INDIA, RAJASTHAN, 19TH CENTURY

Details

A Large Cosmic Diagram of Krishna
India, Rajasthan, 19th Century
The multi-headed, multi-armed blue deity painted agaist a green ground with scenes of Krishna's life interspersed within elliptical enclosures inside, outside and around the body, one scene at left knee with Krishna serving as Arjuna's charioteer, scenes above the head with Krishna in a circle dancing with the gopis
Folio: 24¾ x 16¼ in. (63 x 41.2 cm)

Lot Essay

Cf. P. Rawson, The Indian Cult of Ecstasy: Tantra, 1973, pl. 48, for a similar rendition of Krishna. Rawson states that in tantric tradition, the whole universe is contained within the body. The scene illustrates a section of the Bhagavad Gita (Ch:11) when Krishna revealed himself to Arjuna in his cosmic form.

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