The Hindu Temple v2.c11.s6.34

v2.c11.s6.34

The problem of egoity (ahaṅkāra) is particularly given shape in mediæval Indian sculpture. It may be due to some extent to the infiltration of new, Northern elements (Gujars, Ahirs, India thinks in images; the image (mūrti) itself is beheld as a divinity. "Mūrti (image), the wife of Dharma (the Order of things in the cosmos and Righteousness in man), is Form, luminous and charming. Without her, the Supreme Spirit (Paramātman), whose abode is the whole universe, would be without support."¹⁴⁵ Her charm and attractions are those of the Anima Mundi, cosmic vitality, active in the middle region (antarikṣa), in space. There the temple has its extension.