South-Indian Images of Gods and Goddesses c10.s2.57

c10.s2.57

"She is surrounded by a host of dwarfs, evidently the *gaṇas* of Siva, her spouse. One, behind her, holds a parasol over her head, another at her side waves a fly-whisk (*chāmara*). The remainder carry weapons, usually a round buckler and a curved sword, in shape like the *kukri* of the Gurkhas. One in the foreground is in the act of shooting an arrow from a bow.