Studies in Indian Art c12.s6.3

c12.s6.3

The following scenes may be recognised to be of unusual interest, and their portrayal in places where religious things as a matter of course should have predominated, points to the great hold which themes of this nature enjoyed on the lives of the people. In fact, it may be said to the credit of India's creative genius that her great thinkers took a balanced view of life and evolved a frame-work in which the material and positive sides of life were harmonised with its spiritual and religious ideals. India has, therefore, boldly stood for assigning an honourable place to paintings and sculptures as well as to dance and music in her gigantic experiments of religion as unfolded in her long creative traditions through the ages. Religion is viewed not as a negation of life, but as a potent factor which by its magic touch ennobles all that which life stands for. This synthesis demonstrates itself in the extraordinary interest which religious art shows for the contents of womanly life, marked by a genuine attempt to probe deeper into her mystry and to present her as the mother and sustainer of creation. It is apparent from the study of the scenes on Mathura railing pillars that the artists do not approach their delicate subject in a light-hearted manner; they evince a respect and restraint which does not permit works of art to be degraded into scenes of mere sensuous narration.