Bhairava raga

A raga is a traditional Hindu musical form. This painting is from a dispersed set of pages called a ragamala ('garland of ragas'), in which each raga is represented by a scene or person. The image shown here has usually been identified as Bhairava raga. This raga is typically represented by the Hindu god Shiva with a lady in a palace setting. The figure shown here, however, is the god Krishna, recognisable by his blue skin and peacock-feather crown, so this identification may need to be re-assessed. The bold colours and flat composition are typical of the painting style of Malwa, in central India, from about 1650-1700.