Agamani

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Agamani-vijaya is a genre of popular Bengali (Bangla) song based on the stories of Shiva and Parvati and particularly favored for singing during the Durga puja festival season in the autumn. The songs tell of Parvati, the daughter of the king of the Himalayas, who marries Shiva, seemingly a yogic ascetic with no visible means of support. Parvati’s mother Menace sought Shiva’s permission for her daughter to have a visit to her parental home. The songs composed about her homecoming are known as Agamani songs. Here we see the beautiful and regal Parvati returning home on her lion, cradling the infant Ganesha. Her mother and maid servants Jaya and Vijaya rush forward to greet them. Parvati’s eldest son Skanda appears in the heavenly clouds astride his peacock accompanied by the goddesses Sarasvati and Lakshmi, bearing witness to this joyous reunion. In Bengali culture these goddesses are often considered Parvati-Durga’s children. Nandi, a bearded ascetic carrying a trident (trisula), has accompanied Parvati and Ganesha on their journey. He is the guardian of Shiva’s abode in the Shaiva Siddhanta tradition and alongside the calf-bull Vrsabha, his highest devotee. In the north Indian and Bengal tradition, a new bride departs from her family and enters into that of their husband. Such homecomings, especially when presenting a newborn grandchild, were occasions for much celebration.

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