Devimahatmya manuscript page: The Goddess Ambika fights a host of demons

Accession Number
1970/2.148

Title
Devimahatmya manuscript page: The Goddess Ambika fights a host of demons

Artist(s)
Nepali

Object Creation Date
circa 1725

Medium & Support
ink and opaque watercolor on paper

Dimensions
4 5/8 in. x 8 1/16 in. ( 11.75 cm x 20.48 cm )

Credit Line
Museum purchase, Acquisition Fund

Label copy
The Devimahatmya is a religious text that explains the origins and powers of Devi—an all-encompassing term for the goddess in her many forms. When the world was threatened by hordes of demons and the gods found themselves overwhelmed, they implored the goddess to come to their defense. The gods endowed her with their own attributes and weapons, so that she became greater than the sum of them all and invincible in combat. In this scene from a Nepali manuscript, the ten-armed goddess Ambika is shown astride her lion, subduing demons who attack on foot and in chariots.
Exhibited in "Divine Encounters, Earthly Pleasures: Twenty Centuries of Indian Art," 12/12/03-2/22/04.

Primary Object Classification
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
Demons
Himalayan
Weaponry
cart
horses
lions
weapons
wheel

& Author Notes

Web Use Permitted