12'' Lord Ayyappan | Madhuchista Vidhana (Lost-Wax) | Panchaloha Bronze from Swamimalai

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The warrior god – whose life was brought to this world to defeat the demoness Mahishi – is said to have been raised by the royal couple Rajashekara Pandiyan and Koperundevi, and it was in their household that the Lord attained the righteous understanding of dharmic living and yogic penance. This dharmic living is captured in the yogic posture of the figure, seated with a ‘yoga pattam’ or yoga band tying both feet together. As Ayyappa is a ‘Yogeeshwara’ by nature, the patta helps in maintaining the ‘harivarasanam,’ or the posture of keeping both legs and the back firmly against the ground while having the spine erect at a right angle to the ground. The patta allows our supreme ‘brahmachari’ here to maintain this meditative posture with ease (a similar depiction of the ‘harivarasanam’ is seen in the Narasimha figure kept at the Cleveland Museum of Art). Another defining attribute of the image here is the right hand’s posture of ‘chinmudra,’ with the three raised fingers denoting the vanquishment of ‘ahankaram,’ ‘maya,’ and fulfilment of ‘karma.’ The joining of the index finger and the thumb is the symbolic union of the ‘atman’ and the ‘Brahman.’

It is in these fascinating symbolisms that we appreciate Ayyappan’s strict adherence to penance, celibacy, the path of dharmic righteousness, and yogic bhakti. The bronze image also details elaborate ‘malas’ around the Lord’s neck (today, his devotees, especially at Sabarimala, wear garlands to signify the start of their 41-day strict penance and devotion to attain entry into the temple). Raised on a high circular plinth, we also see an elaborate halo topped by a ‘kirtimukha.’