CHAPTER I.
" 'T'HE arts of India are the illustration of the religious life of the
Hindus, as that life was already organized in full perfection
" under the Code of Manu, B. C. 900--300
Every detail of
*' Indian decoration has a religious meaning, and the arts of India will " never be rightly understood until these are brought to their study, not
*'only the sensibility which can appreciate them at first sight, but a,
^' familiar acquaintance with the character and subjects of the religious
" poetry,
national
legends,
and
mythological
sci*iptures that have always
^* been their inspiration and of which they are the perfected imagery."
By this statement Sir George Birdwood commits himself to the
opinion that Indian art means Hindu art, and that none but Pandits are
competent to comprehend and expound its canons : in short, that as far
as Indian art is concerned, Greek, Scythian, Arab, Pathdn, Persian, and Mughal might never have existed.
This unfortunate contention has been subjected to many criticisms, and those who are inclined to side with the critics in maintaining that the traditionary arts of India have been greatly influenced by foreign ideas will find no better refutation of Sir George Birdwood's theory than the state of the arts, and notably of wood-carving, in the United
Provinces.
Lying in the path of Muhammadan invasion and close to the centre of the Mughal dominion, the United Provinces and the Panjdb felt the full eflects of conquest. Partly owing to the force of example and partly to the system of vexatious Hindu ordinances, the traditional principles of Hindu art lost their hold on the inhabitants. The result is specially noticeable in wood-carving, sculpture, and architecture. To find characteristic Hindu work it is necessary to go further afield to regions where indigenous art was safeguarded by geographical condi- -- tions to Nepdl or Southern India.
Monograph on Wood Carving. There is no possibility of confounding characteristic Hindu and Muhammadan work. The former, like Burmese work, is marked by- grotesque and extravagant fantasy : the latter by a cold and geometric severity. The canons of Muhammadan art forbid the portrayal of human forms and of most animals. The Hindu worker, on the other hand, delights in a profuse entanglement of monstrous and unnatural figures. The fact that much wood-carving is architectural in character supplies other useful indications. The pointed eaoch. (mehrdh), the minaret, and the rounded pillar are Muhammadan characteristics. Square pillars, trabeated arches, "and brackets are features of Hindu design. In Muhammadan wood-carving the place of fantastic Hindu orna- mentation is filled by a free use of geometric diapers ; and whereas Hindu work is as a rule deeply undercut, Muhammadan work is marked by flatness of relief. If these data be applied to the wood-carving of these Provinces, it becomes apparent that the work is predominantly Muhammadan in character. Hindu traditions, however, did not yield without a struggle, but inspired in the conquerors a taste for rich surface ornament and induced a greater latitude with regard to the carving of animal forms. To gratify a Hindu patron a Muhammadan mistri will readily accommo- date himself to Hindu prejudices and carve the figure of Ganesh over the lintel of a door. In this part of India, Ganesh, the wise elephantheaded god, is the only figure commonly seen on carved doors ; so far have the Hindu barhais renounced their traditions. -- Sir George Bird wood writes : "In India, the Rdmaydna and Mahd- bhdrata, Rdma and Sita, Hanumdn and Rdvana, Vishnu and the Garuda, Krishna and Rddha, and the Kauravas and Pandavas are everywhere in sculptured stone about the temples and on the carved woodwork of houses." True as this undoubtedly is of Bombay and Southern India, it conveys a false impression with regard to the general features of
Monograph on Wood Carving. architectural decoration in the Panjab and the United Provinces. So deep has Muhammadan influence sunk that even in Ajodhya, the birthplace of Ram Chandra, the carved wood-work presents no image of the ever- popular hero with his bow. Carved portraits of other divinities undoubtedly occur here and there in Ajodhya. For instance there is a carved chaukat in the Mahdrdja's palace which contains no less than eight figures. But each god is placed in a separate niche (tdq), and the general design of the door is based on the mehrdh and is pure Muhammadan, even to the extent of including the Royal Fish, the symbol of the old Nawdbs. , As a rule very little wood-carving is found in the interior of Hindu temples. Images and sacred objects of wood could not resist the wear and tear which puja involves, nor would they be a suitable subject for the paint which is so liberally scattered on festive occasions The temples of Benares, however,, contain big wooden images of Siva and also a good deal of very characteristic Nepilese wood-carving, the presence of which is due to the fact that Hindu pilgrims flock in great numbers to Benares from Nepdl and are great supporters of Siva's shrines.