c. 1775

A Lion Kills Prasena in the Jungle

Artist/maker unknown

The Bhagavata Purana is the authoritative compendium of the mythology of the Hindu god Vishnu. Of its twelve books, the tenth is devoted to the adventures of Krishna—an incarnation of Vishnu and one of the most beloved gods of the Hindu pantheon. Krishna’s early life is spent in idyllic rural surroundings, but he later becomes a prince of Dwarka during his grandfather’s rule.

The illustration depicts an episode from the tale of the magical Syamantaka gem that has the power to produce gold and remove all maladies, scarcities, calamities. It is granted by Surya, the sun god, to his devotee Satrajit, an inhabitant of Dwarka. Krishna asks Satrajit to hand over the gem so that it can benefit everyone in the kingdom, but Satrajit refuses.

One day, Satrajit’s brother, Prasena, wears the gem around his neck as he goes hunting in the forest; he is killed, along with his horse, by a lion. This killing is depicted in the painting, which should be read right to left. Sequentially, Prasena, mounted on his horse, hunts with bow and arrow; a lion attacks Prasena and crushes his head with its jaws, as its claws scratch Prasena’s arm and the horse’s head; Prasena’s bloodied corpse lies on the ground and the lion eviscerates the horse. The two hand-written inscriptions in the red border describe this series of events.

In later paintings from the series, the lion is killed by the king of bears, who gives the gem to his child to play with. When Prasena does not return home, Satrajit accuses Krishna of killing him. In an attempt to clear his name, Krishna heads to the forest with other citizens where they discover Prasena’s body and find out the truth. Krishna defeats the king of bears in combat and recovers the gem.