A bronze figure of Chandeshvara, South India, Chola period, circa 1300 | 南印度 朱羅王朝 約1300年 銅旃提濕伐羅立像

French Private Collection, acquired before 1960.

Galerie Jacques Barrère, Paris, 15th December 2003.

French Private collection, Bergerac, and thence by family descent.

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法國私人收藏，1960年前購得

Jacques Barrère藝廊，巴黎，2003年12月15日

法國私人收藏，貝傑拉克，此後家族傳承

The saint is rendered with a tall crown of matted hair (jatamakuta), his hands before his chest in salutation (anjali mudra) with Shiva’s battle-axe resting in the crook of his right arm, standing in an elegant posture (tribhanga）on a lotus pedestal fitted with channels to receive processional carrying rods. Compare the posture and pedestal type with a circa 1300 Saint Sundarar in the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; see Vidya Dehejia, The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India, American Federation of Arts, 2002, cat. no. 32.

Chandeshvara was a cowherd who attained sainthood through a single act of devotion in protecting the simple mud Shiva linga that was the object of his worship. The linga was desecrated by his father on learning the boy used milk from his cows for its ritual lustration. Chandeshvara lashed out at his father with his cowherd’s staff which turned miraculously into Shiva’s sacred axe. Shiva and Uma appeared and blessed him for his devotion with a divine garland, ibid., p. 163. The legend of Chandeshvara was espoused by Chola monarchs and the saint was thenceforth entrusted as guardian and supervisor of Shiva temples. During the Chola period, a dedicated shrine to Chandikeshvara became a standard feature in Shiva temples, positioned near the sanctum to symbolize his role as custodian of temple wealth and discipline.

A particularly striking feature of the present figure is the presence of Shiva’s sacred parashu, or battleaxe, resting in the crook of his right elbow, a reference to the pivotal moment of his transformation. The serene expression, characterized by a softly curved mouth and an aquiline nose, conveys a profound sense of devotion and transcendence. Compare an earlier example without the parashu dated to the 11th century, preserved in the British Museum, London and illustrated in Vidya Dehejia, The Sensuous and the Sacted: Chola Bronzes from South India, 2003, cat. no. 33 (fig. 1); and another bronze figure of this type in the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, published in Masterworks from India and Southeast Asia: the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, 2016, cat. no. 2 (fig. 2).

此尊旃提濕伐羅尊者，頭戴高聳髮髻冠，雙手於胸前合十，施合掌印，右臂彎處橫置濕婆神之神斧，身姿呈三道彎優雅而立。足踏圓形蓮座，座台下緣設導槽，應為安插抬杆、用於巡遊之設計。其動勢與座式可參照一尊約1300年之《聖蘇達拉》青銅像，現藏美國匹茲堡卡內基藝術博物館，著錄於 Vidya Dehejia 編，《The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India》，美國藝術聯盟，2002年，圖版32。

傳說旃提濕伐羅原為牧童，日日以乳灌泥塑濕婆林伽。其父知情後盛怒破壞神像，少年大悲忿怒，以牧杖擊父，其杖奇蹟般轉化為神斧。濕婆與烏瑪隨即現身，讚其虔敬，親賜花環以表嘉許（同上，頁163）。此神話廣為朱羅王朝擁護，旃提濕伐羅遂成為濕婆廟宇之守護者與資產監管者。

自朱羅時期起，於濕婆主殿近旁專設旃提濕伐羅小祠，蔚為定制，象徵其司庫與紀律維護之職能。

本尊最醒目之特徵，為右臂所橫置之神斧，象徵其由凡人化為神祇之轉化瞬間。其面相神情安詳，唇形微揚，鼻樑挺秀，雙目微垂，流露出清寂而超然之敬虔氛圍。

可比較一例未持神斧之早期版本，斷代為十一世紀，現藏英國大英博物館，著錄於同書，2003年版，圖版33。另見一件藏於堪薩斯城納爾遜-阿特金斯藝術館之類例，刊於《Masterworks from India and Southeast Asia: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art》，2016年，圖版2。