Venugopal: Krishna with the flute

Krishna, the eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, when appeared in human form, belonged to cowherd’s community of Braj, his birth place (at present area around Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, North India). In Braj, the cowherds hold a stick, but Krishna holds a ‘venu’, a flute. Krishna or Gopal who holds the venu is known as Venugopal. This calm and serene image of Venugopal stands crossed legged, at the ankle on the lotus pedestal, which is square in shape instead of a usual round or oval. His facial expression and flute playing gesture gives an appearance that He as well, is immersed in the magical power of the music, which brings to his face a celestial glow. He wears a short dhoti as the lower garment and is jewelled with lots of ornaments such as three tier typical Orissa style crown, elongated ear rings, heavy necklaces, bracelets, nice girdle, vaijantimala (long flower garment) and anklets. Such large size jewelled images of God- Goddess carved in round with intricate detail were made for devotional purposes, perhaps for the temples or for use in domestic shrines.