The Development of Hindu Iconography c9.2

c9.2

It has already been pointed out in the introductory chapter that the term icon (derived from Greek *eikon*) signifies an object of worship, or something which is associated with the rituals relating to the cults of different divinities. The English word ‘image,’ derived from old French and Latin ‘imago,’ on the other hand, has got the basic connotation of ‘likeness’; from this it came to be used in the sense underlying the Greek word mentioned above. Image in its primary sense has its close parallel in such Indian words as *pratikṛti*, *pratimā*, *vimba*, etc., which again like their English counterpart came to acquire the secondary significance. The word *vimba* means reflection, and it is very frequently used in the sense of the images of divinities. There is a common custom adhered to in Bengal at the time of the annual autumnal worship of the clay images of the goddess Durgā; it consists in placing a mirror on a brass or copper bowl in front of the deity in such a manner that the image is reflected in the mirror. The water for bathing the deity (*snāna-jala*) is poured on the reflection there, and thus the bathing of the image is done. This practice thus emphasises the true significance of the word *vimba*; it is also necessary from the practical point of view.¹