Vtg Indian Rosewood Inlaid Marquetry Krishna & Arjuna Hindu Chariot Panel 27"

Description

Beautiful Indian / Hindu inlaid wood panel depicting the Hindu god Krishna driving the chariot of warrior-prince Arjuna from the Bhagavad Gita.

“The Gita is a dialogue between the warrior-prince Arjuna and the god Krishna who is serving as his charioteer at the Battle of Kurukshetra fought between Arjuna’s family and allies (the Pandavas) and those of the prince Duryodhana and his family (the Kauravas) and their allies. There are many aspects to the Gita than just the importance of dharma. Krishna’s speeches throughout 18 chapters illustrate the nature of the Divine, Divine Love, how an individual should respond, and how the universe is ordered. At one point, Krishna – who is an avatar of the god Vishnu - reveals himself as Brahman itself thereby showing how all the many gods of Hinduism are also Brahman in varied forms.”

“Krishna and Arjuna in The Bhagavad Gita are two of the most important figures in the text.
Prince Arjuna leads the Pandavas’ army. His chariot is driven by Sri Krishna, an incarnation of the god Vishnu, who has taken a mortal form in The Bhagavad Gita. Krishna has been Arjuna’s friend and advisor throughout his life, but he can’t fight this battle. Leading the army is Arjuna’s dharma—his duty and destiny. Krishna is only there to support him. 
As Arjuna sees that the fighting’s about to start, he asks Krishna to drive his chariot in between the two armies so that he can take a closer look at his enemies. When he sees the people in the Kauravas’ army, he recognizes many of them as his own family and friends. 
Arjuna is overcome with despair. He tells Krishna that he doesn’t want to fight against his own family, and that his family fighting within itself will lead to chaos in the kingdom. He also says that there are great heroes and respected scholars on the other side, and Arjuna questions how he could ever live with himself if he killed them in battle. Arjuna says that it would be better to lay down his weapons and let the Kauravas kill him. 
Krishna replies that, though Arjuna is speaking from the heart, he is also speaking from ignorance. Although physical bodies can be destroyed, a person’s essence will be reborn again and again, unchanged, through the process of reincarnation. Therefore, Arjuna wouldn’t be killing anybody, and there would be no reason to grieve for them. This is an important conversation between Krishna and Arjuna in The Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna compares reincarnation to the changes that a person goes through over a single lifetime, from childhood to adulthood to old age. You wouldn’t say that a person became someone else after growing up, and in the same sense, you shouldn’t think of someone who’s been reincarnated as becoming a different person.”

Condition

Good Overall – Some scrapes

Dimensions

26.5” x 1.25” x 12.5” (Width x Depth x Height)