Scenes from Bhagavata purana

An Illustration depicting scenes from Bhagavata purana which is one of the Mahapuranas of Hinduism is sometimes called the “Fifth Veda”. It encompasses various topics; cosmology, astronomy, genealogy, geography, legend, music, dance, yoga and culture, including the life of Krishna. The image is in three panels: the top one showing the visit of Akrura to Nanda’s house to request him to send Krishna to Mathura with him. A horse-cart is waiting outside. The second panel depicts milkmaids churning buttermilk in pots, a cowherd who is handing over the same to another who are loading them on a double bullock cart and Krishna talking to the 'gopis'. This seems to be the scene of 'Dana leela’, wherein Krishna and his friends took a toll from the 'gopis' in the form of milk and buttermilk. The third panel showing a similar scene as but without Krishna. Reverse of the painting is having text in Sanskrit written in black and red enclosed yellow border. From Malwa, miniature painting, circa 1780