Gajalakshmi
Topic: Early Indian Art and Architecture: Stupas, Rock-cut Caves, Temples · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings"
Meaning
Gajalakshmi is a popular goddess of good fortune. She is shown as a woman surrounded by lotuses, with elephants pouring water over her. This sprinkling is a sacred bath, like a royal anointing. At Buddhist sites, historians read the same image in two ways. It may be Maya, the Buddha's mother, or it may be Gajalakshmi. Devotees may well have seen both. This shows that Buddhism absorbed older, popular beliefs.
Example
Sculptures of the woman bathed by elephants appear at Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh). They are found alongside other popular motifs such as the shalabhanjika, the woman whose touch made trees flower, and the serpent.
Don't confuse with
- Maya: Maya is the Buddha's mother, from the Buddhist story. Gajalakshmi is a goddess from popular, non-Buddhist belief, even though the same image may stand for either.
Related concepts
- Vessantara Jataka
- Aniconic representation of the Buddha
- Dharmachakra
- Shalabhanjika
- Mithuna
- Yaksha and yakshi
- Didarganj Yakshi
- Parkham Yaksha
- Saptamatrikas
- James Fergusson