Manasara Series (I. A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture; II. Indian Architecture according to Manasara-Shilpashastra; III. Manasara on Architecture and Sculpture: Sanskrit Text; IV. Architecture of Manasara: Translation; V. Architecture of Manasara: Illustrations; VI. Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad; VII. An Encyclopaedia of Hindu Architecture) v2.c14.s50: Chapter LXIII: The Lion (Siṁha-lakshaṇa-vidhāna)
Mānasāra Series (I. A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture; II. Indian Architecture according to Mānasāra-Śilpaśāstra; III. Mānasāra on Architecture and Sculpture: Sanskrit Text; IV. Architecture of Mānasāra: Translation; V. Architecture of Mānasāra: Illustrations; VI. Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad; VII. An Encyclopaedia of Hindu Architecture) v2.c14.s50
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Chapter LXIII: The Lion (Siṁha-lakshaṇa-vidhāna)
v2.c14.s50.2
The lion is the last of the four divine *vāhanas*, to which a chapter is devoted.¹
v2.c14.s50.3
¹ At the beginning of the chapter (and again in the concluding verse) the lion is loosely indicated as ‘the riding animal of the gods’ (*devānāṁ vāhanam*). It is, however, well known that the lion (or the tiger) is more particularly the animal of Pārvatī, the consort of Śiva. It is hardly necessary to point out that of the other deities, both male and female, each, as a rule, has his or her own *vāhana*, e.g., Kārttikeya the pea-cock, Gaṇeśa the mouse, Indra the elephant, Yama the buffalo, Sūrya a chariot drawn by seven horses, Varuṇa a crocodile (*makara*), Kubera a man (whence his epithet *nara-vāhana*), etc.
v2.c14.s50.4
As in the case of the bull, the image of the lion is not measured in any *tāla* system. The absolute measurements of the various parts of the lion, expressed in *aṅgulas*, are enumerated. The lion is made in an erect, sitting or recumbent posture. His tail is generally equal to his height. His four legs are like those of the tiger. His colour is white, but his mane should be red. The shape of his nails and teeth is compared to that of the crescent (*bāla-chandra*, *ardha-chandra*).