Love-longing Apsara

With her 'vina', the lyre, in hand she set out in search of quietude, where her mind could repose in peace. She whirled here and there, from furrow to field, pond to river, meadow to mountain but nothing solaced her agonized mind and restored its peace. The desperate maid then sang a song of love and struck the wires of her 'vina'. It reminded her of the moments when she bloomed like the glow of rising sun and her bosom from a cherry to an apple and larger and there sprouted in her something, which was gently cruel and delightfully painful. She wished it continued to recur. It was after quite sometime that she knew it was love. She yearned in love. The song reminded of her yearnings, meetings, union and separation. The storm that whirled within emitted a little from the strokes of her lyre and the notes of her melody, but she felt she parched more, her agony was re-doubled and her longing was severer.

The tired maid, the prey of melancholy, toiling with herself, suspended her song, let her lyre slip upon her thigh and she found she was leaning upon it. In the heat of passion her feet faltered. Her love longing burst from her face and in its glow the innocent maid looked the beauty incarnate. A peacock, just a passer-by, looked at her and was as much in grief. The compassionate bird, in its effort to relieve her of her pain, danced to colours, rhythm and pace and in jubilation and ecstasy and coaxed and caressed her in many ways but nothing solaced the ailing maid. The bird then took her upon its back and brought her to a barren tree bereft of twigs, leaves and flowers but was still the home of loving couples of birds and was satisfied in its new role. Tree's head held high despite desertion cooled her agitating mind. She was as much moved by peacock's loving concern and as much by its vital touch. She felt longing for love was as much its part as were meeting and uniting.

This is the theme of a German ballad based on a local folk-lore. Irrespective of the fact whether the sculptor was acquainted with this theme or not, he brings the ballad to life in this magnificent statue of the beautiful 'Apsara'. The artist has blended with the theme of the ballad the Indian cult of mythical beauty perceived in the form of the celestial nymph known as 'Apsara'. To ballad's lyricism the artist has added the language of beauty which manifests in Apsara's celestial figure, unsurpassed in elegance, anatomical proportions, aesthetic visualisation and beauty of modeling. The artist has caught her seated on peacock's back under the barren tree. Different from the peacock of the ballad the peacock in the statue adopts more lively and direct methods of cooling her passion. The bird not only rocks maid's vulva, which by her very posture lies couched upon its ribbed bony back and excites her entire being by its strokes but also cools her passion by sucking her nipple. Different from ballad's maid the nymph of the statue is looking for more excitement and once it sends her into a trance-like state she closes her eyes and descends into herself for it is only there that the oceans of delight swell.

This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of ancient Indian literature. Dr Daljeet is the chief curator of the Visual Arts Gallery at the National Museum of India, New Delhi. They have both collaborated on numerous books on Indian art and culture.

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