Page 54 - Christie's Inidian and HImalayan Works of Art, March 2019

A BRONZE FIGURE OF YOGA NARASIMHA

This ferocious incarnation of Vishnu, half-man and half-lion, was manifest or conch in the raised left hand. The round, broad shoulders taper to a narrow
to overcome the asura or demi-god Hiranyakashipu. Hiranyakashipu sought waist, the torso ornamented with necklaces and a yajnopavitam or sacred
to avenge his brother, who was defeated by Varaha, Vishnu’s boar-headed thread. Narasimha is further ornamented with bracelets, rings, anklets and
incarnation. He realized it was not wise to attack Vishnu without protection toe rings. The elegant triangular leaves on the of the headdress mirror the
from the gods and performed great austerities to gain a boon from Brahma, decorative elements of the armlets, visible at the front and back above the
rendering him unable to be slain by day or night, by weapons or missiles, either shirashchakra or haloed crown attached at the back of the head, a convention
inside or outside, nor by man or beast. With this boon granted, Hiranyakashipu of South Indian sculpture.
attacked the gods until Vishnu reappeared as Narasimha, the man-lion, and
eviscerated the king with his fearsome claws at the twilight hour on the The tiered rectangular base with incised geometric patterning and incised
threshold of the palace, thus circumventing all conditions of the demon king’s lotus petals at the lower tier is frequently seen in mid-to-late Vijayanagara-
boon. One of the most iconic representations of this ferce avatar of Vishnu is period sculpture. Compare the incised tiered base on the current work with
a monolithic stone sculpture depicting Yoga Narasimha, which stands today a similarly incised base on a fourteenth century bronze sculpture of a female
at the ancient center of the Vijayanagara empire in the medieval city of Hampi. deity at the Brooklyn Museum (acc. no. 86.227.26), and also with the similarly
incised base on a Cosmic Form of Krishna from the ffteenth century at the
The powerful and sensuously modeled Yoga Narasimha is depicted here in Norton Simon Museum (acc. no. F.1972.19.7.S).
a contemplative posture, sitting cross-legged on a lotus throne, the primary
arms resting languidly on the knees with claws exposed. His mouth is agape, Also compare the tall, conical kiritamukuta with lotus bud fnial with a similar
fangs bared but with gentle expression. Sharp, perky ears peek out from a chignon cover on an earlier thirteenth century bronze fgure of Bhu-Varaha from
majestic mane. He wears a short and diaphanous dhoti with a yogapatta or the Victoria & Albert Museum (acc. no. IM6-1924), illustrated by V. Dehejia,
meditation band fastened around his knees and holds the attributes of Vishnu: The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India, New York,
the faming chakra or discus in the raised right hand, and a faming shankha 2003, p. 184.

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