Monday 31 March 2014

Krishna kills Bakasura

Krishna kills Bakasura 

by Fattu, Bhagwat Puran Series. Kangra School, Mid-18th century.





      Having failed to kill Krishna,  Raja Kansa sent another demon, Bankasura in the form of a gigantic Crane. Krishna did not want the crane to harm others, so he offered himself. The crane caught hold of Krishna in his beak. Having entered his beak, Krishna increased his size, and broke the beak. Thereby killing the demon.
        Fattu has captured the entire story in a very simple narrative. Both the actions take place simultaneously.  Multiple narrative is a common device in Indian art.  In this painting Fattu emphasises the large size of the crane by painting small ducks in the Yamuna River. Balaram, Krishna's elder brother,  and the Gopas rush to help Krishna in killing the demon.
           Troubles come in many forms.  The surroud us, engulf us. With our confidence,  we can 'increase' our ability to tackle them. We can destroy our troubles with a little help from our friends. We all fight with our Bakasura everyday. We are triumphant.

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