Ajanta: The Colour and Monochrome Reproductions of the Ajanta Frescoes Based on Photography v2.c8.s27.7

v2.c8.s27.7

The design *d* shows a conch-shell resting on a full-blown white lotus-flower. The lotus-flower (*padma*) being the symbol of self-creation has a religious significance among the Buddhists, but what its combination with the conch implies is a matter for conjecture. A lotus and a conch associated with Kuvera are considered to signify his inexhaustible treasuries.¹ Have they the same significance in this device as well? The conch independently is an important symbol among the Hindus, and the combination might have acquired a religious significance at a time when a fusion of the Buddhist and Brahmanical beliefs was taking place.