Elements of Hindu Iconography v1.c8.142

v1.c8.142

*Sūchī-hasta* has been misunderstood by some Saṃskṛit scholars to mean the hand that carries a *sūchī* or needle. For example, Mr. Nāgēndranātha Vāsu in giving a description of the goddess Mārīchī, as found in the *Sādhanamālātantra*, renders the expression *vajrāṅkuśa-śara-sūchidhāri-dakṣiṇakaraṃ* as "the goddess who holds in her right hands a *vajra*, a goad, an arrow and a *sūchī*." But, like the *tarjanī-hasta*, the *sūchī-hasta*, also denotes a hand-pose, in which the projected forefinger points to an object below (see Pl. V, fig. 9), whereas in the *tarjanī-hasta* the forefinger has to point upwards, as if the owner of the hand is warning or scolding another (see Pl. V, figs. 10).