Vishnu as Varaha, the Boar Avatar, Slays Banasur, A Demon General: Page from an Unknown Manuscript

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Vishnu has many incarnations in which he descends to earth to restore cosmic order. In his third, he appears as Varaha, a boar-headed creature who saves the earth from a demon who has dragged it beneath the ocean. In this page, Varaha rides on Garuda, the avian mount of Vishnu, and has just used his thrown discus to behead a general riding in a chariot. Although an inscription on the back refers to the demon Banasur, he had one thousand arms and is not the likely victim of Varaha's wrath. It is not clear what scene is being illustrated.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art