This five-faced image, four on the obverse: one in the centre, two flanking on sides and one, on the top above the centre, and the fifth, on the reverse, a tough form to manage in a wood-piece, represents the five-faced and ten armed Heramba Ganapati, the guardian of all ten directions and the commander of five cosmic elements : water, fire, air, earth and ether, which under Indian cosmological tradition constitute the cosmos. The artist has not only wondrously managed all ten arms, gesticulated and holding one attribute or other, and five faces with elephant trunks on a single torso but has used them for creating a unique sense of rhythm, both ways when the eye travels horizontally, and when, vertically. Interestingly, the obverse has the appearance of Lord Ganesha’s four-faced form, and the reverse of three-faced, the faces on sides being equally the components of both, the three-faced and the four-faced.

Most skillfully, the artist has created all faces without sacrificing any of their essential components. A part or whole of the face in the centre on the obverse could be covered by the trunk of the face above it but it has been so skillfully turned upwards that neither it covers the face below not itself looks unrealistic. It covers a part of the crown of the central face : an essential element of Ganesha’s iconography, but the artist has created a tiny crown-form in the recessed part and thus beautifully compensated for the loss. The ears of the faces on sides could hinder the vision of the central face. He has hence so created the ears of the central face that they serve also as the ears for the faces on sides. The concept has been repeated verbatim on the reverse. Barring some forms, as the curves of hands turned to the obverse side, a flat back in place of a pot-belly, or the obverse-side turned feet, the image appears to be a well accomplished form of Ganapati in his three-faced manifestation identified in the tradition as Trimukha Ganapati. Perhaps not needed to be added, this dual manifestation of Lord Ganesha is dually auspicious and extends the benignity of the Great Lord in all directions.

Both forms, manifesting in the sculpture, Heramba Ganapati and Trimukha Ganapati, are two of the early thirty-two classical forms of Lord Ganesha that early texts, such as Mudgala Purana, Ganesha Purana, Ganesha Kosha among others, enumerate. Though iconography of Ganesha never allowed rigidity and besides the overlapping of forms – one overlapping the other, there has been a lot of experimentation in his image form, each of these early thirty-two forms of Lord Ganesha revealed a formal and spiritual distinction. The Pancha-mukha – five faced form of Lord Ganesha that this classical tradition identifies as Heramba Ganapati, is considered as one of Ganesha’s most mystic forms. Protector of the weak, bestowing bliss and effecting release, with his five faces and ten arms he is believed to pervade entire cosmos, all spaces and every direction, the worlds below and the skies above.

This image of Lord Ganesha carries in its ten hands, largely as texts prescribe for Heramba Ganapati image, elephant goads in two hands, and in the rest axe, broken tusk, laddu, hammer, hook, dagger and in other two, one on the right and other on the left, flowers, perhaps lotuses. This image has been carved in the wood’s natural colour symbolic of the colourless white, the body-complexion of Heramba Ganapati. The statue of Lord Ganesha has been installed on a lotus-pedestal, a substitute for lotus which according to some texts is the usual seat of Heramba Ganapati. Lotus symbolises abundance, prosperity, fertility and riches, and thereby benevolence of Lord Ganesha.His ten arms, five on either side, carved in perfect symmetry, surge as does a flag in mild winds. The statue has been carved with fine details. Ripples-like pleated antariya, exceptionally ornamental sash releasing from around his waist, a broad girdle composed of phalis and beaded laces supporting the antariya, belly-band and the ‘naga-bandha’ – serpent-band tied around the belly, the Vaijayanti like long lace with decorative frill, and every piece of other ornaments, all are simply gorgeous.

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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Sculpting Serenity: Unveiling the Art of Crafting Wood Statues

Wood has been a preferred material for sculptures and statues since ancient times. It is easy to work with than most metals and stones and therefore requires less effort to shape it into any desired shape or form. The texture of the wood gives an element of realism to the sculpture. The selection of an appropriate wood type is necessary for carving. Woods that are too resinous or coniferous are not considered good for carving as their fiber is very soft and thus lacks strength. On the other hand, wood such as Mahogany, Oakwood, Walnut wood, Weet cherry wood, etc., are preferred by sculptors because their fiber is harder. A wood sculptor uses various tools such as a pointed chisel in one hand and a mallet in another to bring the wood to the desired measurement and to make intricate details on it. A carving knife is used to cut and smooth the wood. Other tools such as the gouge, V-tool, and coping saw also serve as important tools in wood carving. Although the wood carving technique is not as complex and tough as stone carving or metal sculpting, nonetheless, a wood carver requires a high level of skills and expertise to create a stunning sculpture.

1. Selecting the right wood

The process of wood carving begins with selecting a chunk of wood that is required according to the type and shape of the statue to be created by the sculptor. Both hardwoods and softwoods are used for making artistic pieces, however, hardwoods are preferred more than softer woods because of their durability and longevity. But if heavy detailing is to be done on the statue, wood with fine grain would be needed as it would be difficult to work with hardwood.

2. Shaping the wood

Once the wood type is selected, the wood carver begins the general shaping process using gouges of various sizes. A gouge is a tool having a curved cutting edge which is useful in removing large unwanted portions of wood easily without splitting the wood. The sculptor always carves the wood across the grain of the wood and not against it.

3. Adding detailing

When a refined shape of the statue is obtained, it is time for making details on the statue using different tools. This is achieved by using tools such as a veiner to make and a V-tool to create decorative and sharp cuts.

4. Surface finishing

Once finer details have been added, the sculptor is ready to smoothen the surface and give it a perfect finish. Tools such as rasps and rifflers are used to get a smooth surface. The finer polishing is obtained by rubbing the surface with sandpaper. If a textured surface is required, this step is skipped. Finally, to protect the statue from excessive dirt accumulation, the sculptor applies natural oils such as walnut or linseed oil all over it. This also brings a natural sheen to the statue.