________________
he most pervasive meaning of lotus in the Indian sacred arts is that of a spiritually enlightened being such as the Buddha or Mahāvīra, who, like the lotus, has risen from the mire of earthly temptations, and has blossomed fully, untainted by muddled existence of lower levels:
Just as, Brethren, a lotus, born in water, full-grown in the water, rises to the surface and is not wetted by the
water; even so, Brethren, the Tathagata, born in the world,
full-grown in the world, surpasses the world, and is unaffected by the world.
-The Buddha I he legend has it that as a new-born child, the Buddha took seven steps to announce his spiritual sovereignty over the earth. His seven steps are represented in art by seven lotuses. Later, after
.
.
.
The ascending stages of consciousness, from Maldhara to Sahasrara, the seat of enlightenment. This is symbolized by the mantra Om, shown at the Bummit. Gouache on paper, 17th century, Uttar Pradesh. Courtesy: Ait Mookerjee, Yoga Art.
Infant Kom in a lotus. Miniature, Kulu, c. 1700. Private collection.
