.
According to the Kamikdgama the
Gana-Dakshinamurti should have his front right and
left
hands held in the 289
37
Jcatalca pose,
the former
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. with
its
palm facing below and the
The
above.
latter facing
Jcataha pose being slightly different in
Kamihagama calls the pose the sarpaThe left arm should be lifted up and the
form, the Tcara.
right
arm lowered below,
so as to hold in proper
position the long-handled musical instrument, the
The vlna should be held hand and by the right hand
at the top
Vina. left
by the
at the lower end;
the resonating body of the instrument should rest
The lower
on the right thigh.
right
hand should
be manipulating the strings of the instrument.
The measurement follows
:
of the
vlna
is
next given as
the vlna should be projecting three ahgulas
beyond the right thigh and four aiigulas above the
The
left kataJca-hasta.
points specified above
danda
distance between the two
the length of the vlnd-
is
or the hollow shaft of the instrument
whose
width at the top should be two ahgulas. The gourd resonator attached at the
lower end should be six
ahgulas in diameter and three ahgulas in height.
A few general observations are added also about the figures of Dakshinamurti. face of
It is stated that the
Dakshinamurti should be turned towards the
hand held
in the
gaze of the god
sandarsanaviudra pose
may
be fixed on this hand.
;
also the
Surroun-
ding the figure of Dakshinamurti there should be different kinds of animals
and 290
reptiles, sages
(munis)
PLATE tXXXI.
Vinadhara-Dakahinamurti: Bronze: Vadarangam.
[To face page 391]
PLATE LXXX.
Vinadhara-Dakabiciamurti [To face page 291]
:
Bronza
:
Madras Museum.
DAKSHINAMUETI. and
ascetics (siddhas),
hinnaras
;
bhutas and
vidyadharas,
Siva should be seated in a place on the
mountain where
all
flowering trees and
sorts of
plants grow luxuriantly and under a banyan tree,
on the right
side of its trunk,
on a jewelled
-pltjia
covered with a tiger's skin and he should present a
benign look: and the rishis the ancestors of the Sivadvijas (Saiva brahmanas) should be
The
round him.
figure of
Dakshinamurti
seated
may
be
sculptured as seated or standing surrounded or not
by
with his legs either resting or not upon
rishis,
the Apasmara-purusha and with or without the
banyan
bhutas and others mentioned above.
tree,
Two photographs,
Pis.
LXXX and LXXXI, are
reproduced in illustration of the Vinadhara-Dakshinamurti
;
both of them are identical in shape and
in the details of moulding.* *
These two images figure on
Siva
Pis.
is
seen standing
XV and XVI of Mr.
0. C.
Besides these, be has re-
Gangoly's South Indian Bronzes.
prodaoed two other photographs of the same aspect of Siva on Fls. I
and XIV.
instance, in
while the
all,
left
back hands
of
In every the right
one
detail all the four figures agree leg stands straight
is slightly
bent
;
all
for
on the ground
four have four arms, the
which carry the parasu and the mriga and the two
front hands are held in the kataka poses required in the
and are evidently meant
to
keep a vind in them
;
In the case
of PI. I, there is
291
agamas
the very same
ornaments, head-gear and clothing are to be seen on images.
;
all
the
a slight divergence from
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. with his right leg kept firmly on the ground, while the
The the
placed a
left leg is
two hands are held in the
front left
forward slightly bent.
little
JcataJca pose,
one looking up and the right one looking
down. Evidently a separately cast vlna was intended to be inserted in the hands whenever wanted
and hence
this instrument is not to be seen
The back
either image.
paraiu and the back all sorts of
left
elaborately sculptured ornaments on the
The
of
LXXX)
belongs to the Madras
the
figures.
LXXXI)
Vadarangam an
is
first
the
;
being placed directly on the ground,
is
one
similarity,
by
nay
identity
different
names
:
lastly
;
PI.
that on PI,
left leg,
four
292
if
its
PI.
I
embel-
striking
they is
are
said to
PL XIV, Ganga-
or Somadhari
XVI, Prameswara Swami
quite clear either from the dhydna-slokds
justifiable at all.
on
of the
images,
on
that on
XX, Chandrasekhara
short descriptive notes added to each
of
of the artistic
thus, the figure ;
instead
held supported
In spite
among the
be Kalasamhara or Kalakalamurti dhara, that on
is
master-sculptor.
the
second,
rather inferior workmanship.
head by a 6^Mia— which deviation
called
The
very high artistic
the description of the agamas, namely, the
lishments of
(PI.
found in the temple at
to be
in the Tanjore district.
first is of
figure
Museum, while the
earlier piece of sculpture, is of
value
a
carries
There are
one a mriga.
person
second (PL
hand
right
in
[sic).
;
It is
and not
quoted or from the
the identifications are
KANKALAMURTI AND SHATANAMURTI.
BHIK-
KANKALAMUETI. Once upon a time the great learning as to
who was
rishis, desirous of
the real author of this
Universe went to the top of the mountain Meru
and put Brahma, who was seated thereon, the question which was engaging their thought. his vanity, forgetting the real
creator,
In
he boasted
that he himself was the great Architect of the
Universe.
and
Meanwhile, §iva appeared on the scene
justly claimed the place for himself.
Though
own position was Brahma would not
reasonably defended by Siva,
Pranava (the sacred
syllable Otti)
his
on behalf
of Siva
will of Siva, there of illumination,
of
[Siva,
but
yield
in vain.
;
Vedas
the
At
and the
also interceded
last,
through the
appeared near by a huge
pillar
which demonstrated the greatness
Brahma remained
still
obstinate.
Incensed with anger at the thoughtless conduct of
Brahma, Siva ordered Bhairava
to cut off that one
out of the five heads of Brahma, which reviled
him.
Brahma
revived by the
suffered temporary death, but, soon
power
of his austerities, accepted
295
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. the superiority of 6iva. However, the sin of having killed
Brahma
(the major sin called
hrahmahatya) Bhairava
possessed Bhairava (a form of Siva).
Brahma
requested
to suggest to
Brahma
him some penance
him to beg food in the skull of the head cut by him till he met Vishnu who would devise means for wiping off the sin. Till then, said Brahma, the sin would to get rid of this sin
assume the form
;
of a
advised
woman and
be ever pursuing
Bhairava surrounded by a host
him.
went from place
(goblins)
All the
women
of bhutas
to place begging for food.
of the houses
he visited
fell
in love
with him and set out, singing and dancing, to
accompany him. of
Last
of all
Vishnu and attempted
sena,
to enter
the gate-keeper, would
A
enter. killed
he reached the abode
fight
it,
but Vishvak-
not allow him to
ensued in which Vishvaksena was
and added one more
sin
of
brahmahatya.
Bhairava, fixing the body of the gate-keeper of
Vishnu
on his
trident,
got into the
interior of
Vishnu's mansion and begged for food.
Vishnu
cut open an artery on the forehead of Bhairava and told
him
that the blood that flowed from
fittest
food for
Vishnu
to assist
Bhairava
him.
him
pleaded on behalf
in
of
it
next
washing off his
sin.
was the
requested
Vishnu
Bhairava to the personified
female form of Brahmahatya to quit him but she 296
kankAlamubti. However, the thought occur-
would not leave him. red to Vishnu that
if
Bhairava went to Varariasi
him
the sin would leave
and he advised him
off
from his
to go to this sacred place for being freed
Dancing with joy Bhairava wended
sins.
to Varanasi (or Kasi) with the
and as soon
of
way
Vishvaksena
as he reached that place, the sin left
him and plunged of
body
his
Brahma and
into the nether world.
The
skull
the dead body of Vishvaksena also
him and he once again became pure Mahesvara and returned to Kailasa. Vishvaksena was restored
left
to
life
and he joined Vishnu's service as
usual.
we meet with
in the
Such, in short,
is
the account
hurma-purdna regarding the bearing and the dry bones
QcanJcala)
of
of
Vishvaksena by
Siva and also regarding his begging
There
is
the skull
expedition.
a confusion here about Siva and a parti-
cular aspect of his, Bhairava
slaughter of
Vishvaksena
;
is
also the sin of the
imposed upon the
shoulders of Siva which were already groaning under
that of the cutting
The reason
off of
for
the head of Brahma.
Siva
having begged so
revealed by a study of the Dharma-Sastras. therein laid kill
down
that
if
a
is
It is
Brahmana happens
to
another of great learning and good conduct (such
a learned person
is
called a bhruna), the sin could
be expiated by following the 297 38
course
of
conduct
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY prescribed thus
the sinner should, with his
:
own
hands, erect for himself a hut in the forest, hoist on as a flag the
it
head
man he killed
of the
therein, having for his upper
'and live
garment the skin
of a
horse or an ass, which he should wear with the
hairy side appearing outside.
His underwear should
hemp and when worn
be
made
it
should not descend below the knee.
of threads of the
one hand, as his begging bowl and
a skull
in
one of
the long bones of
of the deceased
would feed the murderer not visit more than
and
if
the
stick he
as a
begging for his food saying
living
"
arm
who
is
silence
He
of a bhruna."
in his hut,
should
it
in getting
that day.
to a
Brahmana
on account village.
he should observe the vow of
and be contemplating upon the sin commit-
He may
undertake to tend the cows belonging village
and on that account and
of receiving food alone
he can enter the
At other times he should conduct himself
one belonging to one of the classes considered
to be untouchable.
While walking on a public way
he meets an Arya on the road he should,
pig,
who
seven houses for making his
any day he does not succeed
ted.
if
there
out
should take his food and drink from this skull.
At home
like
(Jchatvanga)
should start
food from them, he should go without
He
Carrying
move away to
like
a
the very edge of the road, leaving 298
kankAlamurti. it
Arya
clear for the
Thus should he
to go by.
spend twelve years only to absolve himself from the sin and no more
from the day he committed
;
the murder he ceases to be
Aryas by ;
off
this course
fit
for the society of the
conduct alone, he wipes
of
the sin and prepares himself for a better birth
in the future.
If,
however, the
prescribed above
life
unendurable, he
may end it
in one or other of the following ways.
In those
in the
Dharmasastra
is
days, there were cattle-raids
He may fight
political reasons.*
and
suffer
committed often
death in their hands
;
against the raiders
he
or, if
is
unfortu-
nately successful in his attempt at driving the raiders, he
may
still
he comes
cattle-raiders, *
War
is
he
out is
same
divided into
two
or
If
is,
sin.
Or, he
Tamil
literature,
righteous or dharma-
adharma-yuddha.
war against an enemy
king, notice
men and women,
children, mendicants
to quit the place
which
is
in
classes
namely, ara-ppor and mara-ppdr, that
a righteous
cause.
successful in repelling the
absolved from the
yuddha and unrighteous
away
attempt on future occa-
sions with a view to die in the thrice
for
and
to be attacked.
is
In declaring given to good
ascetics,
and cows
Since cows cannot
be intimated the intentions of the invading king, they are carried
away by the army
war and
this act is considered sufficient notice to all the others
to
of
the invader preparatory to
leave the place as early as practicable.
no such notice
is
given.
299
In the mara-ppdr
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. might get into the thick shot dead
it
;
then becomes, the Dharma-sastra says,
incumbent on the hhruna. out
to
seeking to be
of a battle
soldiers to. kill this
Such, in short,
is
of a
the punishment meted
brahmana murderer
the
murderer
of
a learned
brahmana.* *
^°
—
3TST
g^iTfT^^^q'
?^r^ ^ ^it#T "TftTni g^^^:-
^toJTTMT^T^ =qT^f^ ^j|iftsggRrr STgSTTT^^r
3^wr %?: 2r^ ^^f^^^^^i
14
"TR^^
If
=?
Dbarma-sutra, Haradatta's
lOth Patala,
29lih.
sot:
1%^: a^frtrHr4
cftTH "THSr^uiiiq^A^Dt ^ft^JTiTf^
Apasfi.
m^
cf
w^
t^
Gomm.
1st Prasna,
Khandika.
firi^ll
Ap. Dh. Su.. Har. Com.
^«Ti°iins<4i
^r^ftrd
«^
^^^:
^^
I
—
^nE^r
^fc#i% g^^^ra
g'
^raitrt^^^:
f^JTRRf^r^:
7^?^
^
I,
10, 29.
m§ii
^^t^p^h: ^s^imiRdw
i
Apastambha-Dharaia-sutra, with
300
Haradattacbarya'a
KANKALAMtJETI.
Now, the Puranas and other one in asserting that Siva cut
authorities are off
the head of
Brahma, the most learned of all beings in the Vedas and ^astras and hence a veritable bhruna of
The
bhrunas. to
sin of
brahmahatya
him and he underwent the
stuck, at
it
ought,
course of conduct
prescribed for a bhrunaghna (murderer of bhruna).
With
the skull for his drinking and eating vessel,
with bones for his staves, he went about begging for food and, be
noted, he went to the seven houses
it
of the seven great rishis
and also he never lived in
any town or
made the burning ground
village,
but
From
outside the village his abode.
all
accounts
about Siva found recorded in the ancient literature
we
see that the course of conduct followed
was exactly that kastra», to a
murder
of
prescribed, in the early
by Siva
Dharma-
Having committed the
bhrunaghna.
Brahma, the best
brahmanas,
of
it is
to
be conjectured that Siva should have become unfit for the society arises
whether
part
of
it
^iva
Aryas
of the
was
;
if
commentary on
it
the question
disqualification
this
made him
that
so,
named
on the
hateable to
Ujjvala,
1st
the
Prasna,
9th Fatala, 24th Khaiidika. Cf.
Manu
Smriti, XI,
Kurma-Puraiia,
72—86, Gautama, XXII, 2—10,
XXXtb 301
chapter end.
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Aryas, as he
is
said to
have been in the
earlier
literature (See the Introductory chapter).
There
is
another slightly different account con-
cerning the act of begging for food associated with
Siva and this account serves only the purpose of explaining why, in his aspect
tanamurti, he
seen stark
The Lingapurana
abegging. forest of
is
known as the Bhikshanaked when going out states
that in the
Daruvana even women and children took and forgot the
to the performance of austerities
worldly ways of living (pravritti-marga).
them
feel the
need also
of the
To make
worldly ways, Siva
started out to beg in their quarters
for this purpose,
;
he became a black, ugly looking being and naked he
went into
their
The appearance
midst.
notable figure drew the attention of
ants of the
Daruvana and through
residents of this forest took to of this world.
all
all
the inhabit-
his
sorts of
maya
rishis
instead of being affected by
it,
the
bad ways
Angered by the bad example
by the new comer, the
of this
set
up
cursed him, but,
he disappeared.
The
rishis
became aware that the intruder was no other
than
Siva and repented their inability to have
offered
him worship when they had the good
tune to have in their midst his
Brahma
advised
ously
they desired to see
if
them
for-
human embodiment.
to worship his ling a studi-
302
him
in person once
KANKALAMUETI. again.
They followed
for their devotion
his advice
and were rewarded
by Siva appearing before them
once again and blessing them.
The images
the
of
Kankalamurti
and the
Bhikshatanamurti are generally found in almost
all
Siva temples of importance throughout Southern
India and
the Saivagamas contain more or less
all
The Am§umadhheda, the Kamiha and the Karana agamas, as also the Silparatna describe them as follows
detailed descriptions of these images.
:
The
of the
figure
Kankalamurti should be a
standing one, with
Kankalamurti.
the
left
leg
planted firmly on the ground and thelright slightly bent
ing that the figure
and kept a bit forward suggest-
is
in the act of
moving.
colour of the body of Siva in this aspect
He
should
ments while of silk
and
be his
is
pure white.
wearing red-coloured upper gar-
under-wear should be composed
tiger's
[skin.
The head should be
ornamented with the jatamaJcuta ; on the it
The
left
side,
should be adorned with a few durdhura {dhatura)
flowers and a snake and on the right with the
crescent moon.
His face should be beautiful and
beaming with the feeling singing sweet songs.
of happiness, smiling
and
The pearly teeth of Siva should
be half visible and the ears adorned both with ordinary Jcun^alas or with a mahara-Jcun^ala in the right 303
HINDU ICONOGEAPHT. ear and a §anlchapatra in the
left
one. There should
be the yajnopavlta on his chest. Of the four hands, the front right one should keep the bdna
—here the
term bana seems to mean a short resined stick used in exciting the membrane of a sort while the front
left
of
drum,
one should keep a drum known
The back right arm should be stretched out and its hand held in the JcataJca pose near the mouth of his pet animal, the deer; and in the back left hand should be the
by the name
of
dhakJca.
Ttankala-danda or the
on which the bones
stafi
of
the arms and the legs of the murdered person are
up together by a rope and ornamented with
tied
The
the feathers of the peacock and a banner.
bones should be dry and of blackish colour and be free of flesh
;
but there should be traces of blood
on them and on the small jingling
This kankaladanda should be placed horizon-
staff.
tally
bells tied to the
on the
left
shoulder, one end being held, as
already noticed, by the back girdle
round the loins
up a dagger made
of
left
In the
hand.
Siva there should be tucked
of gold,
with a silver handle
;
he
should be wearing a pair of wooden sandals on his feet
and the whole
finished with a
of this curious get-up
number
of
should be
snake ornaments
distri-
The Kankalamurti should be surrounded by a number of women and the
buted
all
over the body.
304
KANKALAMUETI. bhutaganas (goblins) represented variously as dansinging and in other attitudes
cing,
;
one
of
the
bhutas should carry on his head a large vessel for storing in the food received in alms and be situated
on the
left of
Siva.
women who
Of the
surround
Siva some should appear to be completely possessed of irrepressible love for
him, some eager to embrace
him, some others blessing him, while
still
others
serving in his vessel food ladled out from another
with a spoon. Out of lust for Siva the clothes
women
should appear slipping down their
There should also be hosts vas, siddhas
Siva,
of rishis, devas,
loips.
gandhar-
and vidyadharas everywhere around
arms crossed on the chest
Siva, with pose.
of the
in the anjali
The god Vayu should sweep the streets before Varuna should sprinkle them with water, the
other dMvas should shower flowers on him, the rishis
should praise him by repeating the Vedas, Siirya
and Chandra should carry umbrellas over and
the celestial
musicians Narada and
his
head
Tumburu
should sing songs to the accompaniment of musical
The height of the women who are keeping company with Siva may be that of the chin, instruments.
chest or the navel of Siva
;
the height of the hhutas
should be equal to three or three and a half times the length of the face of Siva and they should be
shaped according the pancha-tala measure. 305 39
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. In the case
is
that
;
of the
is,
the same as in the Kankalamurti
the
standing firmly on the
left leg
ground and the right slightly walking. are
The
whereas the front
suggesting
bent
hand and the back
front right
held as in the
and the back
Bhikshatana-
^^rti, the general posture of Siva
BMksiiatana-
^^^^aspect
image
of the
case
of
left
Kankalamurti,
the
hand should carry a Jcapala one a damaru. The head may
left
right
have the jatas dishevelled (jatabhdra) or arranged in the
form of a
crescent
moon
(jatamandala) with the
circle
in
The forehead
it.
should
adorned with a patta or ornamented band should also be the other ornaments body.
But
there should be
the person of
no kind
all
;
be
there
over the
of clothing
Siva, not even the waist zone.
on In-
stead of this latter there should be a snake tied
round the waist besides ;
this, there
should be other
snake ornaments in appropriate places on the person of
Siva.
On
yajnopdvlta.
the chest
The neck
to be
is
seen
of Siva should
a white
be of blue
colour and his forehead should be beautified with
the tripundra mark.
In this aspect he should not
carry the kankdla-danda,
but in
should be the kula decorated with a feathers.
There should
sandals on his feet
;
be
sometimes 306
a it
its
place
lot of
pair
of
there
peacock-
wooden
might be omitted
KANKALAMtETI. also.
The hand
lifted as
that bears the Jcapala should be
high as the navel, whereas the one that
damaru should be
carries the
raised as far as the
ear and the distance between the wrist of this
from the ear
to be sixteen angulas.
is
As
arm
usual,
Siva should possess in these two aspects three eyes.
The is
rest of the description of the
identical with
that
Bhikshatanamurti
given already under the
Kankalamurti.
The Swprahhedagama adds that the JcapUla held by Siva is that of Brahma and the Jcankala that of Vishnu
murder by Siva an aspect
herein the Pauranic story of the
;
of both
Brahma and Vishvaksena,
of Vishnu, is accepted
A number
photographs are reproduced in
of
Kankalamurti and the Biksha-
illustration of the
tanamurti
;
unfortunately
South India, a
and followed.
fact
all
of
which seems
them belong
to
to point out that
these two aspects of ^iva were more favoured by
the Southern people than the Northerners,
worshipped
the
freely instead.
equally
who
naked Bhairava more
All the images of the Kankala-
murti as also those of the Bhikshatanamurti are practically
similar
to
one another, and
it
therefore be sufficient to give the description of
one of each aspect. 307
will
any
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY.
On
the whole eleven photographs are repro-
duced in illustration
of the
descriptions
Bhikshatana and the Kankalamurtis
—LXXXIX). and
may
be
because
Of these,
five
Kankalamurti
five of
(Pis.
are of
LXXXII
Bhikshatana
and the remaining one
;
taken either as the one or the other, it
does not conform strictly to the descrip-
tion of either.
back hand of
It
might be noticed that the
;
pinchha, is
TcataTia
they are so held as to permit of being inserted
them a separately
in
left
the bronze images of the Bhiksha-
all
tana and the Kankalamurtis are held in the pose
the
of
if
necessary.
cast
hmikaladanda or a
sikhi-
The dead body of Vishvaksena
clearly visible in the photographs of the
murti images in temples
of
Kankala-
Nagesvarasvamin, Tiru-
chchengattangudi and Suchindram. The pet deer of ^iva
is
seen with
all
the stone representations of the
Kankala and the Bhikshatanamurtis given but have been of the
left off
here,
while the photographs of some
The
bronze figures were taken.
sculpture
belonging to the Kailasanathasvamin temple
Conjeevaram has only two arms, in one is
of
at
which
a sikhipincha and the other keeps an akshamala
and
is
held in the chinmudra pose
if it is
wearing any clothes and
on
head
its
;
it
;
it
is
doubtful
has no jatamaJcuta
and from the general appearance
to be inferred
to be a
it is
Bhikshatanamurti rather 308
PLATE LXXXll,
Kankalamurti
:
Stone
:
Darasuram. fTo face page 308]
PLATE
LXXXIII.
p--
Kankalamurfci
[To face page 308]
:
Bronze
:
Tenkasi.
PLATE LXXXIV.
Kankalamurti
[To face page 308]
:
Stone
:
Suohindram.
PLATE LXXXV,
a •an
•a
a
oc •13
a>
ja
o o o
ja
o a o
•is
m >3
a •fl
d
00
a lO
Xt -a
a
M p
o
A3
a 03
•a
00
[To face
p^e
303]
PLATE LXXXVI.
-^ ^f
a a
1| -<3
CD
rS
/"' \
^
cm
[To face page
a
o
O
PLATE LXXXVll.
*1
''
^4.5.i^ 4
ii
*!*
4 #
(D
PLATE LXXXvm.
Bhikshatanamurti [To face page 309]
:
Bronze
:
Valuvur.
PLATE LXXXIX.
BhikshatanamurtL
:
Bronze: Panda^anallur. [To face page 309]
KASKALAMtJETI.
The cut
than the Kankalamurti.
image
of
Bhikshatanamurti
of the face of the
Valuvur
of
in strik-
is
ing similarity with that of the image of the Vrisha-
vahanamurti
of
beUeve that the
Vedaranyam,
which
artist {sthapati)
makes
who made
us
these
two images was perhaps one and the same person. All the images are
made very
well
indeed, but
we
should separate from these the bronze statue of
Bhikshatanamurti figure of the
same
of
Tiruvenkadu and the stone
of the
Nagesvarasvamin temples
Both
for the special notice of the readers.
are
gems
of art.
posture, the
The extremely
easy and
of
them
natural
remarkably well-proportioned limbs,
and the smile which the
artist
eminently
has
succeeded in depicting on the countenance of the
bronze Bhikshatanamurti are noteworthy.
In the
stone image the posture and the general effect are splendid. in the
ture
One other
peculiarity
which
agamic descriptions but found
is
not found
is
in
the sculp-
a tiny bell tied by a string just below the
knee of the right leg
;
it is
found in the majority of
the instances reproduced in this chapter.
309
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF SIVA :Gangadharamurti. Ardhanarisvaramurti. Haryardhamurti, Kalyanasundaramurti, Vrishavahanamurti and Vishapaharanamurti.
OTHER IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF
THE
king Sagara had, by his
a son
first
named Asamanjasa and
^IVA.
wife Kesini,
sixty thousand
others by the second wife Sumati. Asamanjasa was
from his childhood a wicked
man and
affected the other children of Sagara
example
and made them
The gods who could not bear
equally bad.
^ays
Gangadhara™^*^* of
his
of the SOUS
of
the evil
Sagara asked
the rishi Kapila, one of the aspects
Vishnu, as to what would be the fate of
wicked sons
of
all
the
Sagara, to which the rishi replied
that in a short time they would
all
perish.
Sagara
arranged for a horse-sacrifice, for which purpose
he
loose
let
and hidden prints of
a horse.
It
was stolen by Indra
in the Pdtala-loka.
the horse
the
sixty
Sagara excavated the earth
till
Tracing the foot-
thousand sons
of
they reached the
Pdtdla-ldha and there found the horse in the hermitage
of
Kapila.
These
wicked sons of Sagara
mistaking Kapila for the thief rushed on him to him.
But Kapila by the power
reduced them to ashes.
penance
Having waited long for the 313
40
of his
kill
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. return of his sons in vain, Sagara sent his grandson
Amsumat
(son
of
Asamanjasa) to search
He
horse as also his uncles.
too traced his
way
and found the horse near
into the Patala-loJca
Kapila.
for the
Being, unlike his uncles and father, a well-
behaved boy, he implored Kapila to permit him to take
away the horse the ;
rishi pleased
with the boy
gave over the horse to him, informed him of the fate of his uncles
that they would
and conferred upon him the boon
all
go to heaven in the life-time of
The
his grandson.
by Sagara and
Amsumat was
son of
The
ratha.
rishi
the water of the of his uncles
was celebrated
horse-sacrifice
sometime he passed away, The
after
Dilipa and his son was Bhagi-
Kapila had told
Gahga was
Amsumat
that
if
sprinkled on the ashes
they would go to heaven. Bhagiratha
performed severe austerities to bring down the celestial river
Gahga
;
the latter was pleased with
Bhagiratha and asked him who could force
of her fall
could, the fall in the middle. ful,
and for
on earth from heaven
would cause the earth
He
resist the if
;
none
to be pierced
replied that Eudra, the power-
would be able to bear the force
of her descent
to
Eudra
granting him the boon of receiving
Ganga
began to
on his
address
(Eudra's)
with the austerities
his
head. of
penances
Siva,
being
Bhagiratha, 314
satisfied
went
to the
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF Himalayas
At
receive Ganga.
to
SIVA.
Ganga
first
thought Siva would be unable to bear her descent
and came down
in great
volume and with enormous haughty behaviour
Siva, indignant at her
force.
towards him, determined to humble her.
Having
mighty head covered with
received her on his
matted hair, ^iva made Ganga
wind through the
to
labyrinth of his locks of hair for a long time before
Being once again
she was able to reach the earth.
Ganga flow down on the earth. Bhagiratha led Ganga to where his ancestors' ashes lay and made them
requested by Bhagiratha, Siva
attain heaven
let
by the contact
holy river Ganges.
It is
the river
of the waters of the
under the circumstances
came to wear on his head the Ganga and thence became known as Gangadharamurti. The story of the descent of Ganga
described above that ^iva
for the sake of
Bhagiratha
is
given in the Vishnu-
purana, the Bh^gavata-purana and the Bamayana.
The image
of
Gangadharamurti
the Am'sumadhhedd.gama, the
Karanagama.
is
described in
Eamikagama and
the
It is stated that the figure of Siva
should be standing with his right leg planted vertically
on the earth and the
The
front right
left
one slightly bent.
hand should be placed near the
chin of his consort
embracing with his
Uma, whom he should
left
front 315
arm the back ;
be
right
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. arm being
lifted
up as high as the ushmsha or the
crown on the head, should be holding a jata or a lock of rnatted hair, on which should be the figure
Gahga the back
of the goddess
hand should
left
;
carry a mriga.
On
the
left of
Siva there should be
Uma
stand-
ing in a state of mental uneasiness * which emotion
must be portrayed on her right leg of
the
left
Uma
face
by the sculptor. The
should be somewhat bent, while
Her
one should be straight.
should be hanging
down
should be carrying in
it
might be holding a few
and the
freely
a flower
right
;
or,
left
hand one
the right hand
folds of the cloth about her
thigh.
On
the
left
with a number
should be Bhagiratha in company
of rishis, praising Siva.
of figures described
Gahgadharamurti.
The group
above constitute the panel of
The
central figure of Siva
may
also be called Gahga-visarjanamurti.
The
following are the additional facts found in
the KdmiJca and the Karanagamas.
The
figure of
Siva should have four arms and three eyes of these, ;
the front right hand should be
and the *
front
This
is
left
in the
abhaya pose
one in the Jcataka pose.
the feeling of jealousy
favour another lady v^ith his attentions.
316
The
due to Siva trying to
PLATE
XC.
Gangadharamurbi
:
Stona Panel
:
Elephanta, [To face page 317]
OTHER IMPOETANT ASPECTS OP
S'lVA.
other two hands should be carrying the parahu and
The hand that touches the
the mriga.
jata (this
must be the one which keeps the para^u), should
The height
be lifted as high as the ear. figure of
of the
Bhagiratha should be that of the navel,
the chest or the neck of that of Siva and
it
should
be made according to the ashta-tala measurement. The figure of Bhagiratha should be draped with the garment made of barks of trees the matted hair of ;
the head of Bhagiratha should be dishevelled and flowing
down and he should have only two
and two arms and these
latter
eyes
should be held in
the anjali pose on his chest or over his head.
Five illustrations of the Gangadharamurti are given
;
XC,
of these the first, PI.
to be
is
the rock-cut cave at Elephanta and
a very admirable manner. fine panel
is
female, whose figure are visible
is
in the
seems to be descending
the back it
left
arm
is
Brahma
front right
abhaya pose. is
The
broken and whose legs alone
near the end of this jata
The
and Uma.
of this
holding a jata from which a
at present,
padmasana.
executed in
In the centre
are the figures of Siva
back right hand
is
found in
hand
Even though broken
it
is
seated upon a
of Siva is kept
the forearm of
easy to find that
must have been directed towards the chin
Uma
;
it is
of
not easy to say what there was in the 317
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. hand
front left of
Siva
arm
the
seen standing that of
is
left
of the figure
Uma, whose
left
down hanging, while the right is bent up the forearm of this arm is broken it
is let
and held is
To
of Siva.
;
;
very likely that this hand held in
Near the shoulder
Uma
is
seen
his vehicle, the Garuda.
On
the goddess
of
Vishnu seated upon
a flower.
it
the right and near the foot of Siva
is
seated Bhagi-
ratha with flowing jatds and facing the lord Siva.
His arms are broken
Between Siva and
anjali pose. left of
Uma
perhaps they were in the
;
are
Uma
and to the
two dwarfish ganas or attendants
On the head of Siva is a triple headed goddess who is in all probability the triple river Gahga after she was joined by the Yamuna and the Sarasvati branches. On a level with the head of of ^iva.
Siva are sculptured a number of devas, the of a
air,
which
cumulus
is
shown
all flying in
This, like the other pieces of
cloud.
sculpture in the large cave at Elephanta,
workmanship and
is
remarkable
The second photograph, large panel sculptured
and the purusha
left leg
placed
right bent
is of
rare
for its gigantic size.
PI.
XCI,
on the west wall
cut cave at Trichinopoly.
with his
manner
in the conventional
In this Siva
straight
is
that of a
of the rockis
standing
upon the ground
and placed upon the Apasmara-
(or a gana).
His back right arm 318
is lifted
PLATE
XCI.
Gangadharamurti
(To
iince
page 318]
:
Stono Panel
:
Trichinopoly.
PLATE
XCII.
[To face page 319]
OTHEE IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF up and bent his
^IVA.
to take hold of one jata issuing from
head; at the end
this jata
of
the river
is
goddess Ganges seated with hands folded on her
The
chest in the anjali pose. holds a snake in is
meant
whereas the back
;
to keep a mriga,
upon the hip
resting
which
from this hand
at a distance is
it
is
hands in
their
of Siva.
either side
an
Siva
of
hand
left
shown
actually
the remaining hand
;
the right and another rishi on the
up
hand
front right
Bhaglratha on left
attitude of
are holding
On
praise.
a deva also praising him.
is
Besides these, there are some other beings also praising the lord.
The whole panel
by an ornamental platform
both the panel and
;
the base are exquisitely carved. sculpture
piece of
century and
is
supported
is
the middle
The age of
of
the seventh
was carried out by the order
it
this
of the
Pallava King Mahendravarman.
The PI.
third piece
XCII,
is
to be found
central shrine Ellora.
sculpture given
of
^iva
of
is
as
fig. 1,
on the south wall
of the
the famous Kailasa temple
at
down
the
seen here also as letting
Ganga from one
river goddess
he holds with his front right right one rests
upon the
kept bent upwards as or the mriga
;
if
the back
hip.
which
of his jatas,
hand and
The
his
front left
back
arm
is
to carry either the paraiu left
319
arm which
is
broken,
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. was apparently near the chin Gangii
with
is
river
descending upon the head of a risM seated
crossed legs
From
where the deceased Sagaras foot of Siva; they
cross legged
by the yoga-patta,
supported
evidently Bhagiratha.
are
all
near him
it
are, that is,
flows to
below the
sculptured as seated
and with arms folded
Above these Sagara-putras
pose.
The
Uma.
of
in the anjali
are sculptured
an
elephant and a horse, for what purpose,
it
is
At the
a
figure
possible to say.
foot of Siva
bending lowly in obeisance of
;
it is
is
not
also perhaps that
Bhagiratha who expresses his gratitude to Siva
Above and near
after his ancestors reach heaven.
the head of Siva are two or three celestial figures praising Siva.
Uma
Near Siva and
to his left stands
with one arm resting upon her hip and the
other holding a flower.
Her
left
firmly on the ground and the right
crossing the
left
The fourth
is
leg is planted
kept bent and
one. illustration,
PI.
XCIII, belongs to
Taramangalam the Salem District of the Madras Presidency. comparatively modern date {circa 15th is of
the Kailasanathasvamin temple at in It
century A. D). in a very
who
is
In
this sculpture Siva is
solicitous attitude towards
angry with him
woman, Ganga.
He
for is
320
standing
his consort
having sheltered another pacifying
her
with the
PLATE
Gangadharamurti
:
Stone
:
XCIII.
Taramangalam.
iTo face page 330]
OTHBE IMPORTANT ASPECTS OE front right
left
hand placed near her chin
arms he
of his left
hand which
head
;
and she
and the bull,
^iva
which
is
is
descending from a jata of his
flowing
down
in the form of water
by a
In the remaining hand
are standing.
of
to be seen (rather faintly in the photograph)
The
right leg of Siva
on the ground and the
is
In his back
embracing her.
seated on the pedestal on which Siva
is
the mriga.
the
with one
river thus descending is swallowed
Uma
and
is
is
;
kept in the Jcartari hasta pose he
is
Ganga who
holds
^IVA.
left leg of
somewhat
Uma
bent.
is
left
one
is
planted firmly
is
somewhat bent
;
straight while the right one
In her
hand
left
is
a flower and
the right hand rests upon her thigh.
The
fifth illustration (fig.
'Z,
PI.
XCII)
is
that of
a bronze belonging to the Siva temple at Vaidyes-
which
varankoyil
(Tanjore
similar
the sculpture of Taramangalam, just
to
district)
exactly
is
described. It is stated in the first
Siva-pnr&na that Brahma
begot a number of male beings, the Prajapatis,
and commanded them Ayddhanaris-
beings.
to
create
various
They were found
which they were intended and Brahma, uneasy at the slow progress plated on Mahesvara.
The 321
11
of creation, latter
other later
feeling
contem-
appeared before
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. him
composite form of a male-female and
in the
asked him to cease feeling distressed. it
and
also,
of
not occur to
did
at
the
Mahesvara he
Brahma
sight
of
realised his
Thitherto
to create a female
this composite
error
;
form
thereupon he
prayed to the female half of Mahesvara to give him a
female to proceed with the act of creation
Brahma's request was complied with and the went on aferwards very
tion
crea-
This story
well.
accounts for the Arddhanarisvara form of Siva.
The
real
meaning
of this aspect
has already been
adverted to in the Chapter on Lingas.
There
is
yet another account of the appearance
of Siva in the
occasion
Arddhanarisvara form.
when Siva was
On
a certain
seated with his consort
Parvati on the top of the Kailasa mountain, the
devas and rishis went there to pay their homage to him.
All
of
them except the risM Bhringi,
went round both Siva and Parvati
in their circum-
ambulations and also bowed to both.
had a vow Siva
;
of
in conformity with his
down
is,
vow, he neglected to
to Parvati.
Parvati grow-
ing angry with Bhringi, desired in her his flesh
risJii
worshipping only one Being, that
go round or bow
all
This
mind that
and blood should disappear from
his
body and instantly he was reduced to a skeleton covered over with only the skin. 322
In this state he
OTHEE IMPORTANT ASPECTS OE was unable
SIVA.
to support himself in an erect position.
Seeing his pitiable plight ^iva gave him a third leg
so
as
to
enable
him
to attain equilibrium;
Bhringi became pleased with his lord and out of joy
danced vigorously with his three legs
praised Siva for his grace.
The design
humble Bhringi thus
and the
to
failed
great annoyance to Parvati
penance
end
for obtaining a
who
of Parvati
failure
At the
with his consort,
granted her wish of being united with his
Thus was
caused
returned to do
boon from Siva.
of the penance, Siva, pleased
and
own
body.
the Arddhanarisvara form assumed by
Siva, for offering difficulty to the rishi Bhringi in
circumambulating, or bowing to Siva alone.
undaunted by
this
But,
impediment Bhringi assumed
the form of a beetle pierced a hole through the
composite body of Siva and circumambulated Siva alone to the great wonder and admiration of even Parvati,
who became
reconciled to his
vow and
bestowed her grace upon the pious rishi
for his
steadfastness to his vow.
The isvara
is
description of the image of Arddhanar-
given in the Amsumadbhedagama, the
Kamikagama, the Suprabhedagama, the Silparatna, the Karanagama and a few other works. As the name indicates, the form of this image should be half
man and
half 323
woman.
The
right
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. half
male, that
is
female, that
is,
Siva and
The male
Parvati.
is,
the
left
half is
half should
have a jatamaJcuta on the head, which should be adorned with the crescent moon. ear
should
there
In the right
be the nakra-Jcundala,
sarpa-
Ttundala or an ordinary hundala and the right half
have one half
of the forehead should
sculptured in
may have
The image
it.
of
an eye
Arddhanarisvara
three or four arms.
two,
of
If there are
four arms, one of the right hands should be held in
ahhaya pose and the other should keep the
the
parasu
;
hand may be
or one
the other carrying a sula in one hand,
ahhaya pose
;
;
in the
may
or there
and the other or one of the
may
varada pose be a ^awA;a
be held in the
arms may be somewhat
bent and rested upon the head of his bull-vehicle
and the other hand held in the ahhaya pose there
may
be the sula and the aJishamala in the
two right hands
:
if
there are only two arms, the
right
one should be held in the varada pose
there
may
of
or
;
the
the right
JcapStla
side
held by
it.
;
or
The whole
should be adorned with the
ornaments peculiar to Siva and the chest on the right side should be that of a side the
On
the right
garment should cover the body below the
loins only
garment
man.
up to the knee and the material
is
the tiger's skin and 324
silk.
On
of the
the right
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF
SIVA.
half of the chest there should be the naga-yajno-
and on the
pavlta
loins
the
of
same
the
side,
The whole of side should be covered with ashes. The should be somewhat bent (or it may
sarpaviekhala (or girdles of snake). the right right
leg
and be resting upon apadma-pltJia.
also be straight)
The
right half
might be
terrific in
appearance and
So much about the Siva
should be of red colour.
The
half of Arddhanarisvara.
the Parvati
left or
half of the Arddhanarisvara image, is as described
below.
On
the head of the female half or the
left side
there should be a karanda-mahuta or a fine knot of
hair well-combed and divided, or both.
On
the
forehead of this half a half tilaka mark, contiguous
with the half eye left
eye should be painted with collyrium. there
ear
left
vdlika*
should be
If the
arms, of the two rested
image left
upon the head
of
The
should be shown.
of ^iva
a kundala
In the
known
as
Arddhanarisvara has four
ones, one is to be bent of the bull of
and
Siva and the
other kept in the kataka pose, holding a mlotpala in
it
;
or the latter
* This
the
name
of
is
may
be
let
down hanging
below.
the rendering of the Tamil word vali, which
an ear-ornament
Agamas, and indicates
;
such words are
common
is
in the
distinctly the fact that the authors of
the bulk of the agamas were residents of the Tamil country.
325
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. If there be
only three arms in the image of
Arddhanarisvara, there should be only one on the left side.
This hand
may
a mirror or a parrot and
keep in
it
either a flower,
must be adorned with
it
keyura, kanJcana and other ornaments
if,
;
other hand, there are only two arms, the
may
be hanging below, or keeping in
parrot or a flower, or
upon the head
may
it
of the
it
on the one
left
a mirror, a
be bent and resting
The
bull.
may
parrot
be
sculptured as perching upon the wrist of Parvati.
On the left side there should be the bosom of a woman with a round well-developed breast on
this
side
and the trunk there
the chest
of
should be sculptured haras, and other ornaments
made
of
The female
diamonds and other gems.
half should be
smeared with
multicoloured silken
body down
female cloth,
to the ankles
consist merely
of
white
;
or,
silk.
draped in
saffron,
covering
the
the garment
may
The garment may
be held in position on the loins by three girdles.
On
the
left
and the
left
ankle foot
there
sana.
The
be
an
anklet
tinged red with the leaves of
henna (Tam. Marudani).
somewhat bent
should
The
or stand erect
colour of the
parrot-green or dark,
left
left leg
upon the padmdhalf
may
and should be
appearance. 326
might be
either be of
pacific
PLATE
XCIV.
M'**.^''-mt:^''^'^
v^ f
a ^
Arddhanarisvara: Stone Panel: Badami. [To face page
327]
OTHEE IMPOETANT ASPECTS OE
SIVA.
Eight photographs are reproduced
Arddhanari^vara given above.
the description of
Of these,
PI.
XCIIl
to illustrate
a fine panel to be found in
is of
the rock-cut temple atBadami.
Arddhanarisvara has four arms
In this sculpture, ;
in one of the right
hands he holds the para§u, wriggling round which is
to be seen a snake, one of the favourite animals
same arm has a sarpa-valaya round
of Siva; the
it.
The remaining right and one of the left hands hold a Vina in them and play upon it. On the right upper arm there is a snake ornament there is a ;
On
sarpa-lcundala in the right ear. of the
head
crescent moon,
the right half
the jatamaJcuta bearing on
is
the skull
it
and other ornaments.
the
An
exceedingly well wrought necklace adorns the neck.
There
is
also the yafnopavlta
and
is
skin.
resting
This
from the loins down to the knees
side is draped
with deer's
on the chest.
The
right leg
is
somewhat bent
upon an ornamented platform.
The
female half has a Icaranda-makuta, a knot of hair
with bands of jewelled ornaments running across a large
number
of hanikanas
well executed Jceyura
;
ankles. left
of
on each forearm and a
there are melchalas or girdles
keeping in position the
down to the The other The whole
it,
silk
On
garment which descend
the foreleg
is
an anklet.
hand holds
a mlotpala flower.
the head
surrounded with a
327
is
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. To
prabhamandala. is
the
of
left
Arddhanarisvara
arm
a female attendant standing with the right
hung down and the
left
in
is
a vessel
it
with
Her
she
;
arm bent and carrying also
ornaments and
all
hair
is
is
draped in a fine cloth.
To
done up in a knot, dhammilla.
the right of the central image
meek and quite, with ground before
adorned
beautifully
with a thoroughly
the bull of Siva,
eyes casting glances on the
its
Behind the
it.
is
human
bull is a
emaciated body
;
it
figure
may
be
representing either Bhairava or the rishi Bhringi. Its
On
hands are held in the anjali pose.
and
left
head
of the
the right
of the central figure are the
representations of Devas with their consorts, flying in the air
and praising
Siva.
on which stands the figure
Below the platform
of Arddhanarisvara, are
sculptured small figures of the ganas, some dancing
and others playing upon
different musical instru-
ments.
The second to
illustration, fig. 2, PI.
The
Mahabalipuram.
reproduced here
In
ratha.
is
XCV,
figure of Arddhanarisvara
sculptured on
the Dharmaraja-
the image has four arms
this,
;
the right hands holds a parasu and the other in the
abhaya pose.
and the
left half
female half one
The
female
is
;
belongs
right half
of the
is
one of is
kept
shaped male
two arms on the
hanging down and the other one 328
PLATE XCV.
a
o
m t
a
^
-s
5
03
OTHBE IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF
^IVA.
The forearm number of brace-
bent and lifted up holding a flower. of this last
mentioned arm has a
In the right ear there
lets.
Jcundala while the
an ordinary small
is
ear bears a big disc of a
left
patra-Jcundala.
The
third
original of
illustration, fig. 1, PI.
which
svamin temple
at
Kumbhakonam,
represents that
class of the image, with the bull at the back.
piece of sculpture
and
period
is
is
the
found in the Nagesvara-
to be
is
XCV,
one of the
This
Chola
finest of the
remarkable for
the
exactness of
the proportions both of the male and the female
artistic
and the excellence
of the torso
portions
The
effect.
figure in
of
instance has
this
three arms, two on the right and one on the of the right
head
arms one
of the bull
is
lets.
;
the
On
left
the
up
is
slightly
forearm bears a number of brace-
left
the hip and the pelvis are shaped
and bring out beautifully
larger than on the right
the relative proportions of pelvises.
lifted
The left hand keeps a mirror
towards which the head of the image turned
left
bent and placed upon the
and the other bent and
carrying the para§u.
its
male and female
the
The garment on the
right side does not
descend below the knee, whereas that side descends as far as the ankle
folded portion tucked up
left
and has a many-
in front
329
on the
near the
loins.
HINDU ICONOGKAPHT.
On
the whole, this
is
many
one of the
excellent
pieces of sculpture in the Nagesvarasvamin temple.
The
fourth illustration,
XCVI,
2, PI.
fig.
is
exactly similar to the third and belongs to about
The
the same period.
original of
this is to be
found set up in the circuit round the Siva temple at Tiruchchengattangudi in the Tanjore district.
The
a photograph
illustration is
fifth
Museum
bronze preserved in the Madras 1, PI.
XCVI).
It is
back right arm parasu
is
arms, the back one it
one has on
is
held in the kataJca
Of the two
left
bent and kept raised and
is
whereas the front
a nllotpala flower, its
the
:
bent and lifted up and carries a
pose, apparently to hold a trisula.
holds in
a
(see fig.
noteworthy in some points
the front right hand
;
of
In other
wrist a parrot.
details, it
resembles the other images described above.
The all
sixth illustration
the others noticed above (see
original stone sculpture
the
first
prakdra
of the
hand
is
has
the
piece lying in
In
this,
arms
three
the image
;
seen carrying a trisula by
end and the back one
is
raised
head and holds a cobra 330
The
as old as the middle
seventh century A.D.
Arddhanarisvara
right
is
from
Kailasanathasvamin
the
of
PL XCVII).
a loose
is
temple at Conjeevaram and
of
entirely different
is
by
the front
lower
its
up as high its
tail
;
as
the
PLATE
XCVI.
pq
[To face page 330]
PLATE
Arddhanarisvara
:
Stone
:
XCVII.
Conjeevaram.
[To face page 330]
PLATE
Arclclhanarisvava
;
Stoaa
:
XCVIII.
Madura. [To face page 331]
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF hangs down and
reptile
hand holding the
up
lifts
elbow
back
is
resting
upon the head
which the
of
Nowhere
seated.
beginning
figure
it
hand, that of
left ;
it is
bent and
of the bull
of
upon the
Arddhanarisvara
stated that the figure of this
is it
its
is
in the authorities quoted in the
posite aspect of Siva
may
com-
be a seated one and this
particular piece of sculpture
is
noteworthy
breach of the rule in this respect. seated,
hood near the
its
The
trihula.
the female half, holds a vlna in
s'lVA.
an unusual attitude
The
for its
bull is also
for this animal, especi-
ally in the presence of its master.
The seventh illustration, PL XCVIII, comes from Madura and belongs to the time of TirumalaNayaka (A. D. 17th century). In its details, it agrees closely with the
Mahabalipuram sculpture
the workmanship exhibits peculiarities which were
common
to the age to
which the sculpture belongs,
namely, a conventional mode of standing, sharppointed nose, etc.
artificial
However,
it is
disposition
of the
drapery
a strikingly fine piece of work-
manship.
PI.
The eighth and the last illustration, XCVI, is an exceedingly interesting and
ordinary piece of sculpture
;
fig.
3,
extra-
in this Arddhanarisvara
has three faces and eight arms.
The heads
are
surrounded by a prabM-man^ala and the hands 331
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. them the ahsliamdla, the Jchadga, the pasa, the musala (?), a Jcapala, a lotus flower and other carry in
The
objects.
right side of the
represents Siva and the
left
male and
figure is
female and
side is
In no Sanskrit work that has
represents Parvati.
been examined do we meet with a description
which
Arddhanarisvara
whose photograph
with the image
agrees
reproduced here.
is
Having described the image isvara
it is
dhamurti. it
is
of
Arddhanar-
of
easy to describe the figure of Haryard-
Before proceeding with
description
its
necessary to say a few words regarding the
origin
of
in the
Vamana-purdna
this
aspect
of the deity
that
it
;
Vishnu
related
is
reported to
is
have said to a rishi that he and Siva were one and that
in
him
resides
Siva
and
also
manifested
In
himself to the rishi in this dual aspect of his.
the Arddhanarisvara form the Haryarddhamurti or Hariharamurti,
left
half
is
by the Devi or Prakriti and Purusha and Prakriti are united
each
other
generating the universe
;
the
for
Uma, Durga
the same idea
or
Devi
is
to be a female aspect of Vishriu. in this connection
to
with
purpose
have already noticed, represented by the the yoni.
occupied
is,
as
liiiga
of
we and
also considered It
is
necessary
draw the attention
of
the
readers to the fact that Durga, the consort of ^iva, 332
OTHBB IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF is
represented in
sculptures with the sanJcha
all
and the
chaJcra,
Vishnu.
In one instance, she
sister
of
Vishnu.
•prakriti-tfibtva
weapons characteristic
the
Vishnu
is
and hence we
in the place occupied
SIVA.
of
is
also called the
also
viewed as the
Vishnu substituted
see
by Devi in the Arddhanar-
isvara aspect of Siva.
Again,
it
appears likely that the sculpturing of
the Haryarddhamurti and
its
worship as a chief
image in many temples came into existence conflicts
between the partizans
after the
of the cults of Siva
and Vishnu had abated and a compromise was arrived at, namely, that Siva is
is
Vishnu and Vishnu
and that they are essential
conversely Siva
and destruction
for the creation, protection
of the
It is gratifying to note that during the
Universe.
mahotsavas
in
the
temples
of
Harihara,
the
and ceremonies are alternately
vehicles, decoration
those that are peculiar to ^iva and to Vishnu respectively
and these
festivals are attended
by both
Vaishnavas and Saivas.
In the figure
of
Harihara or Haryarddhamurti,
the description of the right half or the Saiva portion is
exactly identical with the description given under
Arddhanarisvara. portion follows
is :
The
left half
described in
On
the
the
left side of
333
or the Vaishnava
Sanskrit
texts
as
Harihara there should
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. be two arms, of which one should be carrying the
gada and the other held
chaJcra, the saiikha or the
On
in the hataJca pose near the thigh.
Vaishnava
in the
should be a
half, there
head,
the
Jcirlta set
with precious stones and of excellent workmanship
there should be a maliara-hundala in the
;
The arms on
ear.
this side should be
heyura, Icahkana and
a snake while that
with
On
the
an anklet shaped
like
on the
leg should be
left
set
The Vaishnava half is to yellow silk garment. The colour
precious stones.
all
be draped with a of the
adorned with
other ornaments.
right foreleg there should be
left
Saiva half
snow-white and that
is
either green or bluish brown.
of
Vishnu
It is also stated that
the two legs of Harihara should be kept without
The
any bends in them.
and the
terrific
left
half
half should
right
On
pacific.
be
Saiva
the
portion of the forehead the third eye of Siva
must
be half visible and behind the head of the image of
Harihara there should be a siraschaTcra or halo.
The Vishnudharmottara adds
that to the
left
of
the figure of Harihara there should be sculptured that of
Garuda and
to the right, of
Nandi.
Of the two photographs given in illustration of the
Haryarddhamurti one,
the panel
found
Badami.
The
in
PI.
the lower
central
figure
331
XCIX,
belongs to
cave temple at in this
panel
is
PLATE
XClX.
Haryarddhamurti
(or
Harihara, Sankara-Narayariamurfei)
:
Stone Panel
;
Badami.
OTHER IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF Harihara
;
a clear vertical line of demarcation bet-
ween the jatamaJcuta of
Vishnu
ear is
is
of Siva
and the Mrlta-makuta
carries a
the back
para§u with a snake round
hand keeps a
left
one there
left
In the right back hand the
a nakrakundala.
image
In the right
visible in the head-gear.
a sarpa-kundala whereas in the
is
^IVA.
have
to
There
thigh.
crown
of the
the right
is
hand
left
a
left
posi-
is
resting
upon the
kirakchakra surrounding the
head and the
and
its
front
the abhaya pose
been held in
the corresponding
and
:
The
sahJcha.
right hand, though broken, appears from tion
it
legs stand straight.
On
two goddesses, evidently
are
Parvati and Lakshmi, the consorts respectively of
Siva and Vishnu. is
Between Parvati and Harihara
a short figure of the bull-faced Nandi carrying in
hand a danda
his right
;
and on the
left
Lakshmi and Harihara is a dwarfish Garuda. Below the panel and in a long
between
figure
of
horizontal
niche in the platform, over which the figures of
Harihara and others stand, are carved a number of ganas,
some playing .upon musical instruments
and others dancing.
On
the top of the panel and on both sides of
the head
of
Harihara are shown two
celestial
beings with their wives as flying in the air and
carrying in their hands a flower garland each. 335
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. The second photograph, beautiful
image
PI. C,
that of a
is
Chalukya period preserved
of the
in the Office of the Superintendent of Archseology,
Western
Circle.
In
ments and dress
this
all details
regarding the orna-
not different from the
is
first.
In this sculpture the hands in the Saiva half carry the trikula and the aksliam^la^ whereas those on
the Vaishnava half keep the gada and perhaps a
hankha, (this hand
is
broken and hence the object
As
carried cannot be correctly guessed).
in the
previous illustration here also there are the two devls,
fruit
Parvati and Lakshmi each one carrying a
and a flower
kneeling on the
in the
left
wholly in the form right.
is
of
a bull, of this
standing on the
is
image
due to the sculptor
central figure
distinction
Vaishnava
is
is
a prabh^vali.
shown between
the
halves, the right half being
prabhavali and,
expanded hood
the of
a
left
being
excellent
is
remark-
for the
ably minute carving of the ornaments. of the
At the back
Even
here
Saiva
and
an ordinary
one-half
five-headed snake
of
the
trikula
Brahma seated
On
of
an
but on
;
the top of the prabhavali the central figure face of a lion.
is
and Nandi, here represented
The sculpturing
great credit
Garuda
two hands.
is
the
the right and near the blades
might be observed the
figure of
crosslegged, with hands in the usual 336
PLATE
C.
Haribara
[To face page 336]
:
Stone
:
Foona.
OTHEE IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF poses and carrying the
objects
SIVA.
characteristic of
this deity.
daughter of Daksha and the consort
Sati, the
The
was dead.
of Siva
asura, Taraka,
was
offering
great annoyance to the devas and brahmanas and
could not be disposed of by any one but by one born
In the absence
of Siva.
of a wife
Siva can have
no progeny and the gods became interested carriage
Kaiyan a a u ndaramurti.
^^^^ ^^
(Himavan)
as Parvati
of Siva.
g^^
^^^^
and was
Sati ^f
in the
was already
^^^ Himalaya
herself performing
austerities to be joined to her lord once again.
was
at such a
Kama
moment
that, induced
It
by the devas,
the god of love, tried his artifices upon ^iva
and met with his end.
But when once the mind
of
Siva was disturbed he could not at once gather his
mental determination and he yielded to the prayers of the
gods
wanted
;
he resolved to enter marital
to try the
Varaha-purana
steadfastness of
form
of
Parvati,
an
Parvati.
it.
who was absorbed
The
biva assuming the
brahmana,
old, decrepit
He
giving the following
is alone in
account of how he tested
life.
approached
in her austerities,
and
begged to be supplied with food, as he was feeling very hungry. Parvati was pleased to ask him to finish his bath
The
old
and other ablutions and come
man
went
to
the river very near the
337 43
for meals.
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. hermitage of Parvati and as soon as he got down into the water contrived to be caught by a crocodile.
He
Pravati came
called out to Parvati for help.
to the riverside, but she could not stretch her arm,
which was never meant that of her lord,
to be held
Siva,
by others than
even in helping others.
Perplexed with this feeling she was standing
some moments but the danger
for
of
still
the guest
being swallowed by the crocodile very soon became patent to her and she was obliged to give up her
vow
of not
that
touched by a hand other than
being
Siva; she
of
stretched
arm and
out her
took hold of that of the old brahmana and pulled
him out him.
of the
Pleased
real self to her
water and the crocodile also
left
showed
his
with Parvati,
Siva
and she was immensely
gratified
with her lord for having saved her from being held
up
caught hold of a hand
to obloquy for having
other than that of Siva.
She dedicated
herself to
Siva and the regular marriage was celebrated later on.
The
details of the celebration
tion of the images of the gods
and the descrip-
and goddesses that
are to be represented as having taken part in
it
are
found in the Agamas.
In the composition of
Parvati with
of the scene of the
marriage
Siva there should be Siva and
Parvati forming the central figures facing the east. 338
OTHEE TMPOETANT A8PB0T8 OF
SIVA.
Vishnu and his consorts Lakshmi and Bhumi as the givers
— acting
the parts of
brahmana marriage— of the of these
the parents in a
bride should be there;
Lakshmi and Bhumi should be standing
behind the back of the bride, touching her at the waist indicative of handing her over to her lord
and Vishnu should be standing
in the back-ground,
between Siva and Parvati with a golden pot water ready to pour
it
the bride to the bridegroom
be
Brahma fire.
hdma
or
making
In the back-ground and
of giving
there should
then,
;
in the foreground, seated
ing the ceremony of the
ceremony
in the
of
and performofferings to
at various
dis-
tances should be seen the eight Vidyehvaras (or the lords of learning), AshtadikpalaJcas (or the guar-
dians of the eight quarters), Siddhas (persons
have attained the eight (semi-divine
beings),
great
rishis
powers),
(sages),
who
YaJcshas
Gandharvas
(another class of semi-divine beings), the Matrihas (or the seven
mothers) and a host of other gods,
with their respective goddesses,
all
of
them standing
with arms folded in the anjali pose, and with the feelings of pleasure, happiness
and wonder portrayed
Such are the
details of the general
in their faces.
composition of this remarkable scene and the individual figures are described in detail as follows
:
§iva should be sculptured as standing firmly 339
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. on the
left leg
aad with the right one resting upon
the ground somewhat bent
;
the
or,
left leg
niay be
represented as slightly bent and the right straight
The
and standing firmly on the ground. right
arm should be stretched out
right
arm
of the bride, Parvati
;
to receive the
the front
should be held in the varada pose.
left
hand there should be the parasu and
back
left
bends in the body
The head
is,
should be of the should be
of Siva
adorned with a jatamahuta with the crescent tucked up in
it,
and
their appropriate
all
moon
other parts of the body, with
ornaments such as the hara, the
udarabandha and the waist zone.
keyura, the
in the
There should be three
of Siva, that
trihhahga posture.
hand
In the back
right
one the mriga.
front
The
snake Vasuki should serve Siva as the sarpa-Jcundala,
Takshaka
the h^ra.
The
as the waist
band and Pushkara as
figure of Siva should be that of a
young man who has
just
of Siva should be red.
come
The
to age.
colour
As usual Siva should have
three eyes.
To
the
left of
the figure of Siva
*
should be
standing that of Parvati, of dark complexion, with * to
Soma
authorities state that Parvati should be standing
the right of Siva and there are sculptures representing
Parvati as standing both on the right and on the Siva.
340
left sides of
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF
s'lVA.
her right arm stretched out to receive that of ^iva, in the act of
panigrahana (the ceremony
hold of the hands) and with her a nllotpala. in shyness all
Her head should be
left
of taking
hand keeping
slightly bent
down
and her person should be adorned with
ornaments appropriate
for the occasion.
figure of Parvati should be as
chin, the shoulder
or the
The
high as the eye, the
chest
of Siva
and she
should be represented as a well-developed youthful
maiden, with two eyes and two arms and draped in silk
garments.
In front
Siva and seated on the ground
of
Brahma doing hdma or The figure of Brahma fire.
should be the figure of
making
offerings to the
should be as high
as
Purva-Kdranagama
the
gives
chest
of
Siva.
The
numerical proportions
for the height of the figures of
Brahma and Vishnu.
It is therein stated that the height of
Vishnu might
be seven-twelfths, eleven-twelfths, three-fourths or two-thirds of the height of Siva and that the height of
Brahma either
equal to or one-sixth, one-seventh
or one-eighth less than that of Vishnu.
Brahma must be
seated upon
a
padmdsana
facing the north, with, in front of him, a
which the
fire is
kunda in
burning with tapering flames.
As
usual he should be represented with four faces, four
arms and as being busy with the performance 311
of
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. the
He
homa ceremony.
should be adorned with
a jatamakuta and the body with a yajnopavlta, a
made of munja
girdle
grass,
and
all
he should wear an upper cloth.
and
other ornaments;
In his front right
hands he should hold the sruva and sruk
left
respectively,
and
in the
back right and
left
hands
there should be the aJcshamala and the Jcamandalu
The
respectively.
colour of
Brahma
should be red
like the fire.
The
size of the sacrificial
as follows
hunda
is
then given
the hunda should have three mekhalas
:
(broad tiers going round the central pit in which the
fire is
kindled) each of twelve aiigulas in width
and the extreme length
of the
whole hunda includ-
ing the rrnhhalas being 22 ahgulas.
the hunda, the
fire
In the
pit of
should be shown as possessing
seven or five jvalas or tongues of flame which ought to be a fourth of the height of
breadth of the flames of
fire
Brahma
must be
The ahgula mentioned here
height.
lahdha-ahgula
On
is
;
and the
half their
the deha-
of the central figure of Siva.
homa-hunda should be standing Vishnu, whose height should come up
the north of
the figure of
to that of the nose, shoulder or chest of Siva. is
as high
figure
;
if
as the
nose,
it is
as high as the chest,
said to be a
adhama.
If it
nttama
Dividing
the distance between the nose and the chest into 342
OTHER IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF we
shall get the nine classes,
uttama,
madhyama and adhama
eight equal divisions,
composed
of the
SIVA,
forms of Vishnu, that
uttamottama, uttama-
is,
madhyama, uttamadhama and
Vishnu
so forth.
should be adorned with a Mrlta-makuta on his
head and
all
other ornaments in
places. In the back right and
left
proper
their
hands he should
bear the chaJcra and the sanJcha, while the front right or left
hands should carry a golden
pot,
held
ready for pouring water from in the act of giving
bridegroom §iva.
the bride Parvati to the
The
colour of Vishnu should be, as usual, dark.
The
figure of
Lakshmi
is
required to be as
high as the chin or the shoulder of Vishnu, with
arms resembling the trunk with
keyiiras, JcaiiJcanas
hip of
of
an elephant adorned
and other ornaments. The
Lakshmi should be broad and
graceful and
she should be draped in richly embroidered silk cloth.
Such figures
are the
descriptions
of the
individual
composing the picture depicting the favourite
theme
of
the
Indian
artist,
as
given
in
the
Am^umadbhedagama,'^ Uttara-kdmiJcagama and the Purva-Kdbranagama.
me now
Let
descriptions of the actual sculptures
various
parts
of
India,
turn to
the
found in the
whose photographs are
reproduced on Pis. CI to CVII. 343
HINDU ICONOGRAPHY. Seven photographs are given in marriage
the
of
scene
the original sculptures
of
with Parvati
Siva
are of
illustration
varying degrees of
complexity and consist in one instance of barely Siva and Parvati standing hand in hand, while in others with
the divinities surrounding
all
them and
each doing a duty in connection with the marriage.
me
Let
therefore describe each of
The
first
them
photograph, PI. CI,
separately.
that of the
is
bronze images of Siva and Parvati in the act of
The
taking hold of each other's hand in marriage. original
image
of Siva is
nearly three feet in height
and has four arms and three
hand
is
eyes.
The
front right
held out to receive that of Parvati, while
the back right one carries a parasu with
The
turned away from the face of Siva.
hand
is
is
is
head
front left
held in the abhaya pose and the back
one carries a viriga. Siva
its
The
right leg of the
image
placed firmly on the ground and the
slightly bent
and
is
resting
left
left
of
one
upon the ground.
There are two bends (dvibhanga) in this image.
On
the head of this image
is
a jatamahuta adorned
with very nicely executed ornaments
;
the Jiara and
the yajnopavUa, the keyura and the katahas the
udarahandlia and the katibandha also artistically
draped in
—
made.
The image
skin
and on the
tiger's
344
all is
these are
apparently
feet
are
the
PLATE
Kalyanasundaramurti
:
Bronze
:
CI.
Tiruvorriyur.
[To face page 314]
Plate
Kalyaaasundaramurti
:
Stoua Panel
:
Ratanpur (Bilaspur
District).
cii
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF The
anklets.
figure is standing
SIVA.
upon a padmasana.
The image of Parvati, with its face slightly bent down in shyness, stands by the right side of that of Siva, with the right arm stretched out to receive that of §iva, while the
kataka pose.
On
ornaments
of
is
a Jcaranda-
adorned with a large
is
good workmanship
of
wears an exquisitely
kept in the
is
the head of Parvati
,makuta and her person
number
hand
left
descends in flowing folds on either side and
on the
by mekhalas
loin
(a
kind of
figure of Parvati is also standing
with two bends in
its
;
she
which
embroidered cloth
is
held
The
belt).
on a 'padmcLsana
body. This piece of sculpture
appears to belong to the early Chola period (A. D. 1000-1100).
The second sculpture whose photograph reproduced on PL CII, comes from Eatanpur
in
the B'laspur district of the Central Provinces.
In
this panel Siva stands with
instance alone, stands to the
hand
front left
upon the
and the damaru.
before the
making
left
who
of
in this
Siva.
His
right shoulder of
In the back hands he carries perhaps the
Parvati.
sula
rests
hand
his front right
stretched out to receive that of Parvati,
is
fire,
Brahma
on the right
fire-offerings
;
placed in front of him.
the
of Siva
fire
is
seen
and
is
seated
busy in
burning in a cup
Near ih.e\kunda or cup 345
44
is
of
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. stands
fire
Surrounding the
the bull of §iva.
and Parvati are a large
central figures of ^iva
number
of
attitude
and some with their arms resting upon
gods and goddesses, several in the anjali
their hips (Jcatyavalambita).
The next
illustration, CIII, is to be
the Cave temple at Elephanta.
It is a
remarkably
unfortunately here
very
well-executed panel, but
found in
But what remains
and there mutilated.
is suffi-
cient to disclose the master-hand of the artist
sculptured this most
standing with Parvati to his right
hand
is
;
is
his front right
as usual stretched out to receive that of
The
Parvati.
beauty
;
who
Siva
interesting scene.
figure
of
Parvati
is
striking
of
her slightly bent head and down-cast look
depict an
amount
and the broad
of shyness
her narrow waist
:
hip, the well-formed
easy posture of the legs figure
which
homa
to the left
its
all
is
all
own.
bosom and the
lend a charm to the
Brahma
is
Siva and Lakshmi
of
making is
seen
standing behind Parvati with her hands touching her back and behind
Vishnu with a at the
groom.
large pot of water for pouring water
ceremony
The
Lakshmi stands her consort
of giving the bride to
figure of a very well built
be seen standing behind
hand bent and
resting
Parvati with
upon the 346
the bride-
man
is
to
his right
right shoulder of
H.ATE cm.
Kalyanasundaramurti
:
Scona Panel
:
Elephanta.
PLATE
CIV.
Kalyanasundaramurti
[To face page 347]
:
Stone Panel
:
EUora.
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS 01 From
Parvati. fact that
it
SIVA.
the size of the figure and from the
has only two arms, as also from a sort
of inferior head-gear,
may presume
one
sents Parvataraja, the father of Parvati. is
he,
it is
panel.
repre-
it
that
If
indeed noteworthy to find him in the
Below the
large drum,
hand
right
of this figure is
A
also very well-carved.
number
a of
gods with their respective goddesses are seen in the air in the attitude of flying and praising the
In point
married couple.
of size also this panel is
most remarkable the height ;
is
8
feet
of the figure of Parvati
and 6 inches and the panel
itself
measures
approximately lOf feet square.
The photograph reproduced on PI. CIV is the panel found in the Dhumar Lena Cave In
EUora.
the panel
its details
to that of the
at
exactly similar
is
Blephanta Cave, though
manship has not got
of
its
work-
the latter 's fineness
and
artistic finish.
The
PL
CV
large panel
belongs to
vara at Bllora. the two on the
marriage left
the
Cave temple
It is divided into left
and
is
of
given on
Rames-
three sections,
are depicting scenes from the
of Parvati
section
whose photograph
with Siva.
at its
right
end
In the extreme is
seen Parvati
standing erect on the mountain between two
fires,
performing penance to obtain the hand of ^iva in 347
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. Her left hand
marriage.
the right one
To her
left
figure,
with
is
rests
upon her
counting the beads of an ahshamala.
stands a
woman
carrying a box
outstretched right
hand
asking for something from Parvati,
is
changes
:
A
to the
little
who was
the beggar,
a male
as though
box in her
hungry beggar
It is the figure of §iva as a
asking for food.
;
seen standing
to the left of the tall girl with the
hand.
thigh, while
left,
scene
the
asked by Parvati,
according to the VardJia-purana, to go to the river to bathe
and return
meals,
for
water, the surface of which flowers and leaves
;
by a makara and he vati of
who
is
covered with lotus
is
calling out for help.
repairs to the spot to see
Par-
what has become
her guest, sees him in this miserable plight
offer
moment
if
she should
now
her hand or not to this beggar, and with
great reluctance, tries at last to left
hand
—note,
save
lift
him up with
she keeps her right one far
away from the man and held
To
in knee deep
his left leg is caught hold of
after hesitating for a
her
is
in the
her from the tongue
vismaya pose.
of slander
6iva
appears to her in his real person, represented in the
panel,
just
above
His jata-makuta and proclaim his that water,
identity. fire
and
the head of the beggar. other It
ornaments
readily
should be noted here
mountain are represented 348
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OE in
the conventional
^IVA.
manner described
elsewhere.
Proceeding then to the next scene, that of actual marriage ceremony, which
the middle section of the panel,
depicted in
is it
his
right hand.
who
with a pot of ^iva, in
of
is
offering
same
receives the
in
At the background and between
and bridegroom
the bride
seen that
is
Parvati, standing to the right of Siva
her right hand to him,
the
is
Vishnu standing
water ready to pour in the hands
making the
gift of
the bride.
face is seen behind the head of the bride
Lakshmi's
and she
is
standing behind Parvati and presenting her to her lord, Siva.
Behind the bride
ants, one of
are
two female attend-
them carrying a box and behind the
bridegroom are two devas and a gana, the latter being easily recognised by his size and head-gear.
Brahma,
assisted by a rishi,
fire-ofifering
panel
is
{homo).
The
is
strangest thing in the
the anachronistic
and Karttikeya, the two sons even during the marriage
Ganesa
is
seen performing the
presence of
of the
of
Ganesa
§iva and Parvati,
two
!
!
The
little
standing between the legs of ^iva and
Parvati and Karttikeya between those of Siva and
The
the gana.
hand a
JcuJcJcuta
latter appears to carry in his
(cock)
whose
The presence of probability, meant to
photograph. is,
in
all
tail is visible in
349
left
the
these two children indicate that they
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. were not born by the union of the couple but had existed from eternity like
all
gods, but at a later
period assumed the position of the sons of Siva and Parvati.
The remaining
portion of the panel represents
another scene in the
He
Siva.
of
life
is
seen
learning the significance of the mystic syllable
An
from his son Subrahmanya. event
will
be found given
account of this the
in
chapter on
Subrahmanya.
Subrahmanya with
which three are
visible in the sculpture)
on a high pedestal with a hands other
hand
is
rishi;
Om
six heads (of
one
is
of
seated
his right
held in the chin-mudra pose, while the
is
kept with outstretched fingers.
is
resting
upon
He
his lap.
One
left
wears the cloth
the legs are hanging below in the upavUa fashion The rishi the seat and resting upon the ground. ;
has also both his legs hanging
down
the seat and
seems to have his hands kept in the anjali pose. In front of Subrahmanya
is
seated cross-legged on
the ground Siva with his right hand held in the
jnana-mudra pose and the yoga-mudra
pose,
on his
left
lap.
one resting, in the
He
also wears his
upper garment in the upavlta fashion.
him
is
seen standing Parvati, his consort.
Below row
of
Behind
this
remarkable composite panel
is
a
most humourous ganas some with animal 350
PLATE
Kalyanasundaramurti
:
Stone
;
CVI.
Madura. [To face page 351]
PLATE
Kalyanasuadaramurti
:
Stona
:
Madura.
CVII.
OTHEB IMPOETANT ASPECTS OF faces, others
with animal-mouthed
^IVA.
bellies {vriko-
human beings taking active
daras) and the rest like
with great cheerfulness, in the arrangements
part,
in connection with the marriage festivities.
two
banner and the third a mace
;
the fourth
is
dancing.
Three ganas are seen carrying a four-footed resembling a table, which
On
the
The
on the right end are seen carrying each a
first
left
of this
is
evidently a raised seat.
group another gana
playing upon the flute
next to him
;
article
is
is
seen
a lion faced
gana playing upon a stringed musical instrument. Adjoining
something on his head in his left
gana carrying
this, there is a bear-faced
another, tiger-faced, holds
;
hand something kept
a round
in
leaf,
The fourth from the the rest are carrying some
apparently that of the lotus. left is
vrikodara
a
;
article or other in their hands.
The next two
illustrations. Pis.
CVI and CVII,
the one in
They are found in Madura, the Pudu-mandapa and the other in the
man^apa
in front of the central shrine of Sundares-
are from South India.
vara temple
the
;
belongs to
first
the reign of
Tirumalai Nayaka and the second, a copy, made
some
forty
In these
years ago.
figures are Parvati,
who
is
the principal
being given to Siva in
marriage by Vishnu pouring water in the hands of 6iva
;
and Siva standing on the 361
left
with his
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. hand stretched out
right
front of
to receive
and between him and Vishnu
down
the head bent
the gift is
in
;
seen, with
Parvati keeping
in shyness,
her right hand Hfted up so as to be taken hold of
by Siva
and on the
;
Vishnu pouring water
left is
from a vessel on the hand in a
countersunk panel
is
The whole
fire-ofiering.
of
Siva.
Brahma making
seen
subject
great cleverness and the effect
There
is
is
charm
great
a
of
with
of the sculpture it.
depicted on the countenance of the
noteworthy.
of the favourite
or
The
shyness
bride
is
very
,
represented in sculpture
vahana
very striking.
Northern and Western
very simplicity
India, but the
One
treated with
not that elaborateness which one meets
is
with in the Cave temples
carries
Below, and
modes is
in
known
Vrishabharudhamurti
aspect which
is
is
as the Vrisha-
that
;
seated upon the bull, his vehicle.
hnld in high
which Siva
is,
It is
Siva
in this
veneration by the
people that Siva has often appeared in person before his
rudhamurfi!'^*
devotees.
One
day,
among
^^^ ^^^ days' festival in any §iva
temple in South India, the image of Siva
is
seated upon a bull and carried round the
streets in procession
as the
and that day
most important
of
352
all
is
held by people
the days
of
the
OTHEE IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF Hence
festival. is
also this
described in great
form
of the
SIVA.
image
of §iva
in all « the important
detail
Ugamas.
Vrishavahanamurti should be standing with his right leg placed firmly left slightly its
of this
;
the
left
;
arm may be hanging
tip of the
own
arm should be bent and on the head of the bull the hand
bent
wrist resting
on the ground and the
middle finger
navel.
The
right
may
fully
open so that the
reach the level of his
hand should carry a vakra-
dandUyudha (a crooked stick like the one carried by Sasta, Mannannar Krishna, etc.). This stick should be of the thickness of the small finger and should have three bends at
top end and
its
length equal to the distance between the
its
hiJcJca-
In the back right hand there
sutra and the knee.
must be the tanka or paraku and in the back left hand the mriga. The head might be adorned with hanging jatabhar a or
a jatamaJcuta, or a
bandha, the choice of which
The
figure should be
is left
adorned with
a,
jata-
to the sculptor. all
ornaments
the colour of Siva, as also that of his garments to be red.
On the
;
is
right side or the left should be
the figure of Devi, standing with the right leg kept firmly on the ground and the left one slightly bent.
The that
right
arm
of
the Devi should be
hand carrying a utpala 363 46
flower.
bent and
The
left
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. hand should be hanging down
The
freely.
Devi should be done according
to the
given in the dgamas for female images of the
bends in
its
figure of
measurements ;
the direction
body would depend upon
its
situation to the right or left of the image of Siva.
The rishabha
should be standing behind
(bull)
Siva and should be of the height either of the chest, navel, root of the penis or even the thigh or the foreleg.
(Evidently in the last two or three instan-
ces the
animal should perhaps be sculptured as on the ground).
sitting
The
illustrations
which
in almost exactly
fit
with the description given above are the images of
Vrishavahanamurti
of
Vedaranyam,that reproduced
from the VisvaJcarma and that
of
Taramangalam,
whose photographs
are given as Pis. CVIIT,
CX
In the
it is
respectively.
not the
left
and
its
hand
is
resting
is
The
the bull but the right.
instance, as in others,
first
arm that
CIX and
resting left
on the head
arm
is
let
of
down
upon the thigh and not as
required, held in the kataJca pose.
The
tip of the
middle finger of the right hand held in the patakahasta reaches, as
is
level of the navel.
required by the agamas, the It is to be
noted that the figure
of Siva in the present instance has only of four arms.
The
two instead
leg stands firmly
left
ground and the right one
is
354
slightly bent
on the
and resting
PLATE
CVlll,
Vrishavahanamurti [To face page 354]
:
Bronze
:
Vedaranyam.
PLATE
CIX.
[To face page 355]
Vriahavahanamurti
:
Bronza
;
Visvakarma
{Dc. A. K, K.
Plate
Vrishavahanamurti
:
Stone
:
ex.
Taramangalam.
[To face page 355]
PLATE
CXI.
a.
(D
a
o 02
p a)
>
[To face page 355]
Plate
cxii,
a
o
(tl
^
^'M
^>V
:
/(
^'^
f,
OTHEE IMPORTANT ASPECTS OP on the ground on
as the thighs of Siva.
description given
on the head
rests
The
its toes.
in
CIX
PI.
true to the
is
JcataJca
metallic or
wooden crooked
pose to receive in
CX, the
The
arm
left
is
right leg
one
is
is
kept
In the image of Taramangalam,
front right
hand
pose, but in other respects
the one on
left
a separate
it
The
stick.
kept firmly on the ground and the
PI.
Its
very
and the right hand
of the bull
held in the
slightly bent.
bull is as high
agamas*
the
^IVA.
it
is
kept in the abhaya
is
exactly similar to
PL CIX.
third photograph reproduced to be
on
PI.
CXI
found on the wall
is
that of the sculpture
of
one of the so-called rathas at Mahabalipuram.
image represented on
It
almost
resembles the
PI.
CVIII.
The image of Siva has four arms. The in a manner held in the Jcataha pose.
left
hand
On
either side of this
is
Vrishavahanamurti is a Deva,
with his consort, praising Siva.
The photographs reproduced as figs. 1 and 2 on PI. CXII are similar in treatment. The agamic description agreeing with this mode of representation of the Vrishavahanamurti present.
So,
scription
as
*
is
not available at
we should be satisfied with the dewe find recorded in the sculptures.
Mr. v. A. Smith
calls this
image " Siva
dance."
355
in sandhyaaritta
HINDU lOONOGEAPHY. Here, Siva and Parvati are seated exactly as in the aspect of Umasahita-alinganaraurti, or Somaskandamurti, on a seat placed upon the back of a full sized bull.
In
fig. 2,
he
Siva
fig. 1,
is
In the
not.
front right
the front
left is
first
piece of sculpture Siva
hand the &ula and the damaru
carries in his back
and the
embracing Parvati and in
is
is
kept in the abhaya pose and
thrown on the shoulder
of
Parvati
hands carry the
in the second sculpture the back
parasu and the mriga and the front hands are in the abhaya and the varada poses respectively. elaborately carved prahhavali
An
seen surrounding
is
The
the figures of Siva and Parvati.
first
piece of
sculpture belongs to the Hoyasala School and the
second to the modern Nattukkottai artisans and the former
is fitted
up now in the reconstructed Keda-
resvara temple at Halebidu and the latter in the
Sundaresvara temple at Madura.
The
known
aspect of Siva
ranamurti appears to
as the Vishapaha-
considered
be
anugrahamurti ; since muS*^*^*''*''^'
definitely
the this chapter.
We
mentioned
agamas
it
is
a kind of it
as
is
not
such in
included
in
have already mentioned that
^iva swallowed the dreadful poison that emerged
from the ocean, when
and the Danavas
it
was churned by the Devas
for obtaining
356
ambrosia (amrita)
OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF from the
it.
We
have a description
Karanagama
therein
;
is
it
SIVA.
of this
murti in
stated that Siva,
as usual, should have a face with three eyes on
it,
wearing a jatamakuta and having four arms.
In
two
of his
the mriga
hands there should be the para§u and ;
in one of the remaining hands there
should be the cup containing the poison and the fourth hand should be held in the varada pose.
His sight must be
fixed
upon the poison and the
general attitude should be such as to indicate that
ho
is
going to sip the poison immediately.
should be adorned with
On
the
left of
He
kinds of ornaments.
all
Siva there should be his consort
Parvati embracing her lord about the neck with her
arm and appearing highly perplexed and distressed. Her complexion should be dark, she right
should have two eyes, two arms and be standing in the tribhahga posture, (with three bends in her body), with her right leg placed vertically
ground and the
left
on the
one kept slightly bent. Another
description adds to the above the following details
that the appearance of ^iva should be (ugra) by the addition of
side
made
:
terrific
tusks; his com-
plexion should be white as the full-moon and he
made of tiger's skin ; should be a garland made of small bells, and
should be draped in garments there
along with the other usual ornaments, there should 367
HINDU ICONOGEAPHY. be some others composed of scorpions
In the right hands trisula
;
and in one
Since no object
hand,
it
is
first
vessel {gokdrnd) containing of the left
hands the
Jcapala.
mentioned as being in the fourth
appears that this arm
employed in the act the
Siva there should be the
of
and a beaked
the poison
{vri§chiJca).
of
may
be taken to be
embracing the Devi.
In
description Siva and Parvati are required
to be standing, but in this one, they are said to be
seated on the bull-vehicle of Siva.
358
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