Vamana-Trivikrama in Indian Art

Vamana-Trivikrama in Indian Art [bharatiyakalayam vamanatrivikramah] / By Dr. K. L. Mankodi ; American Academy, Varanasi / 48-53

VAMANA-TRIVIKRAMA IN INDIAN ART BY K. L. MANKODI [ vedetihasapuranadisupalabdhasya dhamanacaritasyankanam murtisvapi drsyate | asmin nibandhe vidusa lekhakena puranoktaya vamana - bali-kathaya sradharena vividhamurtinam paricayapurassaram vivecanam krtam | ima murtayah visnorvamanarupam viraड़ pam ca ubhayavidham rupam pradarsayanti | vamanamurttayah prayena desasya samastaprantebhyah prapyante | pracinatama murtayah khistriyavarsasya panca sastha-satabdayoh upalabhyante - madhyapradesasya 'tigova ' sthanasya vamana- murtih pancamasatabdiya'sti tatha ca maisurapradesasya badamisthanasya vamana- trivikramamurtih sasthasatabdyam nirmita asit | srasu murtisu vamanah kaupinadhari mundi, upaviti, dandi, chatri ca pradarsito vartate yatha vamanapurane varnyate | balina krtam vamanakare jalapradanamapi pradarsitamasti | murtisu vamanasya trivikramarupamapi pradarsitamasti yasmin sa svargasya mapanam kurvan pradarsito'sti | trivikramastu caturbhujah pradarsitah | samkhacakrayudhe srapi patra pradarsite | murtisu vamanabalyoratiriktam sukrah, balipatni, brahma ca pradarsitah santi | kasucinmurtisu candrah rahuh ityadayo graha api likhitah santi | lekhaka mahodayena matsyapurane, visnudharmottarapurane tatha maricikrtavaikhanasaga mem nirdistasya vamanamurtisambandhi vivararanasya tulanatmakah paricayah dattah, tadanantaram ca kasascinmurtinam citrapurassaram sangopanga paricayah pradattah | ] asu The Vamana-Trivikrama incarnation of Vishnu has inspired some of the most spirited sculptures of Vaishnavism. Images of Vishnu with any artistic merit are few, compared to the other principal god of Hinduism, Siva. However, images of a few incarnations of Vishnu, including the Vamana-Trivikrama, are exception to this. The basis of the Vamana myth is found in the earliest Indian literary work, the Rgveda itself, which says that Vishnu-a god

()) LOUD Fig 1. American Academy of Banaras Neg. 12.97 (By kind permission: Allahabad Museum)

Fig. 2 A A B Neg. 73.48

e Fig. 3 AAB Neg. 15.80 (By kind permission : Lucknow Museum)

T 5000 P Fig. 4, 5 AAB Neg. 56.18

A Fig. 6 AAB Neg. 16.43 (By kind permission: Lucknow Museum

Fig. 7, 8 AAB Neg. 59.41

Fig. 9 AAB 4.58

Jan., 1970] VAMANA-TRIVIKRAMA IN INDIAN ART 49 which that Veda associates with light and the sun-took three strides in order to help Indra fight Vrtra. These strides are interpreted by scholars as the three principal phases of the sun in its daily course (sun-rise, noon, sunset), or the three fires (earthly, atmospheric celestial).1 According to the Satapatha Brahmana I. 2, 5. 1 ff-where Vishnu's three strides are linked with the sacrifice-the form of the myth is that the asuras promised to give up as much land to the devas as Vishnu the dwarf could cover in three steps. Vishnu, who is sacrifice itself, covered all levels of existence in his three steps, though only a dwarf. In the Brahmanda, Vayu, Matsya, Vamana and Bhagavata Puranas, this myth has already become a regular incarnation of Vishnu effected in the interest of mankind. The form of the story in these Puranas is that king Bali, son of Virocana, became so powerful that the heaven of Indra was threatened. Vishnu, in order to annihilate this power, took the form of a dwarf mendicant when Bali was performing a sacrifice, and as his gift asked for land measuring three steps in Bali's kingdom. King Bali granted this, in spite of his priest Sukracarya, who knew who the dwarf really was; the dwarf, immensely enlarging his body. measured the whole earth in one step, the heavens in the second, and with third sent Bali into the netherworld. II Of the ten standard incarnations, sculptures of Varaha, Nrsimha and Vamana-Trivikrama make up one group of narrative sculpture on account of the drama in their theme and their violent action. Vamana-Trivikrama again differs from the other two, from a compositional point of view: whereas in Varaha and Nrsimha sculptures the culminating moment alone of the narrative is represented-in the one, Varaha after rescuing the earth, and in the other, Nrsimha chastising Hiranyakasipu-in the VamanaTrivikrama theme both aspects of Vishnu's incarnation are shown. Like the sculptors of the medallions of the Buddhist stupas who 1. F. B. J. Kuiper has a few years ago published a study of Vishnu's three strides: Indological Studies in Honor of W. Norman Brown, E. Bender, ed., New Haven, American Oriental Society, 1962. Kuiper offers an analysis of Vishnu's function in Vedic cosmogony, the cosmogonic significance of the number three, and of Vishnu's three strides. He also records an elaborate bibliography of other studies of Vishnu. 7

50 puranam - PURANA [Vol. XII, No. 1 depicted separate episodes in Jataka stories side by side within the same composition' the Hindu sculptors depicted the two stages in the narrative of this iacarnation within the same frame. The Vamana-Trivikrama sculptures, with the body of Trivikrama in unnatural torsions, with his many arms flung in several directions, and with the other participants in the natrative in great agitation, are not cult images. Vishnu's cult images form a separate class. Such an image, that is, one made for receiving worship in a temple or a household shrine, is not an enactment of a story but is the primary form of the deity; it does not represent him in any specific "attitude" but in his unmodified aspect. Further, the typical pose of such an image is frontal and is strictly regulated by definite textual injunctions. The Vamana-Trivikrama theme has inspired some of the larger compositions in Indian art, because it includes a number of companion figures. This may be seen both in the numerous representations of this theme in sculpture, and in its iconography described at length in Sanskrit texts. Thus the first phase of the episode of the demon king Bali's granting the gift to the dwarf, besides these two are shown Bali's priest Sukracarya and queen Vindhyavali The second phase, the miraculous manifestation of the gigantic form of Vishnu, is accompanied by more figures. Bali again, a bewildered Sukracarya, and Garuda belabouring him for having obstructed the giving of the gift, Bali's warriors attacking Trivikrama, Brahma washing his foot, a musician, the sun and moon and some others. III Iconographic texts in the Puranas" give elaborate descriptions of Vamana-Trivikrama, though on the whole it must be said that these tame accounts of the theologians do not convey the power that actual images do. Vamana-Trivikrama are represented in sculpture in different compositions. The more common are those in which the two 2. B. Rowland, The Art and Architecture of India ("The Pelican History of Art"), second edition 1956, p. 50. 3. For instance, Matsya-Purana (Venkateswara Press edition) 260.36-8; Vishnud harmottara-Purana III (GOS edition), 85. 54-7.

Jan., 1970] VAMANA-TRIVIKRAMA IN INDIAN ART 51 aspects of the god are shown in one frame and those in which this incarnation is shown in a row of all the ten incarnations. This is usually sculptured on the frame of the stela surrounding images of the "primary" form of Vishnu, or above figures of the AnantaSayana form of Vishnu. In these only the Vamana shape of the god is shown. Less common are those images which show only Vamana, in the form of a cult image for worship. Among the earliest preserved sculptures of the dwarf--giant form of Vishnu is a fragmentary lintel from a torana gateway excavated from Pawaya (now Madhya Pradesh) by M. S. Garde in 1924-25. This gateway was perhaps part of a Hindu temple. From the style of the carving in this lintel, as on other stone sculpture fragments and from the brick mouldings of the structure excavated, it has been dated in the early Gupta age by its excavator.4 In one compartment of the relief (of which the sizes are not mentioned by Garde) the first part of the myth is shown. Bali pours the sacred water into the dwarf's hand. The Dwarf, whose hair reaches his shoulders, is standing, a water bowl in his left hand and the sacred water poured by Bali in the right. From the indifferent quality of Garde's reproduction and of another it is difficult to see whether the dwarf is in the nude or wears a short loin-cloth, though apparently he is in the nude. Standing behind Bali are two persons, evidently both nude, both with one arm raised. Their attitude is ambiguous, and suggests either that they are hailing the act of the gift, or that they are dissuading Bali from making it; if latter, then one of the two men must be Sukracarya. A horse shown in a corner identifies the scene further as the place of the performance of Bali's sacrifice. Another early sculpture of Vamana, now in the Allahabad Museum, comes from the 5th century A. D., in which he is shown by himself, without the Trivikrama (Fig. 1). Vamana, with a fleshy body, stands in a hollow niche. He is two-armed carries a rudraksa ring in his right hand and a water- 4. ASI AR 1924.25, pp. 165-6; Pl. XLIII, c. 5. S.V. Sohoni, in The Journal of th: Bihar Research Society, XL, 1954, facing page 321.

52 puranam - PURANA [Vol. XII, No. 1 bowl in his left. His long hair is arranged in thick strands. He wears a necklace, a strip of cloth (across his breast), deer-skin and a waist-cloth. An image of Vishnu used as a cult icon is in the Vidisha Museum (Fig. 2). In this 9th century sculpture, the dwarf god stands in the middle of what may be described as a frame. He has a squat figure and a bulging belly. He is standing on a lotus pedestal, in an upright and straight posture called samapadasthanaka. He is four-armed, and carries in his back right and left hands a staff and a wheel; his front right hand is in the gesture of blessing (varada) and the front left carries an indistinct object. Behind his head is a halo. His hair is arranged in curls and is decorated with strings of jewels. The god wears, The god wears, as ornaments, earrings, a necklace, arm-bands, bracelets, waist-cord, a long vaijayanti garland and anklets. Vamana is accompanied by many attendants, among whom are garland-bearing vidyadharas at the top of the composition ; on Vamana's left is a male figure which may be recognised as Sankhapurusa. On the frame of this image are represented other incarnations of Vishnu, Matsya, Kurma, Nrsimha, Balarama and Kalkin. The axe of Parasurama can also be recognised, though the figure of that incarnation can no longer be seen. The sandstone Vamana sculpture from Manwa, Sitapur District, U. P. has fleshy figure (Fig. 3). He stands within a frame in samapadasthanaka, on a lotus pedestal. He is four-armed and carries a staff in his back right hand; his front right hand is perhaps in the gesture of blessing. In his back left hand he carries a wheel; the front left hand is broken. He has a halo behid his head. His hair is arranged in curls. He wears earrings, necklaces, a sacred thread, a vaijayanti garland, a waist-cloth, arm-bands, bracelets and anklets. He is accompanied by many attendants, including flying, garland-bearing vidyadharas and worshipping men. This image has been dated into the 10th century A.D. This too is a cult image of Vamana.

Jan., 1970] VAMANA-TRIVIKRAMA IN INDIAN ART 53 In the Parvati temple compound at Nachna Kuthara in Madhya Pradesh is a 10th century Vamana-Trivikrama image (Figs. 4-5). Vamana in this is two-armed and is standing. He carries a staff in his right hand and his left hand is near the waist in the kat yavalambita posture. He wears a sacred thread and a loin-cloth. The Lucknow Museum possesses a Vamana image which originally comes from somewhere in Uttar Pradesh (Fig. 6). Vamana stands in samapadasthanaka on a pedestal. He is apparently two-armed but might have been four-armed. His right hand is in the blessing gesture, the left arm is broken from the elbow. He wears necklaces, a sacred thread, a waist-cord and a waist-cloth, a vaijayanti garland, arm-bands, bracelets of rudraksas, and anklets. He has the srivatsa mark on his breast, and is accompanied by six attendants. A Visnu image from Singpur in Madhya Pradesh, of the middle of the 10th century, contains a representation of Vamana (Fig. 7-8). The god is standing in his place in company of other incarnations. He is in tribhanga. He is two-armed, the right hand is in the abhayamudra and left carrying a chatra He wears a sacred thread, haras and a kaupina. The last to be described is a sculpture in the Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varanasi (Fig. 9). This is an image of the 10th century. The god is standing against a stele in samapadasthanaka on a lotus pedestal. He has a squat figure. The back right and left hands of this four-armed image carry a mace and a wheel; the front right is in the gesture of blessing, and the left carries a conch. There is a tilaka mark on the forehead. The god wears kirita-crown, earrings, necklaces, a sacred thread, a vaijayanti garland, armlets, bracelets, a waist-cloth and anklets. M There are a few attendants to accompany this image, among whom Sarasvati may be recognised by the vina in her hands; she is standing on Vamana's left.