Module 8: South and Southeast Asia

                                     

Lord Brahmā and Goddess Sarasvatī seated upon their vāhana (vehicle) the haṃsa (swan). Album of Drawings of Hindu Deities, early 19th century, watercolor on paper (The British Library)

This watercolor depicts Goddess Sarasvatī and Lord Brahmā mounted upon their vāhana. Deities usually have an animal (vāhana) associated with them in hopes of making them more recognizable and memorable. The animal represents different powers each deity may have. Sometimes specific powers were represented in different ways such as having multiple body-parts or being adorned in weapons or other significant objects. In this painting we can clearly see that the Goddess Sarasvatī’s vāhana is a large swan. The sacred swan is believed to have a sensitive beak that allows it to recognize milk from a blend of milk and water. As a result, the swan symbolizes the ability to distinguish between what is good and what is evil, what is right and what is wrong, what is valued and what is useless. Sarasvatī is the goddess of wisdom and knowledge and Unlike this depiction of Sarasvatī, she usually has four arms to represent mind, intellect, alertness, and ego. These are said to be the four aspects of human personality in learning. Sarasvatī is also usually shown playing or holding a veena. A veena is a string instrument and in this case it serves as a reminder to tune one's heart and mind to live in harmony with others and the world.  Alongside Sarasvatī is Lord Brahmā. In Hindu mythology Sarasvatī is the wife of Lord Brahmā, however, Sarasvatī is also the daughter of Lord Brahmā. Because of Brahmā’s incestuous behavior he is not to be worshiped. Seen in this painting, Brahmā has four heads that represent the four divisions of time of Hinduism, the Yugas. They also represent four divisions of the Hindu society, the four Varnas. Once upon a time, Brahmā had a fifth head to represent ego but it was removed by Shiva as a punishment for Brahmā’s inappropriate behavior towards his daughter Sarasvatī. This is also when Shiva put a curse on Brahmā saying he shall not be worshiped.

The British Library, "Hindu deities," in Smarthistory, May 20, 2021, accessed October 17, 2021, https://smarthistory.org/hindu-deities-2/.