Mother Goddesses of Indian subcontinent From Bronze age to present

By

Mohammad Mahmudul Hasan Khan Dokuz Eylül University

İzmir, Turkey.

Introduction

India-subcontinent may be described as a land of goddesses. Far more

than the gods, it is the goddesses who seem to attract the attention of the

people. If we were to study the thousands of ancient and modern temples

and other monuments that dot the extensive terrain, we would notice that

it is the goddesses more than the gods, who draw the interest of the

common man. A glance at the thousands of ancient temples of Hinduism,

Buddhism, and Jainism will reveal numerous attractive statues of young

uncovered women, but rarely if ever do we find nude statues of men.

Many of these statues are of goddesses, They are excellent warriors,

musicians, and dancers, and they usually tend to act on their own without

reference to any male deity.

The Indus Valley Civilization or Harappan Civilization was a

civilization during the Bronze Age. (3000-1900 BCE) It reached from

Pakistan and Afghanistan to India.

The Indus Valley is one of the world's earliest urban civilizations,

along with its contemporaries, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt.

It flourished in the basins of the Indus River, one of the major rivers of

Asia, and the now dried up Sarasvati River

At its peak, the Indus Civilization may have had a population of

more than 5 million.

Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley developed new

techniques in handicraft (carnelian products, seal carving) and

metallurgy (copper, bronze, lead, and tin).

The Indus cities are noted for their urban planning, baked brick

houses, elaborate drainage systems, water supply systems, and

clusters of large non-residential buildings.

The major sites of the Indus Valley Civilization fl 2600–1900 BCE in Pakistan, India and

Afghanistan

The most important terracotta figure in the Indus

Valley Civilization is the figure of Mother

Goddess.

This figure is crude standing female adorned

with necklaces hanging over prominent

breasts and wearing a loin cloth and a girdle.

The most distinct feature of the mother

goddess figurines is a fan-shaped head-dress

with a cup-like projection on each side.

The rest of the facial figures are very crude

and distant from being realistic.

A small and delicate terracotta of a seated

female goddess with bird-like features,

her hair rolled into two vertical buns,

large breasted,

and wearing an elaborate necklace with

medallions.

Superb modeling. Feet at ankles.

Size is 3" x 1.5" x 1". Custom stand.

(Indus Valley, Mohenjo-Daro Goddess

Figure, c. 2700-2400 BC)

Mother Goddess of terracotta

figure of a naked seated female

with

joined hands supporting

prominent breasts,

wearing a large banded collar and

D-shaped headdress bent in the

upper part.

47 grams, 81mm (3 1/4").

3rd millennium BC.

Mother Goddess of terracotta figurine

with flexed arms and legs,

large D-shaped headdress with recessed

eyes and applied nose,

neck decorated by a multi-strand collar.

31 grams, 91mm (3 1/2").

3rd millennium BC.

(Ref; Ex David Gold collection; by repute from a group catalogued by the late Professor Lambert in the 1980s.)

A seated terracotta figure of a nude female

with large ornamented necklace,

joined hands under prominent breasts,

features of the face indicated by

pinched nose and indented eyes;

elaborate hairstyle in the form wavy

hair pulled up into two buns either

side of the head.

43 grams, 10.5cm (4").

3rd millennium BC.

Female figurine with a pannier

headdress from Harappa.

Some of the female figurines are

very ornate with elaborate

headdresses, chokers and/or

necklaces, and decorated multiple-

strand belts.

The fan-shaped headdresses

sometimes have panniers or cup-like

attachments on either side of the

head and depictions of flowers

added at the top or sides of the head.

Dancing Girl This is one of the best known artifacts from the

Indus Valley.

It’s a four-inch-high copper figure, found in Mohenjodaro.

It depicts a girl whose long hair is tied in a bun.

Bangles cover her left arm, a bracelet and an amulet or

bangle adorn her right arm, and a cowry shell necklace is

seen around her neck.

Her right hand is on her hip and her left hand is clasped.

She is resting her weight on one leg in a very natural fashion,

as in the contrapposto techniques of later sculptures.

The girls seem to be in what is called Tribhanga posture.

The jaunty manner and liveliness of the figure are

remarkable.

She is full of expression and bodily vigour and conveys a lot

of information. Terracotta Sculptures in Indus Valley There

terracotta images are inferior in the depiction of the human

forms in comparison to the copper and bronze images of the

Indus Valley.

Dancer in repose (21st century BC) Indus Valley art - found in Mohenjo-daro site

A FINE INDUS VALLEY FERTILITY

GODDESS, ca. 3rd-2nd millennium

BC.

The gray terracotta goddess with

outstretched arms and ornate headdress

and necklace, nude except for a strapped

ornament falling over her ample breasts

to pubic area.

4.75 c 6.25 inches.

Extremely rare with excellent detail and

the finest example we've carried.

On custom stand.

This figurine was found in the

ancient city of Mojenjo-Daro.

Most human figurines found

in the ruins of that culture are

feminine which indicates that

women had a high standing in

that society.

INDUS VALLEY FERTILITY IDOLS, c. 3rd millennium BC. Rare busts of the Great

Mother fertility goddess with nice detail from the early civilizations of the Indus Valley.

Size averages 1.5 x 2 inches.

Terracotta Mother

Goddess figurine.

2500-2000 BC

Indus Valley

Civilization (Source

The British Museum)

AN INDUS VALLEY TORSO,

HALF ANIMAL-HALF

WOMAN, ca. 3rd - 2nd

millennium BC. With pressed

mouth, standing erect with the

head of an animal and human

breasts. 1.9 x 2.4 inches. Rare

type.

AN INDUS VALLEY TORSO,

HALF MONKEY-HALF

WOMAN, ca. 3rd- 2nd millennium

BC. With pressed and incised

details, her right hand clasping her

breast.

2.1 x 2.4 inches. Rare type.

AN INDUS VALLEY FERTILITY

FIGURE, ca. 3rd- 2nd

millennium BC. Seated male

figure with applied eyes

and mouth and

outstretched arms. 2.8

inches. An especially

expressive figure full of life.

Rare. Free standing.

AN INDUS VALLEY TORSO

OF A FERTILITY

GODDESS, ca. 3rd- 2nd

millennium BC. With applied

eyes and mouth and

outstretched arms, long braid

of hair down back of head. 1.7

x 2.2 inches. Ancient

cleanable soil deposits. Scarce.

Free standing.

AN INDUS VALLEY HEAD

OF A FERTILITY

GODDESS, ca. 3rd- 2nd

millennium BC. With applied

eyes and mouth and incised

hair detail. 2 x 2 inches.

Unusual example with

remains of black paint (four

vertical lines) on reverse.

Scarce.

Summary of Bronze age/Indus Valley Mother Goddesses

In the ruins of the Indus Valley Civilization of Harappa and Mohenjadaro,

hundreds of little female figurines have been discovered. Some are inefficiently

made of terracotta, while others are ingeniously made of bronze, as for example the

famous ‘dancing girl.’

The male statues in comparison are rather few in number, and some scholars have

expressed the view that there was perhaps a female statue existent in every house.

The Indus Valley people had a primitive religious system. The main goddess was a

mother goddess representing fertility, they also worshiped animals.

On a seal their is a figure sitting in a yoga-like position and is thought to be an early

representation of a Hindu god

These female figurines are not at all like the so-called Venus figurines

discovered in pre-historic Europe.

Very few of the Indus Valley figurines emphasize the breasts, hips, or

genital areas. Although there are some of this type, most of the Indus

Valley figures are found to be slim, often small breasted or having

pointed breasts.

Many are of unfeminine build, appearing very boyish. A few have

very constricted waists, pointed breasts and flared hips, reminiscent of

the way female figures were portrayed in later Hinduism.

A striking feature of most of these figurines is the well articulated

head. The coiffures are usually very intricate, and head ornaments or

even horns might be shown in addition to hair.

After Indus civilaization

This Devi is Vasudhara, the goddess of wealth and abundance. She is

worshiped in Nepal in the Himalaya Mountains by Buddhists. She has

six hands.

One of the most popular goddess among

Buddhists is Tara who is adored for

protection from evil and to overcome

obstacles. Her name is derived from the verb

tara, meaning "to cross," for she enables the

devotee to cross the ocean of existence.

She is regally ornamented with a flamboyant,

jewel-encrusted crown secured by elaborate,

fluttering ribbons, and her lotus is seen at her left

shoulder. Her hands are imprinted with

auspicious symbols; one makes the gesture of

teaching, while the other is lowered in the wish-

granting gesture.

Sarasvati is perhaps the most

ancient (1300 BC) goddess that is

still widely worshipped today.

She is the Hindu muse: the

inspiration for all music, poetry,

drama, dance and science.

Musicians pray to her before

performing and students ask for her

help before taking a test.

She is the wife of Brahma, the

creator god who is rarely worshipped

anymore.

Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth,

prosperity and luck, so naturally she is quite

popular.

She provides not only material wealth, but

also good health and a joyful family life.

She was born from the milky ocean seated on

a lotus and holding a blossom in her hand.

In Hindu art, she is always smiling kindly.

She wears a red sari and coins rain down

from two of her hands.

In her other two hands she holds lotuses,

representing the spiritual gifts she bestows.

Lakshmi's husband is Vishnu

Lakshmi on the Coin

1. Lakshmi seated left

on a stool, holding

a cornucopia

(bereket) and

diadem, /taç

Brāhmī legend at

right: Samudraguptah

2. The goddess Laksmi

seated facing, holding

diadem and lotus.

Chandra Gupta II.

Parvati is the dark-skinned wife of Shiva

and the mother of Ganesh and Skanda.

Parvati is the Hindu goddess of love,

fertility and devotion. She is the goddess

of divine strength and power.

She is also the animating force that

brings skill, power, prowess, and genius

while she infuses the world with her

magic.

Parvati is depicted in art as a mature and

beautiful woman, usually with Shiva

Kali's name means "She who is

black.«

She is often associated with death and

with violence.

She is generally shown half-naked,

with a garland of skulls, a belt of

severed limbs and waving fierce

weapons with most of her 10 hands.

Often, two of Kali's hands are empty

and show the gestures of protection and

fearlessness.

Her tongue is stuck out to swallow up

evil and negative thoughts

Durga is the great Warrior Goddess

She is depicted in Hindu art as riding

on a lion or a tiger.

She has many arms and is always

brandishing a variety of weapons and

attacking the buffalo demon Mahisha.

The four-day-long Durga Puja is the

biggest annual festival in Bengal,

Assam

Her battles against evil are told in

popular Hindu stories and it is said that

hearing the stories cleanses one from

sin.

A big

Thank You to everybody

for nice cooperation