What are the origins of Indian art?

 

What are the origins of Indian art?

Culture and Art

Art is a wonderful quality of human life which can be learnt throughout life. The culture of any country is a symbol of its spiritual, scientific and artistic achievements. This culture indicates the mental development of that entire country. The respect of any country and its immortality depends on the culture of that country. The development of culture takes place through the coordination and organization of the soul and physical activities of the people of a country.

The form of culture molds according to the circumstances of the country and time. The history of Indian culture is very extensive. Indian culture developed in about five thousand years and this culture developed so highly in various fields that even today the world takes inspiration from many areas of Indian culture. The creation of culture is continuously transmitted in the past, present and future.

In human culture, artistic and spiritual development is as important as scientific achievements. In artistic development, mainly literature, art or craft, architecture, music, sculpture, dance and drama have special importance. Therefore, to study the culture of a country, knowledge of the arts of that country is absolutely necessary. Through art, the true image of the country, society, philosophy and science is reflected. If philosophy is the activity of the mind, then science is the activity of the body, but art is the activity of the human soul in which the feelings of both the mind and the body are contained. Therefore, art is the soul of human culture in which the soul of the country and time is expressed.

Criteria of Indian Art, Culture and Civilization

Art is an important part of culture which makes the human mind clear, beautiful and organized. In Indian arts, religious and philosophical beliefs have been expressed in a simple manner. In Indian visual arts, philosophical elements have been preserved in symbolic form and religious events have been reflected in detail. Thus, if culture is the soul of a country, then civilization is the body of that country. In every era, man has tried to achieve the ultimate limits of proficiency and efficiency, progress and vastness in his activities through his efforts for development, due to which his civilization has developed continuously. This civilization gives strength to the culture and by becoming a part of it, it keeps on taking its beliefs forward continuously. Thus, our lifestyle, mental development and lifestyle are the symbols of our civilization. The aim of every progressive artist is to use the new means, instruments and techniques developed by civilization. Thus, the artist's art works keep moving forward, changing, reflecting the traditional form of culture. The artist's techniques and functional forms gradually become prevalent in the society. One person adopts the artist's methods of creation by seeing the art of another. This process is called tradition. The prevalence of these cultural, social and artistic behaviors is called tradition. In this way, every country develops an art tradition which has an important place in the culture and civilization of that country.

The purpose of art in literature

In ancient Indian texts, four purposes of life have been mentioned: 1. Artha, 2. Kama, 3. Dharma and 4. Moksha. Therefore, the purpose of human arts is also considered to be the attainment of these means.

In the Chitrasutra of Vishnudharmottar Purana, it has been said like this –

 "Kalaanaam Pravar Chitram Dharmakamarthamokshadam."

That is, through art, one attains Dharma, Kama, Artha and Moksha. Similarly, in India, art is considered a means for the whole life, not 'art for art's sake'.

Unique features of Indian painting

Indian painting and other arts are different from the arts of other countries. There are some important characteristics of Indian arts which differentiate Indian arts from the arts of other countries. These characteristics are as follows-

1. Religiosity- Indian arts were born with religion and every religion has conveyed its religious beliefs to the public through art. Similarly, Indian painting and crafts have had a close relationship with religion for about three-four thousand years, so religious sentiments have completely got absorbed in Indian painting and painting has been considered a means of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha due to its religious importance. Painting and other arts have been considered a means of ultimate happiness.

2. Depiction from the inner nature from the point of view of a yogi or a sadhak- In Indian painting and other crafts, worldly similarity or similarity with the outside world is not important, rather showing the nature or inner conscience of man in depth and completeness is of utmost importance. The painter presents this image of deep feeling or inner conscience like yoga. Just as an Indian yogi, by attaining a state of meditation and memory, can see the outer and inner nature and the vast area of ​​nature while sitting at one place, similarly, an Indian painter also captures and expresses the vastness of many times and places or regions from one place and thus the imagination of the sky, the netherworld and the earth are included in his creation simultaneously. He has not been limited to one visible aspect or position of a scene or figure like the western artists, nor has he been limited to the visual periphery, he has always presented a story, event or a painted subject in its entirety on a single canvas by keeping the mind's eye open and adopting a celestial vision, just like the creator of the universe. This is the reason that in the vast paintings of Ajanta, the painter has depicted the characters of the forest, lake, garden, palace, mountain, nature and the world together in one scene. Freed from visual limitations, the artist has presented many situations and characters simultaneously from the plane of his mental perspective. Today even European artists have started recognizing this specialty of Indian painting.

3. Yoga worship - Yogi could do Brahma-meditation and Lord-worship even without any picture or statue, but the vast public is not a Yogi, hence keeping this vision in front, our Acharyas clearly announced - Ignorance meaning image hypothesis. Saguna-Brahma-related-mental-business is imminent.

There is an interesting description about the purpose and scope of painting in the medieval art-classical work 'Aparajit-Pirchha'. The following excerpts from this book are worth considering:

Chitramulodbhavam sarva trailokya sacharacharam.

Brahma Vishnu Bhavadyashva Surasuranaroragah.

Sthavram Jangal Chaiva Suryachandrau Cha Medini.

4. Coordination of non-human nature and idealism- Indian artist considers the entire conscious and unconscious world as a part of creation, due to this a unique form of human and natural world is seen in his creations. In Indian painting, coordination of many opposing or complementary elements like depiction of human and divine natural powers, coordination of man and woman, hardness and harshness, softness and purity etc. is seen. In the form of Durga, coordination of femininity, purity, bravery and softness is seen. Similarly, in the forms of Ganesha, Hanuman, Garuda etc., coordination of roughness of human, animal or bird is seen. In the background of Indian paintings, grand, emotional and lifelike images of natural vegetation, trees, plants, flowers, leaves etc. have been depicted in the form of many ornaments or intentions. The basis of beauty in Indian art is inspired by the natural world, for example- the eyes have been designed like lotus, deer or khanjan and the arms have been designed like mrinal and the face has been designed like moon or lotus and the lips have been designed like bimba fruit. The painter has shown soul in inanimate objects and animals equally, that is why the power of human emotions is seen in animals and divine or natural beauty or power is seen in human forms.

Indian arts are born from the ground of mind or soul rather than eyes, that is why there is more ideal form inspired by the purity of soul in it than worldly reality. Indian painter does not paint as he sees in the real world, rather he paints as it should be. He gives it a true, good and beautiful form, thus he creates an ideal form.

5. Imagination- Indian painting has developed on the basis of imagination, hence idealism has a proper place in it. Rising above nature and reality, Indian sages explored the depths of the external and internal world with the help of imagination. They imagined many imaginary gods and goddesses. The best form of imagination is seen in the form of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. Imagination and the best example developed in the form of Nataraja. In the form of Nataraja, a lively dance of creation, destruction, life and death of the universe has been showered.

After the great massacre, the sequence of new creation flows continuously, which the artist has imagined in the great artistic form of Nataraja.

 

6. Symbolism- Symbols are the language of art. In the arts of eastern countries, like Indian art, symbols based on real figures and symbolic symbols

have great importance. In the arts of India, symbols like matted hair, crown, throne, tree, urn, chakra, paduka, lotus, elephant, swan etc. have a special place.

Artists have resorted to both direct and symbolic or artistic symbols to express their feelings. Nature, mountain, Yaksha-devta and affection have been depicted through symbols.

7. Figures and postures- In Indian arts, figures and postures have been given exaggerated or miraculous and figurative forms to give them an ideal form. This is the reason that in most Indian paintings and sculptures, the figures of classical dance styles of India have been created on the basis of emotion or quality rather than reality. The figure has been expressed and the expressions of the figure have been shown through the arrangement of postures. The human figures of Ajanta style are world famous for their expressive dance postures, various dance postures have also been included in Rajput and Mughal styles. Many emotions have been successfully shown through postures - for example, meditation, preaching, forgiveness, alms, sacrifice, penance, bravery, anger, separation, pain of removing a thorn, waiting, loneliness, etc., the emotions of the human mind have been embodied through very simple and natural postures. The basis of postures in Indian arts was 'Natya-Shastra' written by Bharat Muni. Many postures have been derived through different uses of the body parts and appendages described in the Abhinaya section of Natya-Shastra. We can also call the postures as emotion-images.

8. General Characters In western art-  individual characteristics are important but in Indian art, general character design has been developed traditionally. General character design means creating the shape and proportions of the shape of the characters according to their age, occupation or position. The forms of kings, paupers, gods and demons, saints and servants, women, Gandharvas, infants, young men and Vamana etc. and the proportions of their body parts have been determined in Indian art. Their symbols and postures etc. have also been determined according to their position or occupation.

9. Ornamentation- gives attraction, hence the work of art is also to decorate. Indian artists also depict Sundaram along with Satyam and Shivam. Therefore, for a beautiful and ideal form, he uses ornaments in his creations and the beauty of the figures is enhanced, such as a face like the moon, eyes like a lotus or a lotus, thighs like banana pillars, nose like a parrot's beak.

Excellent form of ornamentation is seen in Indian drawings. In the Ajanta caves, in the ceiling ornaments, in the laughter of Rajput and Mughal paintings, flowers, birds, human forms, animals and symbols etc. have been presented in highly ornamental forms. The paintings of Ajanta and Badh are the best examples of ornamentation in the world.

10. Name - In India, there was no tradition of painters naming their works. The names of artists are written on the works in abusive form. In the Mughal period, the practice of painters writing their names on the paintings became popular and the names of the artists who created the paintings started being written on the paintings.

11. Line and colour- Indian painting is line-dominated. The figures, nature and environment of the painting are all depicted within definite boundary lines. Flat colours have been used in these figures. The use of colours is based on figurative or artistic plan or colours have been used on symbolic basis.

Basic sources of Indian art study

Sources of art study refer to those means which help in knowing the ancient art history. Sources of study of Indian painting can be divided into the following categories-

1. Religious books Religious texts like Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata etc. Jain and Buddhist texts shed ample light on the art of that ancient time. Art has been discussed in detail in Ramayana, Mahabharata and Buddhist Theratheri stories etc.

2. Historical books - Kings of ancient art used to get the events of their reign written. Many ancient books and writings have been destroyed but still many such evidences are found from which knowledge about art is obtained.

3. Inscriptions - Many ancient inscriptions engraved on rocks have been found from caves like Badami, Ajanta and Bagh etc. from which knowledge about their art styles is obtained. Many inscriptions engraved by King Ashoka have been found and an inscription of Samudragupta's time has also been found in the fort of Allahabad, which gives us knowledge about Mauryan period sculpture etc.

4. Seals and Coins Seals prove to be helpful in giving knowledge about the art of historical times. The animal figures engraved on the seals obtained from Mohenjodaro and Harapa can give an idea of ​​the advanced sculpture of that time. Similarly, the seals of Samudragupta of Mauryan art or the seals of Jahangir of Mughal period also give us an introduction to the advanced art styles.

5. Old Ruins - After the excavation or cleaning of historical buildings, religious monuments, temples and houses of ancient times, paintings and sculptures are found at many places, for example, after cleaning and excavation in the cave-temples of Badami and Ajanta, knowledge of many art works was obtained. Knowledge of the paintings of the cave-temples of Ellora is being obtained after cleaning.

 

6. Accounts of Travellers - Many foreign travellers visited India from time to time. They have also given descriptions of the art pieces they saw in India. For example, Megasthenes has given an account of the art pieces of Chandragupta Maurya's time and Fa-Hien has given an account of the works of Chandragupta Vikramaditya's time. Lama Taranatha, a Tibetan Buddhist historian of the sixteenth century, visited the Buddhist sites of India and has given ample description of the art and art styles of India in his writings.

7. Autobiography or History of Kings - The Mughal emperors were great art lovers. They have written their autobiographies themselves. In these autobiographies, Babur's 'Baqat-e-Baabri' and Jahangir's autobiography 'Tuzk-e-Jahangiri' have ample description of the artists and art pieces of that time. During the Mughal period itself, during Akbar's time, Abul Fazal wrote 'Ain-e-Akbari' in which the history of Akbar was written. Complete knowledge about paintings of Akbar's era is obtained from this book.

Knowledge of Indian art has been collected on the basis of the above sources. Apart from these sources, directly preserved artifacts prove to be most helpful in providing assured and authentic knowledge about a particular art.