This monumental eight-foot Tanjore painting, with its scale and sacred theme, blends art with architecture. Standing in front of it, you become a part of its universe; the experience of Darshana engulfs and invites you, and with that, momentarily, the boundary between viewer and viewed disappears.
At the centre stands the Pradosha Murti, Shiva seated with goddess Parvati upon a resplendent Nandi. The bull’s lifted foreleg and turn of the head introduce a rare moment of dynamism, animating the divine tableau. The pair is enshrined within a glittering kirtimukha arch and further framed by a larger architectural arch resting on yali pillars, its opulence heightened by the radiant use of 24-karat gold, creating layered visual depth in the Tanjore panel.
Adorned with the lives and inscribed with names of the 63 Nayanmars, the sanctum doors become a threshold of devotion, guiding the seeker toward Shiva through the wisdom of complete surrender.
On the left panel appear Shukadeva, Tumbaru, Ganesha, and Vyaghrapada; on the right, Bhringi, Kartikeya, Patanjali, and Narada, assembling the celestial and ascetic retinue of Shiva. From the mandapam roof, handmade colourful glass balls hang like festive lamps.
A masterpiece of scale and sanctity, it offers a darshana that is both immersive and unforgettable.
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