This style of image with three faces and six arms seems to have emerged around the early sixteenth century. In his ‘Gurucharitra’, a text dated 1550 AD, Saraswati Gangadhara alludes to the worship of the three-faced and six-armed images of Dattatreya.
He also talks of the figure of a cow behind him and four dogs in front. Obviously, this image, now completely rigidified, had emerged in popular worship sometime before 1550 AD.
The three faces represented Brahma whom Soma incarnated, Vishnu, he himself incarnated, and Shiva whom Durvasas incarnated.
In his image in this brass statue, besides his normal right hand held in ‘abhaya’, in his other five hands he is represented as carrying the essential attributes of the Great Trinity, usually Brahma’s ‘kamandala’ – pot with a spout, Vishnu’s ‘shankha’ – conch, and ‘chakra’ – disc, and Shiva’s trident and ‘damaru’ – double drum.
The cow behind him is symbolic of the earth, and thereby, of the entire space that he protects as Vishnu, and four dogs in the foreground symbolising perhaps time’s four parts, four eons or four parts of the solar day, the ‘ chara-praharas’. As per ‘Gurucharitra’, Dattatreya was worshipped those days as Parabrahma – Transcendental God. Exactly as prescribed in the iconographic tradition of Dattatreya, his figure consists of three faces, the central one with the Vaishnava ‘tilaka’ mark being that of Vishnu, while that on the left with the ‘tripunda’ – the auspicious forehead mark with three horizontal lines, and the ‘trinetra’ – third eye, that of Shiva, and on the right with a crescent-like mark, that of Brahma.
All three faces have almost identical coiffures, though that on the left representing Shiva has attached to it the crescent and the river Ganga emerging from it. The normal right hand is held in ‘abhaya’ and the upper two hold conch and ‘damaru’; those on the left are carrying disc, trident, and ‘kamandala’. Like a mendicant moving from one place to another, the image is carrying on its left shoulder a shoulder bag, typical of mendicants. Dattatreya is represented as wearing an ‘antariya’, a sash, a few ornaments on his neck, arms and wrists and the usual wooden slippers on his feet. The image has in the background a cow and four dogs, two flanking on either side.
How to keep a Brass statue well-maintained?
Brass statues are known and appreciated for their exquisite beauty and luster. The brilliant bright gold appearance of Brass makes it appropriate for casting aesthetic statues and sculptures. Brass is a metal alloy composed mainly of copper and zinc. This chemical composition makes brass a highly durable and corrosion-resistant material. Due to these properties, Brass statues and sculptures can be kept both indoors as well as outdoors. They also last for many decades without losing all their natural shine.
Brass statues can withstand even harsh weather conditions very well due to their corrosion-resistance properties. However, maintaining the luster and natural beauty of brass statues is essential if you want to prolong their life and appearance.
In case you have a colored brass statue, you may apply mustard oil using a soft brush or clean cloth on the brass portion while for the colored portion of the statue, you may use coconut oil with a cotton cloth.
Brass idols of Hindu Gods and Goddesses are especially known for their intricate and detailed work of art. Nepalese sculptures are famous for small brass idols portraying Buddhist deities. These sculptures are beautified with gold gilding and inlay of precious or semi-precious stones. Religious brass statues can be kept at home altars. You can keep a decorative brass statue in your garden or roof to embellish the area and fill it with divinity.
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