Devi-worship, Shiva-ling Worship and Other Themes

$165
Item Code: DK24
Specifications:
Madhubani Painting on Hand Made PaperFolk Painting from the Village of Madhubani (Bihar)Artist: Lalita Devi
Dimensions 28.0 inches X 20.0 inches
Handmade
Handmade
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Free delivery
Fully insured
Fully insured
100% Made in India
100% Made in India
Fair trade
Fair trade
This vividly conceived brilliant painting, an amalgam of many themes ranging from Devi and Shiva worship to marriage related rites and creating a Brahmanda-chakra diagram, is typical of Madhubani art tradition. Rendered using a full palette of Madhubani artists comprising black, red, green, yellow and blue and the characteristic technique of line-drawn forms and figures, with no apparent evidence of the use of brush, the painting represents at least five isolated rituals and a few other themes such as the visions of the sun, the moon and the Brahmanda with its centre Jambu Dvipa, the mythical perception of the earth, along its axis, the Mount Meru with Mahakala – the Timeless One, as its apex, and the lotus – life, fertility and fecundity, as its base. A fish-border and other fish-forms apart, other auspicious motifs, lotuses, snake, elephant, parrots, tortoise, banana and sugarcane plants and pot among others, have been drawn in keeping with the tradition. A rare feature for a Madhubani painting, the canvas has been divided into two parts using an elaborately patterned dividing line, one for the deity-rituals, and other, for those of the human realm.

The smaller compartment on the right represents two visions of deity-worship, one being the performance of an elaborate rite devoted to Lord Shiva as ‘ling’ – phallus, and the other, just making offering to the deity at her shrine. As in most of the folk traditions, the Devi – goddess, has not been represented iconically but only as a shrine’s motif representing both, the goddess and the shrine. Here the shrine motif has been inscribed : ‘Jai Matadi’ revealing the shrine’s identity beyond doubt. Besides the bells hanging down, flowers scattered on the floor, incense stand with lit incense sticks and wreaths type rings of flowers laid outside, the impressions of hand imprinted around is another determinant of the Devi-shrine. Still a live tradition, before a bride enters her groom’s bed-chamber she will pay homage to the village Devi-temple and shall register her attendance by leaving the imprints of her hands on the shrine’s wall. A lit lantern links the hour with late evening. A rich lady devotee has brought a tray of offering and is handing it to the lady attendant who seems to be regularly serving the deity and the shrine.

The register below represents the Shiva-ling worship being performed by the priest probably of a royal house for his masters, obviously the royal couple seated close-by. Unlike the usual circular form with extended mouth of ‘Yoni’ – vulva’ for discharging water offered, which the ‘Ling’ enshrines in a Shiva-ling icon, here in this painting the Shiva-ling has been installed on a triangular ‘pitha’ – base, which is a Tantrika version of ‘yoni’. As much strange is the triangular form of the tray containing offering, especially the betel leaves. This triangular form is also the Tantrika vision of ‘yoni’ connoting that the best to offer to ‘ling’ comes from ‘yoni’. Similarly, betel leaves are essential ingredient of Tantrika rituals. Hence, in all probabilities the painting seems to represent a Tantrika ritual.

Besides the motifs of the sun, moon and the diagram of Brahmanda-chakra with Mount Meru, as also minor motifs, such as serpent, lotuses, tortoise, fish, pot, a graphic form of plant representing both, banana and sugarcane, and elephant, there is, in the upper register on the other side of the dividing line, the representation of a lesser known marriage ritual relating to receiving the bridegroom when he comes back with his bride. The groom’s mother or a senior lady would give them a stem of tree with which they will jointly touch a billowing basket made of bamboo-sticks hung high above the main gate, perhaps to let them, especially the bride, have in her mind that she has to reach the heights of the house she has to be a part of, though also keeping in mind that these are to be touched but not crossed. Just under the Brahmanda-Chakra diagram there is a woman figure performing ‘purna-ghat-puja’ – worship of the fully accomplished pot.

The bottom register represents something neither looking like a myth or legend nor a convention, though the portrayal appears to be exceptionally symbolic and meaningful. There are, represented on either side of the yellow tent in the centre, three persons each. While on the left all three are ladies, one obviously the bride, and hence representing the bride’s side, on the right, there are two ladies and one male, obviously the bridegroom, representing the bridegroom’s side. The foremost on the left – the bride’s mother, is beseeching with both hands fold that her daughter be given the same treatment in her in-laws’ house as gets their own daughter. With similarly folded hands the bridegroom assures of it. This most usual discourse being made between the two sides now for centuries has been exotically dramatised in the painting. To represent the gist of the discourse that the daughter-in-law be treated as the daughter, the artist has used wondrous imagination by portraying two young girls, one with her face covered with a veil representing a daughter-in-law, and the other with her face fully exposed representing a daughter, as seated on equal footings under the same tent and on the same patterned carpet suggestive of equal treatment given to them.

This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr. Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of literature and is the author of numerous books on Indian art and culture. Dr. Daljeet is the curator of the Miniature Painting Gallery, National Museum, New Delhi. They have both collaborated together on a number of books.


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