Sound of Silence
Pramila Giri, 1994
Bronze, wooden base
W 23 cm, H 61 cm, D 14.5 cm

© Pramila Giri

Worshipped as the destructive aspect of the supreme Lord Shiva, Bhairav represents an integrated dimension of the Hindu Siva cult. Lord Siva occupies the third position of the Hindu trinity together with Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu. The Shiva cult symbolizes creative and destructive forms, and female/male (prakriti/purush) relations. The existential reality of Bhairav occurs to me, perhaps unconsciously. As symbolic legend, Bhairav represents the need to overcome the inherent fear in each of us before embarking upon our spiritual journey. In our tradition, art and religion have always gone hand in hand. Bhairav is depicted by the most forceful of images. The iconography that depicts him reveals both religious and philosophic content, as well as aesthetic worth. I seek to illustrate all these aspects in my sculpture.

My first intimate encounter with Bhairav images, sculpted in stone in the Kathmandu Valley was in 1984 when carrying out research at the Benares Hindu University (BHU). I discovered creativity and diversity in its forceful traditional iconography. No Shiva temple would be complete without an imposing, captivating icon of Bhairav at the gate. The most powerful images, however, are the large sacred masks housed in Bhairav temples, exhibited during special religious festivals. One exception is the large Kaal, or black, Bhairav in front of Hanuman Doka, the main palace gate in Kathmandu’s old town centre. With their specific atmosphere and setting, together with their interpretation and significance within the temples, many of the Bhairav forms in Kathmandu Valley made a great impression on me. To grasp this richness requires acute sensitivity, concentration and meditation, and calls for deep personal involvement. My sculptures exhibited at Weltmuseum Wien were all produced in the nineties. The Protector – my last Bhairav image in the form of an abstract, three dimensionally cast sculpture – dates from this period.

My language is sculpture. A high degree of concentration is required to create images expressive of deeper feelings which reflect the diversity and power of Bhairav. There is no direct comparison between traditional images and my own work. My sculptures are abstract in form, and endeavour to capture the iconography of Bhairav’s essence and form. The various titles of my work highlight Bhairav’s sources and expressive range: Kaal (black) Bhairav, Protector, Akash (sky) Bhairav, Shanta (peaceful) Bhairav and Sound of Silence. According to legend, Kaal Bhairav is about respect for justice. The Shanta Bhairav, the embodiment of the Sound of Silence, refers to the duality of meanings in Bhairav representations, both the alarming sounds and the arrival at a state of peaceful acceptance of human destiny.