Goverdhan Pooran ( Worshipping of Mt. Goverdhan)

Goverdhan Pooran  ( Worshipping of Mt. Goverdhan)

Painting from Bhagwat Puran by Fattu, Kangra School,18th Century CE

           Lord Krishna was surprised to see that the people of Vrindavan prayed to Lord Indra, the God of rain. Instead of praying for rain, it is better to pray to the mountain which with its green cover invites the rain. He taught the people to worship the Goverdhan hill. 

           Here Fattu, the famous Kangra painter, depicts Nanda, Krishna's father, and the people circumbulating the mountain. Lord Vishnu sits on top of the mountain while Krishna and Balaram and Nanda go around the mountain.  To mark the festivities, there are musicians playing the long horn and beating the drums. Ladies are carrying water in the pots; the offering are kept on the ground. A young cowheard points to Lord Vishnu sitting on top of the hill; an old man bends and pays homage to Lord Vishnu. 

           Fattu has depicted different strata of society from the village headman, Nanda, to the cowheard, from the young child in the arms to the old man. The costumes of the people depicts the composite culture of the people. Interestingly Nanda looks like a Mughal Emperor, while the women are attired in lenhga and odhani  (the long skirts and the stoles) of Hindu womenfolk.  All the cultures and community live peacefully.  

           The story of Goverdhan pooja is a story of conservation of Nature,  of Man living harmoniously with Nature, of different strata of society living peacefully. It is a celebration of peace and harmony. 

Rani Celebrating Deepavali in Her Palace

Rani Celebrating Deepavali in Her Palace

Attributed to Nainsukha, Kangra School,18th Century CE

            Deepavali is an ancient festival. Initially it was celebrated to mark Lord Ram's return to Ayodhya after spending fourteen years in the forest. Subsequently, it became the festival for praying to Goddess Lakshmi,  the goddess of wealth. It also marks the beginning of the Hindu financial year.  In Bengal, on the other hand, Goddess Kali is worshipped on Deepavali. While for North India Deepavali is a major festival,  in South India it is hardly celebrated. 

             Here we see the Rani sitting in a chair. Both she and another Lady are busy with fire crackers. The maids have lit lamps all over the palace. There is music and light, gaiety and celebrations all around. Interestingly whole many  women are wearing Hindu dresses, the ghaghara and the odhani, ( the skirt and the stole), other women are sporting the Mughal dress of the inner pajama and Mughal caps. The life of the palace reflects the composite culture of its time. 

             Deepavali is a festival which celebrates our coming out of the woods: of destroying the prejudices,  the bad deeds, the evil spirit in us. And thereby moving from the darkness of our personality to the light within us. It is a celebration of our rebirth each year. 

            May the divine light inside you ever burn so brightly as to light up every corner of your  home, office and of our nation. 

Lord Ganesh

Lord Ganesh

Kangra School, 18th Century AD, National Museum, New Delhi



           A very unusual painting of Lord Ganesh. Generally He is shown as fair skinned person, but here He is shown in vermillion color. He rarely carries a rosary in his hand, yet here He does. He is hardly ever portrayed with a lotus, but He is carrying a lotus here. Although He does wear a serpant as a belt on his stomach, here the serpant is around his neck.

           His vermilion color points towards the strength of wisdom; the rosary to meditation; the axe to the ability of learning and wisdom to cut through every difficulty / obstacles;  lotus to beauty and reward; the snake to the ability to rejuvenate and life. He sits on a white lotus--pointing towards the ability to detach oneself from the material world. The image is as much of a God, as it is of a wise Man or a sage. 

Laxman Pulls Out a Thorne from Lord Ram's Feet

Laxman Pulls Out a Thorne from Lord Ram's Feet

Kangra School,18th Century AD.
Today the ideal Man, Ram was born. But even the ideal Man had to suffer difficulties throughout his life. But he bore them heroically. The Crown Prince of Ayodhya has a thorn in his feet. While his dutiful wife fans him, Laxman pulls out his thorn. Hanuman ji is busy drinking water. A deer killed by the two brothers lies by their side. Surprisingly, the deer is their meal. Throughout our lives, we will meet our difficulties. But like Ram we must bear them stoically. Life is, at times, a wilderness.

Raga Hindola or The Month of Faghun

Raga Hindola or The Month of Faghun

Kangra School, 18th Century AD

Depicting the joy and gaiety of Holi festival, this miniature painting depicts either Raga Hindola--as the swing is a prominent image, or if part of a Barahmasa series, then it depicts the month of Faghun.

The painting has all the colours and music, the young women and young men of Holi. Happy Holi