f. 3

recto:

Madhava Nal enraptured at the sight of Kama Kandala, Delhi, c.1740.

A scene from the Madhava Nal-Kama Kandala romance. The handsome Brahmin, Madhava Nal, was exiled from his kingdom for the effect his music had on women. Dressed as an ascetic, he wandered playing his vina and singing beautiful songs until he heard tales of a bewitching courtesan equally famous for her song and dance, Kama Kandala. In this image, Madhava Nal is so enraptured by the first sight of Kama Kandala that he faints and must be revived by the palace ladies. She sits watching inside a palace pavilion as Madhava Nal is fanned and offered a cup of wine, his instrument lying by his side.

The most popular version of the romance during this period was a Hindi text by the poet Alam (fl. 1658–1703) in which Madhava Nal does not actually faint at the sight of his beloved. Several variations of this painting nevertheless exist in which the artists invariably chose to depict him so overcome with feeling that he collapses. The images therefore work on an allegorical level distinct from the text to which they refer, poetically portraying a climactic moment of the hero’s pleasure at finally beholding the object of his desire, as a metaphor for the loss of self when the soul reaches the Divine.


verso:

An illuminated panel of calligraphy by Mir Ali, Bukhara, early 16th century.  

Signed: 'In the City of Luxury, Bukhara / Al-Husayni the calligrapher / exercise of the poor Ali'

Around the edges are verses by Zahir Faryabi, the 12th century Persian poet of Balkh, by an unknown calligrapher.


For more information on this album see RCIN 1005068.