The art and architecture of India - Buddhist, Hindu, Jain (Art Ebook)

THE
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HINDU RENAISSANCE
The very epitome of the art of the Pallava
sculptor is to be discerned in the free-standing
group of a monkey family in front of the tank
below the great relief [236]. Although separate
from the great composition, it was certainly
intended to be considered a part of it. The
understanding of the essential nature of the animals
and the plastic realization of their essential
form could scarcely be improved upon. This
piece of sculpture is the very embodiment of
the quality of cetana, the vitalizing principle
mentioned in relation to the Indian canons of
painting. The shapes, although only partially
adumbrated, connote the finished form and proclaim
the nature of the glyptic material from
which they are hewn. 24
236. Mamallapuram, monkey family
from The Descent of the Ganges
237. Mamallapuram, Durga
slaying the demon buffalo
* r
A fine relief depicting Durga 25 fighting the
demon buffalo Mahisha, an episode from the
Puranic legends, is carved on a panel in a cave at
Mamallapuram [237]. The goddess is seated on
a lion in this splendid example of the Pallava
style at its finest. She is eight-armed, and holds
the weapons such as the bow, discus, and trident
lent her by Siva and Vishnu for the epic struggle.
Her ornaments include a towering head-dress
{karana mukuta), necklaces, and jewelled belt;