Raja Ravi Varma: Sheshnarayan

Sheshnarayan demonstrates how Ravi Varma’s refined visual language, combining mythological narrative with human detail, helped shape enduring popular representations of the divine across India. In this oleograph, he has portrayed Vishnu seated upon the coiled body of Shesha, the golden, five-hooded divine serpent whose outstretched hoods fan protectively above the god’s head. In Hindu cosmology, Shesha is king of the nāgas (serpent deities) and a primordial force, symbolising eternity and cosmic stability. Flanking Vishnu are two female figures representing the dual aspects of the goddess Lakshmi – spiritual and material – arranged symmetrically to balance the composition. All four figures are adorned with fabric, sequins and zardozi, a decorative technique that enhances the opulence of the deities’ garments and crowns.