Vishnu Flanked by His Personified Attributes. Northern or central India, 12th century. Sandstone, 40 1/2 x 22 5/8 x 8 in. (103 x 57.7 x 20.3 cm). Krannert Art Museum and Kinkead Pavilion, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Gift of Ellnora D. Krannert, 1969-10-1
This complex stele with Vishnu surrounded by other deities includes two personifications of his weapons, standing immediately next to the god at either side. Shankhapurusha (the conch) and Chakrapurusha (also known as Sudarshana the discus) hold and gesture toward their attributes, which also appear in Vishnu’s two left hands. Vishnu carries the mace in his right hand, but he does not hold the lotus; instead he raises his lower right hand in a gesture that means “do not fear.” The various other figures are the attendants of the god. Vishnu’s straight posture distinguishes him from the many bending, swaying bodies of those around him.
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