| Specifications |
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PHC440 |
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Bronze Statue |
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Height: 24.2 inch |
| Width: 15 inch | |
| Depth: 11.5 inch | |
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Weight 31.20 kg |
| Delivery and Return Policies |
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|
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Returns and Exchanges accepted within 7 days |
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Free Delivery |
The Mother Goddess Durga’s most iconic legend – of vanquishing the demon Mahishasura – is visually presented in this ‘panchaloha’ bronze sculpture. The shape-shifting great-grandson of Brahmarishi Kashyapa, after severe austerities and penance, was granted by Brahma the boon that Mahishasura could only be killed by a woman. The demon’s wrathful and fearless wake of destruction troubled the gods, who channelled their divine energies into the Trimurti of Brahma, Shiva, and Vishnu in order to create a warrior goddess that would conquer the demon’s powers.
Durga’s
conception was accompanied by the gods providing her with a copy of their
weapons, along with the lord of Himalayas, Himavan, providing a lion as Durga’s
fearless mount or ‘vahana.’ While we do not have the sculptural visualisation
of the ‘vahana’ here, we see a variety of weapons from different traditions,
acknowledging the syncretic fate Durga (and the larger Shakta tradition) has
had in Hindu mythology. As detailed in the iconographic conventions of texts
Devi Mahatmya and Devi-Bhagavata Purana, this eight-armed form of the goddess
carries the attributes of Vishnu, Shiva, and Brahma: the ‘sudarshana chakra’ or
war discus, the ‘shankh’ or conch, a bow and an arrow, a dagger, a cup, and an
iconic ‘trishula’ or trident, held against the neck of Mahishasura. The demon
spawned several avatars, which Durga easily annihilated, and is said to have
been overcome while he was in the process of shapeshifting into a buffalo –
hence we see a zoo-anthropomorphic form of the demon at the feet of the
goddess. This act exemplified her existence as Mahishasuramardini.
Durga’s
universal nature of being the goddess of preservation, power, energy, strength,
and protection has meant that she has amassed a large following; a following
that is not confined to Hinduism. Nepal (celebrating the Dashain festival for
the goddess), Bangladesh (celebrating the Sharadiya Durga Puja), and Sri Lanka
(celebrating Durga as Vaishnavi) compliment Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh
celebrations revering the goddess – as do Hindus in Java, Cambodia, and
Vietnam. Such a unified belief makes this high-standing fearsome yet blissful
image of the goddess not simply an artistic masterpiece, but also a testament
to the mythic and religious camaraderie the Asian continent has experienced for
centuries.
A fantastic
iteration of Durga vanquishing the demon Mahishasura in a Kalamkari painting
can be accessed here.
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