THE VENUS OF BANHA

THE  HEADLESS NUDE MOTHER GODDESS.

Having found this artifact from the walls of a dug trench adjacent to a ruined megalithic site in a small village of Banha I named this beauty, "THE VENUS OF BANHA". 

The statuette is headless with distinct rounded breasts, deep navel, broad waist and crossed truncated legs.

The Mother Goddesses which are usually unearthed in India are bigger is size although the find of a few smaller sized ones have been reported from all over the country yet they are very rare and this Mother Goddess in particular has an European flavour to it

Similar small statuettes having  prominent breasts, buttocks and pregnant stomachs have been named Venus, as Venuses of Willendorf, Brassempouy, Dolni Vestonice etc have been found all over the world and particularly in Europe.

Nude Mother Goddesses have also been found in India. The "Lajja Gauri" idols often associated with Renuka, Matangi, Adya Shakti or the Vedic Aditi. have been found in Central and South India. Even in the Indus Valley an upturned nude Goddess named Sakambari  has been found from whose genitals a plant is seen germinating. 

Many primitive nude Goddesses both of India and abroad does not show prominent breasts and bellies. No one knows for certain whether they are fertility goddesses or they were used for some other purposes.Nevertheless the find of so many Mother Goddesses across the world substantiates the prevalence of the Mother Goddess worship of the fertility cult all over, during hoary antiquity. 

THE RIGHT PROFILE OF A HUMAN

NOTE HOW A LITTLE TWITCH OF THE STONE CHANGES THE COMPLEXION OF THE ABOVE PROFILE. HERE HE  SEEM TO BE IN ANNOYANCE.

Even the Venus of Banha, a small sandstone artifact having a height of 4 cms does not reveal over sized breasts and protruded belly suggesting pregnancy which normally was associated with fertility cult of the Paleolithic times. However the idol may have had such features once which could have had worn out with times. Similar small figurines unearthed in Europe have been dated between 20,000 to 30,000 BC during the Middle Paleolithic era.

However Goddess figurines in India are not that old. Nude statues of Lajja Gauri are headless but are large and are not as small as this and are of the later Brahmanical period. Authors as Sankalia, Kausambi,Wakankar etc has written extensively on the Mother Goddesses which normally have been associated with the Earth or the Great Mother.

THE LEFT PROFILE OF A POSSIBLE TURTLE OR A TIGER. NOTE HOW A SMALL PEBBLE HAS BEEN USED AS ITS EYE. THE BEAST/REPTILE HAS NOSTRILS, MOUTH, CHEEK BONES APART FROM AN EYE.

With what names did the erstwhile tribals call these goddesses no one can state with certainty.

But this relic has other features as well which no other artifact having so many features has been reported from any where else. The amazing stone apart from comprising the nude Goddess reveal many other human and animal profiles done with stunning preciseness; a testimony of the kind of art prevalent during the unknown times of this artifact.

The profiles and faces articulately reveal perfectly sculpted lips, nose complete with nostrils and even eyes. There is even one old man with beard and with closed eyes perhaps depicting a meditative pose. The figure could be of an ancient rishi.

THE LEFT PROFILE OF ANOTHER PERSON HAVING A THICK NOSE

The human faces reveal emotions of wide variety; some seem to be exhibiting pain, awe, and one even appear to be a jester striking a very funny look. Under the magnifying glass more faces come to life. A very small pebble has been used as the eye of a profile of a possible turtle or a tiger. One wonders how it was actually made without magnifying lenses because one needs to be hawk eyed and own a very finely pointed knife to sculpt something as spectacular as this.

It is difficult to assess the function of this stone which comprises these heads and a Mother Goddess; was it a sacred stone or was it a riddle stone? Tribals are known to perform riddles; could it be then that this stone was meant to be some sort of a riddle game designed to decipher as many faces one can from the stone?


But what was the name of the nude headless goddess and whose profiles are these, deities and/or ancestors? Whatever it may be, it must have been very sacred for the custodian of this amazing stone and judging by the size of it he/she must have been carrying it along with him/her.