Ganesha, the auspicious God

Seated cross-legged upon a fully blossomed lotus against a deep yellow ground, the vermilion-hued Ganesha is represented as an auspicious deity and the remover of obstacles (Vighna-harta). He holds a goad (ankusha) and battle-axe (parashu) in his upper hands, while his lower hands hold a rosary (akshamala) and a lotus flower.

The sky is rendered as a narrow horizontal strip at the upper edge of the composition, a characteristic device of Pahari miniature painting. The image’s bold contours, saturated colours, simplified spatial treatment, and emphatic decorative quality are characteristic of the Basohli idiom of Pahari painting.