Art History Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Gaṇeśa is 1. Marut, kharva, 'dwarf', dancer, kavi, Brahmaṇaspati, Br̥haspati, 2. त्रिधातु, 'aggregate of 3 minerals', 3. R̥bhu founder of yajña, artist, rayi, 'wealth'. Gaṇeśa is a कवि kavi, m. a singer , bard , poet (but in this sense... more

Gaṇeśa is 1. Marut, kharva, 'dwarf', dancer, kavi, Brahmaṇaspati, Br̥haspati, 2. त्रिधातु, 'aggregate of 3 minerals', 3. R̥bhu founder of yajña, artist, rayi, 'wealth'.

Gaṇeśa is a कवि kavi, m. a singer , bard , poet (but in this sense without any technical application in the वेद) RV. VS. TS. AV. S3Br. i , 4 , 2 , 8Kat2hUp. iii , 14 MBh. Bhag. Bha1gP. Mn. vii , 49 R. Ragh.

Gaṇeśa is a scribe, a R̥bhu, 'artist' In the tradition of Indus Script, a scribe is also an artist because the writing system is composed with hypertextss incorporating hieroglyphs -- both pictorial motifs and 'signs or symbols', say, syllabic representations in Brāhmī or 'signs' of the Indus Script Corpora.

Since Mahābhārata is the fifth Veda itihāsa with ākhyāna-s and upākhyāna-s, the scribe of the sacred kāvya, by the kavi, -- is Gaṇeśa who is kavīnām kavi, he is the suprme kavi among kavi-s. The scribal narratiave is an affirmation of divine sanction for the documented narratives.

Hence, Gaṇeśa utters the praṇava, says 'om' accepting the terms stipulated by Vyāsa.

This tradition is exemplified by many manuscripts of Mahābhārata which are profusely illustrated to communicate the narrative effectivey.
Battle Between Ghatotkacha And Karna, Illustrated Folio

Battle of Kurukshetra.

Page from a Manuscript of the Mahabharata: Kichaka and Draupadi Disguised as the Maidservant Shairandhri 1670.
Indian, India, Deccan, Southern Karnataka 17th century opaque watercolor, ink, gold on paper 8 x 19⅜ in 20.32 x 49.21 cm Friends of Indian Art in memory of Dr. Meena Hazra 95.6

Illustrated palmleaf manuscripts in the collection of Orissa State Museum. Read more at: http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/features/02-07/features555.htm

H: 11.8 W: 16.6 cm. Probably Seringapatam, South India, India

Newari Mahabharata, 14th-15th c. Philadelphia Museum of Art

Gaṇeśa is 1. scribe of Mahābhārata, 2. kavi; Brahmaṇaspati, Br̥haspati, 3. त्रिधातु, 'aggregate of 3 minerals', 4. R̥bhu founder of yajña, artist, rayi, 'wealth' Gaṇeśa is a Marut, R̥bhukṣa, who wields a thunderbolt. This is a metaphor for his tusk used as a writing instrument. That Gaṇeśa is a member of Marut Gaṇa is signified on a sculptural frieze of Kanchipuram Kailāsanātha temple.

See:

Bhāratīya ādhyātmikā itihāsa of tridhātu Gaṇeśa, śarva Śiva, Rāma, Kr̥ṣṇa
https://tinyurl.com/yc95usjo

Tridhātu as Gaṇeśa, Tridhātu on Indus Script metalwork for crucible steel, ādhyātmikā metaphor pr̥thvyaptejorūpadhātu (R̥gveda)
http://tinyurl.com/kptlbz3

Gaṇeśa is Brāhmī scribe of Mahābhārata in the tradition of Indus Script cipher of Bronze Age
https://tinyurl.com/y79j8rxp

http://sanskritdocuments.org/mirrors/mahabharata/mahabharata-sarit.html

Gaṇeśa -- the leader of Marut Gaṇa, a scribe with dāt, an ivory stylus -- and Kṣṇadwaipāyana Vyāsa -- the black narrator, a Ganga-island dweller -- unite together after Gaṇeśa consents to be a scribe utteringom and together start with an invocation for success to Nara and Nārāyaṇa (nārāyaṇaṃ namaskṛtya naraṃ caiva narottamam; 1.1.0) and to goddess Sarasvatī (devīṃ sarasvatīṃ caiva tato jayam udīrayet; 1.1.0). Om is part of the iconography, pratimā, 'ādhyātmikā symbol' which refers to ātman (soul, self within) and Brahman (ultimate reality, entirety of the universe, truth, divine, supreme spirit, cosmic principles, knowledge). So, they start with ओम् Om pratimā which is प्रणव, praṇava. Om is the last sound a Yogi hears before entering the state of Turīya level of language, script and reality. The mystic syllable is affirmation of something divine in the narration and scripted text of Mahābhārata.

Why does Gaṇeśa uttar Om assenting to be a scribe of Vyasa's oral narrative?

Om (ॐ) is the pratigara (agreement) with a hymn. Likewise is tatha (so be it) with a song. But Om is something divine, and tatha is something human.
— Aitareya Aranyaka 23.6

तस्य वाचकः प्रणवः ॥२७॥

His word is Om.

— Yogasutra 1.27

ओं नमः (Oṃ namaḥ) Siddhanam (6 syllables), Om Nhi (2 syllables) and just Om (1 syllable) are the short forms of the Paramesthi-Mantra, also called Namokar Mantra or Navkar Mantra in Jainism

"Om Mani Padmi Hum" to be AUM, the totality of sound, existence and consciousness in Bauddham

Oankar ('the Primal Sound') created Brahma, Oankar fashioned the consciousness,
From Oankar came mountains and ages, Oankar produced the Vedas,
By the grace of Oankar, people were saved through the divine word,
By the grace of Oankar, they were liberated through the teachings of the Guru.

— Ramakali Dakkhani, Adi Granth 929-930, Translated by Pashaura Singh.

Tamil version of the great epic venerates Gaṇeśa as scribe of the epic:

The information is given in the very first verse of Villi Bharatham and is quite famous as the "Kadavul Vaazhththu" (Prayer to the Divine). A rough/prosaic but literal translation would be:
"To make it firm as the fifth along with the four Vedas
On this sea-girt earth,
When the Mahabharata was spoken by the King of sages
Who possess unfading askesis and Truth,
Vinayaka wrote with the Mount Meru
As the cadjan leaf,
And His own tusk as the sharp stylus.
I salute Him with shoreless love."

(fifth along with the four Vedas -- Bharatah Panchamao Vedah; Vyasa is described as the king of sages; the sages are described as possessing unfading askesis and Truth (vaadaa thavam meymmai muni raajan); Mount Meru is described as "edu" which is palm or cadjan leaf).
Some copies of the work tack this and the following verse which is also a prayer to Vinayaka to the verses of praise by Villi's son Varantharuvaar that are always printed as a preface to the work.
http://mahabharata-resources.org/variations/prema-villi1.html

Two anient manuscripts announce Gaṇeśa as scribe of the epic:

Arrival of Heramba Gaṇeśa to write Mahābhārata announced in ādiparva:
सौतिरुवाच ।
एवमाभाष्य तं ब्रह्मा जगाम स्वं निवेशनम् ।
भगवान्स जगत्स्रष्टा ऋषिदेवगणैः सह ॥
ततः सस्मार हेरम्बं व्यासः सत्यवतीसुतः ॥
स्मृतमात्रो गणेशानो भक्तचिन्तितपूरकः ।
तत्राजगाम विघ्नेशो वेदव्यासो यतः स्थितः ॥
पूजितश्चोपविष्टश्च व्यासेनोक्तस्तदानघ ।
लेखको भारतस्यास्य भव त्वं गणनायक ॥
मयैव प्रोच्यमानस्य मनसा कल्पितस्य च ॥
श्रुत्वैतत्प्राह विघ्नेशो यदि मे लेखनी क्षणम् ।
लिखतो नावतिष्ठेत तदा स्यां लेखको ह्यहम् ॥

व्यासोऽप्युवाच तं देवमबुद्ध्वा मा लिख क्वचित् ।
ओमित्युक्त्वा गणेशोपि बभूव किल लेखकः ॥
ग्रन्थग्रन्थिं तदा चक्रे मुनिर्गूढं कुतूहलात् ।
यस्मिन्प्रतिज्ञया प्राह मुनिर्द्वैपायनस्त्विदम् ॥
अष्टौ श्लोकसहस्राणि अष्टौ श्लोकशतानि च ।
अहं वेद्मि शुको वेत्ति संजयो वेत्ति वा न वा ॥
तच्छ्लोककूटमद्यापि ग्रथितं सुदृढं मुने ।
भेत्तुं न शक्यतेऽर्थस्यं गूढत्वात्प्रश्रितस्य च ॥
सर्वज्ञोपि गणेशो यत्क्षणमास्ते विचारयन् ।
तावच्चकार व्यासोपि श्लोकानन्यान्बहूनपि ॥
तस्य वृक्षस्य वक्ष्यामि शाखापुष्पफलोदयम् ।
स्वादुमेध्यरसोपेतमच्छेद्यममरैरपि ॥
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायं वृत्तान्तं सर्वपर्वणाम् ।
इदं द्वैपायनः पूर्वं पुत्रमध्यापयच्छुकम् ॥
ततोऽन्येभ्योऽनुरूपेभ्यः शिष्येभ्यः प्रददौ प्रभुषष्टिं शतसहस्राणि चकारान्यां स संहिताम् ।
त्रिंशच्छतसहस्रं च देवलोके प्रतिष्ठितम् ॥
पित्र्ये पञ्चदश प्रोक्तं रक्षोयक्षे चतुर्दश ।
एकं शतसहस्रं तु मानुषेषु प्रतिष्ठितम् ॥

http://sarit.indology.info/exist/apps/sarit/works/%C4%81diparva.html

http://asi.nic.in/asi_books/9002.pdf

Gaṇeśa with Gaṇa-s in Kailasanatha temple, Kanchipuram (685 to 705 CE, Rajasimha, Pallava dynasty)
Source: http://swamisblog.blogspot.in/2009/12/
These Marut Gaṇa are associated with the smelter work as seen on Bhuteshwar sculptural friezes.

Smelter. Kharva, dwarfs venerate linga atop smelter and tree (kuṭi 'tree' rebus: kuṭhi 'smelter'). Ekamukha Sivalinga atop smelter.

Gaṇeśa with Saptamatrikas, Aihole, Karnataka, 8th century CE.

The Devi Matrikas (flanked by Shiva and Ganesha), representing various Shakti aspects, from 9th-century Madhya Pradesh

Saptamātr̥kā-s with Gaṇeśa, at Panchalingeshvara temple in Karnataka.

Gaṇeśa. Entrance to Ellora caves.

Ellora Caves - Kailasa Temple - Group Of mātr̥kā-s with Gaṇeśa

Stone sculpture in National Museum, New Delhi, India. Śiva and Saptamātr̥kā-s.

Nataraja–Shiva (left) with Virabhadra and the first three mātr̥kā-s depicted with children – Ellora