Monkeys and Bears Fighting in the Madhuvana Grove

Monkeys and Bears Fighting in the Madhuvana Grove 

by Pandit Seu, Guler School
1720 AD.

        The Pahari School began its journey from Basohli. It reached its first stoppage at Guler via Chamba. At Guler it was not only more refined qua the line, the colour, but also qua composition and themes.Here notice the flowing lines, the structured composition,  the unusual theme. The credit for the transformation and improvement in Guler goes to Pandit Seu and his family.  Pandit Seu' s family produced a series of great artists who will eventually lead the Pahari paintings to its best School--the Kangara Kalam (brush).
         In this painting Pandit Seu has depicted a minor incident from the Ramayana. After Hunuman ji discoverd Sita ji' whereabouts,  the monkeys were overjoyed.  On the way back to Lord Ram, they discovered a grove full of intoxicating honey--Madhuvan (the forest of honey). They not only invaded it, not only damaged it, but also faught with the Bears who were protecting it. The pack of monkeys were led by Hanumanji and Angad. Here we see the monkeys fighting the bears.
         Pandit Seu portrays the life in a jungle which is lawless and cruel. Here the strongest kills the weak; in civilized society there is Rule of Law where the strongest protects the weak. The artist paints the stark difference for us. He does not want us to go back to the jungle Raj.

The Gods Pay Homage to Bhadrakali

The Gods Pay Homage to Bhadrakali 

Basohli School. 1660-70 AD.

     Besides the Rajput School of miniature paintings, the other School is the Pahari School, from the hill region of Himanchal Pradesh. The origin of the School lies in a small principality, Basohli.  In the late 17th century the Basohli artists produced some of the most dramatic miniatures devoted to the Godess or Devi.
The feminine divine or the mother cult is as ancient in India as the Indus Valley Civilization.  Nature in both its violent and docile form has been seen as a woman or a goddess. For like Nature a woman brings forth, produces, nourishes,  protects, generates and destroys. Women, thus, symbolise the creative and destructive energy of Nature. She is 'Shakti', energy in all its manifestation.
        Here we see the three great Gods of Hinduism,  Bramha, Vishnu, and Mahesh paying homage to Godess Bhadrakali, the dark skinned one. She stands on a corpse, symbolising the innert universe or matter. For it is energy which animates matter. She holds the various attributes or symbols given to her by the Gods, Vishnu's conch shell and lotus, Shiva's noose,  Brahma's vina. These attributes signify her power to reward and punish, to create and destroy, to control and maintain the cosmos.
         Basohli miniatures are easily identifiable.  The artist uses flat colors for the background.  The figures are stocky,  in the main figure the head is small compared to the body, whereas in other figures the head is bigger compared to the body. The images have large eyes, symbolising the omnipresence and omnipotent aspect of the divinity.  The crowns have lotus on them. The paintings are flat. The composition is a simple one. This paintings have an earthy, folkish quality. But they exude robustness,  dynamism, and the strength of the faith of the people in their Gods and Godess.