This extremely fine piece of canvas depicts, however with a difference, a white 'Pashu-kunjara', a myth of artistic creation. This 'Pashu-kunjara' has the grace, elegance and likeness of Airavata, the celestial white elephant of Indra who in Indian tradition rules heaven and is the chief of gods. A 'Pashu-kunjara' has been quite in vogue in medieval Indian art, but its elevation into the celestial being of heavenly origin and thereby blending mythology with art experimentalism is certainly a new development. This 'Pashu-kunjara' appears to be an unearthly being not only by the colour of its skin but also by its size, for a normal elephant merges into its form just like one of its members and a leopard amounts to nothing more than a part of its leg.
Milk-white is not the usual colour of an elephant's skin. It is, hence, only after a minute examination that the elephant form is revealed. The artist has selected animals with white skin - cows, bulls, calves, antelopes, rabbits, horses, donkeys, monkeys, fish etc. for creating out of them the major anatomy of his 'kunjara'. Forms of animals with coloured skin emerge in his visualisation only where he had to portray his Pashu-kunjara's 'hawda' and other articles used for saddling it. The animals piled for creating the Pashu-kunjara have a very wide range from an elephant, tiger, lion, leopard, panther, bull, horse, boar, monkey to fish, snake, rabbits and bucks of various kinds. A human figure blowing a trumpet is riding the 'Kunjara'. The figure has around its face a golden halo and on its head a stag's horns.
On the upper side of the canvas the artist has painted an elephant ring consisting of three elephant figures one towards its bottom and other two on its right and left and a large cock with wide spread feathers coiling around the entire ring on ring's top. The cock and the elephant below it have wings as the fairies are usually conceived with, though those of the cock are red mixed with magenta and green-black of the elephant. This winged elephant is a blend of an elephant and a lion. Other two elephants are normal save a few reptile type creatures creeping out of their figures. The artist has used soft colours in light tones against a plain turquoise background and inside a bright rich golden border for achieving his effects. The border, though only on three sides, with its vigorous animal figures and motifs of plants and flowers painted in lavish gold impart to the painting exceptional grandeur.
This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of ancient Indian literature. Dr Daljeet is the chief curator of the Visual Arts Gallery at the National Museum of India, New Delhi. They have both collaborated on numerous books on Indian art and culture.
Of Related Interest:
Pashu-Kunjar - The Battle of the Elephants (Miniature Painting on Old Urdu Manuscript Paper)
Nari-Kunjara (Stone Color on Old Manuscript Paper with Real Gold Work)
Composite Composition (Chamba School)
Composite Animal - The Bard (Miniature Painting on Old Urdu Paper)
The Horse-Puzzle (Stone Color on Old Paper with Real Gold Work)
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