Hindu deity statue for comments

[francantolin]

Hello Everybody,

maybe somebody can help me with this bronze statue:

I think the statue represents Vishnu, ( from India ? Cambodia ? )
13,7 inches height.
Seems quite old.

in one upper hand, he holds a conch shell , in the second the chakra disc

but I don't really know about the two objects he holds in the low hands ?

Usually a mace and a lotus flower

but here it seems more a kind of knife ? and a ''flame' mace ??

Kind regards

Franco

'

[francantolin]

Seems not really happy for a vishnu god ...

[francantolin]

On the lower right arm of the statue ,
more a trident and not a flame,

Shiva symbol ?...

[bhushan_lawate]

Definitely not from the current state of India. looks like more from south east asia or Nepal.

Also, looks like a mix from different streams of iconography. while the upper two arms carry the distinct symbols of Vishnu (Chakra and Conch) the lower two arms seem to carry a trident and a sword (Khanda) which is a symbol of the Shiva pantheon of deities.

Thanks,
Bhushan

[francantolin]

Hello and Thank you Bushan !

I found this morning some informations about ''harihara''

deity half Shiva half Vishnu,

usually left side corresponding to one god, right side for the second,

but here it's up and down ...

Kind regards

[bhushan_lawate]

You are right. we may want to call it a Harihara - but cannot as the depiction of the weapons as well as the form of the idol in general does not conform with the norms of the Harihara.


on a side note the weapon in the lower arm also potentially looks like a Vajra - in that sense we might have to explore the pantheon of the Buddhist iconography of far east...!!! but this is just a speculation and I've no knowledge of the icons in Buddhist religion.

My guess is this is a mix created by some innovative mind
Thanks,
Bhushan

[francantolin]

Still thank you Bhushan for your precious comments !

I found a ( little ) similar khmer Angkor bronze statue of Vishnu

Sure mine can't be so old
But is it a really recent production ???

Any advice ?

Thank you

[bhushan_lawate]

My Apologies friend...!! this style of icons is not my area of specialization and so i cannot offer an opinion.

let us hope someone more knowledgeable than us is able to cast light on this and we all learn in the process...!!!

Thanks,
Bhushan

[Treeslicer]

IMHO, the statue looks Thai, 1700's or later. While I'm not up on the mythology involved, I do know that murti with mingled attributes like this are attested archaeologically going back to Khmer times in SE Asia, and that while Theravada Buddhism is the popular religion across the area (north of Malaysia, of course), Hinduism has been entwined into royal practices there down to the present day. The Thai monarchy still keeps some Hindu priests for certain ceremonies.

I also would not be surprised if this portrayal had some esoteric tantric significance.

[francantolin]

Thank you Treeslicer and Bhushan,

really interesting informations about hinduism in Thailand and tantric role,
hope is not too much charged with energies...

Kind regards

[francantolin]

I finally received it !

Here some more pics, the small sword is maybe an Acala sword ?

[Pukka Bundook]

Re. the Trisula in lower right hand;

"Trisula , from Trident,
Symbol of Siva.
None of the other weapons, -sword, axe, arrow, have a similar ritual significance.
Survivals found from Iron Age burials.
In Greek Tradition, the Trident is the lightning symjbol of Zeus, and this corresponds to the Indian concept of the Vajra / thunderbolt.
Such weapons being invariably missiles.
Indian tridents are held to have great magical power, being capable of overcoming the power of evil."
(Hindu Arms and Ritual, Rb't Elgood.)

Best,
Richard.

[francantolin]

Hello,
Bhushan told us already about the trident of Shiva but thanks a lot about all the informations.
I think the statue will come from Java, ( or Thai (re)production )
I found a lot of old javanese bronze ( like this one, Devi ) who looks like...