Gunakali ragini

This painting is part of a ragamala or 'garland of ragas'--a series of paintings that illustrate the Indian musical modes known as ragas or raginis by depicting the activities of lovers. This scene, of a lady picking flowers in preparation for the arrival of her lover, is the traditional representation of gunakali ragini.

This linking of a particular iconography with an individual raga or ragini was significant to the relationship between musical and poetic modes, and it is often impossible to explain the source of the connection between the music and the image.