Vastu-shastra (Vol. I: Hindu Science of Architecture; Vol. II: Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting) v2.c74.s3: I. Hasta Mudrās

Vāstu-śāstra (Vol. I: Hindu Science of Architecture; Vol. II: Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting) v2.c74.s3

Language: English

I. Hasta Mudrās

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**Poses of the Hands.**—As regards the poses of the hands, the Samarāṅgaṇa Sūtradhāra divides them into the three varieties, namely:—

1. The Twenty four Asaṁyuta Hastas beginnirg with Patākā, etc.
2. The thirteen Saṁyuta Hastas beginning with Añjali etc.
3. The Twenty-nine Nṛtta Hastas beginning with Caturaśra etc. All these are tabulated hereunder:—

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(i) Group—24 Asaṁyute Hastas

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| 1. | Patākā | 13. | Sarpaśira |
| 2. | Tripatāka | 14. | Mṛgaśīrṣaka |
| 3. | Kartarīmukha | 15. | Kāṅgūla |
| 4. | Ardhacandra | 16. | Alapadma |
| 5. | Arāla | 17. | Catura |
| 6. | Śukatuṇḍa | 18. | Bhramara |
| 7. | Muṣṭi | 19. | Haṁsavaktra |
| 8. | Śikhara | 20. | Haṁsapakṣa |
| 9. | Kapittha | 21. | Saṁddaṁśa |
| 10. | Khaṭakāmukha | 22. | Mukula |
| 11. | Sūcīmukha | 23. | Ūrṇanābha |
| 12. | Padmakośa | 24. | Tāmracūḍa. |

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(ii) Group-13 Saṁyuta Hastas

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| 1. | Karkata | 7. | Dola |
| 2. | Savastika | 8. | Puṣpapuṭa |
| 3. | Khataka | 9. | Makara |
| 4. | Utsaṅga | 10. | Gajadanta |
| 5. | Añjali | 11. | Avahittha |
| 6. | Kapota | 12. | Vardhamāna |

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(iii) Group—21 Nṛtta Hastas

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| 1. | Caturasra | 12. | Latāhasta |
| 2. | Viprakīrṇa | 13. | Karihasta |
| 3. | Padmakośa | 14. | Pakṣavañcitaka |
| 4. | Arala Khatakāmukha | 15. | Pakṣapracyotaka |
| 5. | Aviddha-vakraka | 16. | Garuḍapakṣa |
| 6. | Sūcīmukha | 17. | Daṇḍapakṣa |
| 7. | Recitahasta | 18. | Ūrdhvamaṇḍalī |
| 8. | Uttānavañcita | 19. | Pārśvamaṇḍalī |
| 9. | Ardharecita | 20. | Uromaṇḍalī |
| 10. | Pallava | 21. | Urahpārśvārdhamaṇḍala. |
| 11. | Keśavandha | | |

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It may be noted that all these hastas though more true in drama and dance are really characteristic of the peculiar poses in which some of the renowned forms of Lord Śiva (cf. Nṛtta-mūrties) are represented in Art. Dr. Bannerjea’s observation (p. 248) that these have no practical application in Iconography is not fully correct. The standard manuals like the Viṣṇu-dharmottara and the Samarāṅgaṇa-Sūtradhāra have given an honoured place to these in relation to their iconographical expositions. Sri R. K. Poduval also bases his studies on ‘Mudrās in Art’ on an early Sanskrit text ‘Bālarāmabhāratam’ written by King Bālarāma Kulaśekhara Vāñci Bhūpāla of Travancore. The real significance, however, as hinted at previously and pointed out in my ‘Pratimā-Vijñāna’ (p. 240) is that among the Śilpa-texts, it is unique distinction of the S. S. that it has devoted 3 chapters on Mudrālogy and one chapter on Aesthetics in relation to the canons of painting. Both these are very important topics in dance and drama, where भावव्यक्ति and अवस्यानुकृति are aimed at, and as per the Viṣṇudharmottara’ dictum (Bk. III Ch. 2) that the science of painting is dependent on the art of dancing, the S. S. too has echoed this fundamental truth of the intimate relationship of the art of dancing and drama with that of the Mudralogy in art:

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हस्तेन सूचयन्नर्थं दृष्ट्या च प्रतिपादयन्
सजीव इति दृश्येत सर्वाभिनयदर्शनात् ॥
आङ्गिके चैव चित्रे … … साधनमुच्यते ।
… … … तस्मादनयोश्चित्रमाश्रितम् ॥

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and so conclusion is that what is true in Painting and the Citrajā images, is also true in sculptural images, in the considered opinion of an asthetician of repute, king Bhoja of Dhārā, the celeberated author of the S. S.

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Now it may be pointed out here that sometimes in the texts on Iconography, the words 'hasta' and 'mudrā' are spoken of as synonymous, for example 'abhaya-hasta' and 'abhaya-mudrā' 'varada-hasta' and 'varada-mudrā', etc. Sometimes again the word 'hasta' denotes an emblem and a posture both, *e. g.* 'padma-hasta', 'pustaka-hasta', etc. would mean a hand holding a lotus and a book respectively; whereas the word 'sūcī-hasta' would literally mean a hand holding a sewing needle ; but really it denotes the pointing pose. The word 'daṇḍa-hasta' may stand for both, the emblem as well as a specific gesture. Further again, the word 'mudrā' is also used in a restricted sense of a hand pose, *e.g.* jñāna-mudrā, cinmudrā or vyākhyāna-mudrā—all these denote the peculiar posture in which the palm with fingers is shown.

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As regards the word 'hasta', Dr. Bannerjea, observes that it is generally used in cases where the whole of the arm along with the hand is shown in a particular pose (cf. daṇḍahasta, gaja-hasta, kaṭi-hasta, etc.). But as per the writer's observations before, the word 'mudrā' in Indian Iconography, should be taken in a wider sense to denote the whole kingdom of symbolism associated with the images of divinities.

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A reference has been made to R. K. Poduval's three broad divisions of mudrās (cf. his 'Mudrās in Art'). His contention is that he has recognised as many as 64 mudrās in Art and 108 in Tantra. Among the 45 Tāntric Mudrās as reproduced by Poduval, such as añjali, vandani, vaināyakī, etc., etc., Dr. Bannerjea's observations (D. H. I. p. 249) are worth quoting; 'A careful analysis of these names show that some are connected with the deities to be worshipped, while others with the worshipper, a third set again symbolising the upacāras used in worship'.

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Without entering into further discussions whether Poduval's contentions are satisfactory or otherwise, let us see how many hasta-mudrās are found depicted in early art of India. The following tabulation will suffice to supply this important information as gathered from Bannerjea's work.

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The following hasta-mudrās are depicted in early representations of the Indian divinities and their attendants :—

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| 5. | Jñāna | 10. | Gaja or daṇḍa |
| 6. | Vyākhyāna | 11. | Sūcī |
| 7. | Dharmacakra | 12. | Tarjanī |
| 8. | Kaṭyavalambita | 13. | Vismaya |
| 9. | Kaṭaka or Simhakarṇa | 14. | Bhūsparśa |

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**Abhaya**—It is also known as Śāntida (cf. Br. S. ch. 57-vv-33-5) the hand turned towards the visitor, (*i. e.* turned to front) with fingers raised upwards. Its early illustrations are Mathura Buddha figure of the Kushan period ; Śiva-Viśvāmitra figure (on the coins of Dharaghoṣa); King Brahmadatta in illustration of Mahākapi Jātaka at Bharhut. ‘This is one of the commonest mudrās in which one or other hand of the Brahmanical, Buddhist and Jain images is shown, and it stands for assurance of fearlessness, tranquillity and protection given by the deity to his worshipper’—D. H. I. p. 251.

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**Varada.**—It is also another of the typically common mudrās in iconographic illustrations of ancient and medieval India, symbolises the bestowal of boon or benediction by the god on his votary. Utpala, the celebrated commentator of Br. S. explains this mudrā as the pose in which the palm with fingers pointing downwords is shown inside out. The antiquity of this pose goes as far back as the age of Indus Valley civilization (cf. Mohenjodaro seals containing figures of a god seated in yoga posture and Harappa terracotta human figurines). Sri M. S. Vatsa has described several such Harappa figures—vide ‘Excavations at Harapa’, p. 294, pl. LXXVI. Kubera (Kupiro Yakho) is also depicted in Bharhut with his hands in this pose.

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**Dhyāna—Yoga—or Samādhi-mudrā :**—‘It is that particular pose in which the palm of the right hand is placed in that of the left and both together are laid on the crossed legs of the seated image’—Rao. Our early literature abound the description of this yogic posture (cf. Bhagvadgītā VI. 13 ; Sāmaññaphalasutta ; Kumārasambhava Canto. III. 47). Regarding its illustrations in the early art Dr. Bannerjea says (D. H. I. p. 253-54): “The earliest approach to the Dhyāna-mudrā of the texts, as explained by the quotation from Rao, is to be found in the figure of a deity seated on a lotus seat, appearing on certain copper coins of Ujjayanī, that can be dated in 2nd-3rd century B. C. In Gandhara some of the numerous Buddha figures are shown with their hands in this pose ; its association with asceticism (tapas) is characteristically emphasised in the figures of Buddha practising asceticism in the collections of the Peshawar and Lahore Museums. The red sandstone figure of Pārśvanātha from Mathura, now in the collection of the Lucknow Museum, shows the Jina seated erect with his legs crossed and his hands in Dhyāna-mudrā; it belongs to the early Kushan period. Many images, Brahmanical, Buddhist and Jain, of the Gupta period, show this pose, two Yogāsana-Viṣṇu figures in the Mathura Museum characteristically portraying it”.

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**Jñāna-Mudrā** :—Rao says, ‘the tips of the middle finger and the thumb are joined together and held near the heart, with the palm of the hand turned towards the head’. Bharhut railings typify this pose as an early example in Ajakālaka Yakṣa and other representations. The front right hand of the figure of Nārāyaṇa in the Nara-Nārāyaṇa relief at Deogarh, is its Gupta period illustration. Dhyan Budha figures of early period also illustrate this. It may be remarked that this mudrā is particularly associated with Śiva’s Dakṣiṇāmūrti and unfortunately its correct representation in early art is yet to come to light.

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**Cinmudrā** :—It is described by Rao thus-‘the tips of the thumb and the forefinger are made to touch each other, so as to form a circle, the other fingers being kept open. ‘The plam of the hand is made to face the front’. ‘The hand in this pose is usually raised upwards near the breast and it appears that this is the exact counterpart of jñāna-mudrā’—Bannerjea. This mudrā is adopted when an explanation or exposition is being given, hence it is also called Vyākhyāna-mudrā and Sandarśana-mudrā. Illustrations :—1. The extreme right section of a large panel in the cave temple of Rameśvara at Ellora depicts Subrahmaṇya teaching his father Śiva the significance of Om; the right hand of polycephalous god is shown in the Vyākhyāna pose, a rosary being shown in the palm; 2. The two-armed figure of Nara in the Deogarh relief just referred to, shows his right hand in the same pose, a rosary being also placed in the hand. 3. ‘One of the earliest representations of a teacher expounding his lessons or doctrines is to be found at Bharhut where the sage Dīrghatapasvī is shown in the attitude of instructing his pupils’—Bannerjea.

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**Dharmacakra** :—It is characteristic of Buddha images alone. It symbolises the first preaching of the Law by the Master at Sarnath, ‘thus figuratively speaking, setting thenceforward the ‘Wheel of the Law’ in motion. It is also used in the representation of the Great Miracles at Śrāvastī. The Gandhara images, in the opinion of Dr. Bannerjea (D. H. I. p. 256) could not give an authentic representation of this pose. ‘But in the truely Indian images of Buddha from the Gupta period onwards, the Dharmacakra-mudrā is invariably presented in the manner shown in Fig. 4, Plate III of this book’. Dr. Bannerjea further remarks—‘this hand-pose is nothing but the combined representation of jñāna and vyākhyāna-mudrās, the left hand being in the former and the right in the latter’.

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**Kaṭyavalambita—or Kaṭisaṁsthita-hasta :**—It is the pose in which ‘the arm is let down so as to hang by the side of the body, and the hand is made to rest on the loin, indicating thus a posture of ease’—Rao. This is the most popular and commonly met mudrā in the artistic remains. Coomarswamy takes it as the iconographic pose par execllence in ancient and medieval India. Dr. Bannerjea has a long ist to represent this pose, a tabulation of some of the more famous ones is given below vide—Early Indian coin-devices:

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1. Śiva on some coins of Wema Kadphises,
2. Śiva-Viśvāmitra on Dharghoṣa’s silver coins
3. Śiva-chatreśvara on some Kuniṇḍa coins.
4. Lakṣmī on the unique coin with the legend ‘Pakhalavadidevata,’ *i. e.* Puṣkalāvatī-devatā grouped by the numismatists in the Indo-Scythic series.
5. Durgā Simha-vāhinī or Ekānaṁśā on some copper coins of Azes, identified by Dr. Bannerjea on the authority of the Bṛhatsaṁhitā’s description of this goddess-Ekānaṁśā.

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‘The standing images of Buddha, the Nāgas and various other divinities, of the early Kushan and subsequent periods found at Mathura and adjacent places very frequently display this attitude; the Katra, Anyor and Mankuwar images of seated Buddha also show the same pose’, Bannerjea.

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**Kaṭaka—or Siṁhakarṇa-hasta :**—It denotes that particular pose where in ‘the tips of the fingers are loosely applied to the thumb so as to form a ring or, as some what poetically expressed by the latter name, so as to resemble a lion’s ear’—Rao. It is specially suited to figures of goddesses and is very common also. Sirimā devata at Bharhut is one of its earliest representations.

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**Daṇḍa-hasta or Gaja-hasta :**—‘It has got the technical sense of the arm thrown forward (sometimes across the body), appearing like a straight staff or the lolling trunk of an elephant’. The palm in this pose ‘seems to be in Vaināyakī mudrā’, Bannerjea. It is finely illustrated in the well-known Naṭarāja images of Śiva. Nṛtya-Gaṇapati, Kṛṣṇa Kāliya-damana, dancing Cāmuṇḍā are also some of the more famous figures representing this pose. Bharhut sculptures of the Apsaras also depict this pose.

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**Sūcīhasta :**—It has already been briefly noted.

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**Tarjanī-hasta :**—It is a very suggestive hand-pose where the projected finger of the right hand points upwards (in the sūcī, it usually points downwards, the hand being held down), ‘as if the hand is warning or scolding another’ (Rao) ‘In Vajrayāna Sādhanās’, remarks Bannerjea, ‘Marīcī and several other goddesses are very often described as ‘tarjanīpāśa-hasta’—which means that the noose which is meant for chastisement, is placed in the same hand which is shown in threatening pose. Bharhut coping stones again illustrate this pose also in a Jataka relief. (cf. Gahapati Jataka, the house-holder Bodhisattva is represented in this attitude). Dr. Bannerjea has corrected Barua in his observation of Sudarśanā Yakṣiṇī in Bharhut, who also is depicted in a pose similar to tarjanī.

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**Vismaya-hasta :**—It indicates astonishment and wonder ‘In this pose the forearm is held up with the fingers of the hand pointing up and the palm turned away from the observer’. ‘The relief illustrating the Caṇḍeśānugrahamūrti of Śiva in the Kailasanatha temple at Conjeevaram belonging to the Pallava period’ is an example. A railing pillar relief of the Śaka-Kushan period in the collection of Mathura Museum, depicts a male figure in this attitude. Dr. V. S. Agarwala and Upadhyaya have rightly identified this figure as the young hermit Ṛṣyaśṛṅga and they observe ‘This mudrā is indicative of astonishment (vismaya) and reflection (vitarka). The eye balls are turned upwards and the whole expression is one of deliberation in which an awareness of the immediate surroundings is absent. Satisfaction beams on the face’. Dr. Bannerjea comments: The story of Ṛṣyaśṛṅga is often narrated in the Brahmanical and Buddhist literature and the most suggestive moment in it is that in which the young Brahmacārī beholds a maiden for the first time; the artist has chosen this moment and has very effectively portrayed the pleasant wonder of the unsophisticated youth when sex-consciousness dawns in his mind’. A Kumārasambhava passage (III. 41) describing Nandī guarding the entrance of Śiva’s place of medtation has also been taken by Dr. Agarwala to illustrate this pose. Dr. Bannerjea gives a further artistic illustration of this pose in the bronze image of Hanūmān belonging to the temple of Shermadevi in the Tinnevelly district of Madras State. A Bharhut relief (victory of Buddha over Mara) also depicts this pose. ‘Exactly the same posture is shown on similar figures appearing in the scene of Buddha’s birth in numerous reliefs from Gandhara’.

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The two more mudras—**Kāyotsarga** and **Bhūsparśa**—characteristic mainly of the Jain and Buddhist images, respectively may also be referred to now. The former pose is usually adopted in the representations of Jinas. In it the hands are shown hanging straight down the side of the body without the least bend in any of the limbs; this is described by Varāhamihira as Ājānulamba-bāhu, *i. e.* ‘the arms long enough to reach the knees’—this is one of the characteristic signs of great men and divine beings.—Bannerjea.

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The bhūsparśa, on the otherhand, is particularly associated with Buddhist iconography. In this pose, the left hand rests on the lap with palm outward and the right with the palm inward touches the seat below. ‘This pose illustrates the story of Buddha’s calling the earth as his witness for testifying to his right to sit on the Vajrāsana under the Bodhi tree, which was challenged by Mara, just prior to his enlightenment’. Gründwedel has remarked that ‘certain hand postures attached themselves to particular legends and the position of the hands in the chief figure becomes an indication of the legend’ (Buddhist Art’, p. 177). This observation is mainly applicable to the two, *viz.*, the dharmacakra and the bhūsparśa mudrās, both these were principally connected with Buddhism and in the developed Mahāyāna Iconography they were the typical hand poses of the two Dhyānī Buddhas *viz.*, Vairocana and Akṣobhya, respectively. ‘The nearest of the latter pose in Hindu Iconography is to be found in the two-armed figure of Nara in the Deograha relief already noted, where the god is seated in the ardhaparyanka fashion on a raised seat with index and the middle fingers of his left hand touching his seat; but unlike the Buddhist mode of representing the mudrā, we find here the palm of the hand turned outwards’.

Linked texts (7)

Kumārasaṃbhava — Kālidāsa, Sanskrit
Jātaka — Pāli
Bṛhatsaṃhitā — Varāhamihira, Sanskrit
Bhagavadgītā — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Samarāṅgaṇasūtradhāra — Bhoja, Sanskrit
Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa — Sanskrit
Sāmaññaphalasutta — Pāli