Vishnu-one of Hinduism’s most important and powerful deities – is the great Preserver, vanquishing those who seek to destroy the balance of the universe. For his followers he is also the creator and destroyer, the cause of all existence. His many traits are embodied in his impressive physical form, the weapons he carries, the goddesses who are his consorts, and the eagle Garuda, on whom he flies down from heaven. In Hindu legend, Vishnu descends to earth in many manifestations, known as avatars, to fight powerful demons and to save his devotees. The avatars range in form from Varaha the boar to Parashurama the Brahmin warrior, and in character from Narasimha the ferocious half-man half-lion, to Krishna the charismatic prince-cowherd.
The legends of Vishnu have inspired some of the greatest art, literature, and ritual traditions in India. This catalogue examines the many faces of Vishnu and the ways that the god has been represented, from antiquity to the present.
Essays by noted historians of South Asian art delve deeply into the regional and sectarian traditions of Vishnu worship in India. Illustrations and discussions of almost 200 works of art, in a wide range of media and borrowed from collections across the North Atlantic, reveal the rich diversity of India’s art and religious culture.
Joan Cummins, the exhibitions’ curator and catalogue editor, is the Lisa and Bernard Selz Curator of Asian Art at the Brooklyn Museum. She is author of Indian Painting: From Cave Temples to the Colonial Period in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and a coauthor of realms of Heroism. Indian Paintings at the Brooklyn Museum.
Doris Meth Srinivasan is a scholar of Indian art and history who has published extensively on Hindu iconography and early religious art. She was recently a visiting scholar at the Center for Indian Studies, Stony Brook University.
Leslie Orr is an Associate Professor in the Department of Religion at Concordia University, Montreal. She has published widely on religion and women in south India, including the book Donors, Devotees and Daughters of God: Temple Women in Medieval Tamilnadu.
Cynthia Packert is a Professor and the Chair of the Department of History of Art and Architecture at Middlebury College. She has just published a book on The Art of Living Krishna: Ornamentation and Devotion.
Neeraja Poddar is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University, New York City.
Hinduism, with its mutable deities and overtly sensual art and artifacts, may be puzzling to the uninitiated American, but the investigation of its theology and its expressive visual culture is endlessly rewarding. In myth and legend, the figure of Vishnu, one of the three principal deities of Hinduism, takes many forms and is known by many names. There have been monographic exhibitions focusing on he deities Shiva and Devi, but Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue-Skinned Savior is the first major exhibition in North America devoted to the intriguing and complex manifestations of Vishnu. The exhibition and the accompanying catalogue were conceived, organized, and coordinated for the First Center for the Visual Arts by guest curator Joan Cummins.
We thank Nancy Cason, formerly on the curatorial staff at the First Center, for identifying and making the initial contact with Dr. Cummins, who started this project as an independent scholar and curator. In 2007, Joan Cummins was appointed the Lisa and Bernard Selz Curator of Asian Art at the Brooklyn Museum. To assure the best possible exhibition and to develop a catalogue of unquestionable merit, Cummins called on her connections and her considerable reserve of good will among curators, scholars, and collectors of Indian and Southeast Asian art. Her ideas impressed museum professionals and scholars, inspiring them to respond to our requests with generosity and enthusiasm. As a result, the exhibition she assembled presents the most compelling South Asian examples of the art of Vishnu available for loan. This book enhances the exhibition visitors’ experience and will reach a larger audience in a lasting document of the current scholarship on images of Vishnu as they are understood within the context of their creation.
In her essay, Cummins draws from both the scriptures and the history of India to contextualize the roles and manifestations of Vishnu in Hinduism’s polytheistic pantheon. Independent scholar Doris Meth Srinivasan describes some of the earliest attributes and icons of Vishnu and explains how the merger of three deities into Vishnu during the formation of the Hindu sect of Vaishnavism informs many subsequent Vishnu images. Based on careful study of devotional poetry and sectarian literature, Leslie C. Orr. Associate professor of religion, Concordia University, Montreal, investigates the god in image form at the places sacred to him in Tamil country, in southern India’s modern state of Tamil Nadu. Cynthia Packert, professor of the history of art and architecture, Middlebury College, Vermont, demonstrates how Vishnu’s avatar Krishna continues to make his presence known in northern India through a multitude of varied forms, which are ultimately expressive of his one true reality. We would like to thank the essayists for their scholarship, and we would like to acknowledge the considerable contributions of Neeraja Poddar, who researched and wrote many of the entries for the catalogue.
Joseph N. Newland brought considerable knowledge to the editorial process. We are grateful for his suggestions, corrections, thoroughness, and wit, all of which were well received. For his able assistance, we extend our gratitude to Bipin Shah of Mapin Publishing and to his colleagues in Ahmedabad for all of their attention to detail in the design and production of the catalogue.
After closing in Nashville, Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue-Skinned Savior travels to the Brooklyn Museum. We thank Arnold L. Lehman, director, and Charles Desmarais, deputy director, for their early interest and encouragement. We also gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Katie Apsey, curatorial assistant, and Rebecca Solverson, intern for Asian art. Frist Center staff members Katie Delmez, curator; Amie Germia, registrar, and Tabitha Griffith Loyal, curatorial assistant, deserve special recognition. Their dedication, steady nerves, and good humor kept a complex project on even keel throughout its development and execution. The success of the exhibition is due in no small part to the dedication of staff members and colleagues at both venues whose creativity has set the stage and interpreted the underpinning ideas of the exhibition. We thank them as well as those key staff members at institutions around the world who assisted with the myriad details of processing loans and providing materials for the catalogue.
As the organizing institution for Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue-Skinned Savior, the Frist Center for the Visual Arts is indebted to all of the lenders, public and private, who have parted with objects from their collections to make the exhibition and its national tour possible. We gratefully acknowledge the early and enthusiastic support of Billy Frist, chairman and president of the board of trustees of the Frist Center, Thomas F. Frist, chairman emeritus, and Kenneth L. Roberts, president emeritus, as well as the trustees of the Frist Foundation, We are especially grateful and honored to have been awarded a generous grant for this project by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Joan Cummins gratefully acknowledges the support of john Eskenazi, Fabio Rossi, the Indian and Southeast Asian Art division of Christies, Brendan Lynch, and Carol and john Rutherfurd, Our greatest debt of gratitude is, of course, to Joan Cummins for her professionalism and for creating such an illuminating and important study of Vishnu.
About the Book
It is curious to note that almost all male and female deities ranging from Mahesvara, Narayana, Vishnu, Krishna, Rama, to Bhagavati in varied forms are depicted with defensive weapons. If Mahadeva hold trident, Krishna holds all powerful disc (Sudarshana Chakra), Rama holds weapons of archery; similarly almost all female deities are found holding one or other kinds of weapons amply indicating them becoming ever alert against any untoward but fatal event. And Vishnu is not an exception. Vishnu – besides holding soft flower lotus (Padma), holds mace (Gada) and equally powerful Chakra (wheel) showing readiness to quell His foe. Even if the term Vishnu is a bit less in vogue, his complementary name is Narayana having a majestic rest on the cushion like the serpent bed encircled by devotees, including His consort Lakshmi.
Vishnu, having an omnipresence – had had a great influence besides His oriental sphere, to far Greece and Rome in antiquated days.
About the Author
Dr. Mala Malla had her doctorate degree from Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute (Deemed to be a University), Pune, India. She is an Associate Professor at Central Department of Nepalese History, Culture and Archaeology (NeCHA), Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur. Besides her academic performance at the Department, she is in constant touch with Nepal Government’s of Archaeology, foreign agencies, related with history, religion, culture, excavations of the inceptional matters. She is also a life member of India's Indian Archaeological Society, Indian Society for Prehistoric and Quaternary Studies and Society of South Asian Archaeology, and also the life member of Nepal's Nepal Numismatic Society and Bhaktapur Vikas Sahayoga Sangha. She is also the Board member of Subject Committees of Central Department of NeHCA and Buddhist Studies, T.U.
The present book is her second book. Her first book was Archaeology, Art and Ethnography of Bronzes of Nepal, published by BAR International Series 2208. London.
Preface
Vishnu - though singular - possesses not hundred, but one thousand names, as per the Vishnu Shahashranama. Vishnu, though Hinduite, commands respect, ovations as to cross the oriental frontiers to go to the European hemisphere comprising Rome, Greece. The inceptional Europeans with diplomatic tie with India made Vishnu's name, icons, extended to be popular in west.
Vishnu has varied postures ranging from his happiest stay at the cushion like serpent along with his spous Lakshmi, encircled by numerous celestial beings. As he has varied names, so he has varied incarnations (Avataras), beginning from aquatic creature to other creatures with ferocious looks to sublime attitudes - if Matsya (fish) were purely aquatic, Kurma (tortoise) and Varaha (Boar like) were semi-aquatic and semi-earthly species, backed divine backgrounds and specific purpose to create / conserve earth; also He (Vishnu) is followed by other incarnations like Nrisimha, (looking like semi-man and semi- animal) looking very ferocious, offensive, against the evil-doers. While other incarnations of Vishnu in forms of Rama, Buddha have proved to be the ideal ones so necessary for smooth success of the world; but Krishna - though romantic among the damsels was equally a number one diplomat, strategist as to confer punishment on the self-centered foes.
If Vishnu in his varied forms looked to be a protector, He did not lag behind to inflect due punishment on wrong-doers. So Vishnu had the varied roles so necessary for smooth continuation of the world and world creatures including human beings.
So book on Vishnu amply reveals that the Vishnu cult would tell too long, multiple tales on the life and living of mankind as to signify the necessity for us all to maintain the ethical norms for achieving triple cosmic functions - creation, protection, destruction.
Even in have not gone too far on measures to curb theft, robbery, out- migration, destruction of the icons, I have indicated about the urgent need to preserve, protect the divine icons from theft, robbery and destruction and out-migration
While trying to put up the divinities of Vishnu, I felt trimming a big Vishnu Tree as to make it dwarf in height and a circumference (girth) branchless. Full-fledged Vishnu needed still more painstaking endeavour; but I conceede for my limitations. I am apologetic for my limited justice to Lord Vishnu in terms of my dwarfish approach to His Himalayan height.
And in the last: I express my deep gratitude to all the valued authors on the subject. My passing references to them may not suffuse to express my sense of gratitude; but I owe ode to those dignitaries, both human and celestial.
Vishnu (Sanskrit Vishu) is the Supreme Being, Supreme god or Ultimate Reality in Vaishnava Tradition of Hinduism in Indian sub-continent. He is also known as Narayana and a manifestation of Brahman the Advaita or Smarta traditions of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankhara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God (Shiva, Vishnu, Devi, Surya and Ganesha) (Rangachari 1931: 2). In Hinduism, Vishnu is one of the gods the Hindu Trinity, and is conceived to be responsible for the universal protection, as Brahma and Shiva, the two other gods are held to be responsible for universal creation and destruction. However, Vishnu is infact an old Vedic god, who is mentioned in all the four Vedas - the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda and the Atharva Veda. In none of these Vedas does he appear as the one supreme deity. He is there identified with the Surya and said to have stridden over the regions and to have covered the whole universe by means of three steps. Vaishnavism is the branch of Hinduism in which Vishnu or one of his incarnations is worshipped as the Supreme God. Members of Vaishnavism are called Vaishnavites or Vaishnavas.
The Kathopanishad regarded Vishnu as one among the major ten Upanishads states that the final destination of one's spiritual journey is the abode of Vishnu (tad vishno paramam padam) - he who holds the reins of the mind, he reaches the end of his journey, and that is the highest place of Vishnu.
The Vishnu Sahasranama' declares Vishnu as Paramatman (supreme soul) and Paramesvara (supreme God). It describes Vishnu as the AII- Pervading essence of all beings, the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within. Vishnu governs the aspect of preservation and sustenance of the universe, so he is called "Preserver of the universe". It also describes Vishnu as "Sahasrakoti Yuga Dharine", which means He takes incarnations in all Yugas in cosmic scales. The Bhagavatageeta mentions their purpose as being to rejuvenate Dharma. Vishnu is the only Bhagavan (which in Sanskrit means "possessing bhaga Divine Glory"), as declared in the Bhagavata (1.2.11) in the verse: "vadanti tat tattva- vidas tattvam yaj jnanam advayam brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate". The meaning of the verse is as: "Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan.
Vishnu is the preserver of life. He is one of the most important of the Brahmanical cults that came into being some centuries before the beginning of the Christian era centered around Vishnu. His origin goes back to Vedic gods where he is identified with Narayana, the original egg-foetus in the waters of Nara, thus the life-urge and preserver of life. Vaishnavites, like Shaivites, believe that there is only one Supreme God, who simultaneously permeates all creation and exists beyond it, being both immanent and transcendent. Like other Hindu denominations, Vaishnavism acknowledges the existence of many lower Gods under the Supreme One. These gods, like all of creation, are encompassed by Vishnu, either as manifestations of the Supreme Being or as powerful entities who are permeated by Him. The distinctive religious belief of Vaishnavism is its emphasis on God as a personal being, i.e., someone you can know and have a relationship with. Vaishnavas often identify six qualities of God: all knowledge, all power, supreme majesty, supreme strength, unlimited energy and total self-sufficiency. One popular name for God among Vaishnavites is an ancient name from the Vedas: Purushottama, "the Supreme Person." For most Vaishnavas, the divine Self within is Vishnu himself, but not all of Vishnu. In other words, Vishnu is more than self and more than the universe. Likewise, when a Vaishnavite merges into God upon liberation, his or her individual nature is not lost. Vaishnavites believe people are meant to be God’s companion for all eternity.
Contents
The material presented in this monograph constitutes a part of the work done under a U.G.C. supported advance research project, during the period January 1981 to December 1982, entitled, Encyclopaedic Index of Myths, Symbols and Icons in Indian Painting and Sculpture, A study in Meaning, Phase I-Vaisnavism'. We are happy to mention that in the course of our explorations, we had observed several lacunae in our knowledge of Vaisnava iconology, as well as the iconological process itself, so that we could present this monograph by way of demonstrating the in-depth work that is still feasible. This monograph could also serve as a model for the kind of series of art- historical studies which it is possible to write based on the documentation and material collected under the above-mentioned project. This monograph further establishes the desireablity of continuing the present project on an ongoing basis.
So far as the Principal Investigator's view-point is concerned, this is the second volume of a projected trilogy which had begun with his Life of Buddha in Indian Sculpture, the third volume of which will follow soon, entitled The Myth of Kaliyadamana Krsna in Indian Painting and Sculpture. With these three volumes, it is hoped to extensively analyse the iconological process and the relationship between text and image, form and content and even how methodo logically the artist's contribution and individuality might be pin-pointed from the particular works of art.
We would like to express our gratitude to the U.G.C. for supporting the research project as well as for the publication grant. We are thankful to the expert scholars, Dr. Deepak Bhattacharya, Chandigarh and Dr. R. N. Mishra, Gwalior, both of whom found the material worthy of publication. We are thank ful to the University authorities, the members of the Publication Board as well as the Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts, for recommending it for publication.
**Contents and Sample Pages**
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Vedas (1273)
Upanishads (476)
Puranas (741)
Ramayana (893)
Mahabharata (329)
Dharmasastras (162)
Goddess (473)
Bhakti (242)
Saints (1286)
Gods (1279)
Shiva (333)
Journal (132)
Fiction (44)
Vedanta (322)
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