Shiva as Ling in Yogasana

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Instead of being completely abstract as was the art of the preceding generations of the modern artists in India and Europe, or a miniature-like narrative or descriptive, this painting relies on forms but to create out of them a wider image than what these forms seem to actually portray, and thus, to extract from them a wider meaning. This painting’s focal point is the ‘ling’ icon, which is obviously the Shiva-ling. ‘Ling’ is Shiva’s aniconic form in worship now for some five thousand years, the earliest examples reported from Indus excavations dated around 3000 B.C. The Shiva-ling icon consists of two parts : ‘ling’ and ‘yoni’, ‘ling’, the aniconic manifestation of Shiva, installed in/on ‘yoni’, the symbolic representation of Parvati. In later Lingayat cult ‘ling’ was added with some degree of anthropomorphism. It now began having faces too, sometimes just one, but also more up to five corresponding to Shiva’s iconic form with faces, one to five. Simultaneous to this there emerged in Shaivite worship tradition the cult of adorning the Shiva-ling with a ‘Tri-punda’ mark. This obviously saw a face in an aniconic Shiva-ling which was otherwise without a face.

Besides attributing to the Shiva-ling its role as ‘ling’, which is creation, the artist has so manipulated its form that it reveals a rare kind of Shiva’s anthropomorphism – an image as also one of its main manifestations. From the earliest times, that is obviously Indus days, besides his aniconic ‘ling’ form, in his iconic form Shiva manifests as Yogi engaged in penance. Time and again Puranas, too, allude to him as often retiring to forest and engaging into penance. Using rare imagination this painting : a vision of Shiva, realises him not only as ‘ling’ but also as Yogi engaged in meditation. The Shiva-ling part of the image has been installed over a pair of legs with upwards turned feet as in the ‘yogasana’ : a usual seating posture that ascetics take to when engaged in meditation or penance. The ‘ling’-form, rising over these legs, looks like the body’s upper part. More than a mere ritual mark the ‘Tripunda’ affords the ‘ling’ a strange sense of having a face, and correspondingly a form, though manifestly it does not have any. The analogy goes farther with the tiger-skin which the two legs have under them. Shiva is known to have always used tiger-skin to sit on when undergoing penance or meditation, or even otherwise.

However, such transformation of the Shiva-ling into his anthropomorphic vision does not affect the ling’s creative role which is its primary cosmic function and is incessant. The white substance discharging from the ling’s top in the painting is suggestive of the act of coition – the endless creative process which reflects in Shiva’s union with Parvati manifesting in Shiva-ling form, ‘ling’ symbolising Shiva, and ‘yoni, Parvati. Metaphysically, Shiva is the ‘Purusha’ – the enlivening force, and Parvati, ‘Prakriti’, the matter, capable of taking to any form. In this painting, the artist has sought to plant body’s lower half at the ling’s root – a scheme under which elimination of ‘yoni’, Shiva-ling’s other component and its feminine aspect, becomes indispensable. Lest it impaired the ling’s basic cosmic role : the incessant act of creation, the artist has so managed his canvas that the male principle : ‘ling’, unites direct with Prakriti – the Parvati’s manifest form and as symbolic of her as ‘Yoni’. The artist has planted over the top of the ‘ling’ a mythical animal that symbolises the character of creative passion which even in Shiva is as intense and uncontrollable as in an animal.

This description by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr. Daljeet. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of literature and is the author of numerous books on Indian art and culture. Dr. Daljeet is the curator of the Miniature Painting Gallery, National Museum, New Delhi. They have both collaborated together on a number of books.

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Oil painting technique – India centric

Oil painting is the most interesting technique in art. Unlike other paintings or art forms, oil painting is a process in which colored pigments are painted on the canvas with a drying oil medium as a binder. This medium helps colors blend beautifully to create layers and also makes them appear rich and dense. Several varieties of oil are used in this painting such as sunflower oil, linseed oil, etc., and depending on the quality of the oil, a particular consistency of the paint is developed. With the use of an oil medium, the painting gets a natural sheen on the surface which appears extremely attractive. India is famous for its old tradition of making oil paintings. This art form was brought by Europeans in the 18th century and is now practiced by almost all well-known artists. Nirmal, a small tribal town in the state of Telangana is the center of traditional oil paintings in India where the local people practice it with dedication. Most Indian artists still use the traditional technique of oil painting.

Canvas of the required size is prepared

The artists use either a wood panel or canvas made from linen or cotton. Sometimes the canvas is stretched onto the wooden frame to form a solid base, or cardboard may be used. The canvas is coated with a layer of white paint or chalk mixed with animal glue. This mixture is then smoothed and dried to form a uniform, textured surface. The wooden panel is more expensive and heavier but its solidity is an advantage in making detailed paintings with ease.

Sketch is drawn on the canvas

Now the artist starts to draw the subject of the painting on the canvas using the actual charcoal or a charcoal pencil. Sometimes, he may sketch with thinned paint as well.

Oil paint is applied using paint brushes or palette knives

Now that the rough sketch is prepared, the artist is now ready to paint. Oil paint, a special paint that contains particles of pigments suspended in a drying oil (usually linseed oil), is again mixed with oil to make it thinner for applying it on the canvas. Proper consistency of the paint is maintained to avoid its breakage. The most important rule for the application of oil paint is “Fat over lean” in which the first layer of paint is thin and later, thicker layers are applied. This means that each additional layer of paint contains more oil. This results in getting a stable paint film. Traditionally, paint was applied using paint brushes but now the artists also use palette knives to create crisp strokes. To paint using this technique, the edge of the palette knife is used to create textured strokes that appear different from that of a paintbrush. Sometimes, oil paints are blended simply using fingers for getting the desired gradation.

Smaller oil paintings, with very fine detail, are relatively easier to paint than larger ones. The most attractive feature of these paintings is the natural shiny appearance that is obtained on the surface because of the use of oil paint. The blending of colors looks extremely realistic and this is the reason why oil paintings are loved by everyone throughout the world.