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SOUTH ASIAN Rama, the Archer South India, 15Th–16Th Century SOUTH ASIAN Rama, the Archer South India, 15th–16th century Bronze 65.168 Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Samuel Eilenberg In times of great evil, Vishnu assumed various forms and descended to earth to restore order and goodness. Tradition lists ten incarnations or avataras for him––nine have already appeared, one is yet to come. Rama, the archer, is the seventh. He is shown here drawing his bow (now lost). Rama’s deeds are told in the great Indian epic the Ramayana in which he overcame the forces of evil. He is regarded as a symbol of incorruptibility, honesty, loyalty and tenderness. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 1 SOUTH ASIAN Durga Killing the Buffalo Demon Central India, ca. 12th century Bronze 66.153 Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Samuel Eilenberg Ten-armed Durga, a form of the Great Goddess, thrusts her trident into the anthropomorphized buffalo demon, Mahisha, an act that symbolizes the triumph of good over evil. The demon’s buffalo head, which Durga has already cut off, is at the feet of her lion. Her vigorous posture and swirling arms, with each hand holding a weapon or attribute, reveal her awesome power. The worn surface of the figurine indicates it has undergone centuries of ritual handling by devout worshippers. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 2 SOUTH ASIAN Parvati South India, perhaps 18th century Bronze 66.228d Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Samuel Eilenberg This tiny figurine depicts the Hindu goddess Parvati, the consort of Shiva and the benevolent aspect of Shakti (Cosmic Feminine Energy). Small figurines like this are used in personal devotion as a means for focusing worship on a chosen deity. Even at this small scale, artisans meticulously adhered to prescribed standards for the depictions of the various gods. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 3 SOUTH ASIAN Ganesha South India, Chola period, late 12th century Bronze 67.173 Gift of Michael de Havenon Ganesha, the son of Shiva and Parvati, is one of the most popular Hindu gods. Invoked at the beginning of worship or any other venture, such as the start of a business day or a journey, Ganesha’s name is daily on the lips of virtually every devout Hindu. Such large sculptures were not used in homes but were displayed in temples. The two upright spikes attached to the base were meant to support an aureole (a full-body halo) that surrounded the image, and the rings on each side were used to carry the figure in processions on festive occasions. In his upper hands the god carries a battleaxe, symbolizing power, and a noose, symbolizing attachment to worldly matters as well as the god’s capacity to capture evil and bind ignorance. His lower right hand holds his broken tusk, and his lower left hand holds sweet cakes that he picks up with his trunk. He wears a crown ornamented with a lotus. Flowers decorate his shoulders, and he has a “sacred thread” around his torso. Ganesha came to have an elephant’s head because, according to myth, his father Shiva, who had been absent during his birth, didn’t recognize him and, when he first encountered him, killed him as an intruder. Shiva later restored Ganesha to life with the head of the first animal that walked by––an elephant. (MAA 04/06) In his upper hands the god here carries a goad which symbolizes action and his ability to distinguish spiritual motives and steer them; and a noose that signifies human attachment to worldly matters as well as the god's capacity to capture evil and bind ignorance. His lower right hand holds his broken tusk; his lower left holds a sweet cake. The lugs on each side of the base served to fasten the statue onto poles for processional use. (MAA 6/2012) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 4 SOUTH ASIAN Vishnu Flanked by Lakshmi and Sarasvati Bangladesh, Pala period, end of 11th century Basalt 77.292 Anonymous gift Vishnu is the Hindu god who preserves the universe. He stands in the straight and sturdy pose called samabhanga––a pose that fits his role to uphold and preserve order. He holds four attributes in his hands: a conch shell to summon troops to battle the forces of evil (symbol of eternal space); a club with which to defeat his enemies (symbol of eternal law); a discus––a throwing weapon (symbol of eternal time); and a lotus (symbol of purity and ever-renewing creation). He wears a long garland composed of groups of gems that derive from the five elements of earth, water, fire, air and ether. He is flanked by two goddesses: Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, who holds a flywhisk, and Sarasvati, the goddess of learning, who holds a stringed musical instrument (vina). Vishnu and his flanking consorts all stand on double lotus pedestals. Among the convoluted tendrils decorating the pedestal is Vishnu’s sacred animal (vahana), the eagle-like Garuda, at the center; at the bottom corners are figures of donors. The back slab of the stele forms a great vertical throne decorated with mythical aquatic animals (makaras), leogryphs rearing over combating heroes and fallen elephants, celestial musicians (kinnaras), and garland bearers (vidyadharas) flying through clouds. At the very peak of the stele was once a decorative motif called a “face of glory” (kirtimukha), a symbol of auspiciousness. Such steles were made for display in niches in temple walls and votive shrines. Worshippers often place offerings before them and anoint the figures with pigments as an act of devotion. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 5 SOUTH ASIAN The Buddha Visited by Indra Pakistan (Gandhara), ca. 2nd–3rd century Schist 80.192 Gift of Dr. Eric Neff Here, the Buddha is shown meditating in the Indrasala cave. He is visited by Indra, an ancient Vedic deity and king of the gods. Indra had come to pose questions about karma, or human actions and their consequences. Indra, seen at the right, rides his elephant and makes a gesture of greeting and respect, bowing his head as he does so. With his trunk the elephant holds a parasol, a symbol of nobility. Indra’s harpist, Panchasikha, plucks his instrument at the left side of the relief. With this encounter Indra acknowledges the superiority of the Buddhist doctrine over the older teachings of Vedic Hinduism. Events from the life of the Buddha were presented on stupas in sculptural panels such as this. The scenes were often shown in static, isolated episodes, framed and separated by pilasters. The play of light and shadow over their surfaces must have made for a dazzling display. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 6 SOUTH ASIAN Prince Siddhartha Preparing to Leave the Palace Pakistan (Gandhara), ca. 3rd–4th century Schist 81.4 Gift of Mr. Eric Neff This relief comes from a stupa––originally a symbolic grave mound around which a Buddhist monastery developed. Stupas were visited by pilgrims who came to experience the unseen presence of the Buddha. Such stupas were often encased in sculptural reliefs that told the life stories of the Buddha. Here, Prince Siddhartha, who was to become the Buddha, has awakened in the night. Surrounded by his still-sleeping wife and servants, he prepares to leave the palace on his quest to find Enlightenment. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 7 SOUTH ASIAN Shiva Bhairava North Central India, perhaps Rajasthan, ca. 11th–12th century Sandstone 86.21 Purchased with funds generated from gifts of Dr. and Mrs. Renato Almansi, Mr. and Mrs. Judson Biehle in memory of Dean Martha Biehle, Mrs. Josefa Carlebach, Dr. Samuel Eilenberg, Dr. and Mrs. Martin J. Gerson, Mr. Robert Landers, Dr. Richard Nalin, and Mr. and Mrs. Irwin A. Vladimir Bhairava is the terrifying aspect of the Hindu god Shiva. He is the ultimate in divine destruction. This monumental image manifests Shiva’s power over the material world. Here, his eyes bulge with anger; his staff is topped by a grimacing human skull; snakes curl around his ears; and his hair, with the matted locks of an ascetic, is adorned with severed human hands and another skull. In many of his aspects, Shiva is represented in art as a wandering hermit; as a doting family man; as creative power embedded in the phallus; as the cosmic dancer who sets the calendric, climactic and metabolic rhythms of the world; and as a ferocious destroyer. Ultimately, Shiva is the cosmos and its energy. The destructive power of Shiva, represented as Bhairava, illustrates the Hindu belief that creation and destruction go hand in hand. Ultimately, we are to understand that the manifest world is nothing but illusion. Shiva Bhairava is the destructive force that liberates us from entanglement in illusion and in so doing brings transcendent peace. (MAA 04/06) MAA 6/2012 Docent Manual Volume 2 Non-Western 8 SOUTH ASIAN Shiva Nataraja South India, 16th or 17th century Bronze 2004.4 Gilbreath-McLorn Museum Fund Shiva Nataraja, Lord of the Dance, symbolizes the eternal, cyclical nature of the universe that the regular rhythm of his dance sets in motion. On his drum he taps out the sound to which creation occurs. The flame in his upper left hand signifies destruction. His lower right hand offers protection while his raised foot symbolizes liberation. The circle of flames around him is energy in its purest form.
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