11'' Lord Hayagreeva with Goddess Lakshmi | Madhuchista Vidhana (Lost-Wax) | Panchaloha Bronze from Swamimalai

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This ‘panchaloha’ bronze image of what is literally described as the ‘horse-neck’ avatar of Vishnu, Hayagriva is seen seated gracefully with his consort Lakshmi – a form which to this day remains the presiding deity of the Parakala Mutt of Mysore. Vaishnava tradition has detailed several stories regarding the presence of Hayagriva, the god of knowledge and wisdom: from Vishnu incarnating as him to slay the Danavas during the epic Taraka-battle to participating in the Mahabharata with a body that combined the strength of Shiva, Brahma, Marichi, Agni, Satya, Varuna, and Rudras.

Presented as he is in this sculptural image from Swamimalai, Hayagriva’s iconography – taken from Vedanta Deshika’s ‘dhyana-shloka’ – presents him with a white head, white garments, and seated on a white lotus, all signifying the purity of knowledge and its triumph along with divine grace over the forces of darkness. In the gracefully regal ‘lalitasana,’ with his right leg dangling towards the ground, he presents his hand in the ‘abhaya mudra’ or fear-dispelling posture, holds Lakshmi with the other, and handles Vishnu’s ‘shankha’ and ‘sudarshana chakra.’ With the ornately dressed Lakshmi seated on his lap, we see her holding a ‘padma’ or lotus in her right hand – symbolising notions of knowledge, fortune, and spiritual liberation.
The element of knowledge is resolutely present with the legend of Hayagriva, especially in the Shakta tradition, where Vishnu is seen to have taken the form of Hayagriva to recover the Vedas that were stolen by the demons Madhu-Kaitabha, from Brahma. Vishnu as Hayagriva is also considered to have complied the Vedas and is moreover understood to be one of the Dashavataras. Hayagriva’s connection with such texts is further witnessed in the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam, where his abode is associated with children’s education.