STANDING VISHNU Beige buff sandstone
Central India (Madhya Pradesh)
Khajuraho
Chandela dynasty
Circa 10th/11th c. CE
Dimensions
Height: 51cm (20”)
with base : 59cm (23”1/4)
Width : 15cm (6”)
Depth : 15cm (6”)
God of preservation in the Hindu trilogy, God Vishnu is worshiped in India as the Savior of humanity. To help humankind in danger He “descended” already 9 times taking different forms (Avatar) of a fish, a tortoise, a boar, a lion, an Brahmin dwarf (Vamana), a giant warrior with a axe(Parashurama), king Rama, Lord Krishna and his brother Balarama. In some texts, Lord Buddha is also considered as the avatar of the god.
The last one, the tenth, should come at the end of the times, to help the suffering humanity. His name is Kalki and he would have the head of a horse on a human body.
Here Vishnu is depicted in a very formal and traditional attitude. The four-harmed god is standing in elegant attitude called tribanga. He wears a high bejeweled crown and flat jewelry around his neck and hips. His upper hands hold the discus (Chakra) on the right and the club (Gada) on the left. His lower right hand rests on his hips and the lower left hands holds the conch (Shankha).
The very fine carving of his face, with elongated eyes and curvaceous lips, on a round face reflects perfectly the Chandela style of the temples of Khajuraho. There, Hindu and Jain temples have their external walls covered with numerous images of gods and erotic scenes.
