Image title: Indra, Ancient Vedic King of the Gods

Indra, Ancient Vedic King of the Gods—Originating as a nature god and a key figure of the Hindu pantheon, Indras history spans more than 3000 years. Indra is king of the gods, war god, storm god, and the giver of rain. His principal attribute is the thunderbolt (vajra) a weapon which symbolizes lightning.

His horizontal third eye contrasts to the vertical—and often round—third eye of other deities and helps identify him. Indra, as befits a king, is usually represented seated in the posture of royal ease and is regally ornamented. His crown typically has single crest, a distinctive type that is rarely worn by other gods The elephant, Airavata, is his royal mount.

Indra is sometimes depicted sitting in the lotus posture (padmasana) with arms outstretched at the side, an iconography unknown in India that may have come to Nepal from Central Asia.

The Nepalese explain the image type by a legend in which Indra came to the Kathmandu Valley to steal some special flowers for his mother. Unrecognized by the people as a god, they apprehended him and as punishment exposed him to public scorn in this position. At the annual festival in his honor, such images are displayed in public and for part of the festival an image of Indra is imprisoned in a cage near the Kathmandu [Darbar] Durbar Square.

Like the god Bhairava, Indra is often represented only by his face, usually made in gilt copper repoussé like the examples in the adjacent case.

Gallery information:

The Patan Museum is located on the Durbar square of Patan (Lalitpur/Lalitapura, Kathmandu, Nepal) which is associated Keshav Narayan Chowk (Keshavnarayan)—a form of Lord Vishnu. Being listed as a World Heritage Site, the whole of Durbar square is filled with exquisite temples, sculptures and other ancient structures, of which the ancient history history can be traced to the Malla Kings of Lalitpur. It is an important site for both Buddhism and Hinduism.