Chapter 6: EPILOGUE

I. Significance of the study a) The study is basically a very good documentation of 's ancient and medieval period icons and sculptural remains. So far a wrong notion among many that Goa religio cultural past before the arrival of the Portuguese is intangible has been critically viewed and examined in this study. The research would help in throwing light on the pre-Portuguese era of the Goa's history. b) The craze of modernization and renovation of ancient and historic temples have made changes in the religio-cultural aspect of the society. Age old deities and concepts of worships have been replaced with new sculptures or icons. The new sculptures installed in places of the historic ones have been modified to the whims and fancies of many trustees or temple authorities thus changing the pattern of the religio-cultural past. While new icons substitute the old ones there are changes in attributes, styles and the historic features of the sculpture or image. Not just this but the old sculptures are immersed in water when the new one is being installed. Some customary rituals have been rapidly changed intentionally or unintentionally by the stake holders or the devotees. Moreover the most of the ancient rituals and customs associated with some icons have are in process of being stopped by the locals. Therefore a thorough documentation of these sculptures and antiquities with scientific attitude and research was the need of the hour. c) The iconographic details about many sculptures, worships or deities are scattered in many books and texts. Many ancient Indian texts like the Purans are slowly becoming obsolete or untraceable. The same is the case with many inscriptions, epigraphs or copper plates. The study has correlated, compared and all such primary sources and there one can draw a pattem of the religious conditions of a changing society which existed in ancient Goa. d) The study has also made an attempt to study the impact of the icons and sculptures on Goa's society. One can also trace the pattem of evolution of Goa's ancient religion and the development of art. e) Through the study an analytical approach of periodizing the sculptures by relating them to the sculptures found in the neighboring areas of Goa which also came under the sways of the dynasties who ruled Goa has been carried out. The

204 sculptures which have not been brought to light by the previous scholars or researchers in Goa are categorized and periodized. f) To characterize the various seating postures, poses, names of ornaments found on the various sculptures in Goa by using various primary and secondary sources. To study the dynastic influences on ancient and medieval sculptures by comparing them sculptures found in places where the dynasties originated.

II. Re-orientation of hypothesis into the final research 1) Strong pattern of folk worship found. There are folk as well as Puranic worships found in Goa today. However, the folk deities and folk worships have a greater influence on Goa's religio-cultural past. The folk deities included aniconic forms of worships except for a few of them like the Betall and . Almost every village of Goa has a folk deity in village Panchayatan. In many places the folk deities are invoked before the Puranic deities in the traditional invocations. This early primitive society had excluded the worship of the Puranic and Vedic deities. The aniconic worships included ^/iun?/,(worship of pilaster), Sdnteri, Bhomka, Bhaukai, (antihill), Lairai ( brass pitcher) Purush (ancestor), Paik (protector deity on horseback) Kelbai, Mhammai. Patrddevi, Pdvnai Mduli, Shimradevi, Sitradevi etc . To add to this we have iconic forms like Vandevi or Vandevta, in which the name itself suggests that it is the worship of local flora and fauna Male folk deities like the Dddd, Sdkhaliyo, Paik. Vir, Purus, Brahmo, Pisso, Khetri, Ravlu , Shdno Ravlu etc were worshipped and continues to be worshipped in the tribal society even today.

2) Assimilation of Vedic and Puranic rituals for folk deities and vice versa Even after the advancement of the Puranic deities the folk rituals and concepts had a strong influence. Although the folk deity like the Betall became part of the Puranic Panchayatan he is still offered sacrificial blood of an animal mixed with rice. This tradition in case of the PMra«/c deity also had to be continued. But animal blood was considered to be a taboo in the Puranic worships hence Sindhur or Kumkum mixed with water signified blood. This symbolic blood is mixed with rice and is offered to minor protector deities around the principal Puranic deity. In some villages the Puranic deity was elevated to the status of the principal deity of the village. In such cases the folk deities were given a position one step lower than the Puranic deity yet 205 their position remained the most important. On the festival day these deities have to be pleased by offerings certain things like uncooked rice, a cockerel etc.

3) 's ani conic forms & Vishnu's ten incarnations- symbolism of evolution theory. appears to have played a dominant role in Goa Apart from his iconic worship he Vishnu is also worshipped in an aniconic form. Certain families in Goa worship the ammonite fossils which appear to be in the shape of a Chakr. This is called as Saligram or Shalgram. the Agni Puran description of Shalgram as a Chakr having circular marks as the form of Vishnu speaks about his association with life under water. a) Why specifically worship the ammonites? The ammonites have gone through a great process of evolution before they could get their last form. They initially were in the shape of a long shell called Ordovician Cephalopod which had curves. The curves gradually evolved into coils and the shells were flattened and compressed. The coiled shells continued to develop and sprang into new group called ammonites. Vishnu was considered to be the early life or the embryo which eventually grew and developed into larger and bigger creatures. Ammonite fossils as seen above were the earliest forms of life which gradually evolved. Hence these fossils not only represented the Chakr of Vishnu but also were a part of the great evolution process of early forms of life. Thus the Saligram by itself indicated a representation of birth or the seed of birth as it was one of the earliest form of life. His 10 avtars are nothing but symbolic representations of evolution of life.

6) Matsy (fish) 2) Kurm (tortoise) 3) Varah (wild boar) 4) A'ir5'/«/j(half man half lion)

5) Vaman (dwarf) 6) Parshurdm (axe man) 7) Ram (warrior with bow- arrow)

8) Krishn (intelligent) 9) Buddh (enlightened one) 10) Kalki (destroyer)

Scientifically speaking the chordates which included a wide range of living beings worms to frogs, birds originated from the lancelet which is a small slender translucent marine animal. It is called as the ancestors of all vertebrate animals. It is considered to be the most primitive ancestor of the vertebrates. From the lancelet evolved the early fish called Agnatha which had gill, fins and scales. From the Agnatha evolved the Lobbed Fin Fishes which later evolved into the amphibians who could live on land as well as water. Studies show that there is a remarkable increase in the brain power and

206 brain complexity as we pass the stages of evolution from fishes to amphibians, reptiles and finally to mammals. The struggle for existence from sea to land led to the evolution of reptiles from amphibians and from reptiles evolved the four legged mammals. Thus reptiles finally evolved into mammals. The Puranic texts like the Vayu Puran also mentions that the entire earth was a water body in the beginning and from there emerged Vishnu. In a nutshell the theory of evolution states that life began first in water in the form of fishes then came evolved the phase of amphibians who evolved into reptiles. Perhaps this is the reason why peiiiaps Vishnu is called as Jalpati daivat. A minute observation of the above chronology of Vishnu's avtars very clearly indicates that it is a representation of theory of evolution of life. The fish (Matsy) which later evolved into tortoise (Kurm) then into four legged mammal the boar iVardh) then existed the primitive man (Nrsinh and Vdman). Here one can also see a symbolism of evolution of an axe man {Parshurdm) then the thinker (Krishn and Buddh). Though inclusion of Gautam Buddh was an attempt to incorporate into the fold of Vaishnavism he is aptly placed before the Kalki avtdr. b) Find spots of sculptures of Vishnu are near water bodies. The find spots of these sculptures are noteworthy. Keeping the concept of Vishnu being associated with water in mind, the sculptures of Vishnu were established in a place having lots of water or which was water logged perennially. Sculptures were also established on fertile lands having ample of water. The sculpture of Bhogshayan Vishnu in Savai Verem was established on a water logged site. Till today one can find water flowing all around the plinth of the temple in narrow canals. The sculpture of Vdman in Paingini is worshipped in a temple located on edge of a cultivable marshy land. While the sculpture of Ndrdyan in Mulgao, Savai are also found established in cool and serene areas filled with thick vegetation. Same is observed in case oiKeshav temples. The sculpture of Keshav found in Priol, Nageshi, Aria and Lolye is established on a low lying inundated area while the one in Khandepar, is located on the banks of a river. However there is an exception to this. The Vishnu sculptures shifted to avoid be desecrated by the Portuguese were not re-installed keeping this concept in mind. Finding a safe site away from the hands of the Portuguese was the first preference for these sculptures. Similar site conditions are also found in the case of Mddhav sculpture in Vichundre, Dhavli and Bori. The association of Vishnu with

207 the waters is depicted on his pedestal which contains carvings of fish swimming within the reeds in waters.

4) Introduction of Vaishnavism and cults and the dominance of Vaishnavism Vaishnavism and Shaivism were cults which were introduced in the Goa's aboriginal culture. But the new cults did not ignite a spark between the old and the new. Neither was there any kind of collision. But the new cults assimilated in them folk culture and it fused so well that the new cult became a part and parcel of the society. Other then Shivlings many icons of have been found in Goa. These are in the form of Uma-Maheshwar in an alingan Mudra. But the dominance and influence of Vaishnavism was stronger. There appears to be a missionary effort by the Vaishnav sect to spread Vaishnavism to the common folk. They used methods like the dance- theatre form to spread the cult all over Goa. An example of such an attempt left behind is the Kalo a form of dance-drama which makes use of masks and depicts various aspects of Vishnu and his avtars. This performed in almost all the temple of Goa and a night is marked for this dance-drama form every year. Vaishnavism was cult which was introduced by the Vaishnav cult in Goa. The earliest sculpture of Vishnu is found in the village of Lolye in Kankona taluka It can be assigned to the Badami Chalukyan era and is comparable to the sculptures of Gupt of the period. In cases wherever the sculptures of Kadamb era are found there is a common folklore which is told by the locals there. This folklore is found in two villages of Goa viz. Savai Verem where the sculpture of Anant is found and the Lolye where the sculpture of Keshav is found. In other cases it is quite clear that sculpture was installed by king. E.g. the sculpture of Keshav in Priol appears to have been installed by the Kadamb king Tribhuvanmall in the 11 century as the epigraphs mentioning his visit in the village are available. It mentions that the sculpture was found in a ship carrying Chandan logs. The number of sculptures of Vishnu and its forms having a classical influence are more than the sculptures of Vishnu in local influence. Moreover the local influenced sculptures do not date prior to 9*-l()'*' century. The sculptures of twenty four forms of Vishnu found in Goa follow a specific and adhere to the description of the Puranic or iconographic texts.- a. They are all found in the Sam-pad Mudra in standing pose. b. All the sculptures are in Chaturbhuj form.

208 c. The Prabhavalli is mostly serpentine in shape and has the miniatures of all 10 incarnations carved on the Prabhavalli. d. The ornaments depicted on all the sculptures of Vishnu are almost same. Especially the sculptures in classical style follow the same pattern of ornaments.

5) Shaivism gave birth to a concept parallel to Gajlakshmi called Gaj-Gauri. The Gajlakshmi concept which was a part oiShakti worship in Vaishnavism was also taken up by Shaivism. But now the deity Lakshmi was replaced by Parvati. The lotuses in the hands of Lakshmi were replaced by Khadg and Pair. In some sculptures she is shown holding a lotus in her hands. But this meets the iconographic norms of Parvati or Gauri which suggests that she should hold a lotus in one of her hands along with other attributes. Texts like Apardjitprchd mention her to hold lotus. While several images of images o( Parvati found in places like Hingalagarh in the Mandsaur district Madhya Pradesh and Menal in the Chittorgarh of Rajasthan depict her holding lotuses in her hands. In the Gaj-Gauri sculptures of Goa a lion is shown seated under her. Though the terminology, Gaj-Gauri is not very famous today the locals of Chandor still invoke her by the name Gaj-Gauri before the commencement of Musal khell: a ritualistic dance In the invocation she is said to be leader of 700 legions. The absence of lotuses in both her hands and the presence of weapons like Khadg or a Pair and the lion as her mount only lead to believe that a special iconography called Gaj-Gauri existed in Goa which slowly lost its name today.

6) Transformation of folk deities into folds of Vaishnavism and Shaivism or other Purdnic forms. Transformation of male and female folk deities into Vaishnav and Shaiv or other Purdnic forms took place on a large scale in many villages of Goa. The impact of Purdns saw a new concept of worship which forced many deities to be renamed to make them appear Purdnic in origin. This was an amalgamation of folk deities and Purdnic deities. Though both the forms of worships were completely different the concept remained the same. Hence the two fused together with minimum resistance. The two concepts not only mixed well each other but also fused into major worships which became highly popular. In Goa, there are many folk deities came under the influence of Purdnic deities and thus became a prominent and a major worship. The Sdnteri turned into Shdntddurgd, while Vayzari and Kdntarashd was turned to

209 , and Kdtydyani respectively. We also have folk deities like the Kelhdi, Mhdmmdi or the Bhdukdi assigned the sculptures of Gajlakshmi. Ancestor and folk worships like the Purush, Manddevi, and Nirdkdr in Kankona taluka, Ddmodar in , while Mhdlsd in Mardol were transformed to Vaishnav form and renamed to Purshottam, Mohini, Nirdkdr, Ddmodar Mahdlsd respectively. a) From Sdnteri to Shdntddurgd The concept of is not supported by any Purans. It is a perfect example of a folk deity being converted into a Purdnic deity yet both, the folk and the Purdnic concepts were both retained in the new form of worship. The local goddess called Sdnteri which is actually a primitive worship of the Earth was converted to Shdnteri and then further to Shdntd. The suffix oi Durgd appears to have been added to the name due to the Purdnic influence. Hence the name Shdntddurgd was coined. The deity Sdnteri in its primitive form was highly revered and feared. The same reverence and fear is also seen in it new form and is one of the major forms of worships in Goa. Later a Purdn mentioning the evolution of Shdntddurgd was also created in which she is mentioned to have mediated a battle between Vishnu and Shivd and hence she got the name Shdntddurgd. This name Shdntddurgd also maintained in it the concept of Sdnteri which was the worship of the anthill. The anthills survived at cool temperatures and surroundings for its growth. Hence perhaps the name Shdntd suited her well. b) From Vayzari to Vijavddursd Same is the case seen with deities like Vijayddurgd and Kdtydyani of Keri in Ponda and Avursa in Uttar Kannada district of Kamataka respectively. The deity which is now known as Vijayddurgd is referred to as Vayzari before the Portuguese advent. This appears to be a folk deity which was later uplifted to the status of a Purdnic deity called Vijayddurgd. c) From Kdntarashd to Kdtydyani The deity Kdtydyani is presently located in the coastal village Avursa near Karwar. But it was shifted from Goa during the Portuguese aggression from the village of Banaully in Salcette taluka. The deity is referred as Cantaroza devy in the Portuguese documents of the 16* century. In the Mundari language the term Kantara refers to a kind of water plants with spines. From here it is very clear that the deity must be a folk deity which was upgraded to the status of Kdtydyani later on. Moreover the icon of Kdtydyani in Avursa does not meet the need requirements 210 mentioned in the iconography texts. The iconography ofKatyayani demands that the goddess:- 1) should have ten arms 2) right side arms should have Thshul, Khadg, Ban, Chakr, -Ayudh 3) Left arms should have Khetak, Pash, Ankush, Ghanta and Parshu. 4) Jata Mukut on her head. But here she is just four armed holding a Khadg and a Shankh in her upper hands with her lower two hands killing the demon Mahishasur. The coastal village of Banaulli comprises of water logged marshy areas with small streams passing through it. These streams of water bodies have a rich growth of local variety of water plants. Hence the term Kantaraja Devi must have been a reference to nature worship which is actually the worship of the local flora d) Kelbai ox Mhammai worshipped in the form of Gajlakshmi icons. Gajlakshmi arte sculptures which depict Gaj (elephants) showering water from their trunks over Lakshmi seated in the centre. The deity was worshipped even during the Gupt period while images of this deity in a Sambhang Mudra, holding a lotus in one hand and the other hand resting on her hips have been discovered in Kausambi in Uttar Pradesh. These are assignable to T' century BCE. According to some she was a favorite deity of the merchant community in ancient However no concept called Gajlakshmi is found in any texts. The texts only mention elephants pouting water on her head. But the term Gajlakshmi does not figure out in nay ancient iconographic or religious texts. In Goa folk deities like Bhaukai, Kelbai or Mhammai are represented in the form of Gajlakshmi. While trying to trace the etymological roost of Kelbai the word Keal in the Mundari parlance connotes prudence, wisdom taught by experience or by skill or proficiency. Hence the name Kelbai could me a leamed female entity. In the traditional invocation she is addressed as ^l^ll or the wisest and knowledgeable who takes care of all the minor

deities, streams in the village. The name Mhammai means the great mother (Mha+mai). In this case too her greatness and her wisdom is seen in her name. As some in Goa associate her to Buddhism where Mayd represents Buddh's mother. But this is done after modifying the local name from Mhammai to Mahamdya. e) From Purush to Purshottam The deity is worshipped in the Paingini village of Kankona taluka. Although he is addressed and identified as Purshottam, one of the 24 forms of Vishnu, the sculpture

211 of the deity does not meet the iconographic rules of it to be called as Purshottam. The iconographic texts prescribe the sculpture of Purshottam to hold Padm and Shankh in his upper right hand and left hand respectively while a Gadha and a Chakr in his lower right and left hand respectively. But the sculpture of Purshottam in the temple does not satisfy the above criteria. The deity is shown in a DvibhuJ form holding a Dand in his right hand while a small ball (unidentifiable) in his left hand. The Prabhavalli is plain with having floral patterns and no miniatures of incarnations of Vishnu. Likewise the sculpture is not decorated with any ornaments. Instead there is garland of flowers around his neck and the lower part of the body is covered with a dhoti reaching above his knees. There are two ascetic looking figures standing on his either side. The figure on left wears a loin cloth and holds a flower in each of his hands. While the other one holds Kamandalu in both his hands. This only points out that the deity in worship is not any royal entity nor a form of Vishnu. He appears to be an ancestor of a particular lineage. The worship is an example of deification of a human being. Similar is the case with the deity Purush of Paingini. The depiction of a Dand in his hand and the absence Shankh, Chakr, Gadha and Padm, the chief attributes of Vishnu point out that the local ancestor deity was transformed into a form of Vishnu. 0 From Manadevi to Mohini The deity is worshipped in the village of Sadolshe in Kankona taluka It was believed that the deity would fulfill the wish of person whoever who would place a red a flower on the threshold of the temple. Therefore the name Manadevi; which means the goddess who fulfills the wish from the mind. Moreover the original wooden icon kept on the mezzanine floor of the temple has no ornamentation and appears to be just a model on which was decorated to make it appear like female figure. Here also she is shown mounting a lion. Moreover the Puranic Mohini described in the Bhagvat, Matsy and Nrsinh Purdn has to be very beautiful and who wore a Hdr in her neck and Keyur on her arms and wore Nupur on her feet and a Katisutr of her waist. The icon of Mohini present in the temple today in no way satisfies the description of Mohini given in the texts. Moreover the sculpture in the temple is depicted sitting on a lion which has no relation to the Mohini of the Purans. Mohini is described as a beautiful deceiver in the Sanskrit texts and does not have anything to do with any animal as her vdhan. Both these factors indicate that she was a local deity called Manadevi who was later transformed into a Vaishnav deity.

212 g) Nirakar the worship of the formless and not Vishnu The deity Nirakar is worshipped in many villages of the villages of Khalwade, Kindle, Dele and Mashem of Kankona taluka and also in Uttar Kannada district along the coast uptill Ankola He is represented in the form of a massive wooden pillar having intricate carvings of various floral patterns. The concept of worship appears to be a very ancient one of worshipping the Formless- thus meaning Nirakar. Since its is a pillar worship he is regarded to be a form of Nrsinh. There is tradition in Goa to worship the main wooden pillar which supports the roof of the house. This wooden pillar represents the ancestors of a family. This pillar is called as the Dhdn in local parlance when it worshipped in the house. There is also a tradition to apply round Gopi-chandan marks on this pillar. Each mark signified one generation of the family or the clan. Amongst the tribals of South Goa there is a tradition of worshipping such pillars called as the Gharvai or the Khunti. The Khunti refers to a small pilaster with its one end buried in the ground and the other standing freely. Nirakar appears to be one such worship. It was a worship of a carved wooden pillar outside the house in a temple. It was regarded as the main divine support protecting the family's lineage. Moreover the worship of pilasters, pillars or poles in ancient cultures is an early representation of phallus worship according to many researchers. Moreover the aniconic representation of Nirakar is a bunch of peacock feathers which in no way are related to Nrsinh. This bunch is brushed over the head of the devotees during festivals to ward off any evil of bad spirits. Thus, from here one can easily deduce that the worship of Nirakar was a folk one which was later converted into Vaishnavism. The worship of the Khamin the female counterpart of the Khamb or the pillar is found in the Savai village of Since the worship was of a female deity, the pillar would be decorated with a pair of eyes and a nose ring which would signify the sex. Some years back the pillar was removed only to be replaced by sculpture of a female deity. The deity is renamed and addressed as Kdmini today. h) Damodar- a folk worship He is worshipped in the form of a phallus Damodar in the village of Jambauli in Sanguem taluka. Although he is believed to be a form of Shiv his name Damodar finds no place in Shaivism. A Vaishnav name for a Shivling contradicts the concept. Moreover he is commonly referred to as Dam-bab where Dam is the short form of Damodar while the suffix bdb is normally used by to address a senior most respected personality even today. A Portuguese record furnishes his name as Macagi 213 Damodar. Lopes Mendes, a Portuguese traveler mentions that the people of Madgaon worshipped an idol representing the figure of a Cavalleiro (horse rider) called Damodar Prabhu. He was the son of a Dessai, of the Govemor of Madgaon, and that having married, had been killed with his bride during confrontation by the inhabitants of Chimbel. The soul of Cavalleiro (Horse Rider), would jeeri the Jesuits and would make them make them run. The people of Madgaon, had contented this powerful enemy had erected it a great pagoda where he was adored as god of the village by the inhabitants. This corroborates the fact of the deity having nothing to do with the cults of Vaishnavism and Shaivism initially as it was a form of ancestor worship. The name Mdkdji was conveniently dropped from deity's original title of^ Mdkdji Ddmodar, and was renamed as Shri Damodar. \)Malkdidn toMallikdrjun The Kulmi tribes call him by the name oCMalkdjdn. It could mean 'the Great God' as the word Mall means great and the word Jan means a knowledged person. Mdlkd is also the name of a local flower which grows on the Arjun tree. According to Khedekar these flowers were offered by the Kulmi to this deity hence the name Mdlkdjdn. According to the Mundari language the term Malikinjan means a person who has authority. Moreover the performance of the daily rituals by the non- brahmans is yet another evidence to corroborate the hypothesis that the folk deity Malkdjdn was transformed to a Shaiv deity Mallikdrjun.

7) Creation of Goa by Parshurdm and the land reclamation technique of the aborigines. The cult of Vaishnavism in Goa is seen through various socio-religious evidences. The creation of Goa itself is associated with Parshurdm, the sixth incarnation of Vishnu. The Sahyadhri Khand dating to 5*-6* century CE appears to have been edited and updated till the \6^ century CE specifically mentions the creation of Goa by Parshurdm.. The Purdn mentions that Parshurdm reclaimed the land from the sea by shooting an arrow in the sea and asking it to recede thus creating Goa. However the topography of Goa includes khdjan lands which get inundated by river waters during high tide. Many villages in Goa include settlements built by reclaiming lands from the rivulets, streams and major rivers. This reclaiming of land was perhaps absorbed into the Purdns. The land reclaiming technique and art was already known to the aboriginal Goans.

214 One such example is the worship of an ancestor deit>' by name Sankarshan in the village of Lolye in Kankona taluka Based on the name Sankarshan, V.R. Mitragotri in his work titled Socio-Cultural History ofGoa calls him an epithet of Vishnu. But in reality it is not so. Though the name is one of the epithets of Vishnu the deity is an ancestor of the Varik family in that locality. According to the folklore of the Varik family Sankarshan Varik and his wife gave up his life for building a mud bund to reclaim land from the river. Building mud bunds for land reclamation required a sacrifice of a human. Hence for the welfare of his village Sankarshan Fan A^ jumped in the river who was later followed by his wife and his dog. Hence he became immortal and is worshipped in a small temple in the village. There is no sculpture in the temple but a recent metal image depicting him holding a sword and a shield in his right and left hand respectively which do not satisfy the iconographic description of the epithet of Sankarshan mentioned in the Sanskrit texts. Hence one can deduce that land reclamation form the waters in ancient Goa was considered to be a heroic deed.

8) Popularity o{Mahishasurmardini and its inducement into the aboriginal Shakti cult. The aboriginal Shakti cult discussed in the first point of this section was in aniconic form. The introduction of the Puranic by various dynasties became a sculptural representation for all the aboriginal aniconic Shakti worships. The Mahishasurmardini represents Mahalakshmi in the village of Dhargali in Pedne taluka while she also represents the aniconic folk deities like Santeri, Vayzari, Cantoroza Devi, Kamakshi, Vandevi in the villages of Veling, Keri, Avursa, Shiroda and Pisegal (Ponda).

9) Sculptural art flourished during the dynastic period and influenced the local art. Dynasties like the Chalukys and Kadambs patronized certain schools of sculptural art. Their distinct features brought out a standard proforma or a layout to carve sculptures which was absent in local art as stone sculptures was a new concept. Sculptures of Vishnu, Shiva and other Shakti worships came with the advent of dynasties. Features of classical sculptures:- a) The Prabhavalli is mounted on a Dvarshakha. b) The Makhars are prominent figures on the Dvdrshakhds. c) Vishnu sculptures were depicted with Makar Kundals as he was associated with water. 215 d) The beaded design became indicators of Kadamb school of art which was adopted from the Hoysals. e) Stone matrix decreased in the sculpture decreased. A sculpture of Befall, found in the Lolye village of Kankona taluka is a very good example of folk deity in classical art. The sculpture is shown in a Tribhang Mudra holding a Khadg in his right hand while lower right hand holds a Pdn-Pafr. The interesting aspect of this sculptiire is the depiction of the head of a ram hanging below the sword. The sculpture is carved on the lines oiKalbhairav from whose hand hangs the fifth head of . The classical sculptors knew the concept of Puranic Bhairav but the concept of Befall was completely new to them. Hence the attributes of the Puranic Bhairav had to be applied to a folk deity who had similar features.

10) Sculptural representations of few divine folk concepts in the absence of any reference text or material. The folk divinities like Befall, Ravalndfh and Sanferi had sculptural representations which was unique to them. Whereas Ravalnafh and Sanferi were worshipped in aniconic form initially much before their iconography was coined. The iconic representations of these two folk deities were coined much later perhaps as early as circa 14*- Is"* century. The icons of these deities had defined attributes which were uniformly followed all over the region, a) Attributes of Befall:- The sculptures of Befall had the following characteristics :- i) All the sculptures were nude and stood in an upright position. ii) The sculptures were life sized or bigger then a normal human in size. iii) The male reproductive parts were shown exceptionally big. iv)A scorpion was'carved on the chest v) He had broad chest and sturdy body which depicted the ribs in many cases. vi)They were always two handed. One hand had a Khadg while the other a Pdfr. vii) The sculptures was adorned with snakes viii) The crown was always adorned with hooded snakes. ix)The face was fierce vwth canine teeth were shown protruding out of his mouth. x) No Befall sculpture had any sort of vahan in the form of any animal near him. xi)Almost all the ancient sculptures of Befall were wooden. Wood of the Chafo tree was used to carve such sculptures. xii)No Prabhavalli is seen around him. 216 b) Attributes oi Ravalnath :- Aniconic form of Ravalnath included had the following attributes:- i) A palm of a human hand depicting the Abhay Mudra. ii) Another aniconic form found in stone consists of a flat stone slab having motifs of a pair of feet. Each comer of this slab has a motif of a head of bull. The icon Ravalnath appears to have been influenced by Shaivism and partly from folk concept. It's a good example oiShaivism and folk. He has the following attributes.- a) He is shown four handed with his upper two hands holding the Trishul and a Damru while the lower right and left hand hold a Khadg and apan-patr. b) He is not nude but normally wore a short dhoti c) His one of his leg normedly the right is slightly deviated from facing the devotee. d) His vdhan is the horse

c) Attributes of Santeri Aniconic form of Santeri was the anthill. But in the later years a specific iconography seems to have been evolved for this deity. She was depicted with the following features:- i) Mostly shown in standing pose {Sambhang Mudra ) and in one or two cases seated position (Padmdsan Mudra) ii) She was shovm four armed with the upper two hands holding hooded snakes. The Attributes of the lower hands kept changing according to region. If the worship had a water body nearby then she would be shown holding a lotus. Sometimes the lower two hands also depicted holding a Khadg. Minute observations reveal that the folk deities had two hands unlike the Purdnic deities which had more than two hands many times. The advent of the Purdns or Shaiv cult had a great influence on the development of iconography of these folk deities. Interstingly all these attributes evolved without the presence of any iconographic regional text nor any folklore. The icons evolved purely on the basis of influence of cults and regional influences. At the same time the concept of the deity was not forgotten. Since snakes were associated with the anthills the Santeri icons compulsorily had hooded snakes in her hands.

11) Semi divine folk entities and demi gods had no sculptural representations. Entities like spirits, protectors of an area, souls etc did not have any sculptural representations. They included the Nds (spirit residing in orchards and fields), 217 Devchar (spirits who is believed to keep vigil in the night), Rakhndar (spirit who protected a village), Kotapshi (spirit of an Abyssinian who had the keys of the fort of Chandor), alvantin or vdgratin (spirit of woman who died during child birth). There are yet many more but all such entities which occupy an important position in Goa's religious sphere do not have any icons. One reason for this could be perhaps the absence of specific characteristics to these entities as the description of these entities in the folklore keep on varying.

12) Origin, evolution and concept of folk deities is a component to be examined. One cannot arrive at a definite conclusion with regards to the above hypothesis. The the reason for the origin of the concept of folk deities like the BetdlL Mhdmmdi, Sdnteri, Kelbdi etc cannot still traced. Why did these concepts evolve and who were progenitors of these entities is still a question left unanswered.

13) Sculptural art-a reflection of the society that traces the socio-religious conditions. The_sculptures found indifferent villages of Goa portray the society of the yester years. They not only specify the existence and development of cults of a particular region but also provide an overview of the societv' and its features. From the various sculptures one can trace the evolution of different hairstyles and dressing styles which were en vogue. Even the ornaments and their type which were widely used in the society can be traced. The classical sculptures mostly reflect the royal society like the kings, queens, etc. while the local ones depict the other side of the royal society. The members of the ruling class in Goa wore crowns for their headgears. Their neck was bedecked with necklaces like Kanth Bhushan or the Hdr which were made of various types. The males wore Muktdvali (pearl necklace) and the Hdrshak (snake shaped ornament) and the golden Sutr (chain) while the women wore necklaces like Vydl- Pankti (shape of a coiled snake), Manjari, Ratnmdlika (small jewel string) or even Muktd Hdr of pearls. The earrings were made up of Ratn (jewels) type, Makar type (shape of Makar), Lol type (hanging) The shoulders were adorned with Skandmdld which was made up of gold chains and pendants. Armlets of gold called Keyur were worn. Sometimes a round ring (valay) called prakoshtvalay was worn by males. An ornament with three chains called trisar was part of the chest. The waist was adorned 'w\\hMekhald ox Katisutr which was again a chain of gold with bells and other pendants hanging to it. Ornaments like the Pddsar 218 were worn above the foot while kinkini (having bells) or Nupur were worn for the feet which made a tinkling sound. The non royal society appears to be wearing similar ornaments but they had different names. Moreover the use of elaborate ornaments was also not there. The nose was pierced and a big nose ring called the Shemalem was worn. It had big round brown stone which would hand outside the nose. The Buttu was a small earring which had a bulb like structure on the top was pierced on the upper part of the ear. The neck was adorned with necklaces like the vajrdticd. bor-mdl, Kanthi. Waist belts like Chinchd-potto was used. Different kinds of bangles the tode, Sanquianchi path etc. The legs were bedecked with ornaments called the zanzar which made a tinkling sound. A short dhoti was worn by the males while females wore a long which had a bunch of pleats covering the groin. The pallu covered the breast and the Kucch bandh or breast strap supported the breasts.

14) Diminishing of classical art with the fall of dynasties and a local art springing up. The classical saw a decline after the fall of the Kadamb dynasty. The sculptures of the post Kadamb era were sculpted by local perhaps untrained artisans in classical art. Hnec one can see a crude incorporation of the Kadamb school of art into these sculptures. One can see a strong attempt made by these sculptors to create prototypes of the classical art. In this attempt they were not totally unsuccessful but the aspects like proportion, poses etc deteriorated. One can clearly make out that crudeness crept in more than finer details. The local artisans slowly discarded off the classical elements in sculpting and shifted to their original art which had many regional influences.

Ill) Research Analysis 1) Religious society in Goa during the yiQ-Purdnic era While studying the socio-religio society of Goa one cannot skip the prQ-Furanic era of the region. This era had many customs, tradition of their own. The aboriginal culture and religion had distinct characteristics which were part and parcel of their life. The folk society worshipped nature, ancestor deities and spirits. The societv' worshipped many male deities but only the Betdll: was worshipped in the form of an icon. The other deities like the A7zM/7/z,(worship of pilaster), Sdnteri, Bhomkd. Bhdukai, (antihill), Lairdi ( brass pitcher) Purush, and gharvai (male and female ancestor), Pdik (protector deity on horseback), Dddd, Sdkhaliyo. Vir, Kelbdi,

219 Mhammai. Vandevi or Vandevta, Ravlu were ani conic form Whereas the Betall represented the male progenitor of the society the Santer (ant hill)was its female counter part. The female divinity Santer representing the anthill was the icon of respect and worship has been venerated by almost all the clans and groups not only in Goa especially amongst the tribals or the tillers of the soil. The people associated with agriculture have showed a great respect for the Mother Earth. The woman was essentially important to the early tillers or clans as the death rate of infants was also very high and it was a necessity for the clan to expand its population. Similarly the acquisition of wealth and livelihood in the primitive societies was possible in two ways:- 1) By the development of agriculture. 2) By domestication of animals. In the study region agriculture was given more importance then domestication of animals hence we can Earth was considered as the power of fertility like the woman. The importance of the woman in formation of a society was understood very well b\ the then groups or clans. She occupied a very important position in the socio- religious ethos. The tie between the woman and the earth also very well identified b\' the society. The Earth which fulfilled almost every need of the eariy man in the society slowly was now being equated to the Mother. The relation between the woman and the Earth became very strong as clans developed into settlements. She was then a representation of an entity of Creator of Life. No doubt the anthill was a definite representation of fertility but for the agricultural community she was a creative principle which governed their agricultural economy. As settlements progressed and developed the fertility aspect of the woman was clubbed with fertilit>' aspect of the Earth. The soil or the earth also represented a fertile female. Earth was now being identified or related by the sexual characteristics of a fertile woman. She was now representing Earth in totality. A laterite sculpture of a female with broad hips lying on her back with a newly bom baby near her hips was found in the village of Kurdi in Sanguem taluka corroborates the above conclusions. She is presumed to be an early representation of Mother Goddess dating to the megalithic period.

2) The advent of Purdns and the acceptance by the aboriginal cults The Purdnic influence kept on spreading and growing. Names of many local deities underwent drastic changes to suit the new trend of Purdn. During the Purdnic era the

220 ancient Vedic and folk religion was transformed into a new form. The worship of deities like Vishnu. Durga gained prominence in India. Their worships can be traced right from the 5^-6^ century CE. It was during the Gupt period in India which saw a documentation of many Sanskrit texts called Purans and Samhitas. These texts helped to propagate the worship of Vishnu Durga and Shiva. Some of the texts like the Nrsinh Purdn, Matsy Puran, Vishnu Samhitd, Vaikhanasagam, not only focused on the spreading the greatness of Vishnu but also focused on generating faith in the four Veds. Whereas the Bhagvat Purdn, the Harivansh Puran completely focused on

Krishna the incarnation of Vishnu. Texts like .S7J/V Purdn etc concentrated on propagating Shaivism all over. These texts spoke of Vishnu taking various Avtdr or incarnations to save the Earth. Initially these Avtdrs were listed to be twenty four but however only 10 were popularized.

These 10 popular ^v/ar^ appear to follow the theory of evolution which states that life first began in water and then on land. Although no texts or Purans directly or indirectly make a mention of theory of evolution, the overall chronology oi ihe Avtdrs follows the sequence of life formation on earth. Vishnu too was projected take incarnation of fish {Matsy) followed by the Kurm (reptile who could live on land as well as water); followed by Vardh (boar) a mammal. Nrsinh - early man, Vdman- dwarf man, Parshurdm- axe man. Ram- warrior, Krishna- the thinker, Buddha- wise one, Kalki- evil. Out of his 10 incarnations, the last incarnation of Kalki and is yet to come. The aniconic form of Vishnu included the worship of Sdligrdm in the shape of ammonite fossils. The ammonites were some of the early forms of life. Hence the worship of these early forms of life in the form of Vishnu was logical. Moreover the ammonites look like the Chakr of the Vishnu. Therefore ammonite Chakr was perhaps regarded as the perfect aniconic worship of Vishnu. By the end of the circa 6*-7* century Vishnu's popularity had almost spread over a major part of modem India by the Purans and other Sanskrit texts. These texts not only incorporated the various other deities and cults into Vaishnavism but also tried to bring a social change. Agni Purdn mentions how Gautam Buddha was an incarnation of Ishwar who tried to mediate between the demons and the gods. By incorporating Buddha into the list of Vishnu's Dashavtdr it was possible to prevent the people from embracing Buddhism. The popularity of the Purdnic deities grew so wide that tribal deities and even local folk deities were absorbed and converted into Vaishnav, Shaiv deities. To this was

221 fused-perhaps somewhat later-the cult o(Krishna, itself a merger of several traditions: a hero, amorous cowherd, and finally divine child. Local and folk traditions and other cults were fused-often in the form of incarnations Avtars of Vishnu—ond became the Vaishnav religion. Various attempts are seen made to spread this cult of Vaishnavism across through folklore, folk dances and performances.

3) The sculptural representations of Vishnu in Goa The sculptures of Vishnu are not only found in India but also in many countries outside India The concept of Vishnu appears to be the worship of protection, life and water. The Shankh, Chakr and Gadha were ancient weapons of war which were then attributed to Vishnu. The Chakr was not only used as a weapon for fighting but was also a useful weapon in the day-to-day life. It was used for slicing, cutting etc. whereas the Gadha was used for hammering, beating in addition to fighting. The Shankh was useful for communications. Ancient wars began and ended with blowing of the conch. In Goa the conch was used to communication between two groups. The early sculptures of Vishnu developed during the Gupt period. This early phase could be regarded as the time frame where iconography of Vishnu in true sense was developed. The early Vishnu was basically depicted holding just the three attributes viz. the Shankh, Chakr and the Gadha. From the icons found in the later period i.e. during the lO"*- 12"* century the Padm or the lotus was being depicted thus connecting him to the concept oiJaldevtd. The Padm was later addition of his attributes because it is not seen in the early sculptures of Vishnu. The god associated with protection now became peaceful deity. The Padm now became more famous in areas where lotuses bloomed in plenty.

Both Vaishnavism and Shaivism entered Goa with the dynasties. However the popularity of Vaishnavism was greater than Shaivism. The propagation of Vaishnavism in Goa began from circa 6*- 8* century CE. The two cults Vaishnavism and Shaivism gave birth to two sects in Goa viz. Vaishnavs and the Smarths within the Saraswat community. They called themselves as Oobe and the Adve. Oobe literally means standing in Konkani and latter connotes horizontal. The Oobe are followers of Vishnu and the Adve the worshippers of Shiv. Oobo or Oobe referred to the vertical Vermillion mark which was sported by Vishnu while Adve referred to the horizontal mark sported by Shiv on his forehead. So strong was that even matrimonial alliances

222 did not take place between the two cults. People normally address a sculpture of Vishnu as Narayan or Narayandev in Goa after seeing the Shankh, Chakr, Gadha and Padm in his four hands. Even if the sculpture is in the form of Keshav, Madhav, Vaman etc he is called as Ndrdyan or even 60/wetimes as Lakshmi Ndrdyan. Not all the forms are found worshipped in Goa. The sculptures of Vishnu under study are mostly of the chief deities worshipped in the temple. With Goa having a chequered history of being ruled by the Bhoj kings right from the 4th century CE followed by the Afoum, Chalukys of Badami, Shilahars, Kadambs and finally the Vijaynagar kings. The worship of Vishnu and Shiva entered Goa's culture through these dynasties. The cult of Vaishnavism and Shaivism was strengthened in Goa by these dynasties who ruled Goa; especially the Chalukyan dynasty. The reign of the early Chalukys of Badami which can be traced back to the 6"' century CE till the S"" centur>' brought in the concept of Vishnu being worshipped as an icon. This is evident from the sculpture found in the Lolye village of Kankona taluka. The image dating to the 8th - 9th century of Vishnu is found in the village of Lolye in Kankona taluka and is probably the only of its kind in Goa. The antiquity of the sculpture can be ascertained by the various characteristics displayed in it. The position and the style of holding the Chakr and the Shankh on it shoulder and the missing Padm in his hand only indicates that the sculpture is the most antique sculpture dating to the Badami Chalukyan era found in Goa The Chitrfal in his hand is yet another indicator that the sculpture must have been installed during the early Chalukyan era The Kadamb dynasty which followed them was also a supporter of Vaishnavism though they also encouraged Shaivism itnd also. The ruins and the monuments in Khanapur and Sirsi which were once the ancient capitals of the Kadambs contain immense archaeological and epigraphical evidences which point out to the fact that Vaishnavism and Shaivism was patronized on a larger scale. A 14* century image o? Krishna was found in the village of Netravali of the Sanguem taluka The deity is popularly called as Gopinath there. Krishna is also associated with Goa from the ancient times. In fact the festival of is celebrated in grand way in Goa to commemorate the killing oiNarkasur by Krishna. Images oiBuddha were found in many places. Another interesting worship relating to Vishnu worship is the temple of Shri Devki Krishna in Mashel village. The temple was originally located in the Chodan village of taluka and was later shifted to the Ponda. But the Portuguese records do not mention the suffix of the name Krishn in the name of the deity. The records mention the deity as only Devki. Today

223 in this temple Krishna is worshipped along with his mother Devki. This worship is supposed to be a very rare worship in Goa where Devki is worshipped along with her child Krishna. Nrsinh worship existed even during the pre-Portuguese period in Veling in Ponda taluka. Ram in Bicholim (sculpture not traceable), Parshurdm in Paingini (aniconic form) and Buddha in Colvale were worshipped here during the ancient times.

Apart from the worships of these 10 incamations a few of the twenty four forms are also worshipped from the ancient times in Goa Out of the twenty four forms Keshav is the first form of Vishnu. There are 6 main temples of this deity found in Goa. Out of these five temples one is found in Lolye, one in Pedne and rest four in the Ponda taluka. These temples in Ponda are found in the villages of Priol, Ponda bazaar and Khandepar. Many images of Nardyan are also found in various talukas of Goa. Some of the striking images of this form are found in the villages of Bicholim and Ponda taluka. The temple of Ndrdyandev in Savai has the most beautiful sculpture of Nardyan dating to the later Chalukyan period. A huge image of Nardyan dating to the Kadamb period is found in the village of Mulgao in the Bicholim taluka. In village of Narve a prototype of the same sculpture is worshipped in the temple of Shri Lakshmi Ndrdyan. This image may be assigned to the 17* century. A sculpture of Padmndbh. another form of Vishnu dating to the 12th century was found in Kunkali of the Ponda taluka. Similarly forms other forms of Vishnu like the Vdsudev, Vdman, Vishnu in local as well as classical style are found in Goa. The worship of deities like Keshav was propagated in Goa by the Kadamb dynasty. All the sculptures of Keshav worshipped in Goa are beautiful examples of Kadamb school of art. The Hoysals ardently worshipped Keshav and built a beautiful temple of Channkeshav at Belur in Kamataka. Chann in Kannada means beautiful. The Goa Kadambs were the Mahamandaleshwars of Hoysals for some period. All such sculptures of Keshav, Ndrdyan, Bhogshayan Vishnu popularly known as Anant having the influence of Kadamb art were perhaps brought to Goa from Kamataka during this period. This can be deduced from the folklore told in the Lolye village of Kankona taluka and Savai-Verem village of Ponda taluka. Both the villages tell a common folklore about Keshav and Anant in their respective villages. The interesting legend highlights the discovery of the image in the village. It is said that a river once flowed near the temple. Canoes loaded with cargo including sandalwood sailed here from different

224 parts. The image was discovered in one such canoe containing sandalwood logs. Moreover the sculpture of Keshav found in the Aria village of Ponda taluka has an inscription of 12"" century characters on its pedestal. The sculpture can be also dated to an early 12"* century AD. The Bhagvat cult absorbed the concepts of the Vedic sun god Vishnu and of the cosmic god Narayan, who appears in late Vedic verses. The Sun who was a solar deity of the Vedic period was now transformed to represent the Vishnu. He was now taken £is a representative of the entire solar system. His sculpture was coined keeping in mind the features associated with the sun. The spokes of wheel represented the months of the years while his horses denoted the rays of the sun. His two consorts Ushd and Pratyusha represented the dawn and the darkness. The sculpture of sun was coined to perfectly match the concepts associated with day, night and time to an early 12* century CE.

4) Assimilation of folk deities into Vaishnavism In case of Vaishnavism in Goa one thing can be easily observed that the propagating this cult was a kind of a mission of the Vaishnavs. The folk performance called Kdlo depicts a few mythological scenes of Vaishnavism by making use of cloth and wooden masks. The scenes oTMatsy Avtdr, Putnd killing Krishna, Saraswati etc are enacted on the beats of a Pakwdz and cymbals. The compeer, Haridds guides the audience through dialogues and songs. It was an attempt to bring Vaishnavism and Bhagvat Puran to the common man. This was an attempt to bring the Purdns of Vishnu close to the hearts of the people even through folk art and performances. Folk and ancestor deities like the Manddevi, Nirdkdr. Ddmodar. Purush. which were originally worship of flora fauna and ancestors were transformed to Mohini, Nrsinh, , Purshottam. etc. respectively thus giving them a Purdnic form, this is evident from their present icons which do not depict any attributes or characteristics of they being Vaishnav deities. a) Folk influences on Vaishnav sculptures Regional and folk influences on the Purdnic sculptures with regards to their dress and ornaments were also seen. The sculptures showed regional variation in the Purdnic concepts and assimilating the Purdnic information in the local culture. The sculpture of Mddhav in Bori depicted with a muscular body and developed cuff muscles for his legs indicate that Vishnu was being accepted by the locals in their faith. His torso is depicted like the body of Betdl which is one of the folk deities of Goa. The depiction

225 of a muscular body like the one of a local or a warrior deity show the readiness of the tribes and the aborigines to accept Vishnu in their fold of cultural ethos. Same is the case seen with the Madhav sculpture at Shiroda. He is depicted wearing a dhoti above his knees which was the traditional dress of the tribal especially during religious rituals. These sculptures are a pure reflection of an aboriginal conceptualizing a Purdnic deity. b) Buddha miniatures in Vishnu sculptures In Goa one can find attempts made through sculpture to incorporated Buddhism into Vishnu worship. The sculpture of Keshav found in Bandoda has a miniature of Buddha carved right above the top of Keshav's head sitting in a Padmasan. Hence while worshipping Keshav the devotees attention is also dravm towards Buddha. Inspite of Buddha being considered as the last incarnation he being placed right at the centre of the sculpture signifies the attempt of Vaishnavism to assimilate the all the cults and faith prevailing in ancient Goa. c) Sury in Vaishnav fold Sury which was one of the solar deity during the Rgvedic era was also incorporated in the fold of Vaishnavism. The worship of the sun is very primitive and is even found in the tribal culture of Goa. The tribes in Goa worshipped the sun and the moon through their folk songs and traditional invocations. But no icon of Sury was worshipped by them. Sury in Goa he is locally called as Sury Ndrayan. As he was equated with Vishnu his iconographic details of Sury had to be also incorporated in the sculptures of Vishnu. The concept of Ushd and Pratyushd which retained exclusively to Sury b\ the Purdns was incorporated in the sculptures of Sury by the various Purdns. This can be seen in the sculpture of Keshav in the Shri Kamleshwar temple in Korgao of the Pedne taluka depicts Ushd and Pratyusha on the either sides of the Vishnu. All these are indicators pointing to the fact that the worship of Vishnu had high esteem and respect to so much so that people felt that the local deities did not have any importance and that if these deities were converted to Vaishnav deities then the> would be elevated in the society. Hence one can safely conclude that worship of Vishnu was not just one sided affair. But it was also accepted by the locals readily. Such depictions allowed the deity come more close to the locals of Goa. Thus, helping them to gain popularity.

226 5) Iconic representations of Shaivism:- Shaivism in Goa is mostly practiced by worshipping the Shivling. The Shaivaite worshippers in the Saraswat community are called as Adve which literally means horizontal. The married ladies of the Shaivaite families would sport a red horizontal Vermillion mark on their entire forehead signifying followers of Shiv. The tradition has it there would be no matrimonial alliances between the Shaivaite and the Vaishnavaites. The icons or the phallus cannot be assigned a certain period unless it has an epigraphic reference to its establishment carved on it. Some of them are not visible from outside as they are deeply buried inside the yoni. Only superficial rough surface of these Lings can be felt by one's hand. The Ling of Mangesh at PrioL Nagesh at Nageshi in Ponda taluka are two examples of this type. In Goa it also appears that the names of the villages are named after the Shiv worshipped in that village in the form of a phallus. It could be also vice-versa. To elucidate Mangeshi after Mangesh, Nageshi after Nagesh, whereas Kurpeshwar in Sanguem taluka is named after Kurpe, likewise Kudneshwar after Kudne in Bicholim taluka, and Rayeshwar after village Raia of Salcette taluka. In addition to this we have Vimleshwar in Rivan Iconographic representations of Shiv in the form of sculptures are few in Goa like Uma-Maheshwar, Kalbhairav, Chaturmukh Mahddev Adukhling. Virbhadr. Two sculptures of Umd-Maheshwar were found in the Kurdi village of Sanguem taluka while one sculpture was found in Goa Velha during the excavations. They all date to the Kadamb period. A head of Chaturmukh Shiva of the Kadamb period was discovered VAV\\Q digging the foundations behind a church in Madgao of Salcette taluka while a Virbhadr of the post 16"' century was found in the Shiroda village of pond taluka. a sculptures of Kartikey worshipped as Kuvaleshwar was found in the Korgao village of Pedne taluka Kalbhairav is also worshipped in three places in Goa viz. Dhargali in Pedne taluka, Netravalli in Sanguem taluka and Nageshi in Ponda taluka. However the sculpture oi Kalbhairav in Dhargali is a new one whereas the other two sculptures can be assigned to 12* century.

6) Shaivism and its influences on folk deities The ancient cult of phallic worship of the local Kulmi tribe of Goa became a part of Shaiv worship. Their icons looked like unpolished Lings and are even prevalent today. Folk and ancestor deities like Ravlu, Malkajan, Damodar Parab were

227 transformed to Ravalnath, Mallikarjun and Damodar. The folk deity which was called as Malkajan or Malkajan was perhaps a worship of such unpolished lings. He then given the status oi Mallikarjun and was equated to Shri Mallikarjun of Srishailam in Andhra Pradesh which is one of the twelve Jotirlings found in India In Srishailam too, the phallus shaped icon is related to the local Chenchu tribe just like how the Mallikarjun of Kankona is related to the Kulmi tribe. In Kankona it is told that the deity was found by the Kulmi community while clearing the forest similarly in Srishailam it is told that Shiv got attracted to a girl from the local Chenchu tribe. The Kulmi pronunciation of the name as Malkajan or Malkajan which is believed to be a corruption of Mallikarjun does not hold true. As, the etymological roots of the name Mallikarjun in the Munda tribal parlance can be traced to Malikinjan to mean an authoritative person. Furthermore, the deity which was found to the tribesmen and was offered par-boiled rice on the leaf of a local Karmal tree by the same community would be known better to the tribe who found it then to the others. Both the folklores do not find any place in the Shiv Purans. Similar is the case seen in deity Damodar of Jambauli. Though now worshipped as a Shaivaite deity worshipped in the form of a Ling, the history of the deity mentions his name as Makaji Damodar belonging to the Prahhu family of Madgaon city. His was the son of a Desai or the Govemor of Madgaon. He and his bride were killed on their way home after getting married by the locals of Chimbel from Tiswadi taluka Moreover the Utsav Murti or the icon of Damodar is depicted him riding a horse with a sword in his hand. The horse does not find a place anywhere in the Shaivism. Hence Damodar appears to be a form of ancestor worship whose name was Makaji Damodar Parab and was killed along with his wife by inhabitants of Chimbel. When this deity was later shifted to Jambauli to save it from Portuguese Inquisition it was given a Shaivaite form. Dam-bab, the pet name for the deity suggests that it was originally the worship of an ancestor and not Shiv. Moreover the all the devotees of this temple are Vaishnavaites and Shaivaites. The folk deity Ravlu was worshipped in an aniconic form. A palm of a human hand depicting the Abhay Mudrd was an icon which was moved from village to village signifying Ravlu. In Shiroda he is represented in the form a sword. While the aniconic form which was not moved included a flat stone slab which has motifs of a pair of feet. Each comer of this slab has a motif of a head of bull. The icon Ravalnath has evolved partly from Shaivism and folk concept. He was shown in a four handed form with his upper two hands holding the Trishul and a Damru while the lower right and

228 left hand hold a Khadg and apan-patr. His one of his leg normally the right is slightly deviated from facing the devotee. His vahan is the horse

7) Syncretism in Vaishnavism and Shaivism Though some community matrimonial norms dominated it the overall concept of Shaivism and Vaishnavism appear to have been encouraging and supporting each other's propagation. In almost all the Shiv temples a sculpture of Vishnu is part of its affiliate deity. While Mahadev worshipped in the form of a ShivXmg is also a part of many Vaishnav temples. In the temple of Rayeshwar in Ponda taluka one can find Vishnu being a part of its affiliate deity. Similar is the case with Nagesh temple at Nageshi. In case of Ramnath, one can see a strong confluence of Vaishnavism and Shaivism in this worship in the initial stages. The name itself suggests a fusion of Vishnu and Shiv. Moreover both, the sculpture Ndrdyan and the Shivling was worshipped separately in the ancient temple. The kulavis of Ramnath inspite of being followers of Vaishnavism worshipped a Shivling as their kuldaivat But during the later period there is a strong inclination shown towards Vaishnavism in which one can see s systematic removal of the Nandi from the prominent position and placing it in a place where it is not visible to the people. Similarly one can notice the repositioning of the sculpture of Ndrdyan which was once worshipped in separate shrine was placed above the Shivling of Ramnath. All this repositioning was done under the guidance of a Shrimad Indirakant Tirth Shripad Wader Swami, a Vaishnav follower.

8) The Gdnpaty cult and its propagation in Goa. The inclusion of Ganpati in the Shaiv pantheon as the son ox Pdrvati happened during the Gupt era. This was the same time the Ganpaty sects moved from place to place propagating the worship this deity. In the Goa, the worship of Ganpati is not found amongst the tribals. He is also not found in their folklore. A one line invocation in tribal folk theatre form called jdgor in one or two places is found. Along with this invocation the Ganpati is enacted along with his two wives. Apart from these there are no references in their folk songs or stories about Ganpati . Furthermore there are no celebrations in the Goan tribal society. The celebrations which are seen today have begun in 20'*' century CE. This perhaps because Goa's forests did not have elephants. The worship might have brought in and propagated by the

229 Kadamb dynasty. The sculptures oiGanpati of the Kadamb period follow a specific pattern given below:- 1) All the sculptures are Chaturbhuj in form. 2) All the sculptures hold a Parshu in their upper right hand a Padm in their upper left hand, a Pdtr containing a heap of laddus in their lower left hand while the lower right hand is in the Abhay Mudra, holding a broken tooth between his thumb and the forefinger. This form of Ganpati is said to be in a Satvik form m and ancient text called Shukrniti. 3) A snake is wrapped around his belly. 4) The sculptures are seated in Utkutikasan, Lalitdsan or Sukhasan. Hence one can safely deduce that the worship of this deity perhaps came in during the early Chalukyan period which can be placed to P^-IO"* century CE. The earliest sculpture of Ganpati found in Goa is in Nageshi which can be assigned to this era. The worship might have gained prominence during the Kadamb period where in we come across concrete evidences of this worship. Though this deity is found worshipped in almost all the ancient and medieval temples there is only one temple of Ganpati in Goa which is dedicated to this deity. This temple has a 12*-13* century sculpture o{ Ganpati worshipped, hi rest all the temple this deity occupies a position in i\\Qix panchayatan. The deity does not find a place in the cultural ethos of the Goan tribes even today. 9) Nas. and its association with Goa's religio past The ancient cultures were mostly agrarian communities. They strived mostly on agriculture for their livelihood. Especially the Kulmi tribes of Goa were entirely dependent on rice as their staple food. Cattle was reared but their meat was never consumed. The bulls were used for farming activities while the cows were only a resource of producing bulls. The snake is well known for maintaining the ecological balance in nature. It not only got rid of small insects but also got rid of rodents like rats which consumed and destroyed the stored grain. The primitive tribes had identified this particular use of snake. Though the some of the snakes like the cobra are poisonous killing of one even today is associated with many socio-religious taboos and superstitions.

Yet another theory coined by some historians mention that the annual shredding of snake's skin represents rejuvenation. Hence the ancients connected it with the idea of 230 an eternal succession of forms, reproduction which was an ongoing process in nature. This theory was connected to the succession of ages prevalent amongst the ancient Greeks and also amongst the ancient which was termed as Yug. Though Puranic references of the Nag are available the local veneration of the serpent also holds equal importance in this study. The Nag worship appears to have been more a tribal worship who believed in nature as a powerful force. It was later on included into the Pur arts. One point to be noted here is that the Goan tribes like the Kulmi never worshipped any form of sculptural art. For the Kulmi the concept of the Nag is different from ihs Nag found in Vaishnavism. fn Vaishnavism the Nag is 6e/ieved (o rest in the oceans with Vishnu reclining on it. But for the Kulmi the Shesh Nag rests in the Patal while the Adi Nag balances the Earth on his back and not on his head. . Although the Adi Parv of the Mahabharat mentions about Brahma requesting Shesh Nag to balance the Earth on his head one can very safely conclude that the worship of the serpent in Goa was known to the primitive tribes much before the various cults originated. The knowledge of the Ku/mi tribe about the epics like Ramdyan and Mahabharat is very limited. Hence it would not be correct to say that the Adi Parv of the Mahabharat was known to this ethnic group. Hence the worship of the serpent existed in Goa's aboriginal culture much before the advent oiihQPurdns.

10) The influence of Purans on the local Shakti cult Vyazari, Kantarasha, Mhammai, Kelbai, Sdnteri, Vandevi, Vijayddurgd, Kdtydyani. Mahamdya, Kelbayee, Shantadurga, In some cases the folk name did not undergo an\ transformation but they were assigned icons of Puranic deities. To elucidate the goddess Vandevi, were assigned sculptures of Mahishdsurmardini while the deities Mhammai and Kelbai were worshipped in the form of Lakshmi. Sculptures showing local influences of deities like Saraswati are not found. On the contrary a lone sculpture of Saraswati in classical style is found in Ponda taluka This shows that such deities were introduced and patronized by dynasties and have not originated from this soil.

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