SOUTH INDIA, VIJAYANAGARA PERIOD, 16TH/17TH CENTURY

This figure is a rare amalgamation of two Shaivite forms, Bhikshatana and Bhairava. Bhikshatana is a form of Shiva as the wandering mendicant, hence the sandals on his feet. In his story, he made love to a group of wives of forest-dwelling Brahmins, and then fought with the husbands. The battle was resolved when he threw his lingam to the ground and made them worship it; the lingam seen in this figure's headdress. The attributes from Bhairava include the impaled head and possibly the kirttimukha mask as an allusion to his fierce countenance, whereas his purely Shaivite traits include the lotus bud, snake and also the lingam. A similar figure of Bhikshatana-Bhairava appears at the Hoysaleshvara Temple in Halebid, Karnataka.