| Antique
Indian Bronze Buddha Statue
Ganesha
Dancing God of
Wealth
India, circa: 19th century
H
8 in.(20cm.), W 5.5 in.(14cm.), D 4 in.(10cm.)
Condition: covered in oil tar, o.a. excellent Ganesh,
the most popular god in the Hindu pantheon, is worshipped by Hindus, Buddhists
and Jainists alike. The elephant headed god appears in India before even Shiva,
and is a bringer of good fortune and wisdom, a remover of obstacles who is called
upon at the beginning of a journey or a new venture. He is also the protector
of knowledge, books and education. This sturdy, ebullient bronze is in the traditional
form of the god with his great belly symbolizing the expansive universe, around
which he wears a snake as a girdle as he dances atop a lotus holding a sweet (modaka)
to symbolize the sweetness of the realized inner self. In the hands behind him
he holds the ankusha (elephant goad) and the pasha (noose) to convey that worldly
attachments and desires are an entrapment.
Sold to Private
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