Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Lady in a Landscape

18th century

Friday, June 24, 2011

Scholars


Monday, June 20, 2011

Al Buraq




















Al Buraq is an angelic being with the body of a horse, the head of a woman, and a peacock's tail, who carried the Prophet Muhammad, PBUH, on the Miraj, the Night Journey through the Seven Heavens to Jerusalem.
Al Buraq is a manifestation of the feminine divine energy, known in India as Kundalini. She ascends through the seven chakras of the subtle body and raises the awareness of a person to the Sahasrara or Crown Chakra, if the person sincerely desires it, and if there are no serious impediments.
The Holy City of Jerusalem is a symbol of the Sahasrara Chakra, where prophets and yogis experience union with the Divine.
Strictly speaking, in yoga subtle anatomy, there are six chakras above the Kundalini (located in the sacrum  at the base of the spine) and the first chakra is below it, so really she ascends through six centres; however the base chakra is also nourished by her awakening; so the symbolism of "seven heavens" is still correct.
This knowledge of Kundalini is very ancient, but I owe my understanding of it to the lectures of Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi.

There are obvious similarities to the Hindu Goddess Kamadhenu, who took the form of a wish-fulfilling cow, often depicted with wings and a peacock's tail, like Al Buraq.



Friday, June 17, 2011

Sri Vishnu

South Indian, Mysore?

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Friday, June 10, 2011

Borders


Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Lord Murugan

Shri Kartikeya (detail).















This is not a typical Indian miniature painting, but appears to be a print made from a Raja Ravi Varma painting, with applique work added.

Shri Murugan (also known as Kartikeya, Skanda or Subhramanya), is the son of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati. He is usually considered to be a celibate deity, or a child-god, and the two female figures sometimes depicted with him are powers, or shaktis, emanating from him. In some traditions they are considered to be his wives, but the shakti principle is not really the same thing as a 'wife' in the human sense, and should be understood in a spiritual rather than a physical sense. In Hindu spirituality, every being - whether a child, a celibate, or a married adult - has subtle shakti powers within.
Goddess Valli, on Shri Kartikeya's left side, represents the "Ichha Shakti" (the power of desire/aspiration), and Goddess Deivayanai, on his right, is the "Kriya Shakti" (the power of action), and Lord Murugan himself is "Gnana Shakti" (the power of knowledge).