The Devi Sarasvati is a vision in beauteousness and grace. The wife of Brahma Himself, She is tall and lissome, Her form having assumed lalitasana on a pedestal fashioned from layers of lotus petals. The fairest of the Hindu pantheon of devies, Sarasvati presides over learning and the arts, which are necessary to sustain the universe (which is Her husband's responsibility). This is the prime reason why Her iconography is incomplete without a veena in Her hands. She strums on it with divine skill, the resulting melody as smooth and susurrous as Her name. In Sanskrit, the syllables of Her name mean 'that which flows' and convey a great deal of elegance and order. Indeed, Her roopa embodies all that - such perfection of proportions, such expressive features of the face.

The sculptor has put a lifetime of skill and great labour into this sculpture. From the long dhoti-clad limbs to the shringar-laden torso, the inconography is replete. Add to that the high-precision arms and hands, the curve of the hips in the asana, and the stance of the neck and the brow, and you have a figure that is at once esoteric and lifelike. The crown sitting on Her head is as tall and slender as She is, engraved with motifs that befit the spire of a temple. From the rim of it emerge a cascade of tresses that blend with Her shringar at the lobes and the shoulders. The gorgeous sculpture of the pedestal, arguably enough, steals the appeal of the whole composition.