Queen of The Naga

Vasuki (Sanskrit: वासुकी, वासव) is a naga, one of the serpents of Hindu and Buddhist mythology. He is a great king of the nagas and has a gem (Nagamani) on his head. Manasa, another naga, is his sister.Vasuki is Shiva's (The destroyer) Snake. Vasuki is known in Chinese and Japanese mythology as being one of the "eight Great Naga Kings" (八大龍王 Hachi Ryuu-ou), amongst Nanda (Nagaraja), Upananda, Sagara (Shakara), Takshaka, Balavan, Anavatapta and Utpala.

In this image however, I interpret the woman as a female version of Vasuki rather than Manasa as she appears to be ruling over the other nagas rather than being one of them.

The most famous legend in Hinduism in which Vasuki took part was the incident of Samudra manthan, the churning of the ocean of milk. In this legend, Vasuki allowed the devas (gods) and the asuras (demons) to bind him to Mount Mandar and use him as their churning rope to extract the ambrosia of immortality from the ocean of milk.
Vasuki is also mentioned and used as a tightening rope in other Hindu scriptures, such as in each of the Itihasas (Ramayana and Mahabharata).
In Buddhist mythology, Vasuki and the other Naga Kings appear in the audience for many of the Buddha's sermons. The duties of the naga kings included leading the nagas in protecting and worshiping the Buddha, as well as in protecting other enlightened beings.

The reason why I'm so drawn to this image is basically because of the color scheme used. The depth and color scheme in this painting create a great mysterious atmosphere. The movement and composition is amazing, all the elements flow nicely and complement the soft design of the clothes and the dark nature of the Naga.



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Images are the property of Saryth Chareonpanichkul of Thailand

Excellent Artist with Excellent Works