A man sitting with his legs stretched out and hands folded in a gesture of reverence is an image that could easily fit the description of a participant of the International Yoga Day across the world, only it is from five millennia ago. The terracotta object from the Harappan civilization, between 2700 BC and 2100 BC, is the main attraction at an ongoing exhibition on yoga in the national Capital which concludes on June 27.
In one of the biggest public-private collaboration in art exhibitions, ‘Yoga Chakra’ being held at Lalit Kala Akademi’s Rabindra Bhawan, has sourced works from 14 other collaborators besides the National Museum with one of the major partner being the Museum of Sacred Art in Brussels.
The uniqueness of the exhibition is the attempt to find the essence of yoga in the artefacts of the Harappan and Mohenjo-<g data-gr-id="37">daro</g> civilization. ‘The Seated Man in Namaskar Mudra’ is one of the nearly 400 works in the ‘Yoga Chakra’ which is drawing major attraction. A journey through centuries of artistic expressions and diverse interpretations on the traditional culture of yoga, the exhibition has 41 works from the National Museum collection.
“The objects from the Mohenjo-<g data-gr-id="32">daro</g> and Harappan periods and from other parts and periods of our civilization represent only a small portion of the classical collection of the National Museum linked to yogic traditions,” said K K Sharma, Deputy Curator of the National Museum and coordinator of the Yoga Chakra exhibition.
In its three thematic sections under ‘Gyana’, ‘Dhyana’ and ‘Karma’, and five sub-sections, the exhibition takes a deep look at how in India, traditions have evolved over the centuries and also how historical and classical art continue to impact creativity.
“Yoga not only harmonises our body, mind and heart but also has the potential to make the entire universe live in harmony,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his message to the exhibition, which was inaugurated on June 21 by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism and Culture Dr Mahesh Sharma.
The exhibition also has a <g data-gr-id="22">12th century</g> bronze statue of Buddha, <g data-gr-id="29">cross legged</g> with hands in the gesture of meditation and a stone Pashupati seal from the Mohenjo-<g data-gr-id="28">daro</g> civilization.
“The Pashupati seal, depicting Lord Shiva, is the earliest evidence of a yogic posture,” said Sushma K Bahl, who has co-curated the exhibition with Archana B <g data-gr-id="26">Sapra</g>.