San Diego Museum of Art - Dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra

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Dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra

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Bookmark: https://collection.sdmart.org/objects-1/info/6244

Dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra

Creation date: ca. 1820

Creation place: India

Other Information

Type: Watercolor Painting

Medium and Support: Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Credit Line: Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

Accession Number: 1990.1251

State/Province: Himachal Pradesh

Dimensions: 5 5/16 in. x 7 5/16 in. (13.5 cm x 18.6 cm)

Provenance

Sotheby's, London, England (February 14, 1968 - Febraury 14, 1968)

R. Wilson, London, England (February 14, 1968 - February 14, 1968)

Edwin Binney 3rd, San Diego, California (February 14, 1968 - August 27, 1990)

San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, California (August 27, 1990 - )

Label Copy

Krishna: Lover and Hero (2003)
Just as the great battle of the war between the two sets of cousins descended from the legendary king of Bharata is about to begin, Arjuna, a great warrior of the Pandava clan, says to his friend and charioteer:

“Krishna, halt my chariot between the armies” He surveyed his elders and companions in both armies, all his kinsmen assembled together. Dejected and filled with strange pity he said: “My limbs sink, my mouth is parched, my body trembles…my mind reels…I see no good in killing my kinsmen in battle.”

Krishna gave him counsel: “Banish this petty weakness from your heart. Rise to the fight, Arjuna”…

Arjuna told Krishna…”I shall not fight,” he fell silent.

Krishna then teaches Arjuna that he must rise above the personal and social values he holds sacred and see that all happens is part of a larger order that one must view without attachment.

The calm of this moment – the future held in suspension in the present as a consequence of the past – is precisely conveyed by the artist. Arjuna is drawn with portrait-like clarity. Krishna seems to have all the time in the world to expound his doctrine. The two figures are outlined against blood-red ground with only a narrow bank of blue sky above the horizon.

Last Updated: 12/8/2022

Bibliography

This object has the following bibliographic references:

C. Alexander Simpkins and Annellen M. Simpkins. Meditation from Thought to Action Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc.. Boston, Massachusetts, 1998
Figure Number: 2

Catalogue of Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures, Sotheby & Co.. London, England, February 14, 1968
Page Number: 36 Lot no. 173

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