The Significance Of The God Vishnu In Hinduism

Vishnu wears a greatly detailed crown. A scallop shell shape is the centerpiece of the crown. That shape is surrounded by arching strands of beads, over a swirling leaf pattern. The top of the crown is capped with diamond shaped ornament. Behind the crown is a halo (mostly broken off now) that is geometrically patterned, some of the shapes have been cut away, leaving negative space for light to pass through. He wears large beaded necklaces, and armbands that mirror his crown in style. The sculpture depicts Vishnu with four arms. Two of his arms have broken off above the elbow, and all four hands are gone. The two remaining wrists are wearing bracelets. He wears no shirt, and his chest is smooth, but for his perfectly rounded nipples and belly …show more content…
This statue appears to depict no action or tale that could be related to specific text. The feminine features, his lips and hips, may be referring to the fluid nature of gender for the Hindu gods. Many Hindu gods have goddess counterparts or have in some tales been reincarnated into female forms. The significance of the piece lies in the significance of the god Vishnu himself. He is a beloved god, who is often the hero of humanity/the world, as well as being the god of prosperity and joy. In this depiction of him, he is wealthy, well fed, smiles welcomingly, and when compared to other statues of his time is idealistically beautiful. Here is a god to be praised, and adored by his …show more content…
Rarely has India ever stood as a united nation, it is an area that is divided into multiple states or small countries. The region is immensely diverse, with over five hundred spoken languages, and divided states that have had a near continuous shift in leadership. Due to the multiple languages, warfare, and non-emphasis on the preservation of history that seems to be the cultural norm throughout India, Indian history has been poorly documented. Even when historians find clear documents it often comes with the strong bias of the conquering power of the time. The history of India was constantly being re-written. The British are a prime example of a power in India that disregarded the worth of the past advancement of the people they conquered. “Europe was progressive and changing, India static. Here could be found a kind of living fossil bed of the European past, a museum which was to provide Europeans for the next two hundred years a vast field on which to impose their own visions of history.” During warfare in India it was common practice of looting from the regions they were conquering both for the prestige, possible value of the art, and for giving the stolen goods to their respective deities. “As the inscriptions of Virarajendra suggest, medieval South Asian rulers and their retinues carried out plunder as a normal and public aspect of war, organized by and