THE
SPHINX IN EARLY INDIAN ART
The earliest textual reference to the
purushamriga is found in the Yajur Veda
in connection with the ashvamedha, the
horse-sacrifice. The earliest datable
sculptural representations of sphinxes
in India are found among the
archaeological remains of the Hindu, Buddhist
and Jain shrines dating to the
first century BCE to the first and
second century CE. These belong for the
most part to the period of the Kushana
dynasty and follow the style of Gandhara
art. Examples have been found in Mathura,
Bodhgaya, Bharhut, Gandhara, Sanchi,
Orissa and other places. Various
composite Mythologyological creatures, among
them sphinxes, adorn the capitals of
pillars, reliefs and freezes.
Although the earliest sculptural
depictions of sphinxes in the South
Asian subcontinent are clearly
influenced by Hellenistic inspired early
Buddhist art, this does not in my view
establish or confirm that the concept of
the sphinx was introduced to South Asia
through Greek influence. The best
argument is that the Buddha himself was
first depicted under Hellenistic
influence by artists of the Kushana
kingdom in the period of Gandhara art .
This does not by any means make Gautama
the Buddha a Greek prince and saint.
According to the doctrinal and oral
traditions of south India, the
purushamriga is first mentioned in the
Yajur Veda, which is dated to a period
long before the time of the Greek
influence on Indian art. And its ritual
role continues till today, in the lamp
ceremonies and processions of south
Indian temples.
