The Hindu Trinity : Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh ( Shiva)

The Hindu Trinity : Lord Brahma,  Vishnu and Mahesh ( Shiva)

Khajaraho School, 11th Century AD.

          In Khajaraho School it is rare to see the Hindu Trinity together. Thus this is a unique piece of sculpture.  

         The creator, the maintainer, and the destroyer all three stand together,  thereby representing the process prevalent in the cosmos. Since Lord Vishnu is the largest figure and is centrally placed, the emphasis is on the one who maintains us. The bottom row of figures are of couples thereby depicting the importance of "grahasth ashram" (The householder). The family, being the smallest unit of the society, is the most important stage of life which needs to be maintained, protected and promoted. Lord Vishnu symbolises the perfect householder.

         While we may have the creative and the destructive powers within us, it is the power to maintain things which is the most important power in us. 

Ravan Shakes Mt. Kailash

Ravan Shakes Mt. Kailash

Khajaraho School,10th Century AD, From Hingalajgarh, Dist. Mandsaur, M. P.

        The Bhopal Museum has a large collection of sculptures from Hingalajgarh. This sculpture  is considered the finest masterpiece of the collection.  It is the priced possession of the museum.  Not much is known about Hingalajgarh.  But considering the vast collection,  the town must have boasted of great temples dedicated to both Hinduism and Jainism.  The jewel like quality of its sculptures place it on par with the best of sculptures of Khajaraho temples. The delicacy, the intricacy of its carving, at times surpasses Khajaraho sculptures. It must have been the pride of its time.

         Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, with their sons,  quietly sit on Mt. Kailash. The arrogant Ravan tries to lift the mountain with all his might. But all in vain. The other gods, Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu silently watch the folly of an arrogant man. 

         We may consider ourselves the master of the Universe, the center of the Earth, but that is our delusion. As Tao says we are an insignificant part of Nature. Mere speck of dust in the vastness of Nature. Like Ravan we have yet to learn this lesson. 

A Woman Painting Her Foot with Aalta

A Woman Painting Her Foot with Aalta

Khajaraho School,10th Century AD

          The Khajaraho temples are replete with sculptures of women at their daily activities. The theme of women adorning themselves is a popular one. Here we see a woman painting her feet with 'aalta', a redish colored liquid used to paint one's hands and feet. Before henna came to India, aalta was used for coloring the body. 

          Human beings love decorating their bodies. The fashion continues even today. But here the decoration has a philosophical concept. We 'decorate ' our lives with psychological constructs. With our likes and dislikes, biases and prejudices, we construct a world of our own. But the world we construct with our emotions and intelligence is merely cosmetic. The deeper reality lies somewhere else. Now notice the small nude figure to the right.  He stands like a Tirthankar,  the Jain Saints. Having abandoned the material world he stands and meditates. Behind him stands a divine figure. That is the path we must take, rather than adorning our feet with aalta.

Lady Writing a Letter

Lady Writing a Letter

Khajaraho School,10th Century AD

         No other School paid as much attention to the world of woman as Khajaraho did. The Khajaraho sculptors have captured her every nuance, her every turn and twists, her grace and power.  She is the Apsaras,  the Goddess, the  queen, the common woman. 

         Here we see a woman who is busy writing a letter. To whom she writes, we do not know: her husband, or a lover, her parents, or a petition to the King? But her grace, her attention to her work captures our imagination.  

         This sculpture is a classic piece of the Khajaraho School.  It has all the trademarks of the school.  The arched eyebrows, the curls on the forehead,  the loose bun, the jewelled belt, the bare chest, the see through sari as the lower garment, the broad hips, and the bare feet. Her curved body lends a sense of grace and a sense of other worldliness.  She is one of us, yer she is divine.

Dancing Ganesh

Dancing Ganesh 

Khajaraho School,11th Century AD

        While an orchestra plays the flute, two large drums, Lord Ganesh sways to the music. Surprisingly a child in the nude, seen from the back, looks in awe at the huge figure of Lord Ganesh.  The inclusion of the child is highly unusual. For he cannot symbolise the donor, as a doner would be depicted as an adult. Does the child then symbolise the infantile Mankind looking at the vast universe? Or does the child stand for the innocent and pure soul looking at divinity? The sculptor has left all of us guessing at the meaning of the child in this masterpiece. 

Lord Harihhar

Lord Harihhar

Khajaraho School, 10th Century AD,  National Museum, New Delhi

            One of the most unique gods in India is Lord Harihar. According to the Puranas Lord Shiva was struck by the beauty of Mohini  (Lord Vishnu in a female form). They had physical relationship.  Harihar is the child of that union. He is half Hari--Lord Vishnu, and half Har--Lord Shiva. Thus he has the quality of both: he meditates, yet he maintains the world with his powers. 

            Historically it was important to invent him. For in ancient India disputes regularly erupted between Vaishnavs,  the followers of Lord Vishnu , and Shaivites,  the followers of Lord Shiva. It was better to assimilate them than to annihilate each other. 

            Although Harihar is hardly worshipped now except at Bhuveneshwar, but he is the symbol of Hinduism ' s ability to absorb and resolve conflicts. He is also an example of fluidity of sexual identity in Indian mind.  He is relevant for the post - modern world.

Dancing Ganesh

Dancing Ganesh 

 Khajaraho School.  11th Century AD.

          An eight armed statue of Lord Ganesh is a rare one.  Here we have an eight armed dancing Ganesh. When the Westerners came to India they were shocked by these "octopus "like images. To them, these were "heathen "  idols. They missed the entire basis of Indian art: art is at the service of religion. What it depicts is not the material reality of the world around us, but the metaphysical concepts of our religion. Gods  are symbolic of their qualities.  Hence, their depiction is a portrayal of a concept and not of empirical reality. To fully understand this art one would have to know religion, mythology,  philosophy, and even dance--as the postures and gestures are based on Indian classical dances. Such art takes you into a different realm

Kal Bhairav

 Kal Bhairav

 Khajaraho School, 11th Century AD,  National Museum, New Delhi

          Kal Bhairav represents the destructive side of Lord Shiva. In order to destroy evil He causes natural calamities. Although he is supposed to be ferocious looking, here he is represented as a bearded young man. He holds a bell in his left upper hand, which symbolises Time. In other hands, He would have held a bowl of fire, a severed head of a demon, and an axe or other sharp edged weapon. 

           Although we mortals live as though we are immortals, but natural calamities remind us of our fragile existence.

Dancing Apsara

Dancing Apsara

Khajaraho School, 11th Century AD, Metropolitan Museum, New York

    Used to carving in soft materials like wood and ivory, the Indian sculptors took some time to understand the hardness of stone. But soon they could do wonders with the material as this sculpture testifies.

    Apsaras are the dancers at the court of Lord Indra. Here the sculptor has caught the agile movement of the dancer, with her arms flying in one direction, her torso turned in another direction. She looks down as though looking down at the world from the height of Indralok.

    Apsara is an enchantress as in Urvashi and Rambha. But they are enlightened souls who reside in heaven. Along with the Gandharvas, the celestial muscians, they entertain the gods.