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Elements of Hindu Iconography v1.c11: Chapter IV. Panatavarag

Elements of Hindu Iconography v1.c11

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Chapter IV. Panatavarag

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DAŚĀVATĀRAS OF VISHṆU.

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INCARNATIONS of divinity are considered to be of three kinds which are respectively called avatāra, āvēśa and aṁśa. What has to be taken as a complete incarnation is designated an avatāra, a partial incarnation is more or less temporary in character and is known as āvēśa, while the incarnation of a portion of the power of a divine being is characterised as aṁśa. Kṛishṇa and Rāma, for instance, are understood to be complete incarnations of Vishṇu and are therefore avatāras. Paraśurāma came into the world, it is said, to suppress the haughtiness of the unruly Kshatriyas, for that was the God-appointed mission of his life. This work he finished long before his life came to an end. In fact it is supposed that, being a chirañjivi or ever-living personage, he is still alive. Soon after the completion of the mission of his life, he met Raghurāma and handed over his own divine powers to him and retired to the mountain known as the Mahēndra-parvata. The divine power thus possessed by Paraśurāma was with him but for a short time; it was not a life-long endowment; hence his incarnation is considered to be an āveśa or temporary possession. Again, for instance, the śankha and the chakra of Viṣṇu as representing parts and aspects of his power, are conceived to be occasionally ordered by Viṣṇu, to be born among men to improve them in their ways and bring about a betterment in their condition. When these emblems of the aspects of divine power are born as embodied beings upon the earth, they become saints and achieve the purpose of their earthly incarnation. Such beings represent the aṃśas of Viṣṇu. The most commonly accepted and recognised incarnations of Viṣṇu are ten in number; and they are declared to have been assumed on ten different occasions by him with a view to destroy certain asuras and to set right the wrong done to the world by them. These ten avatāras of Viṣṇu are Matsya (fish), Kūrma (tortoise), Varāha (boar), Nārasimha (man-lion), Vāmana (the dwarf) including Trivikrama, Paraśurāma, Raghurāma, Kṛṣṇa, Buddha and Kalki. Some Hindu authorities do not consider Buddha to be an avatāra of Viṣṇu, and substitute in its place Balarāma, the elder brother of Kṛṣṇa, as an avatāra.

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“Sections 231-233 of the Matsya-purāṇa are devoted to the same subject (the incarnation itself and its results). I give an abstract of the 47th section, in which Vishnu’s incarnations are enumerated. It is here stated that it was in consequence of a curse pronounced by Bhrigu (as we shall see further on) that Vishnu assumed most of these forms (v. 37). There were twelve conflicts between the gods and Asuras (vv. 39-52). It is related (vv. 58 ff.) that on one occasion when Prahlada had been overcome, and Indra had gained the empire of the three worlds, Sukra, the priest of the Asuras, left them and went to the gods. They, however, entreated him not to desert them, when he re-assured them by the promise of his support (vv. 60 ff.). They were nevertheless attacked by the gods, and again resorted to Sukra, when their assailants left them. Sukra then referred to their former discomfitures, counselled them to wait for a favourable turn of fortune, and declared his intention to resort to Mahadeva and obtain certain sacred texts which would ensure their victory. (vv. 65 ff.). They then promised the gods to desist from hostilities and to betake themselves to austerities (vv. 73 ff.). Sukra accordingly went to Mahadeva and asked for texts more powerful than those possessed by Brihaspati, the priest of the gods; when the deity directed him to perform a painful rite, imbibing the smoke of chaff (kana- *dhūma*) with his head downward for a thousand years. This he agreed to do (*vv. 78 ff.*). Hearing of this, and taking advantage of the defenceless state of the *Asuras*, the gods went to attack them. The *Asuras* remonstrated, and in the absence of Śukra resorted to his mother for help, and were re-assured by her (*vv. 83 ff.*). The gods, however, followed and assailed them, when the goddess (Śukra’s mother—her name is not given)—by her magical power, rendered Indra helpless, and then the other gods took to flight (*vv. 91 ff.*). Viṣṇu, however, interposed, and desired Indra to enter into him (Viṣṇu). This provoked the goddess, who threatened to burn them up; Indra called upon Viṣṇu to slay her before she could carry her threat into effect. Viṣṇu, though hesitating to kill a female, cut off her head with his weapon (*vv. 95 ff.*). Viṣṇu was hereupon doomed by a curse of Śukra to be born seven times in the world of men; and in consequence of this he appears for the good of the world when unrighteousness prevails.”*

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“In consequence of Śukra’s curse, which operated periodically, Viṣṇu was born time after time, after a decline of righteousness, which he re-established, destroying the *Asuras*. For Brahmā had decreed that all those *Asuras* who should be disobedient to Prahlāda should be slain by men. Vishnu's incarnations are then enumerated (*vv.* 234-245), *viz.*, (1) a portion of him sprang from Dharma, (2) the Narasimha, or Man-lion, and (3) the Dwarf incarnations, which are called the celestial manifestations, the remaining seven being the human incarnations caused by Śukra's curse (*v.* 238). These seven are (4) the *Dattātrēya* (5) *Māndhātri* (6) *Paraśurāma*, (7) *Rāma*, (8) *Vēdavyāsa*, (9) *Buddha* and (10) *Kalki* incarnations. (Eight instead of seven are obtained if, with the Mahrāṭṭi expounder, we understand the beginning of verse 243 to refer to *Kṛishṇa*). The *Bhāgavata-Purāṇa* gives twenty-two incarnations (*i.* 3, 1 *ff.*), *viz.*: Those in the forms of (1) *Purusha*, (2) *Varāha* or the Boar, (3) *Nārada*, (4) *Nara* and *Nārāyaṇa*, (5) *Kapila*, (6) *Dattātrēya*, (7) *Yajñā* or Sacrifice, (8) *Ṛishabha*, (9) *Pṛithu*, (10) *Matsya*, or the Fish, (11) *Kūrma* or the Tortoise, (12 and 13), *Dhanvantri*, (14) *Narasimha* or the Man-lion, (15) *Vāmana* or the Dwarf, (16) *Paraśurāma*, (17) *Vēdavyāsa* (18) *Rāma*, (19 and 20) *Balarāma* and *Kṛishṇa*, (21) *Buddha*, and (22) *Kalki*. These last two are represented as future. But the incarnations of Vishnu are innumerable, like the rivulets flowing from an inexhaustible lake. *Ṛishis*, Manus, gods, sons of Manus, Prajāpatis are all portions of him (*v.* 26).”*

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∗ *Muir’s Original Sanskrit Texts, pp. 151-153.*

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Early references to the avatāras of Vishnu. There are here and there references to the *avatāras* of Vishṇu even in the ancient literature of the Hindus; for instance, in *Śatapatha-Brāhmaṇa* it is stated that Prajāpati took the form of a tortoise; similarly the *Taittirīya-Āraṇyaka* mentions that the earth was raised from the waters by a black boar with a hundred hands. All the *avatāras* are more or less directly referred to in the later Saṃskṛit works like the *Rāmāyaṇa*, the *Mahābhārata*, *Bhāgavata-purāṇa* and the *Vishṇu-purāṇa*.

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The Matsyavatara. The *Mahābhārata* (see Vanaparvan, 12, 797 *ff.*) says—“ Then the God (*lit.* the Unwinking), kindly-disposed, said to those *rishis*, ‘I am the Prajāpati Brahmā, above whom no being is discoverable: by me in the form of a fish you have been delivered from this danger. [By ‘you’ here the God Brahmā is meant].’” The *Bhāgavata-Purāṇa* gives the following account of the origin of the fish *avatāra* of Vishṇu :—“ Being thus addressed by Vishṇurāta, the divine Bādarāyaṇi related the deed of Vishṇu achieved by him in the form of a fish. At the end of the past *kalpa* there was a Brahma, that is, there was a partial dissolution of the universe, in which the earth and other worlds, became submerged under the ocean. Then the powerful Hayagrīva (a rākshasa), coming near, snatched away the Vēdas which had proceeded from the mouth of the creator, who from the drowsiness, which had come on through lapse of time, had become disposed to go to sleep. On discovering this deed of Hayagrīva, the chief of the Dānavas, the divine lord Hari took the form of a saphari fish and recovered the Vēdas."* This fish avatāra, as seen from the above extarcts, was meant to recover the lost Vēdas from the ocean.

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∗ Muir’s Original Sanskrit Texts, p. 156.

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Another account of the fish incarnation of Vishnu is to be found in the Agni-purāṇa. Therein Agni addressing Vasisṭha says:—" Listen, O divine sage! while I narrate to thee the different forms which Hari has assumed, in order to punish the wicked and protect the good. Previous to the conclusion of the last Kalpa, at which time the universe was overwhelmed with a deluge, Vaivasvata Manu performed with much devotion a severe tapas. One day as he was offering an oblation of water to the manes in the river Kṛitamālā, a small fish appeared in his folded hands, which, as he was about to throw into the water said:—' Throw me not into it, O best of men! for I am afraid there of the larger fishes’. On hearing this, Manu placed it in a jar. But the fish increased in size, and said, ‘Give me more space’. The king then placed it in a small pond; but it still increasing in size and demanding more room, he threw it into a lake, and at length into the sea, where it in an instant expanded to the size of a hundred thousand yōjanas. With astonishment Manu beheld this wondrous change, and then said—‘Why O lord! who art Viṣṇu Nārāyaṇa, hast thou thus deluded me?’ The fish replied—‘On the seventh day from this, the universe will be submerged beneath the ocean; do thou, therefore, taking all kinds of seeds and accompanied by the seven Ṛishis, enter into a boat which has been prepared for thee; and during the night of Brahmā fasten it with a mighty snake to my horn.’ Having thus spoken, the fish disappeared; and on the foretold day, the sea commencing to exceed its bounds, Manu entered the boat; and instantly there appeared a very big horned fish, to whose horn he fastened the boat. Then Viṣṇu repeated to Manu the Matsya-purāṇa; and afterwards slew the asura Hayagrīva, who had purloined the Vēdas from Brahmā”.*

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∗ See Kennedy’s Hindu Mythology, p. 432.

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The image of Matsya may be made either like an ordinary fish, or in a form which is half fish and half man, the upper portion being that of man and the lower that of the fish. The image is generally given four hands, two of which carry the *śaṅkha* and *chakra*, and the other two being held in the *varada* and *abhaya* poses. The human half is generally decorated with all the ornaments generally worn by Vishnu, and on the head there is the *kirīṭa-makuṭa*.

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The Kurmava-tara. We have already seen that this tortoise *avatāra* was assumed by Prajāpati, according to the account given in the earlier writings, for creating offspring. In the later works, as for instance, the *Bhāgavata-purāṇa*, it is stated that Vishnu assumed the form of the tortoise for supporting on its back the mountain employed in the churning of the ocean to obtain the ambrosia for the gods. "In his eleventh incarnation, the Lord, in the form of the tortoise, supported on his back the churning mountain, when the Gods and Asuras churned the ocean" (Bhāg. Pu. 1. 3, 16). The story of the churning of the ocean is well known and needs no description here.

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The image of this *avatāra* is generally worked out in a form which is half man and half tortoise, the lower part being that of the tortoise. As in the case of the fish *avatāra*, this image also has four hands two of which carry the *śaṅkha* and the *chakra*, while the other two are held in the *varada* and *abhaya* poses. The image is adorned with ornaments and with the *kirīṭa-makuṭa* on the head. The image of the Kūrmāvatāra may also be like an ordinary tortoise.

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The Varahava-tara. One of the earliest references to the earth having been lifted up from the depths of the lower regions by a boar is found in the *Śatapatha-Brāhmaṇa*, wherein it is said that Emusha, a boar, raised the earth up. In the *Taittirīya-Āraṇyaka* also the earth is said to have been lifted up by a black boar with a hundred arms: (*varāheṇa kṛṣṇena śata-bāhunā uddhṛtā*) The *Rāmāyaṇa*, in describing the origin of the earth mentions incidentally the uplifting of the earth by the boar-incarnation of Viṣṇu. Vasiṣṭha speaking therein about the origin of the worlds, says that in the beginning all was water out of which the world has been formed and that out of that water, arose Brahmā, the self-existent, who became a boar and lifted up the earth. According to the *Rāmāyaṇa* therefore the uplifter of the earth was Brahmā and not Viṣṇu. In the *Bhāgavata-purāṇa* it is said that with a view to create the universe, the Lord of Sacrifice became desirous of lifting up the earth, which had sunk into the lower regions, and assumed the form of the boar. Here the act of lifting up the earth is attributed to Vishnu.

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The Vishnu-purāṇa, the Linga-purāṇa and the Garuḍa-purāṇa mention Brahmā as the uplifter of the earth from the ocean : but they at the same time identify Brahmā with Vishnu. The Vishnu-purāṇa gives the following account of this incarnation :—"At the beginning of the kalpa, that divine Brahmā, Lord of the Prajāpatis who had the nature of Nārāyaṇa, created living beings. At the close of the past (Pādma-)kalpa, Brahmā, the Lord, endowed predominantly with the quality of goodness, awoke from his night-slumber and beheld the universe void. He is the Supreme Lord Nārāyaṇa, who cannot even be conceived and exists in the form of Brahma, the deity without beginning, the source of all things. This Lord of Prajāpatis discovering by intuition,—when the universe had all become one ocean,—that the earth lay within the waters, and being desirous to raise it up, assumed another form. As he had formerly, at the commencement of previous kalpas, assumed the shapes of the fish and the tortoise, (so now), He entered into the body of a boar,—a form composed of the Vēdas and the sacrifice,—this Lord of Creatures, who throughout the entire continuance of the world remains fixed, the Universal Soul, the Supreme Soul, the Self-sustained Supporter of the Earth, hymned by Sanaka and other saints residing in the Janalōka, (therefore He) entered the water. Beholding Him then descend to Pātāla, the Goddess Earth, bowing down prostrated herself in devotion and sang the praise: ‘Reverence O bearer of the Shell and Club, to Thee who art all things: raise me today from this place: by Thee I was formerly lifted up.... Having swallowed the universe, when it becomes one ocean, doest Thou O Gōvinda, sleep. Thou who art meditated upon by the wise. No one knows that which is Thy form: the gods adore that form which Thou assumest in Thy incarnations. Worshipping Thee, the Supreme Brahmā, men desirous of final liberation attain their object. Worshipping Thee, the Supreme Brahman, who shall obtain liberation without adoring Vāsudēva? . . . Thou art sacrifice, Thou art the *vashaṭkāra* (a sacrificial formula), Thou art the *ōmkāra* (the mystic syllable *Ōm*), Thou art the fires.’ . . . Having been thus celebrated by the Earth, the glorious Upholder of the Earth, with a voice like the chanting of the Sāmavēda, uttered a deep thundering sound. Then the great boar, with eyes like the expanded lotus, tossing up with his tusks the earth which resembled the leaf of the blue lotus, rose up from the lower regions like a great blue mountain. . . . . (The boar was then lauded and praised by Sanandana and other saints in a hymn, in which various members of his body are compared in detail to various materials and implements used in sacrifice. See Wilson's *Vishnu-purāṇa*, 2nd ed. i., *pp.* 63 *ff.*) . . . On having been thus hymned in praise, the Supreme Soul, the Upholder of the Earth, lifted the earth up quickly, and placed it upon the great waters. Resting upon this mass of waters, like a mighty ship, the earth does not sink, owing to the expansion of its form". Compare *Mahābhārata*, iii., 10, 932, *ff.*

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"The *Liṅga-purāṇa*, which is of the Śaiva variety of *purāṇa*sand has not, as such, any interest in glorifying Vishnu, describes Brahmā as the deity who assumed the form of the boar. (part, i. 4, 59 *ff.*) ‘In that night, when all things moveable and immoveable had been destroyed (and became absorbed) in the universal ocean, Brahmā slept upon the waters; and beholding the universe void, Brahmā, chief among the knowers of the Vēdas, then resolved to create’. Having assumed the form of a boar, this eternal god taking up the earth, which was overflowed by the waters, placed it as it had been before."

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The *Agni-purāṇa* informs us that there was a chief of the Asuras, named Hiraṇyāksha, who vanquished the gods and took possession of their heavenly capital, and that the gods had recourse to Viṣṇu, who, to help them, assumed the form of a boar and slew the demon Hiraṇyākṣa. In the later writings, this boar *avatāra* is treated exclusively as one assumed by Viṣṇu; and the *āgamas* and *tantras* also attribute this incarnation to Viṣṇu. Let us now turn our attention to the description of this *avatāra* of Viṣṇu as found in the various other works. These sculptured figures comprise three different conceptional types of the *avatāra*, namely, (i) Bhūvarāha, Ādivarāha or Nṛivarāha, (ii) Yajñavarāha and (iii) Pralayavarāha. These will be dealt with in order.

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Bhuvaraha, or Adivaraha. The figure of Bhūvarāha should have, according to the *Vaikhānāsāgama*, the face of a boar in association with the body of a man. It has four arms, two of which hold the *śaṅkha* and the *chakra* as usual. The right leg should be slightly bent and be made to rest upon the jewelled hood of the mythical serpent Ādiśēṣa, who must be sculptured as in company with his wife. Of the remaining two hands, the left hand should be shown as supporting the legs of Bhūmidevi, seated on the god's bent right leg, with her own legs hanging down, while the right hand has to be thrown round the waist of his same goddess. The boar-face of the god should be slightly tilted up so as to make the muzzle approach the bosom of the goddess as though he is engaged in smelling her. The colour of the image of Varāha-Vishṇu is represented by the darkness of twilight. The associated figure of Bhūmidēvī should have her hands in the *añjali* attitude. She should be decked with flowers and dressed in clothes and should be adorned with all suitable ornaments. Her complexion has to be black. Her face should be slightly lifted up and turned towards her lord, and should be expressive of shyness and joy. The top of her head should reach the chest of the figure of Varāha, and her image should be made in accordance with the *pañcha-tāla* measure. Such is the description given in the *Vaikhānāsāgama*.

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The *Śilparatna* gives a slightly different description. Nṛivarāhamūrti or the man-boar image of Vishṇu should have, according to this authority, in its hands the *gadā* and the *padma* and carry Bhūmidēvī on the tusk. One of its feet should rest upon the serpent Ādiśēsha and the other on a tortoise. Or, the goddess might be shown as seated upon the left elbow of the Varāha, with a *nilōtpala* flower in her hand. Her face should have eyes which are expressive of wonder. One of the two right hands of this Varāha image should be made to rest upon the hip. The *Śilparatna* further says that instead of the Varāha being half man and half boar, it may be worked out wholly as a boar with a thick snout, broad shoulder-blades, long tusks and a big body covered with up-turned bristles.

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The *Agni-purāṇa* gives very nearly the same description of the image of Varāha-Vishṇu. But it adds that the right hand should carry the *śaṅkha* and the left hand either a *padma* or the figure of Lakshmī. In this latter case, the figure of Lakshmī should be shown as seated upon the left elbow of the god and the figures of Bhūmi and Ādiśēsha are to be near his feet. The *Agni-Purāṇa* says that the setting up of the Varāhamūrti for worship brings to one emancipation from *saṃsāra*.

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The *Vishṇudharmōttara* also gives the same description with a few additional details. In describing Ādiśēsha, it states that that serpent should be sculptured as possessing four arms, a hood ornamented with jewels and eyes expressive of wonder; the face of Ādiśēsha should be slightly lifted up as if indicating a desire to see the Lord. Two of Ādiśēsha’s hands are to be in the *añjali* pose, while the other two should carry the *hala* and the *musala*. He should assume the attitude of the *āliḍhāsana*. The same authority adds further that the image of Nṛivarāha may be also sculptured seated like Kapila in the dhyāna attitude; or the hands may be so placed as if offering piṇḍas; or, the whole figure may be sculptured exactly like a boar shown to live in the midst of asuras. When the image is represented like a full boar, it should be, as when associated with Śiva as the Liṅgōdbhavamūrti, shown to be digging the earth. According to the Viṣṇudharmōttara, again, the philosophic import of this avatāra is the defeat of ignorance embodied in the shape of Hiraṇyākṣa by Eternal Wisdom and Almighty Power incarnated as Varāha-Viṣṇu.

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This form of the Varāhamūrti has to be of white complexion, and should have four arms, two of which are to carry the śaṅkha and the chakra; the figure should be seated upon a siṃhāsana, with the right leg hanging down and the left resting upon the seat; it should be clothed in yellow garments and adorned with various ornaments. On the right side should be seated the figure of Lakshmī having the golden yellow colour. Her left leg should be bent and kept resting upon the seat, while the right should be left hanging. Her left hand should carry a lotus and the right hand should be resting on the seat. On the left of Yajñavarāhamūrti, there

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Yajnavaraha.

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should be seated Bhūmidēvī of dark complexion, with her right leg bent and resting upon the seat and the left leg hanging down. In her right hand she should hold a *nīlōtpala* flower and the left hand should rest upon the seat. The face of this goddess has to be slightly turned towards the god and should be expressive of surprise.

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This type of the image of Varāha-Vishṇu has to be seated upon a *siṁhāsana*, with the right leg hanging down, while the left one is bent and kept resting on the seat. This image should have four arms, in two of which the *śaṅkha* and the *chakra* have to be carried, while the front right hand should be in the *abhaya* pose and the front left hand be resting upon the left thigh. The complexion of Pralaya-Varāha has to be blue; and the image is to be clothed in yellow garments and decked with all the usual ornaments.

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On the right of Pralaya-Varāha and on the same seat should be placed his consort, Bhūmidēvī, with the right leg hanging down and the left bent and made to rest on the seat. She has to be dark in complexion and should be wearing all her suitable ornaments; in her left hand there should be an *utpala* flower, and her right hand should be resting upon the seat. She must be made to look at her lord with amazement which is clearly visible in her eyes.

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It is said that when Vishnu gave up his boar-form and returned as Vishnu, to his own heavenly abode known as Vaikuntha, Śiva took the long tusk of the discarded animal-body and used it as an ornament.

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Such are some of the descriptions of the several forms of Varāhamūrti as given in the āgamas and tantras. The peculiarities of the actual sculptured forms, which are represented in the illustrative plates, deserve to be noticed. One prominent feature of the Varāha images printed in the Pls. XXXVII to XLI is that they are all facing the proper left and have the Dēvi resting upon the bent left leg, the hanging legs of this Dēvi being held by the right hand of the god himself. The figures on Pls. XXXVI to XXXVIII and figs. 2 and 3 on Pl. XXXIX possess an attitude which suggests that they are about to jump up; and this peculiarity of attitude is demanded in fact by the Sanskrit authorities. In Pl. XXXVII alone, is the Dēvi carried by Varāha in the palm of the hand; and she is there standing, not sitting, as required by the āgamas. Pl. XXXVI is an elaborate piece of sculpture wherein the central figure, Varāha in company with the Dēvi, is flanked on the sides by Brahmā and possibly Śiva, the former standing on the left, and the latter on the right. On a close examination of the figure on the left, it may be seen that it has three faces and four arms. The figure of Brahmā holds a *kamaṇḍalu* in the lower left hand, the other left hand being placed in what is known as the pose of praise; the upper right hand is held in the *kaṭaka* pose and the lower right hand is made to rest upon the hip. The cloth is worn in the *upavīta* fashion. Up above the head of Brahmā is given a figure which is probably Chandra with the hands held in the *añjali* pose and facing Varāha. To the left of Brahmā is seen a person wearing the *jaṭā-makuṭa*; and he appears to be a male likely to be the *rishi* Nārada, for, in front of him and near his hand is seen the handle of a *vīṇā*, which is a musical instrument characteristically associated with this sage.

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The large figure to the right of the central Varāha in Pl. XXXVI wears the *jaṭā-makuṭa* and is standing with his hands which are apparently in the *añjali* pose. The statement that this image may be that of Śiva is based only on the relative size of the figure and its *jaṭā-makuṭa*. The height of this figure is exactly equal to that of Brahmā; both these figures of Brahmā and Śiva come up to the shoulders of Varāha; and this is the height which is generally prescribed in Sanskrit works on iconography for the principal ones among the attendant deities. There are however some difficulties in the matter of this identification; this figure has only two arms, which is uncommon for Śiva in the sculptures of the period; secondly, Śiva and Brahmā are rarely, if at all, shown as adopting the *añjali* pose of the hands and with bowed head; even when they are sculptured as attendant deities, their hands are usually shown in the pose of praise; thirdly, there is in front of this figure a *vīṇā*, with a crooked handle and the gourd resonator, evidently belonging to the being whom the figure represents, and indicating that it may well be a *rishi*. Up above this figure, which may be of Śiva, there is the figure of Sūrya in the *prabhāmaṇḍala* worshipping Varāha with folded hands. The form of Sūrya, like that of Chandra, is here represented only up to the middle of the body, the lower portion being left unsculptured; this is meant evidently to suggest that they are up and unsupported in the sky.

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Varāha Panel : Stone : Mahābalipuram.

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To the right of what we have supposed to be the figure of Śiva stands a female figure, with her hands folded in the *añjali* pose and her feet immersed in water: her head is adorned with a *karaṇḍa-makuṭa*. She is the goddess of earth Bhūmidēvī, just rescued from the ocean. Under the right foot of Varāha is Ādiśēsha, with a five-headed *nāga* hood on the head. He has also his hands in the *añjali* pose and is worshipfully looking at the great deliverer of the earth with uplifted head. Half of his body is plunged in water, which is represented in the sculpture in the usual conventional manner with lotuses and waves, although the lotuses are of course out of place in the ocean. The execution of this elaborate panel is very artistic, and the proportion of the various figures is effective and appropriate. The drapery is arranged in quite a natural fashion and is very becoming. The big tusks and the powerful snout of the boar are intended to indicate great strength and terrific power.

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Pl. XXXVII represents a group of images found in No. III cave at Bādāmi. In it great prominence is naturally given to the principal figure of Varāha. The attendant deities Brahmā and Śiva are shown with their consorts on the proper right and left of the central Varāha, and certain *devas* are shown as sailing in the air. Both Brahmā and Śiva have one of their hands held up in the pose of praise. At the foot of Varāha is Ādiśēsha’s wife; on the proper left is standing erect Ādiśēsha himself, and on the proper right is an attendant woman holding the *chauri*. This piece of sculpture is about a century older than the one at Mahābalipuram shown in Pl. XXXVI.

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Bhūvarāhamūrti : Stone : Bādāmi.

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Varāha : Stone : Rajim, Raipūr District, Central Provinces.

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[To face page 141.]

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(Fig. 1.) Varāha : Stone : Nāgalapuram.

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(Fig. 2.) Varāha : Stone : Phalodi, Jodhpur District, Marwar.

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(Fig. 3.) Varāha : Stone : Calcutta Museum.

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Pl. XXXVIII and the fig. 2 on Pl. XXXIX represent images which are more or less of the same age as that on Pl. XXXVI; they do not seem to be far removed, in point of time, from the early Chālukya-Pallava period. The first of these is sculptured in great detail and with a characteristic vigour that is truly artistic. This figure of Varāha has four arms, and is seen to carry the Dēvī on one of the left elbows; this associated left hand and the corresponding right hand are clasped, while the other left hand is made to rest on the bent leg so as to be suggestive of the support needed to bear the weight of the goddess. The sculptor has strayed a little from his authorities in representing Ādiśēsha as supporting Varāha's two feet in the two palms of his hands instead of on the hood. This Ādiśēsha is in the attitude of āḷiḍhāsana. A whole world of Nāgas is sculptured in the adjacent slab, showing all the Nāgas as engaged in the act of reverencing Varāha with their hands held in the añjali pose. The wriggling snake-halves of the bodies of these Nāgas and Nāgiṇis make their life and activity manifest in a remarkable manner. Fig. 2, Pl. XXXIX represents a remarkable piece of art. The happy proportion of the parts of the body of Varāha, the delicate poise of the image, the minutely carved ornaments, the sculpturing of the Nāgas underneath an expanded lotus leaf so as to be suggestive of the pātāla-lōka, which is the abode of these beings, all these and many more features in the workmanship stamp the artist as a real master of his craft. That to this vigourous and highly powerful Varāha, the supporting of a Dēvi is like child's play, becomes patent by the ease with which she is shown to be held on his bent left hand. Another point which is artistically noteworthy is that the lotus leaf on the head of Varāha, which with its concave side turned down, serves as an umbrella, and indicates the god to be just rising up from the ocean. Alike for its effect and for its execution, this image is remarkable and praiseworthy.

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Next in point of time is the image represented as fig. 3 on Pl. XXXIX. There is nothing very peculiar in it, except that it shows that the same rules of iconography must have been applied to the image of Varāha in Bengal as in Bombay and Madras.

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Figs. 1 on Pl. XXXIX and that on Pl. XL represent comparatively recent productions, and both of them belong to Madras. The latter is a bronze image preserved in the Museum at Madras, and the former is a stone image to be found in the Vishnu temple at Nāgalāpuram in This image is blank. There is no text to transcribe.

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Varāha : Bronze : Madras Museum.

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(Fig. 3). Lakṣmī-Narasimha : Bronze : Madras Museum.

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(Fig. 2). Varaha : Stone : Bēlūr.

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(Fig. 1). Lakṣmī-Narasimha : Bronze : Madras Museum.

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the North Arcot district. They have very similar characteristics; neither of them is in the attitude of jumping; both are shown to be calmly standing on the right leg which is firmly set on the pedestal; the left leg is bent and is supported on the hood of Ādiśēsha; the two upper hands carry the śankha and the chakra as usual; the lower left hand is thrown round the Dēvī so as to support her in the seated position, and the lower right hand is in the abhaya pose. Here we may also notice the arrangement of drapery and the mechanical way in which the yajñōpavīta and the other ornaments are arranged on the figures as characteristic features of later art. It is easy to observe in the bronze Varāhamūrti of the Madras Museum that the image-making art had distinctly decayed at the time of its casting.

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Fig. 2, Pl. XLI. is the representation of an image which belongs to the Chennakēśava temple at Bēlūr in the Mysore province. The characteristic details of ornamentation, the minute and clearly traceable workmanship in the carving, the excellent and beautiful, though conventional, sculpturing of the various figures marks this Varāha image as belonging to one of the most attractively artistic schools of a late period. We see Varāha here with twelve hands, in the right six of which he carries the *śūla*, thrust into the body of Hiraṇyāksha, the *aṅkuśa*, the *ghaṇṭa*, the *khaḍga*, the *chakra* and the *bāṇa* in the order from below: in two of the left hands a fruit (lemon) and the *khēṭaka* are seen, and something which is held in the third left hand is not capable of being made out from the photograph; the fourth left hand gives support to the hanging leg of the Dēvī, while the fifth carries the *śaṅkha* and the sixth is held in the *vismaya* pose. This Varāha is treading upon two *asuras*,—notice their round eyes and tusks, and also the sword and shield in their hands,—who are shown as lying crushed under the feet of the deity. In front stands Bhūmidēvī, whose head has been unfortunately broken away, with her hand in the *añjali* pose.

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There is an orthodox explanation of the symbolism underlying the boar *avatāra* of Vishṇu given in the *Pādma-purāṇa*. The *Vāyu-purāṇa* also gives the same passage word for word. In them it is stated that the sacrifice (*yajña*) is as a whole symbolised by the boar, and that its various limbs represent the limbs of the sacrifice. The grunt of the boar corresponds to the *Sāma-ghōsha* and the four legs are the four *Vēdas*; the tusk is the *yūpa-stambha* (the sacrificial post); the tongue stands for *agni* (the sacrificial fire) and the bristles constitute *darbha* grass; the head is the *Brāhman* priest, the bowels form the *Udgātṛi* priest, and the genital organ constitutes the *Hōtṛi* priest required to officiate in the sacrifice. The two eyes of the boar are said to be emblematic of the day and the night, and the ornaments in its ear are taken to represent the *Vēdāngas*. The mucous flow from the nose is the ghee, which is delivered into the fire by the spoon (*sruva*) consisting of the snout (*tuṇḍa*). *Prāyaśchitta* is represented by the Varāha’s hoofs and their knees stand for the *paśu* (the animal victim). The air breathed is the *antarātman*, the bones of the boar constitute the *mantras*, and its blood is the *sōma* juice. The *vēdi* (the altar) is symbolised by the shoulders of the boar and the *havis* is its neck. What is called *havya-kavya* is represented by the rapid movements of the boar; the *dakṣiṇā* fee paid to the priests is its heart. The wife of the sacrificer is its shadow, while the whole body of the animal is taken as representing the sacrificial chamber. One of the ornaments on the body of the boar is made to represent the ceremony called *pravargya*.

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**Narasimha.** Kaśyapa-prajāpati begot by Diti two sons named Hiraṇyākṣa and Hiraṇyakaśipu. The former of these received certain boons from Brahmā, which made him notably powerful; and he thereupon began to subjugate the gods and tease them. The gods in their new affliction, complained to Brahmā and sought his help to overcome the troublous might of the *asura* Hiraṇyāksha. Then Brahmā, together with the doleful gods, approached Vishṇu and implored him to deliver them from the troubles caused by the *asura*. In response, Vishṇu created a strong warrior, whom he sent with Garuḍa and a few other assistants to vanquish Hiraṇyāksha; but they could not succeed in their endeavour to do so. Then Vishṇu himself proceeded against the demon, when he was opposed by Hiraṇyakaśipu, his son Prahlāda and a host of other *asuras*. In the struggle that ensued, the *asuras* were overpowered and Prahlāda realised that his father's great opponent could be none other than the Supreme God, and entreated his father and all his allies to give up the impossible contest. All the good advice of Prahlāda proved to be of no avail, and Hiraṇyakaśipu persisted in carrying on the war with Vishṇu. The result was that Vishṇu became angry and tore the *asura* Hiraṇyakaśipu to pieces. On seeing this, the other *asuras* ran away. Such is the brief account found in the *Kūrma-purāṇa* about the Narasimhāvatāra or the man-lion incarnation of Vishṇu. It is easily seen that it does not give us the circumstances under which Vishṇu had to assume the curious form of the man-lion. The Saura-purāṇa follows the Kūrma-purāṇa in stating that Prahlāda himself opposed Vishnu at the beginning but later on became devoted to him on seeing his divine valour and making out therefrom that he must surely be the Lord of the Universe.

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We are also informed in the Puranic legends that Hiraṇyāksha and Hiraṇyakaśipu were in fact Jaya and Vijaya, the two door-keepers of Vishnu who, having incurred the displeasure of their master, were cursed by him to become incarnated as asuras and to turn out to be his enemies in a number of births. In one of these they were born as Madhu and Kaiṭabha, in another as Hiraṇyāksha and Hiraṇyakaśipu; in the Mahābhārata period they were Śiśupāla and Dantavakra.

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The name Hiraṇyakaśipu is derived in the Vāyu-purāṇa from the following legend. Once Kaśyapa was performing a sacrifice, and his wife Diti was in an advanced stage of pregnancy. Kaśyapa had several costly gifts for the sacrificial priests; and one of them was a gold-plated wooden seat for the hōtṛi priest. It was kept covered with kuśa grass. As the sacrifice was going on, Diti gave birth to a son; and the baby, as soon as it was born, walked straight to the place of sacrifice and there sat upon the gold-plated seat and began to repeat the Vēdas and the Purāṇas. The performers of the sacrifice were exceedingly pleased with the child and called him Hiraṇyakaśipu and prophesied that he would become very powerful.

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According to the Pādma-purāṇa Prahlāda was a Brāhmaṇa in his previous condition of existence; and though now born as the son of Hiraṇyakaśipu, he still retained his old and ardent devotion to Viṣṇu. The father, of course, did not like that his son should be a devout adorer of his mortal enemies, the gods; and with the object of getting rid of such a misbehaving and undesirable son, he subjected him to various forms of cruel treatment. But Prahlāda, by the grace of Viṣṇu, remained quite unscathed, and began to preach, with even greater earnestness than before, the doctrine that Viṣṇu was the omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent God who filled all space and reigned everywhere as the Supreme Lord. Then once Hiraṇyakaśipu, in a fit of exasperation, asked his son why, if Viṣṇu was omnipresent, he did not see him in the pillar of his hall. Thereupon Prahlāda struck the pillar with his fist, and according to another account, Hiraṇyakaśipu himself angrily kicked the pillar, and at once Viṣṇu came out therefrom half-man and half-lion, and tore Hiraṇyakaśipu to pieces.

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It is said that Hiraṇyakaśipu had, in his earlier life adored Brahmā and obtained from him boons to the effect that he should be so invulnerable as not to be killed by man or beast; that he should not die either in the day or in the night, that he should not die either in the day or in night, side it and that no weapon of any kind should injure him. After he obtained these boons he naturally became haughty and irrepressible in his worrying behaviour towards the gods, and it became imperative that he should be killed. But at the same time the boon conferred by Brahmā on him had to be respected. Consequently Vishṇu assumed the from of a man-lion, and tore Hiraṇyakaśipu with the claws at the time of lingering twilight forming the junction between day and night, himself being seated upon the doorsill of the mansion of Hiraṇyakaśipu. It is obvious that, in so causing the death of the asura, not one of the boons bestowed on him by Brahmā was counteracted and shown to be futile. This account given in the Pādma-purāṇa is substantially in agreement with what is found in the Vishṇu-purāṇa and some other Purāṇas also.

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The images of Vishṇu as Narasimha are of two kinds, namely, the Girija-Narasimha and the Sthauna-Narasimha. The first kind consists generally of a single figure, which should be shown seated on a *padmāsana* in the *utkuṭika* posture, the forelegs being maintained in the required position by the *yōga-paṭṭa* belt going round them and the back of the body. The conception underlying the name Girija-Narasimha is that the lion comes out of a mountain cave. Kēvala-Narasimha is another name by which this single image of Vishnu as man-lion is called; and it may have either two or four arms. In the latter case, the upper right hand should hold the *chakra*, and the upper left hand the *śaṅkha*, and the two other hands being stretched forward and supported on the knees. This form of the image of Narasimha is often designated as the Yōga-Narasimha. (See Pl. XLII). The colour of this form of the image of the man-lion Vishnu should be crystal white. The *Śilparatna*, however, gives a somewhat different description, and says that the *chakra* and the *śaṅkha* should be shown, near the two out-stretched hands and that the other two hands should carry the *gadā* and the *padma*.

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Sometimes Girija-Narasimha is represented as seated upon a *simhāsana* with the right leg hanging down and the left folded and made to rest upon the seat. The image generally has four arms, and the back right and left hands carry the *chakra* and *śaṅkha* respectively. The front right hand has to be shown in the *abhaya* pose, and the front left hand as resting upon the hip in the *kaṭyavalambita* pose. While the colour of this form of the image of Narasimha is required to be white, the colour of the garments has to be red. Moreover the image should be adorned with all suitable ornaments, and on the head the *karaṇḍa-makuṭa* should be worn. On the right of such Narasimha there should be the image of Lakshmī seated on the same seat, but with her left leg folded and made to rest upon the seat, and the right leg hanging down. In the left hand this goddess should carry a lotus; and her right hand should be made to rest upon the seat. The image of Bhūmidēvī should be shown seated on the left of Narasimha, with her right leg folded and made to rest on the seat, while the left leg is made to hang down. In the right hand of this goddess there should be shown the *nilōtpala* flower, and the left hand should be shown as resting upon the seat. The colour of the image of Lakshmī has to be golden yellow, and that of Bhūmidēvī has to be dark. Both the goddesses should be adorned with all appropriate ornaments.

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Kēvala Nārasimha : Stone : Haḷēbīḍu.

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The conception underlying the name Sthauna-Narasimha is that the lion in this case comes out of a pillar; and this Sthauna-Narasimha is also a seated image with four arms. In the two back hands there should be the *śaṅkha* and the *chakra*; the front right hand should be in the *abhaya* or the *varada* pose, and the corresponding left hand should be made to rest on the thigh. The left leg has to be folded and supported upon the *siṃhāsana* while the right leg should be hanging down. The neck of this type of Narasimha should be covered with a thick mane; the colour of the image should be white and that of the garment red. There should be sharp curved teeth made distinctly visible in the mouth of the man-lion.

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In a second manuscript of *Vaikhānasāgama* a somewhat different description of the image of Sthauna-Narasimha is given. According to this description the image may have twelve or sixteen hands, and there should be three bends in the body (*tribhaṅga*). On the left thigh thereof Hiranyakasipu should be stretched out with the belly being ripped open by two of the hands of Narasimha. One of the right hands should be in the *abhaya* pose, and another has to carry a sword so as to make its point reach up to the *kuṇḍala* in the ear. One of the left hands of Narasimha should hold the *makuṭa* of Hiranyakasipu, and another should be shown as lifted up for administering a blow to the demon. The legs of the *asura* are to be taken hold

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of by a right hand, and two other hands, one right and one left, should be lifted up to the ears of the image and be holding the drawn out entrails of Hiraṇyakaśipu in the form of a garland. The figure of Hiraṇyakaśipu should be sculptured so as to indicate that he has been attempting to kill his opponent, and be for this purpose armed with a sword and a shield. As if to appease the highly excited wrath of Narasimha while engaged in destroying this demon, Śrīdēvi, Bhūdēvi, Nārada with his vīṇā and Prahlāda with his hands in the añjali pose should all be shown as standing on his right and left. Above these should be sculptured Indra and the other Lōkapālas with their hands in the añjali pose.

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If the figure of Narasimha is sculptured with only eight hands, two of them should be employed in tearing open the belly of Hiraṇyakaśipu, while four others should carry the śankha, the gadā, the chakra and the padma. The remaining two should be holding the drawn out entrails of Hiraṇyakaśipu garland-wise. The neck of the image must be thick; the shoulders and the hip must be comparatively large in size and the abdomen as well as the waist must be notably thin. The whole of the image should be painted golden yellow, yellowish brown, blue or scarlet red. The Viṣṇudharmōttara prescribes the āliḍhāsana for the Sthauṇamūrti and adds that it should be clothed in a blue garment. The same authority informs us that Narasiṃha, when worshipped, increases one's knowledge of the Supreme Being and that Hiraṇyakaśipu is a personification of evil and ignorance.

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A third variety of Narasiṃha is called the Yānaka-Narasiṃha. In this aspect, Narasiṃha should be seated upon the shoulders of Garuḍa or upon the folds of Ādiśēsha. This Narasiṃha should possess four arms in two of which he should carry the śankha and the chakra. Nothing is mentioned as to how the other hands are kept engaged. Over the head of Narasiṃha there should be the five-headed hood of Ādiśēsha held like an umbrella. The figure of Narasiṃha should be adorned with all ornaments. We have, however, not come across even a single instance of this variety of Narasiṃha in actual sculptures.

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Besides the Girija-Narasiṃha and the Sthauṇa-Narasiṃha described above there are a few other varieties whose descriptions are not found in the Sanskrit authorities available to us; however, illustrations of the undescribed forms of Narasiṃha with a brief description of each are added below.

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Standing figure of Kēvala-Nārasiṁha : Stone : Bādāmi.

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[To face page 155.]

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The Śaiva accounts state that Narasimha, after killing Hiraṇyakaśipu, grew arrogant and harsh. Śiva thereupon assumed the form of a śarabha, a mythical creature held to be partly bird and partly the beast lion, tore up Narasimha and wore his skin as a garment, using his face as an ornament on the chest.

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In illustration of the descriptions given above, one picture of the Kēvala-Narasimha, which is the same as the Yōga-Narasimha, and two of the Sthauna-Narasimha have been given; and six other pictures which do not correspond to the descriptions are also reproduced here. The figure of Kēvala-Narasimha (PL. XLII) is the principal image in the Narasimha temple near Haḷēbīḍu. In it, it has to be noticed that the two up-turned hands carry the śankha and the chakra, but not the gadā and the padma as required by the Śilparatna. In respect also of having the śankha and the chakra sculptured near the two hands made to rest upon the knees, this image differs from the description given in the Śilparatna. The workmanship leaves nothing to be desired. The rigid posture, representing the unshakable firmness of the mind of the yōgin and showing a very strict adherence to all the prescribed details is in fact wrought so beautifully that no praise can be too much in appreciation of the skill and ability of the sculptor. In the *prabhāvali* surrounding the image, there are sculptured the ten *avatāras* of Vishnu. The *padmā-sana*, upon which Kēvala-Narasimha is required to be seated, is here absent; and instead of it we have only a raised seat placed upon a well designed pedestal, in front of which the Garuḍa-lāñchhana or the Garuḍa-emblem is worked out to indicate that the deity resting on the pedestal is Vishnu.

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Strictly speaking Pl. XLIII also, illustrates a form of Kēvala-Narasimha. Here we have a standing image instead of the sitting one as required by the books. The *śaṅkha*, *chakra*, *gadā* and *padma* are sculptured in human form as Āyudha-purushas and are not to be found in their real condition. Above the two uplifted arms of the man-lion image are to be seen the personified Śaṅkha and Chakra, hovering, as it were, while near the *gadā*, on which the man-lion is leaning, there stands the slender-waisted goddess representing the Gadā; and to the right of and near the leg of Narasimha stands the personified Padma. This is indeed an admirable piece of sculpture, rich in details, correct in pose and possessed of true proportions. The face is that of a real lion and not, as in Pl. XLII that of a conventional form of the animal with pointed ears and stiff and straight mane.

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Sthauna Nārasimha : Panel-Stone : Ellora.

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Sthauna Nārasimha : Stone : Dādikkombu.

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Narasimha is here shown in the pacific mood, and the calm expression on the face is very well brought out. The ornaments are all minutely carved and unmistakably bring to light the great skill of the artist.

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Over the head of the central man-lion image, we see the images of Brahmā and Śiva with those of their consorts, floating in the air praising and glorifying Narasimha. This piece of sculpture is found in Cave No. III in Bādāmi.

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We do not as yet know what the written authority is, on which Narasimha with Hiranyakasipu, as depicted in Pls. XLIV and XLV, is based. That these two pieces of sculpture, one found in Ellora and the other in distant Dādikkombu near Dindigal in South India, should exhibit so nearly the same main features, clearly indicates the existence of an authoritative description in some work bearing upon the formation of images and forming the basis of these productions of interest and value. In both these we see that Narasimha is shown as advancing towards Hiranyakasipu from the right, as the latter approaching in a defiant attitude, with the sword lifted up to strike the adversary; in both Narasimha is made to take hold of the body of Hiranyakasipu so as to overpower him; moreover one of the right hands of Narasimha in each of the sculptures is held up as if he is going to deal a blow to the enemy with the open palm of that hand. The same objects are found in the hands of Narasimha in both the sculptures, namely, śaṅkha, chakra, khaḍga and khēṭaka; and again one of the hands is, in relation to both the images, in the abhaya pose. Although based on the same authority, the two pieces of sculpture are very dissimilar in respect of their artistic merit. The conventional lion's face, the conical kirīṭa, the expressionless attitude, the straight mechanically arranged mane and other such inartistically executed details in the Dāḍik-kombu image proclaim its positive inferiority. This and the images represented by the figures on Pls. XLVI and XLVII belong to the period of the Nāyakas of Madura (16th and 17th century A. D.) when the sculptor's art was in South India at its lowest ebb. The Dāḍikkombu image is indeed in a marked contrast with that of Ellora in almost every respect. In its workmanship it is decidedly inferior and the artist was obviously utterly lacking in imagination. The sculpture at Ellora, on the other hand, is full of expression and suggestive of energy and vigorous action; the attitude of Narasimha indicates, in a manner, the āḷiḍhāsana; the face of a real lion, with the curling mane and the delicately sculptured kirīṭa, tend to enhance the artistic effect of the whole piece. The hand thrown on the shoulder of Hiraṇyakaśipu keeps him literally at an arm's distance; a second hand catches hold of his crown and renders him motionless, while a third by tightly gripping the sword-carrying hand of Hiraṇyakaśipu, completely disarms and overpowers him. The master touch of the work of the artist may be seen in the way in which the interlocking of the leg of Narasimha with that of Hiraṇyakaśipu is carried out. The sculptor has obviously intended to suggest the divine nature of Narasimha by making his two feet rest upon two *padmas* or lotuses. The arrangement of the drapery is also well worked out and artistic. The defiant mood of Hiraṇyakaśipu is very well brought out in the haughty smile on his countenance.

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