Durga Mahasnana

PRELUDE

Hailed in scriptures as the ‘ashwamedha of kali yuga’ , durgotsav has obsessed me since the earliest years of my life . And the ritual of mahasnana is perhaps the most spectacular of all the rites of this great festival . I have been contemplating to paint this extravaganza on paper for a long time . Finally in monsoons of 2018 we went on a monsoon trek to Sikkim through the mighty Kanchendzonga national park .  It was not the best time of the year to trek and certainly not the most hospitable , nor was it the tourist season . But the experience that we had in the next few days would stay with me throughout my life and provided me with the inspiration to paint this work . We saw dense forests painted deep in sap green . Skies darkened with rain clouds and floating mist playing hide and seek all around us . The ferns , moss , toadstools decked up the forests and a thick smell of rotting leaves and wild blossoms hung heavy in the air . Water flowed down from all sides . It came down in a thousand streams , cutting across the muddy mountain slopes . It rain wildly over the foot trails . It dripped away incessantly from the canopy of leaves above your head . It showered from the clouds in the heavens . It hovered around the empty space in form of clouds. It was, quite literally , the kingdom of greens and water ! “If this is not ‘mahasnana’ I do not know what is !! “ – I thought to myself  ! Perhaps some ancient forgotten rishi sitting alone in his mountain cave saw some similar sight in a similar monsoon noon which made him create the poetry that is mahasnana !

THE BATH

The mahansnana takes place on the last three days of durgotsav , namely saptami ashtami and navami . Once the deity has been infused to life force , she must be cared for as a human guest where regular bath is a part of the daily routine . But this is no ordinary guest and hence her bath is no ordinary bath . Items required for her bath is diverse and complex. You need water from all pilgrimages , water of dew drops , water from the rains , from Saraswati river , from a well , from waterfalls of the mountains , from nadis(female rivers) and nadas(male rivers) . You need medicinal herbs , lotus pollen , fragrant items such as agaru(oud) , sandal or kasturi (musk) . You need gemstones , gold , silver and panchamrita. You need various kinds of earth or clay to be used as her soap . This list includes earth from doorstep of a courtesan’s home , from the kings palace and from doorway to a temple . Durgotsav being a festival for all eradicates any differences between social stratas . Then you have specific ragas and raaginis that are to be applied as you sing along specific mantras with specific musical instruments to bathe the goddess ! For example ‘indra-abhishek vaadya’ is the sound of the veena . So on and so forth . It was truly a ritual that befits a king ! No wonder that the mahasnana ritual in its original format is today extinct . Simplified and symbolic mahasnana is still conducted across the pujas , and even that takes around 2 hours to finish !

Very few are even aware of the existence of such a ritual , let alone know about its beauty and poeticism . Through this painting I have tried to show to the world this majestic ritual , which is largely unknown and unappreciated . I have tried to capture the inherent mystic poeticism of the mahasnana mantras . But even then , I have had to simplify many a thing for the want of space or to maintain general sense of aesthetics . But given the vastness and complexity of the topic , I think a sort of guide or manual is of utmost importance in order to truly understand it and savour the ‘rasa’ or nectar ! Hence here am I offering you a brief insight in mahasnana , the ritual and how I framed it’s spirit in the painting …

THE ART

On the extreme top of the painting you see the inverted arch of the horizon which serves the purpose of ‘sahasra-dhaaraa’ , the thousand holed water shower which is ritually used in durgotsav . Inside you see water from rains mingling with waters from waterfalls and rivers to shower down on the goddess who stands beneath inside the chandi mandapa . Inside the sahashra-dhaaraa arch you have the leading rivers of India . On the two extreme ends you have forests from where medicinal herbs and honey is gathered . And you can also see two spinning wheels of time – the endless kala chakra with lunar and season cycles , to denote the endless cosmic continuity of the rituals . Under this you have a half man half bird kinnaras , apsaraas , vidyaadharas , gandharvas and other celestial beings floating through the clouds . Under them to the left hand side you have chaturvyuha murti of Vishnu – four expansions of narayana along with brahma Vishnu Maheshwar and Jagannath . Under them are the virtues personified and considered the 14 wives of dharma . Just below them are the navagrahas or planets . To the right hand side of the painting under the forest are the ten guardian deities of the ten directions . Underneath stands the ayudha purushas – personifications of the various weapons of the goddess , who have come to bathe her . Right under the weapons are a set of eight goddesses mentioned in a mantra . Below them are the rishis munis collecting water from the pilgrimages and cows offering their milk in bath . Still below are the dakinis dancing to music and the raagas and raaginis lined up with the asta-kalashas on their head , as the paint purohitas sit and do the puja . The lower most panel depicts the demons and nagas of the netherworld united in worship of the goddess along with the king and two dhaaki drummers  playing on either side .

In real rituals the main earthen deity cannot be bathed . The reflection of the clay image in taken in a mirror and that reflection is bathed instead . That mirror can be seen in the painting right in the center . Both the bath and the mirror are metaphors. Like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had said – “cheto-darpana-marjanam “– clean the mirror of your consciousness . That is the real message of mahasnana . As the created cosmos is nothing but prakriti herself , whatever we offer is also devi . To whom we offer is also devi . And who offers is also devi . “Sarva rupa mayee devi , sarvam devi mayam jagat “ ! So in the end , in our efforts to bathe the goddess it is we who end up in cleansing ourselves . Free from impurities to a higher realm of consciousness !

Note: Each Pouraniki artwork is delivered as a rolled up print wrapped in paper and a protective sheath. A print is never delivered framed unless a request is specially placed at concierge@karu.co.in