A visual fusion of the twin aspects of Ganesha as dancer and warrior. The son of Shiva inherits not just the tandava of Nataraja, but also His all-annihilating aspect. In the pattachitra that you see on this page, the elephant-deity is possessed of eight arms (He is dashabhujadhari), wielding weapons and other Shaivite implements. The legs and torso, however, are in the dramatic tribhanga stance, indicative of dynamism or nrtya. His gorgeous wives, in miniature proportions, are on either side of the plinth beneath His feet: Riddhi bears a chamara and Siddhi an ornate fan.
The most striking aspect of this Ganesha painting is the snake stretched high over His head. In His posteriormost hands He cradles the neck and the tail of the snake, which bares its fangs into nothingness. Painted on rough-hewn tussar silk, this composition features solid colours and vibrant tones. This is a hallmark of the folk paintings of Orissa called pattachitra, images (‘chitra’) executed with specially prepared pigments on patta (canvas). Both the pigments and the patta are made by hand by the artists.
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