11" The Thrice Bent Lakshmi in a Sari In Brass | Handmade | Made In India

This particular posture of the Goddess where the head, torso, and legs slant in contrary directions is known as tribhanga. The legs and hips jutt to the right, the trunk to the left, and the neck and head then again gently to the right. It is a lyrical, dreamy, very graceful pose. The three curves formed by the body symbolize the three worlds, upper, lower and middle, better known in Sanskrit as triloka. This is also popularly known as the posture of three bends.

Whenever Lakshmi is depicted as an independent goddess, as here, she is shown with four arms. The other iconographic scenario is one where she is shown with her consort Vishnu. In the latter case she is almost invariably represented with only two arms. The purport being that the power of the goddess is immensely magnified when she is worshipped in her independent status.

Here she stands on a double lotus pedestal, an epitome of grace and modesty, yet a definite potency continues to radiate from her personality. The sari is draped according to the modern fashion, her elaborately carved jewelry (especially the long necklace) well complementing the folds of the garment. A four-fold crown backed by a halo adorns her head.