Dhritarashtra Attacks the Statue of Bhima, Folio from a Razmnama (Book of Wars)
Commissioned by the emperor Akbar in 1582, the Razmnama is a Persian translation of the Mahabharata, the Indian epic whose central narrative relates the rivalry and war between the Pandava family and their Kaurava cousins. This folio comes from a Razmnama series made for the leading Mughal courtier and commander-in-chief, Abd ur-Rahim Khan-i Khanan (1556–1626), who was also a poet, scholar, and patron of art and literature. It illustrates an episode in which the blind king Dhritarashtra meets the Pandavas again and, overcome by grief for his slain sons, angrily sets upon the warrior prince Bhima. Krishna pulls Bhima aside and miraculously substitutes an iron statue for his image, which the old king crushes with his bare hands before his anger finally passes.
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