Devi

Devi

Bronze Figure, 17th Century AD,  Thiruvananthapuram Museum, Kerala

        The Chola artist were the famous sculptors in casting beautiful bronze figures. But their techniques and influence went beyond the Chola Kingdom.  The other kingdoms of the South also picked up their concerns and iconography and made the their own. 

        This figure of the Devi is a case in point. She stands in the same pose as Goddess Parvati would have stood in Chola Bronze.  But here she holds a pair of cymbals.  Cymbals are symbols of time and rhythm.  With the instrument one marks the time (beats) and yet with sequence of beats, one creates a rhythm.  The Devi is symbolises Nature in all its benevolence.  She is Time and yet She is the rhythm of Nature. She is the Divine Mother.