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VAIKUÛÙHA-VIáVARÍPA Vol. III

36. D.Ref.: BAIJNATH HARIHARA #03-07

stone: 52 x 33

4 Arme

Westbhadra des nordwestlichen Ma¸·apavorsprungs, Vaidyan¡tha-Tempel, Baijnath (Kangra-Tal), Himachal Pradesh.

36.1 DESCRIPTION

The image is one of a pair flanking the ma¸·apa facade of the Vaidyan¡tha temple at Baijnath (Himachal). Each image is shown installed in the sanctum of a miniature towered shrine at one of the front corners of the ma¸·apa. That on the observer's left (NW corner) represents Harihara, that on his right (SW corner) the androgynous form V¡sudeva-Kamalaj¡ mounted on Garu·a.

The Harihara image is seated in pralambap¡d¡sana on an hour-glass shaped stool or throne, holding a mace across his knees: the raised rear hands hold the tri¿£la of áiva (right) and the cakra of ViÀ¸u (left). The ornaments and headdress are divided on the central axis as is usual in combined images of this type.

The point of iconographical relevance to Vaiku¸¶ha studes concerns the three heads. Whereas the proper right side-head, facing the trident, represents the Bhairava aspect of áiva, the proper left side-head is a profile of the Var¡ha-avat¡ra of ViÀ¸u. This clearly indicates that the form of ViÀ¸u which is integrated with áiva in this image if that of three- (or four-) headed ViÀ¸u; this iconography originated in Kashmir in the 9th century (see above, No.35: cp. Museum fur Indische Kunst Berlin, Nr. MIK.I.5835), appears here in a prominent position on a temple of Vaidyan¡tha diva in the Kangra Valley in the 11th century, and was perpetuated in modified form at Mandi in the 13th or 14th century (No.35 above).

36.1.2 ICONOGRAPHICAL NOTE

The counterpart of this Harihara image on the SW corner represents single-headed, eight-armed V¡sudeva-Kamalaj¡ (the androgynous ViÀ¸u/LakÀm¢ mounted on anthropomorphic Garu·a. Here, the dominant (right-hand) side of the combined icon represents ViÀ¸u in his single-headed form.

Both of these images flanking the ma¸·apa facade represents ViÀ¸u combined with a different deity, in the one case áiva, in the other LakÀm¢.

It is when he is combined with multi-headed áiva that ViÀ¸u assumes his three- or four-headed form, in the 11th-century iconography of Baijnath as in the 9th-century iconography of Kashmir. As the Berlin Harihara shows, it is the krodharÀi aspect both of áiva (as K¡madahana) and of ViÀ¸u Vaiku¸¶ha (as Kapila) which in Kashmiri iconography was seen as, the point of unity between the two gods: in the Baijnath Harihara, which is a relief on the back wall of a niche, the face of the angry sage is of course not capable of being represented, though its presence is implied. The Kashmiri origin of this Harihara image is stylistically indicated by the profile of the Var¡ha sloping downward, unlike images of Mathuran origin, in which the profile is angled upward.

36.2 PRELIMINARY IDENTIFICATION

The image represents HARIHARA, in which the three- or four-headed Vaiku¸¶ha form of ViÀ¸u is integrated with multi-headed áiva (Sad¡¿iva). It is to be dated to the 11th century, since there is no doubt that the sculpture, along with the corner-shrine that encloses it, is original to the Vaidyan¡tha temple.

Nr. 36: Baijnath

Vaidyan¡tha-Tempel

Harihara, Vaidyanatha-Tempel, Baijnath, Himachal Pradesh 

37. D.Ref.: BAIJNATH VK #I0-20

Stein: 68 x 41.5

4 Hande

Ruckwand (Nordostecke) des Sanktums, Vaidyan¡tha-Tempel, Baijnath

(Kangra-Tal), Himachal Pradesh.

37.1 DESCRIPTION

The image is placed against the rear wall of the sanctum of the Vaidyan¡tha temple, in the NE corner, behind the pra¸¡la of the áivali´ga. It is a well preserved relief on a rectangular slab of grey stone which has been blackened by ritual applications of oil and water.

ViÀ¸u is shown seated in lalit¡sana on anthropomorphic Garu·a; LakÀm¢ sits on his left knee. In the front hands, ViÀ¸u holds a large round lotus (right) and the upright conch (left). The crown is of the triple-peaked type, surrounded by the upper half of a small plain nimbus. The large profile heads of the NarasiÆha (right) and Var¡ha (left) are clearly differentiated and slope slightly downwards, parallel to the shoulders. The style of these animal profiles, and of the central ViÀ¸u face, is that of local 'Pahari' work, while the iconography is still fully North Indian, suggesting a date considerably later than that of the temple, in the 13th century, slightly later than the pillar-relief on the Gaur¢¿a´kara temple at Dasal (above, No.29) in the Vyas Valley.

37.2 PRELIMINARY IDENTIFICATION

Three-faced VIâÛU on Garu·a, with LakÀm¢, in the local style of the Western Himalaya of ca. 13th century.

Nr. 37: Baijnath

Vaidyan¡than-Tempel

Visnu, Vaidyanatha-Tempel, Baijnath, Himachal Pradesh

38. D. Ref: 

DREIKOPFIGER VIâÛU

Stein:

Masrur, Kangra-Tal, Himachal Pradesh

= IN BEARBEITUNG=

Nr. 38: Masrur

Felsentempel

39. D.Ref.:

Weisser Marmor: H. ca. 140

4 Hande

Sanktumikone. LakÀmin¡r¡iya¸a-Tempel, Laksm¢n¡r¡ya¸a-Komplex, Chamba, (Ravi-Tal), Himachal Pradesh.

39.1 DESCRIPTION

This important image has never, to my knowledge, been photographed without its ritual coverings of metal and cloth. (Plates 8b and 8c in Pratapaditya Pal, Bronzes of Kashmir, Graz 1975, are of course incorrectly labeled as representing this image; they illustrate the bronze image in the Hari Rai temple in Chamba. Plate 8a shows this icon with its usual coverings.) Despite my prolonged efforts with the Commissioner of Chamba and his officers of the civil administration, as well as with the hereditary priesthood of the LakÀm¢n¡r¡ya¸a temple complex, this still could not be achieved in 1992. The image is unclothed, bathed, and re-clothed at periodic intervals, and at such times photography of the sculpture beneath is theoretically possible, particularly since the process takes one full day with several priests in attendance. During the period of my stay in Chamba, such an opportunity did not present itself; the next sn¡na-ceremony was due in October 1992. However, I was permitted to spend a considerable amount of time in the temple in order to observe the routine p£ja ceremonies, and to photograph them, but not to enter the sanctum; this is the prerogative of the male members of the hereditary priesthood of Chamba. An arrangement was reached with a local professional photographer in consultation with the senior priests, to have the image photographed in October 1992 and the negatives forwarded to me in Bonn, the films and prepayment being left with the photographer for this purpose. Unfortunately, the photographer failed to honor the agreement.

The image stands in a large sanctum, the back wall of which is draped with cloth hangings. As the image stands against this wall, it cannot be seen whether or not there is a fourth face at the back; but I was told emphatically by several of the priests that there is a rear face, that it is that of a demon, and that no one normally looks at it. This clearly confirms the fact that it is an image of four-faced Vaiku¸¶ha with the face of the krodharÀi Kapila (not a demon) at the back.

The doorframe of the sanctum, the high pedestal on which the image stands, the tora¸a behind it, and the image itself, are all covered with thin layers of metal worked with repousse motifs. The tor¸a covering, of gilded silver, bears an inscription naming the artisans (carpenters, painters, goldsmiths, coppersmiths) who prepared the frame which is dated August AD 1747 (Vishwa Chander Ohri in Lalit Kala 13: 50). This makara-tora¸a has figural panels on the uprights and on the arch (done in the style of contemporary painting of the 18th century: Ohri, lot. cit.), and five miniature parasols on the top. The doorframe has dv¡rap¡las at the base of the jambs and a figure of seated Ga¸e¿a on the centre of the lintel. The pedestal is a later version of the p¢¶ha types seen in Kashmiri temples of the 8th and 9th centuries (Martanda and Avantipura), with architectural mouldings at the base and rim, and a pra¸¡la projecting to the right; at the front corners stand two figures of lions facing forward, making the pedestal into a siÆh¡sana, and between them on the flat front of the pedestal appears anthropomorphic Garu·a between two flanking devotees. Except for the central face, hands and feet (which are painted red with sindhur), the image itself is also covered with jewelled repousse metal-sheets, in addition to being hung with red clothes, metal amulets, and framed portraits of benefactors and miniature paintings of religious groups. The metal coverings made for the image, which are gilt, and intricately patterned, are possibly older than those of the tora¸a, but without access to the sanctum no final assessment of their age and function can be made. The following description of the image is based on such direct observations as were possible under these conditions, from my photographs, and on a comparison with a smaller white marble image in one of the votive shrines in the same LakÀm¢-N¡r¡ya¸a complex (see below, No.40).

The metal covering on the crown has three pointed peaks, but the original crown may consist of the three disks or crescents seen in No.40; that the pointed crown was more popular at the time the metal coverings were probably made is indicated by such crowns being worn by the dv¡rap¡las on the doorframe, and by the devotees on the pedestal, and by similar crowns being shown on the heads of the repouss6 figures of both Ga¸e¿a and Garu·a. A metal disk above the central peak of the crown may indicate that a lotus is represented in that position on the original sculpture, as on other Kashmiri stone images of three- and four-headed ViÀ¸u of the 8th and 9th centuries. The profiles of the heads of the animal-avat¡ras (NarasiÆha on the proper right, Var¡ha on the left) are large and project laterally from the sides of the central face, well above the shoulders, in the Kashmiri manner. The features of the central face, without a metal mask, are concealed by black paint on the eyes and eyebrows, and by red paint on the hairline, ears, and mouth. The nose appears uncharacteristically thin (perhaps as the result of remoulding damage to this notoriously vulnerable feature). The strings holding the metal masks in place on the avat¡ra-faces can be seen to run from the corners of the animal's mouths to the edge of the large ear-rings, indicating that holes are drilled in the original sculpture at these points, as they are in several other sculptures from Kashmir and Himachal, presumably for the express purpose of fixing such masks in place. This may be an ancient practice, perhaps as old as the sculptures themselves. The ear-rings appear to have been made in the form of floral motifs.

The image is evidently four-armed, holding a large round lotus by its stalk in the front right hand, and the upright conch in the front left. The rear arms are lowered with the hands resting on the upper rim of the haloes of the two flanking ¡yudhapuruÀas. In the metal coverings, both haloes are treated identically, as disks containing a floral pattern with intricate foliage edging. The figure on the proper left, who would normally represent CakrapuruÀa, has the right arm raised, in the hand of which the handle of a c¡mara is held, sloping down behind his head, The corresponding figure on the left, who should be Gad¡dev¢ has the left hand raised to a position near the left cheek, corresponding to the same gesture seen in Kashmiri images. The faces of both figures are turned toward the god and tilted slightly upward. Between the feet of ViÀ¸u emerges the small figure of Bh£dev¢, turned slightly to her left, as in Kashmir. The position of her hands in relation to the feet of ViÀ¸u cannot be seen due to the offerings and votive figures placed on the pedestal. The left foot of ViÀ¸u appears to be slightly advanced, suggesting a slight ¡bha´ga to the right. Bh£dev¢ appears to wear a beaded or jewelled headband possibly supporting a tiara, and a necklace which hangs down which hangs down between her breasts. (This figure of the Earth-goddess is understood by the temple priests to represent LakÀm¢: hence their reference to the image, and to its temple, as LakÀm¢-N¡r¡ya¸a. that is, ViÀ¸u accompanied by his consort LakÀm¢)

39.2 PRELIMINARY IDENTIFICATION

The image seems to represent ViÀ¸u as VAKUÛÙHA, in the style and iconography of Kashmir. The correctness of this identification s made more probable by he affirmation of the Chamba priests that there is a further face, with a demonic expression, on the back of the image. If this is correct, the sculpture cannot be older than the 9th century, when images of this kind were first made in Kashmir. Minor stylistic features, such as the posture of the Earth-goddess, and the position of the raised hands of CakrapuruÀa and Gad¡dev¢, suggest that the sculpture belongs to the mid-9th century, or was copied from an original of that date.

Nr. 39: Chamba

LakÀm¢-N¡r¡ya¸a-Tempel

Vaikuntha, Laksminarayana-Tempel, Chamba, Himachal Pradesh

40. DREI- / VIERKOPFIGER VIâÛU

Weiber Marmor: 61.5 x 38

4 Hande

Sanktumikone, Votivschrein gegenuber vom LakÀm¢-D¡modara-Tempel im Hofe des LakÀm¢-N¡r¡ya¸a-Tempels, Chamba (Ravi-Tal), Himachal Pradesh.

40.1 DESCRIPTION

Iconographically, this image appears to be a miniature version of the major sculpture In the LakÀm¢-N¡r¡ya¸a temple (No.39 above), and is made of the same material (white marble). It is quite seriously eroded.

The crown consists of three disks or crescents, the animal side-faces are large and project well above the shoulders, the ear-rings consist of a floral design, the lotus and conch appear in the right and left hands respectively, and the rear arms are lowered with the hands resting on the nimbus of Gad¡dev¢ (right) and CakrapuruÀa (left). The figure of Bh£dev¢ emerges from the pedestal, her body turned slightly to her left, her head raised, and her hands placed under the feet of ViÀ¸u, whose left foot is advanced. The faces of all three plinth-figures are tilted upwards more than in No.39. The Earth-goddess has her left hand raised to her face, but with the index finger extended to the corner of her mouth. The latter two stylistic features could indicate a later date.

The ViÀ¸u-figure wears a short necklace and the upav¢ta, which loops on a level with the eroded remains of a studded girdle. A dagger appears to have been represented in front of the right hip, where the line of the upav¢ta ends. Below this, a scarf with parallel folds hangs across the upper thighs, with a loop on the right, below the dagger. The adhotÆ¿uka ends at knee-level, with a row of folds hanging down the inside of the right leg, and smaller pleats on the left thigh. The left foot is slightly advanced. The vanam¡l¡ emerges from behind the long hair spread along the shoulders, passes through the crook of the front arms, and hangs down beside the legs to loop well below the knees, behind the head of Bh£dev¢. The original pedestal was carved in one piece with the image (unlike the separate pedestals of Kashmir), and is now set into the stone alter of the votive shrine in which it stands. The back of this small sculpture cannot be seen, as it is set against the rear wall of the sanctum, and so the presence of the fourth face at the rear cannot be confirmed. The plain arch behind the image is not part of the original sculpture.

The top of the nimbus of ViÀ¸u has been damaged, so that the presence of a lotus there cannot be confirmed. The nimbus is large, rising from the edges of the shoulders and enclosing both the animal-side-faces. Drill-holes, now plugged, can be seen in the sides of the crown, at the top of each animal side-face near its junction with the central face of ViÀ¸u, in the corners of the mouths, and just above the ear-rings: these indicate that in Chamba, as in Kashmir, coverings of some kind were tied on to the crown and the avat¡ra-faces, as they still are in the case of the larger image in the LakÀm¢--N¡r¡ya¸a temple (see No.39) which appears to represent the only survival of this ritual practice.

40 .2 PRELIMINARY IDENTIFICATION

The image appears to represent ViÀ¸u VAIKUÛÙHA in the style and iconography of Kashmir. It may be dated to the late 9th century.

Nr. 40: Chamba

Votivschrein gegenuber vom LakÀm¢-D¡modara-Tempel

Visnu, Vaikuntha, Laksmi-Damodara-Tempel, Chamba, Himachal Pradesh

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