Unknown deity

[B. K. Rana]

VYAKARAN: South Asian Languages and Linguistics Net
Editors:  Tej K. Bhatia, Syracuse University, New York
          John Peterson, University of Osnabrueck, Germany
Details:  Send email to listserv at listserv.syr.edu and say: INFO VYAKARAN
Subscribe:Send email to listserv at listserv.syr.edu and say:
          SUBSCRIBE VYAKARAN FIRST_NAME LAST_NAME
          (Substitute your real name for first_name last_name)
Archives: http://listserv.syr.edu

Of course, not any Ganesh.  The four-handed Vishnu' sleeps on Shesh Nag [the Sesh Nag has 1000 tongues hence 1000 heads]  bed in the Sea. Shesh Nag is the other form of Vishnu himself like Ram and Laxman in The Ramayan and  Krishna and Balaram in the Mahabharat. But these later two guys are human incarnations of Vishnu so no four hands.

But  Kaliya is another five pronged 'demon sanke' that wants to poison peoples in Dwarika [?] where  Krishna  grew up. He was born in Mathura. As Allen Thrasher has pointed out the snake is 'a' fairly standard icon, which may well have no connection to the statue'.

"D.G.Damle" <D.G.Damle at OPEN.AC.UK> wrote:
On closer examination of the picture, it is definitely not Ganesha. What I thought was a trunk, seems to be the priests hand adjusting some kind of headdress.

The sari likje thing is common traditional male attire in traditional India - Dhoti, or in it's religious form Uparana.

The picture is not very good and it could be almost any deity. The Cobra does suggest Vishnu (and the sanke is Kaliya)



-----Original Message-----
From: South Asian Linguists on behalf of Allen W Thrasher
Sent: Thu 21/07/2005 19:19
To: VYAKARAN at LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Cc:
Subject: Re: Unknown deity



VYAKARAN: South Asian Languages and Linguistics Net
Editors: Tej K. Bhatia, Syracuse University, New York
John Peterson, University of Osnabrueck, Germany
Details: Send email to listserv at listserv.syr.edu and say: INFO VYAKARAN
Subscribe:Send email to listserv at listserv.syr.edu and say:
SUBSCRIBE VYAKARAN FIRST_NAME LAST_NAME
(Substitute your real name for first_name last_name)
Archives: http://listserv.syr.edu

I think the snake is not Kaliya, but just a naga stone, a fairly standard icon, which may well have no connection to the statue. They are discussed in Jean Philippe Vogel's classic Indian Serpent-Lore (1st ed., 1926).

Allen Thrasher


Allen W. Thrasher, Ph.D., Senior Reference Librarian
South Asia Team, Asian Division
Library of Congress, Jefferson Building 150
101 Independence Ave., S.E.
Washington, DC 20540-4810
tel. 202-707-3732; fax 202-707-1724; athr at loc.gov
The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Library of Congress.

>>> bk_rana at YAHOO.COM 07/21/05 1:17 PM >>>


Every hindu good or goddess wears 'sari' kind of thing with a little variety. But yes, she seems to be a female deity. Her the part tells that.

And, I don't see any mouse either. That is serpent king Kaliya. Myth tells Krishana had once suppressed 'Kaliya' . But the deity is not any of Krishana too. Krishana does not have four hands.

Rana







__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/vyakaran/attachments/20050722/a8e315e4/attachment.htm>