Studies in Indian Art c9.s1: 5. Symbolic Images and Paintings
Studies in Indian Art c9.s1
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5. Symbolic Images and Paintings
c9.s1.1
Indian ritual is for the most part symbolical. The idea behind symbolism is that the external form is useful for its inner meaning. The form is only apparent, the meaning conveyed by it is real. For example, in every pūjā, a jar full of water (Pūrṇa Ghaṭa or Maṅgala Kalaśa) is sanctified for worship in the very beginning. The idea is not the adoration of the earthen pot, but the pot full of holy water is the symbol of the human body on the one hand and of the cosmos on the other. Both piṇḍa and Brahmāṇḍa, namely the individual and the universal are identified and the main object of worship is to understand the close correspondence between the two. The water contained in the pot is the symbol of the life-sap. This is only one instance. It can be said with clear understanding that the mass of religious ritual in Hinduism is a vast body of symbolism.
c9.s1.2
The same is true with reference to Indian art, specially images in sculpture and painting. Here we have to deal mostly with images of gods and goddesses, that were either carved in stone or wood, or moulded in clay, or represented in painting; whatever be the medium, the meaning behind these images was one and the same. To understand this meaning one should make himself familiar with the language of symbolism. In Indian art this language is quite articulate and eloquent, in a series of formulas known as dhyāna-mantras of the respective deities.
c9.s1.3
The basic point of view is that the cosmos or creation is an emanation from the Supreme Being, who is called Prajāpati or the Creator. The several powers of the Creator are the devatās. What is created is infinite nature comprising the five elements of gross matter. Thus there are basically two entities, namely the Devas and the Bhūtas, or what in modern terms may be equated as Energy and Matter. All external forms are material. They have no substance in themselves. They are merely the vehicles of the manifest glory of the Devas. The Devas are unmanifest, while matter or creation is manifest. Each form is a symbol of the formless. Cosmos is an aggregation of forms. But its source is the Supreme Unmanifest Creator. He is both formless (Arūpa), and Omniform (Viśvarūpa).
c9.s1.4
Creation is the result of the One becoming the Many. This multiplicity is basically expressed as a Triad, which has many forms. In philosophy it is known as the three guṇas, Sattva, Rajas, Tamas; in religious worship it takes the form of three gods, Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva. The basis of Trinity is metaphysical. Its antiquity is rooted in the Vedas and elaborated in the Purāṇas. In iconography Brahmā is shown as seated on a haṃsa with a kamaṇḍalu in his hand. He has a lotus under him floating in a lake. The lotus is the symol of creation and of life. The haṃsa is the symbol of mind or the Ego which is at the root of individual manifestation. The water in the kamaṇḍalu represents unformed matter. The four faces of this deity are the symobls of the four arms of the *Svastika*, which is the basic design of the universe. Brahmā is the God of all knowledge, symbolised as the four Vedas.
c9.s1.5
Viṣṇu is the second deity of the triad. He is the preserver. His vehicle is Garuḍa, which symbolises the sun or time. Viṣṇu’s *Cakra* is also the revolving wheel of time. It is also the *Brahmāṇḍa-Cakra*, that is the Cosmos imagined as a circle, which is infinite but bounded. Viṣṇu is known for his three steps which signify motion. The Serpent on which Viṣṇu sleeps is named Ananta or the Infinite which is the symbol of the Absolute. Viṣṇu stands for the imminent form and the cosmic serpent Śeṣa stands for the transcendent absolute or the unmanifest sub-stratum. The four arms of Viṣṇu are symbols of the *Svastika*, i.e. the fourfold pattern of Creation.
c9.s1.6
The images of Śiva are two fold, namely in human form and in Liṅga form. The Liṅga form is literally the symbolical form, namely the life principle which has not become manifest in body. It is the unmanifest or the *Avyakta* principle not yet materialised. It is the symbol of fire or the creative principle or the primeval seed which is the source of world progenition. The opposite principle of Śiva is Pārvatī; whereas Śiva is fiery energy, Pārvatī is Soma. They both typify the father principle and the mother principle respectively. They are the cosmic parents. The male and the female conjointly become the Ardhanārīśvara. Both are essential for creation of new life, which is symbolised as their son, Kumāra or Skanda. Śiva is also shown with five heads which are the symbols of the five gross elements of matter. The moon on his head is the symbol of mind and of immortality. The snakes typify the opposite principle of death or poison or darkness or *asura*. The bull of Śiva is the symbol of Kāma or passion whom the great God brought under his control by the power of *tapas* and *samādhi*. The images of these deities are manifold but all of them illustrate the language of symbolism as adopted for the sake of religious worship.