Day 104 - Three Durgas
November 29, 2018
Gallery 238 centers on carved reliefs and small statues from northeastern India (what are now Bihar, West Bengal, and Bangladesh) made between the 8th and 13th centuries under the Pala and Sena dynasties. I am comforted to learn that Hinduism and Buddhism existed in close and peaceful conjunction with each other and shared many artistic conventions; this at least helps explain my confusion about just what the images I'm looking at represent.
I'm immediately drawn to a large stone relief from the Pala period, during the second half of the 9th century, showing the goddess Durga killing the buffalo demon Manisha. Then I see two more depictions of the same story- a small (pehaps 5 inches high) stone sculpture from the 12th century and a 12th century brass altar shrine some 20 inches tall - and I think it would be interesting to compare the three works.
Durga, I read, is a manifestation of Devi, the supreme goddess. Devi is usually peaceful and brings prosperity. But when forces threaten the natural order, she appears as Durga, the angry, powerful woman warrior, who is often shown with multiple arms, each wielding a different weapon. Manisha needs to be killed, and Durga is the woman for the job.
The three images seem to represent different moments in the battle and its aftermath. The many arms in the top image give it some sense of movement, but the central figure is of a calm Durga dispatching Manisha with a sword, her right foot firmly planted on the demon's body. Actually, what first attracted me to the image - and confused me until I read another caption - is the rather pretty and not all that scared- looking human face emerging out of the buffalo. The caption tells me that, according to the legend, the demon, once impaled, reveals himself in human form and pleads for mercy.
I know that the image in the brass shrine also depicts Durga killing Manisha. But really, she reminds me of an enthroned Madonna, a queen of heaven sitting in majesty above it all. She is so confident of her victory that her eyes are closed.while the demon bull lies placidly, utterly defeated. This depiction is totally appropriate to its setting in a shrine: Durga is to be venerated for her success in conquering evil.
In both these images, the battle has already been won. The third image, by contrast, captures the battle itself, although there's no doubt of the outcome. It is full of swirling energy. Durga's appears to have six right arms, each of which is in a different phase of striking Manisha with a sword (like time-lapse photography!) while in her left hand (or one of the left hands, anyway), she clutches Manisha's hair. This small statuette feels huge in its power and dynamism.
I'm immediately drawn to a large stone relief from the Pala period, during the second half of the 9th century, showing the goddess Durga killing the buffalo demon Manisha. Then I see two more depictions of the same story- a small (pehaps 5 inches high) stone sculpture from the 12th century and a 12th century brass altar shrine some 20 inches tall - and I think it would be interesting to compare the three works.
Durga, I read, is a manifestation of Devi, the supreme goddess. Devi is usually peaceful and brings prosperity. But when forces threaten the natural order, she appears as Durga, the angry, powerful woman warrior, who is often shown with multiple arms, each wielding a different weapon. Manisha needs to be killed, and Durga is the woman for the job.
The three images seem to represent different moments in the battle and its aftermath. The many arms in the top image give it some sense of movement, but the central figure is of a calm Durga dispatching Manisha with a sword, her right foot firmly planted on the demon's body. Actually, what first attracted me to the image - and confused me until I read another caption - is the rather pretty and not all that scared- looking human face emerging out of the buffalo. The caption tells me that, according to the legend, the demon, once impaled, reveals himself in human form and pleads for mercy.
I know that the image in the brass shrine also depicts Durga killing Manisha. But really, she reminds me of an enthroned Madonna, a queen of heaven sitting in majesty above it all. She is so confident of her victory that her eyes are closed.while the demon bull lies placidly, utterly defeated. This depiction is totally appropriate to its setting in a shrine: Durga is to be venerated for her success in conquering evil.
In both these images, the battle has already been won. The third image, by contrast, captures the battle itself, although there's no doubt of the outcome. It is full of swirling energy. Durga's appears to have six right arms, each of which is in a different phase of striking Manisha with a sword (like time-lapse photography!) while in her left hand (or one of the left hands, anyway), she clutches Manisha's hair. This small statuette feels huge in its power and dynamism.
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