ODISHAN SCULPTURAL ARTS OF THIRTEEN GANESHA IMAGES OF THE PURI DISTRICT: A RECENT STUDY

Abstract [English]

The fascinating facet of the Saiva art of Odisha is the analysis of the Ganesha images found in the Puri district. Ganesha is considered to be among the first Hindu deities in India. Ganesha is a popular deity in the Hindu pantheon and is worshipped extensively throughout the entirety of India. In the eastern Indian state of Odisha, Saivism was a prevalent religion. It also affected Lord Jagannatha's kshetra. In Odisha, Saivism reached its height of prominence in the tenth and eleventh century C.E. The Ganesha figures seen in the Hindu temples of the Puri district typically have a kuthara (hatchet), a pot of sweet balls (ladus), a broken tusk, and a rosary in hands. The locations of thirteen Ganesha images of the Puri district are viz; the Lokanatha temple in Puri, the Yameshvara temple in Puri, the Markandeshvara temple in Puri, the Kapala Mochana temple in Puri, the Nilakantheshvara temple of Matiapara, the Baikuntheshvara temple of Puri town, the Bata-Lokanatha temple in Puri, the Nilakantheshvara temple at Gopinathpur, the Siddha Mahavir temple in Puri, the Ganesha temple at the Jagannatha temple complex, the Kanchi Ganesha temple in Puri, the Gatesvara temple in Algum, and the Ganesha image of Ganesvari temple of Bayalishbati. In the Puri district, there is a worship of a variety of Ganesha images of different periods. These statues/images are primarily kept in the parsvadevata niches of Saiva temples. A thorough examination is necessary due to the intricate iconographic details found in the Ganesha images found in the temples of Puri district. The objective of article is to focus on the iconographic elements of the thirteen Ganesha statues found in the Hindu temples of the Puri district in Odisha.