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Gayatri

ca. 1890–1910
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 251
Gayatri is the personified form of the Gayatri mantra, the best known of all the Vedic hymns. The mantra is printed in Devanagari script at lower right: “I pray to the three-eyed Gayatri, her five faces tinged with shades of pearl, coral, gold, sapphire, and white, whose crown studded with precious stones is topped by the moon, the embodiment of utterances signifying the Supreme Truth, who wields the goad, the whip, the white skull, the mace, the conch and the discus, and holds a pair of lotuses in each hand, and displays with the other two the mudras conferring boons and fearlessness.” With her five heads of different complexions, she mirrors the supreme five-faced form of Mahadeva Shiva. The crescent moon on her central crown is emblematic of her allegiance.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Gayatri
  • Date: ca. 1890–1910
  • Culture: India, Maharasthra, Pune
  • Medium: Chromolithograph on paper
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 19 3/4 × 15 in. (50.2 × 38.1 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 2020
  • Object Number: 2020.19
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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