NORTH INDIA, EARLY 19TH CENTURY

The Devi Mahatmya, part of the larger Markandeya Purana, describes the defeat of demons by the goddess Devi. The text establishes the principle of feminine divinity, and overall exalts the power and importance of the female. The thirteen chapters of the Devi Mahatmya are divided into three episodes, each with a different form of the goddess assuming the role of the protagonist. The first episode depicts Devi in her universal form of Shakti, while the second largely tells the famous story of Durga defeating Mahishasura. The third and final episode involves Kali, the dark and horrific form of Devi. The present work depicts the final episode, in which Kali defeats the two demon brothers, Shumbha and Nishumbha. The two demons spent thousands of years doing penance and purification rituals to honor the gods, and as a reward, were granted a boon that offered them protection from all men and demons. Lustful, they sought the beautiful Devi, but when she rejected their advances, they planned to abduct her (see lot 14 for a painting depicting that moment in the story). Kali, however, emerged to strike them and their demon army down with the help of her lion mount and a group of Matrikas, arranged across the top of the present painting. The Matrikas represent female forms of all of the divinities, and can be identified by their iconography and vehicles, which they partly share with their male counterparts.