Tag Archives: Mahabaratha

How Hanuman landed in the Pandava’s banner

It is not often you find miniatures in the upper reaches of a Gopura. So we were pleasantly surprised to find a rare depiction from the Mahabharatha in the Tirukkurungudi Temple’s Gopura.

Fortunately, the renovation work was in full swing and the strong casuraina poles held our weight and me and Arvind ( who braved his vertigo) climbed up to get to see the beauties.

We had already captured a very unique depiction of Garuda in this set, but this one was rarest of the rare.

Thanks again to the Amar Chitra Katha memoirs, we knew the plot by heart, but never had seen the theme sculpted in stone.

Had always imagined that this was part of folklore or atleast a later addition to the Epic.

You can clearly see the depiction of Hanuman as a `mere’ monkey sitting there nonchalantly as a proud Bhima uses his mace to clear the lowly tail – as though it is some twig.

Decided to give it a re read on stumbling on this depiction.

They reached Kulinda, the kingdom of Subahu, on the Himalayas. They accepted the honors rendered to them by that king and rested there awhile. Later on, they went to the charming forest of Narayanasrama and halted there.

One day, a breeze that blew from the northeast wafted a beautiful flower near Draupadi. Draupadi took it in her hands and was so charmed with its fragrance and beauty that she showed it rapturously to Bhima.

“Come and see this flower. What a sweet fragrance! How charming! I shall hand this over to Yudhishthira. Bring some flowers of this kind. We should grow this plant in our Kamyaka forest.” Draupadi ran to give the flower to Yudhishthira.

Anxious to please his beloved Draupadi, Bhima went in quest of that plant. He went alone in the direction from which the fragrance seemed to be borne by the breeze, without wasting a thought on the wild beasts that crossed his path.

He presently came to a garden of plantain trees at the foot of a mountain, and there he saw a huge monkey shining like blazing fire, which lay right across his path blocking it.

He tried to frighten the animal out of his way by shouting at it. It only half opened its eyes lazily and drawled: “I am indisposed and so I am lying here. Why lid you wake me? You are a wise human being and I am mere animal. It is proper that the rational man should show mercy to animals as interior creatures. I am afraid you are ignorant of right and wrong. Who are you? Whither are you bound? It is not possible to go further along this mountain path which is the path of the gods. Men cannot cross this limit. Eat what you like of the fruits of this place and if you are wise, go back in peace.”

Bhima, unused to being taken so lightly, grew angry and shouted: “Who are you, yourself, you monkey, that indulges in such tall talk? I am a kshatriya hero, a descendant of the Kuru race and a son of Kunti. Know that I am the son of the Wind god. Now move away from the path or stop me at your peril.”

Hearing these words the monkey merely smiled and said: “I am, as you say, a monkey, but you will come to destruction if you try to force a way.”

Bhima said: “I do not want your advice and it is no concern of yours if I go to destruction. Get up and move out of the way or I will make you.”

The monkey replied: “I have no strength to stand up, being but a very old monkey. If you have to go at any cost, jump over me.”

Bhima said: “Nothing could be easier but the scriptures forbid it. Otherwise I should jump over you and the mountain in one bound, like Hanuman crossing the ocean.”

The monkey remarked as though in surprise: “O best of men, who is that Hanuman who crossed the ocean? If you know his story, enlighten me.”

Bhima roared and said: “Have you not heard of Hanuman, my elder brother, who crossed the ocean, a hundred yojanas in breadth, to seek and find Sita, the wife of Rama? I am equal to him in strength and heroism. Well, that is enough talk, now get up and make way and do not provoke me to do you some harm.”

The monkey answered: “O mighty hero, be patient. Be gentle as you are strong, and have mercy on the old and weak. I have no strength to rise up as I am decrepit with age. Since you have scruples in jumping over me, kindly move aside my tail and make a path for yourself.”

Proud of his immense strength, Bhima thought to pull the monkey out of the way by its tail. But, to his amazement he could not move it in the least, though he exerted all his strength.

He set his jaws and strained every muscle till the very sinews cracked and he was covered with perspiration. But, still, could not move that tail the least, a little bit up or down or sideways. In shame, he bent down his head, and then asked in a chastened mood:

“Who are you? Forgive me and reveal to me whether you are a Siddha, god or Gandharva.” Bhima like most strong men, was all respect when he saw one stronger than himself, and spoke like a pupil addressing his master.

Hanuman replied: “O mighty-armed Pandava, know that I am your brother, even that Hanuman, the son of the Wind god, whom you mentioned a little while ago. If you go on this path, which is the road to the spirit-world where the Yakshas and the Rakshasas abide, you will meet with danger and that is why I stop you. No man can go beyond this and live. But here is the stream with its depths where you can find the Saugandhika plant you came to seek.”

Bhima was transported with delight: “I count myself the most fortunate of men in that I have been blessed to meet my brother. I wish to see the form in which you crossed the ocean,” and he prostrated before Hanuman.

Hanuman smiled and began to increase the size of his body and stood forth firmly to the world like a mountain seeming to fill the landscape.

Bhima was thrilled at actually seeing that divine form of this elder brother, the mere description of which had till then filled him with wonder. He covered his eyes, unable to bear the dazzling light radiating from that figure.

Hanuman said: “Bhima, in the presence of my enemies, my body can grow still more.” And Hanuman contracted his body, resuming his former size. He tenderly embraced Bhimasena.

Bhagavan Vyasa says that Bhima felt completely refreshed and became much stronger than before by the embrace of Hanuman.

Hanuman said: “O hero, go to your abode. Think of me whenever you are in need. I felt the same delight when I embraced you that I had in times of yore when I was fortunate enough to touch the divine body of Sri Rama. Ask any boon that you like.”

Bhima said: “Blessed are the Pandavas for I have had the good fortune to see you. Inspired with your strength we are sure to conquer our enemies.”

Hanuman gave this parting blessing to his brother:

“While you roar like a lion in the battlefield, my voice shall join yours and strike terror into the hearts of your enemies. I shall be present on the flag of the chariot of your brother Arjuna. You will be victorious.”

Hanuman pointed out to Bhima the stream nearby, where grew the Saugandhika flowers he had come to seek.

This put Bhima at once in mind of Draupadi who was waiting for his return, and he collected the flowers and returned to her without delay.

and thus did Hanuman came to occupy the banner of Arjuna in the great battle.

Kirata Arjunam – Art meets art spanning 1300 years

How do we reach out to the next generation and imbibe in them the values of our land, of its art, of art appreciation. These are questions which keep coming up during our discussions. Visual art is definitely something that is attracting the next generation and though we may scoff at the comics and gaming culture, its there to stay. So today we are going to marry a Kanchi Kailasanatha sculpture ( one of my personal favorites) with the latest in digital illustrative art.

The story itself is an interesting anecdote from the Vana Parva of the Mahabaratha, wherein Arjuna splits from his brothers to do penance and procure the Pasupatha Astra from Shiva. Being the benevolent but mischievous God that he is, Shiva decides to test his devotee’s prowess himself before bestowing the boon. So he takes the form of Kirata ( a hunter) with his accompaniment of a Bow and quiver full of arrows, accompanied by Uma as the Kirata woman, enters the same forest in which Arjuna is doing his penance. Just at that moment, Arjuna is attacked by a fearsome Demon Mukasura, who has taken the form of a Wild boar. Seeing the wild boar rushing at him, the accomplished marksmen that he is, Partha ( Arjuna) lets fly a deadly arrow from his Bow Gaandiva, going for the Boar’s head. At the same instant Kirata also lets fly an arrow, which find its target in the rear of the Boar. Both the arrows hit the target at the same instant !! Now, this led to a quarrel among the two, with Arjuna claiming the hunt as his and accusing the hunter for shooting from the rear. The hunter explains that this was not a duel to have the rules of engagement drawn and to attack an animal from behind thus is no wrong ! ( Rama felling Vaali ?)

The argument continues and soon escalates into a tussle. Being warriors both settle on a duel to find out the better among them. A Shell shocked Arjuna soon sees his prowess with the Bow is matched if not bettered by the lowly hunter. His Bow string is deftly cut by the hunter’s arrow and he jumps into to engage in a wrestling match, in which too he is matched. To his surprise, the hunter doesn’t even seem to break a sweat, while he is almost dead with exhaustion. The popular version, says that he stops to create a small Linga and offers prayers with flowers to it, to invoke his blessing and taken on his opponent once again, when he is surprised to find the flowers which he offered the Linga are now adorning the hunter. Realising the true identity of his opponent, he falls at his feet and surrenders to his grace. Rest is history. There is another version that during the wrestling brawl, Arjuna accidentally caught Kirata’s feet and since he bestows grace on whoever touched his feet, Shiva immediately stopped fighting etc. But this is the crux of the Kirata Arjunam story.

Now, thanks to Mr. Abhilash Narayanan, Creative designer & Animation director, who is sharing some of his works with us, we see the story brought to life in the technology of today.

you can see more of his works at his site below

Abhiram’s site

Now, we transport ourselves back in time to the Kanchi Kailasantha temple. This panel must have been featured long ago, as its one of my favorite panels. The dynamism and sheer energy captured in this typical Hollywood style ` Face Off ‘ posture is an arresting sight. Maybe it was waiting to be pitted head to head against the best of digital art.

Photos : courtesy Mr Arvind and Mr Swaminathan.

We have the two warriors, standing their ground, locking gazes, as they are caught in the act of drawing their bows. Its interesting to notice how they seem to have slung two quivers on their backs, interesting only one has a waist sword. That this panel depicts the Kirata Arjunam is seen distinctly by the Boar in the background exquisitely sculpted behind the two figures despite the maze of their legs.

Now, comes the difficult question. Who among the two is the Lord Shiva as Kirata the Hunter and who is Arjuna. Lets take a closer look at the two figures.

and focus on the ornamentation and head dress in particular.

Lets list down the major differences between the two fighters.

Clearly, the figure to the left of the panel ( right as you view it) – wears a tall crown and a Yagnopavitham, while the other has his hair tied in a kind of bun, wears the Channavira ( cross belts) and carries a waist sword whose hilt is clearly seen.

The oral tradition is that Arjuna must have gone as an ascetic, must be emaciated from the severe penance ( he is said to have subsisted on air alone in the final months of his penance ) and there is also a ref to him wearing a sword with a golden hilt

Ref in Mahabratha

“At Yudhishthira’s command, Dhananjaya of immeasurable prowess set out (from Kamyaka) to obtain a sight of Sakra, the chief of the celestials and of Sankara, the god of gods. And the strong-armed Arjuna of great might set out armed with his celestial bow and a sword with golden hilt, for the success of the object he had in view, northwards, towards the summit of the Himavat.

But then, when we come to Kirata, he is clearly is portrayed as a hunter and not as a resplendent King, and Shiva is hardly ever shown with a Krita makuda. Further there is this reference in Sri R. Nagasamy’s article.

Kirata or Tripurantaka


However in many Chola sculptures and also Bronzes (Melapperumpallam image) Kirata will be shown like a hunter with round bellied body , beard and cannavira. His hair would be tied as a bun-like knot and not the jata-makuta one sees in the Tripurari form.

But again the Book reference is a bit unclear. When Arjuna exhausts the twin inexhaustible quivers gifted to him by Agni ( burning of the Kandava forest episode
Fire in the Khadava forest ) he tried to use his Bow as a spear , but is thwarted by Shiva.

Ref in Mahabaratha

And beholding his bow snatched from him, Arjuna took up his sword, and wishing to end the conflict, rushed at his foe. And then the Kuru prince, with the whole might of his arms, struck that sharp weapon upon the head of the Kirata, a weapon that was incapable of being resisted even by solid rocks. But that first of swords, at touch of the Kirata’s crown, broke into pieces

So, we are left with an Iconographic puzzle. Whats your take on this?

I would go with Arjuna with the crown and Kirata with the Bun head dress.

Feed half of Bhima to….

We return today with a fascinating legend, supported by three sculptures. Two from Darasuram and one from Krishnapuram. Thanks to Mr Arvind Venkatatraman for lovely pictures from Darasuram. we got an unexpected Bonus from Artist A.P. Sreethar, sharing this rare sketch of the Krishnapuram pillar by the legendary Artist Silpi as well.

While there are many different versions of this legend, am trying to give the simplest ( and less controversial one). More so, since this legend doesn’t appear in the main Mahabaratha, i am taking one that has just about enough information to support the sculptures exhibited.

Yudhistir is performing a great Yaga ( sacrifice). He is advised that inorder for it to be performed properly he needs the help ( milk of !! by some versions) Purushamriga – a half man half tiger ( or lion), which is a staunch devotee of Shiva. Trouble is the creature resides deep in a jungle and preys on almost anyone it sees. ( other versions bring in a Shivaite /Vaishnavite angle to this debate)

Bhima is selected for this task and wily Krishna gives him 12 stones ( lingas, rudrahsa by other versions) and asks him to use it when he is in trouble. Bhima sets off to find the Pururshamriga and finds it deep inside the jungle. By one version they agree to a challenge – kind of a running race, in other versions he chants something that upsets it. Well back to the story, Bhima is being chased by the Purushamriga and its catching up with him at a fast pace. Bhima decides to use the `stones’ and drops one. Instantly it turns into a Shiva LInga ( shiva temple in some accounts) – anyway the animal being a stauch shiva devotee has to worship the Lord, giving Bhima much needed time to put some distance between them. But the animals superior speed enables it to catch up with him once more and he uses one more of the stones. Thus he uses up all 12 ` help lines’ but he is still not out of the forest. He uses all his strength and just as he puts one leg outside the forest, his other leg is caught by the Purushamriga. An argument ensures and Yudhistr is called on to pass judgement.

Yudhistir being the just king that he is, rightly !! passes the judgment that the Purushamriga can have half of Bhima ( the portion within its territory). The impartial judgment makes the Purushamriga let go of Bhima and all is well.

OK, now to the sculptures. Two delightful panels from Darasuram. You can see in the first one you can see the chase. The Purushamriga seems to be hardly taxed and is about to grab Bhima.

The second panel, it has caught him and both are in front of Yudhistir ( who has a lady attending on him).

The Krishnapuram pillar sculpture is more elaborate and seems to be depicting a fight scene almost – maybe when the Pururshamriga caught up with Bhima. Both are holding small maces..


Now, we see the master strokes of Artist Silpi who has caught this pillar in his immortal work here.

Amazing sculpture and an inspiring sketch.

update+++++++++++
pl do visit Sri Raja Deekshithar’s wonderful site for more of these beauties. Sadly, sir left us this year. http://www.sphinxofindia.rajadeekshithar.com/

100th Post – A unique sculpture, an unique person – Dr. Jaybee

This is the 100th posting on this site. A century in a short span would not have been possible without the support of friends, philosophers and guides – but the seed for this effort was sown by a few guiding lights. One such guiding light, who continues to enthrall not only me, but anyone interested in varied subjects from trivia to research thesis – whose sheer propensity to generate articles of interest to a wide audience spanning pre sangam to contemporary living, makes you think if he is a walking encyclopedia – well, How do i introduce this truly multi faceted master of writing – or does he need an introduction at all : yes, its Dr.S. Jayabarathi whose writings (in Tamil and in English) on Tamil history and culture have earned him the respect and affection of enthusiasts world over. He has this amazing ability to judge individuals, an interesting thread or even a small post in some forum and he would call you – clearing your doubt or correcting an error, offering not the answer but show you the path – for the journey is half the pleasure of the goal ! he loves to inspire people to join on this search to understand what a great land we hail from.

( incase there is someone who don’t know him, this is for their benefit :
An introduction
)

I kind of wriggled this post from him, or technically hijacked from his site, but again since we have showcased most of the other sister sculptures of this group, i sought Dr . Jaybee’s kind permission to use his – and he graciously consented. Pray for his long life, so that he can inspire many more like me.


Dr. Jaybee’s site link


This frieze is a panel from the famous group of temples at Bantei Seri. Bantei Seri is 15 miles north-east of Ankor Wat in Cambodia. Bantei Seri is acclaimed as among the most beautiful pieces of sculpture in the world.

“The lacy setting is superbly executed and the balanced rhythm and harmony of the scene itself cannot be surpassed in any work of man” – Reginald le May.

The above piece shows a scene from Mahabharatha. Its the one of the last scenes in the Bharatha War. Duryodhana lay exhausted and wounded, alone after losing everything. The Pandavas wanted to finish the war decisively and came in search of Duryodhana.

Since Duryodhana was alone and the Pandavas were five, he is given the option of fighting with any one of them. Among the five, all the others, except Bhima, were no match for Duryodhana who possessed the strength of ten thousand elephants. Bhima was similarly strong.

Both of them were exponents of warfare with the Gatha aayudham. Though exhausted, Duryodhana had better training and skill in fighting. So a duel of gatha weapons took place. Gatha is a huge mace which is very heavy. It was used to crush opponents, break armour, wreck chariots and kill elephants.

The Pandavas, Krishna, and his elder brother Balarama were watching. Both Duryodhana and Bhima had learned the art of gatha warfare from Balarama. It was a dvantha yuddham which was a fight to the finish. As the fight proceeded, Bhima got tired and became unwary. But Duryodhana still retained his skill and fought a cautious, careful, and alert fight.

At one instance, Duryodhana jumped up high above the level of Bhima’s head. From that vantage position, he aimed and swung his gatha at the head of Bhima in a downward stroke. But at that time, Krishna gestured to Bhima to hit Duryodhana on his left thigh, which was now at level with Bhima’s swing. The left thigh is Duryodhana’s vulnerable part. Duryodhana can only be killed by crushing his left thigh. Krishna knew this and gave the cue to Bhima. Bhima dealt a death-dealing blow which crushed the left thigh of Duryodana. Duryodana fell to the ground, mortally wounded.

When balarama saw what was happening, he swung his Haalaayudham the plough weapon with fury at Bhima for this frank breach of duel code of honour. But Krishna prevented him from harming Bhima.

You can see in the panel, the scene embodying all the dynamism and feelings fully.

At the right, the four Pandavas are seated.

In the centre, Bhima and Duryodhana are fighting. Duryodhana is aloft if the air with a swing and an unswerving aim.


At the left, Balarama is about to hit Bhima with his Haalaayudham. He is being held back by Krishna who is depicted wth four arms.

This is a wonderful piece of sculpture. What is more striking is that THEY have it THERE and we don’t have it here with us.

Vaaranam Aayiram – not the film, but sculpture from Halebid

We watched the tamil movie Vaaranam Aayiram last night – ok, i know all of you are asking why i have jumped from sculpture to feature films. Well we are talking sculpture today as well, just that i found the choice of names for this film to be Unique. Literally translated it means a thousand elephants.

Its from a famous verse of the great devotee Aandaal sung on Vishnu – loosely translated – She envisions Vishnu coming surrounded by a 1000 elephants, the villagers noticing this gather water in golden pots ( auspicious welcome) and string garlands all over the town. Maybe the name created enough interest and inorder to explain the title the director made the hero’s mother – explain it at the very end – to every women her man is such….

But it reminded me of another man, he too linked to a thousand elephants – not surrounded but the strength of a thousand elephants – the legendary Bhima – . His culinary skills ( and consumption) apart, his strength forms part of many a folklore.

Being the son of Vayu ( the god of wind) he was born strong, yet there is another story of how he got his superhuman strength. Once while with Droupadi, a fabulous scent fills the air and both are drawn to it, Bhima goes in search of the source, a divine flower deep inside a forest. Enroute he stumbles across a monkey that is lying in his path. Drunk on his strength, Bhima abuses the monkey and asks it to give way, else he threatens to pick it and throw it away. The monkey doesn’t even bat an eyelid and asks him to first try lifting his tail. Amused Bhima tries to move the tail but to his astonishment finds that he can’t even nudge it. Realising his folly, he humbly seeks the true identity of his opponent – he is none other than the mighty Hanuman ( his half brother). Hanuman had come to hear of Bhima’s vain nature and ego on is strength and this was a lesson in humility. Having thought the lesson he embraces Bhima – who at once realises a supreme energy flowing through him….Hanuman has reinforced Bhima’s strength with the embrace.

Ok, now the sculpture. The amazing Halebid complex throws up this beauty. ( pl click on the image for a good view)

In the centre is the mighty Bhima rushing at an oncoming elephant – holding it by its trunk ( sadly broken) and ready to strike it with his mace. There are two soldiers behind the elephant in heavy armor – sword, shield.
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But the highlight of the sculpture is what is depicted extreme left ( or right of the panel)…a pile of dead elephants and their mahouts.
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A delightful composition.

An Unique Panel – Fire in the Kandhava forest…Cambodia

Today we are going to see a very rare and unique sculpture panel from Banteay srei in Cambodia. This is quite a revelation to me, since i had never heard of this story and thanks to this amazing sculpture, i had to dwell deep into the recesses of the mahabaratha to pick up this interesting legend – and present to you this…. The legend of Kandava Dahanam or Burning of the Kandava forest.

As usual we see the legend ( quite lengthy but interesting and very essential to truly appreciate the great sculpture that follows)

The legend starts thus. Vaisampayana is narrating the epic – Once Krishna and Arjuna are met by a Brahman who asks them for Alms – or food to be more particular. The two master marksmen, ask him what kind of food that he
wants, but are shocked when he asks for the entire Kandhava Forest. They soon realise that its no common old man but Agni who has been reduced to such a state.

Despite who it is, they want to know why Agni can’t eat /destroy the forest on his own and more so why he needs to destroy the forest. Agni then goes on tell them the story of the great King Swetaki.

Wanting to crown his achievements the great King wants to conduct a string of sacrifices spreading over a number of years. The priests are given generous gifts and they begin the great sacrifice – but pretty soon they realise that the sheer effort involved is too great and sitting in front of the fire and smoke for so many years is not possible …they leave the sacrifce half done. Enraged Swetaki tries all he can to get others to come and complete the sacrifice but with no luck. Finally he tries once again to reason with the priests and they in jest told him to seek Rudra ( Shiva) to assist him to complete the sacrifices.

Enraged, Swetaki decides to do that as well – he undergoes severe penances, giving up food for months and standing upright with arms raised for ages. Pleased Shiva appears and asks him his wish – when Swetaki asks him to assist in helping him finish the sacrifices, Shiva tests his resolve some more – and instructs him to do a special sacrifice by himself – for 12 uninterrupted years, he had to pour Ghee into fire and lead a life of extreme austerity.

Swetaki completes that as well and returns to Shiva – who is much pleased and instructs Sage Duruvasa to assist in completing his sacrifices. Duruvasa helped him to complete the task and at the apt time, Swetaki ascended to the heavens.

But this left one problem – having been fed a diet of Ghee for 12 years by such a great King, Agni the God of fire became over weight but he could also eat of anyone else – so slowly he began to loose his shine and energy. He appealed to Lord Shiva for help and the lord showed him the the bad demons of who resided in the Khadava forest –
directing him to satiate his hunger on the enemies of the Gods and that will help his regain his vigor.

But when Agni tried to consume the forest there came a small problem. Takshaka, the chief of the Nagas ( snakes) who dwell in the forest was a friend of Indra and hence had his protection. Everytime Agni tried to consume the forest Indra would bring in Varuna ( the god of water/rains) and quench Agni and protect his friend.

Thus Agni sought the help of Krishna and Arjuna to help keep out Indra and Varuna. Jointly they attacked the Kandava forest.

Arjuna – invoking his excellent weapons, prevented that shower of rain by Indra, by means of a shower of his own weapons – he soon covered the forest of Khandava with innumerable arrows like the moon covering the atmosphere with a thick fog. When the sky above that forest was thus covered with the arrows of Arjuna no living creature could then escape from below. And it so happened that while that forest was burning, Takshaka, the chief of the Nagas, was not there, having gone at that time to the field of Kurukshetra. But Aswasena, the mighty son of Takshaka, was there. He made great efforts to escape from that fire; but confined by Arjuna’s shafts he succeeded not in finding a way. It was then that his mother, the daughter of a snake, determined to save him by swallowing him first. She first swallowed his head and then was swallowing his tail. And desirous of saving her son, the sea-snake rose (up from the earth) while still employed in swallowing her son’s tail.

But Arjuna as soon as he beheld her escaping, severed her head from her body by means of a sharp and keen-edged arrow. Indra saw all this, and desiring to save his friend’s son, the wielder of the thunderbolt, by raising a violent wind, deprived Arjuna of consciousness. During those few moments, Aswasena succeeded in effecting his escape. Beholding that manifestation of the power of illusion, and deceived by that snake, Arjuna was much enraged. He forthwith cut every animal seeking to escape by the skies, into two, three, or more pieces.

The chief of the celestials also, seeing Arjuna in anger, sought to fight with him, and hurled his own fierce weapons, covering the wide expanse of the firmament. Then the winds, making a loud roar and agitating all the oceans, brought together masses of clouds in the sky, charged with torrents of rain. Those masses of clouds began to
vomit thunder and terrible flashes of lightning charged with the thunderclap. Then Arjuna possessing a knowledge of all means, hurled the excellent weapon called Vayavya with proper mantras to dispel those clouds. With that weapon the energy and force of Indra’s thunderbolt and of those clouds were destroyed. And the torrents of rain with
which those clouds were charged were all dried up, and the lightning that played amongst them was also destroyed. Within a moment the sky was cleared of dust and darkness, and a delicious, cool breeze began to blow and the disc of the sun resumed its normal state.

Then the eater of clarified butter (Agni), glad because none could baffle him, assumed various forms, and sprinkled over with the fat exuded by the bodies of creatures, blazed forth with all his flames, filling the universe with his roar. Then numerous birds of the Garuda tribe bearing excellent feathers, beholding that the forest was protected by Krishna and Arjuna, descended filled with pride, from the upper skies, desirous of striking those heroes with their thunderlike
wings, beaks and claws. Innumerable Nagas also, with faces emitting fire descending from high, approached Arjuna, vomiting the most virulent poison all the while. Beholding them approach, Arjuna cut them into pieces by means of arrows steeped in the fire of his own wrath. Then those birds and snakes, deprived of life, fell into the burning element below. And there came also, desirous of battle, innumerable Asuras with Gandharvas and Yakshas and Rakshasas and Nagas sending forth terrific yells. Armed with machines vomiting from their throats (mouths?) iron balls and bullets, and catapults for propelling huge stones, and rockets, they approached to strike Krishna and Partha, their energy and strength increased by wrath.

But though they rained a perfect shower of weapons, Arjuna addressing them reproachfully, struck off their heads with his own sharp arrows. That slayer of foes, Krishna, also, endued with great energy, made a great slaughter with his discus. Many Asuras of immeasurable might, pierced with Arjuna’s arrows and smitten with the force of Vishnu’s
discus, became motionless like waifs and strays stranded on the bank by the violence of the waves. Then Indra , the lord of the celestials, riding on his white elephant, rushed at those heroes, and taking up his thunderbolt which could never go in vain, hurled it with great force. And the slayer of Asuras said unto the gods, ‘These two are slain.’ Beholding the fierce thunderbolt about to be hurled by their chief, the celestials all took up their respective weapons.

But he was to be proved wrong ….

Now – a long story, but have not seen this depicted in any sculptures in India till date – but finding this in Banteay Srei stumped me.

What a beautiful, intricate and faithful reproduction of the legend. right from indra on his airavatam – discharging his thunder bolt – to his faithful varuna – depicted by the swelling water under him – to the roof of arrows – holding up the deluge – the escape of awsena, krishna on one side with his discus, arjuna on other with his bow – the forest beings, deers, antelope, rabbits, the flocks of different kinds of birds trying to fly and escape.

an amazing panel.



Tilotthama – beauty that made shiva sprout 4 faces and Indra a 1000 eyes

Today we are going to see a very interesting legend, supported by a unique sculpture from Banteay Srei in Cambodia ( but presently housed in the Guimet Museum, France)

Am sure we have come across the names of the heavenly Apsaras – Rambha, Urvasi often, and then there is Tilottama. Her name is used often to denote perfection of form, of pristine beauty and perfection. Inorder to know more about this celestial beauty, we go deep into the Hindu scriptures – the Mahabharta. The legend of Tilotthama comes as an interesting conversation between the first of the Pandavas, the Just Yudhistir and the divine sage Narada.

The context is such – that the Pandavas are serving their exile, King Drupada of Panchala, holds a swayamvara ( competition of skill and the victor would get the hand of the maiden) for Draupadi The princes vying for Draupadi’s hand had to shoot five arrows at a revolving target, while looking only at its reflection in a bowl. While all ( ok, except Karna who could lift the bow but was barred from proceeding more by Draupadi – for being not fit for her – being brought up as a charioteer’s son) failed, Arjuna successfully won the competition and the hand of the beautiful Draupadi.

The trouble started now, While in exile, Kunti, mother of the Pandavas often advised her sons that they share everything they have (or obtain through Bhiksha i.e. alms) equally amongst themselves. Upon returning home with Draupadi, Yudhisthira addresses his mother first “Look mother, I have brought Bhiksha (alms)!”. Kunti, unmindful of what Yudhisthira was referring to, unassumingly asked her son to share whatever it is with his brothers!!! Being dutiful sons they had to accept their mother’s command, however, this created problems. At this time, Narada passes that way and Yudhistir seeks his counsel. Narada wanting to highlight the troubles a beautiful lady can cause even among brothers, narrates the story of Tillotama ..

“The glorious daughter of Panchala is the common lawful wife of all of you. You must lay down a rule, lest there be strife over her. Inorder for you to understand why i say this, listen to the story of Sunda and Upasunda. ”

They were two inseparable demon brothers, sons of Nikumbha , a descendant of Hiranyakasipu. They perform severe austerities, till their abode the Vindhya mountains begins to smoke – the Devas try all their pranks to distract them to no avail. Finally, Brahma has to appear before them – and as usual they seek the boon of immortality. Brahma refuses – since immortality is out of his powers, so the brothers place the trust in their brotherly love and modify their – for they share everything, their kingdom, their food, their palace – that they seek death only at the hands of each other. They are so sure of their affections – that they seek this boon, which Brahma obliges.

The Evil brothers, armed with this boon, pillage the earth and then set sights on the heavens. No one has the power to stop them and this puts Brahma in a fix. He thinks hard and sees the chink in the armour of the two demons – the loop hole in the boon – the Achilles heel – and plans to use it to bring about their downfall. He calls on Visvakarma – the divine architect, and instructs him to make the most beautiful, perfect, desirable women. Being an architect, Visvakarma chooses the best particles in the world,the animate and the inanimate, down to the smallest of gems ( tilo – as small as a grain of seasame seed – sanksrit and uttama – better) – and created the perfect women, how do we call this – the first clone or nano robot !! Tilotthama .

She was instructed by Brahma to go and seduce the two brothers. Before she left, she sought the blessings of Siva and Indra by circumambulating them. So great was her beauty that even Shiva couldn’t take his eyes of her – as she went round him, he sprouted faces on all sides – 4 in all, so that he could keep seeing her. Indra, on his part, sprouted 1000 eyes ( there are many version and more erotic legends on his 1000 eyes!!!).

But finally she did go to do her bidding, she seduced the two brothers and drunk in her beauty, they both fought over her and finally ended up killing each other.

Thus, Narada advised Yudistir to come up with a plan that will enable each of the brothers exclusive habitation with Draupadi for a year and …..ok the story goes on. We should close shop for today.

The sculpture now – the beauty of this story is in the depiction of this fight among the two brother over Tilotthama is carved in cambodia. The beautiful Tilotthama being held by both the brothers, each with a raised mace ( or sword) ready to strike each other. The smile of a women can indeed break a man, and if she were designed out of the best materials specifically for that very purpose – she was a potent weapon.

The pediment is from the east gopura of the third enclosure of Banteay Srei. Sculpted in pink sandstone and dated 967, the pediment could not be reconstructed at the site by Henri Marchal in 1936 and was given to France and the EFEO as a gift for their work in restoring Cambodia’s monuments.