Balarama Kills the Ass Demon, Page from a Dispersed Bhagavata Purana Series

ca. 1725

This is an illustration from the Bhagavata Purana, a lengthy Hindu scripture dedicated to the god Krishna, who is said to have lived on earth as a prince. When Krishna (with blue skin) and his brother, Balarama (with white skin), approached a grove in hopes of picking fruit, Dhenuka, a demon who took the form of a donkey (or ass), kicked Balarama in the chest. In the lower right corner of the painting, Balarama is shown recovering from the blow. In the lower left, we see Balarama’s revenge, which was to grab the donkey by the back legs and fling him through the air; the demon died upon landing a great distance away. This repetition of figures to depict several episodes in a single composition is typical of storytelling imagery in India. The beauty of the forest backdrop here belies the violence of the story, none of which is actually illustrated in the painting.