Hand Carved Neem Wood Narayani Vishnu Durga Sculpture Standing on Mahisha 30"

The Hindu Goddess of Durga is the most powerful aspect of Devi.  Durga means "the invincible" or "the inaccessible". Kali is considered by Hindus to be an aspect of Durga.  Durga is thus considered the fiercer, demon-fighting form of Shiva's wife, the goddess Parvati. Durga manifests fearlessness and patience, and never loses her sense of humor, even during spiritual battles of epic proportion.

Durga the Buffalo Demon Slayer

The buffalo demon Mahisha stomped across the three worlds, kicking up dust, polluting the earth and sea.
Neither Indra, king of gods, nor Kumara, commander of the celestial armies could stop him.  In despair the gods called on Vishnu for help.  Vishnu confronted the demon Mahisha first as Narasimha the man lion and then as Varaha, the boar, but each time he failed to subdue the demon.

Shiva, the supreme ascetic, disturbed by the violence opened h's third eye unleashing the fire of doom.  Even the power of Shiva's third eye capable of destroying the three worlds could not arrest Mahisha's march.
"Nothing can stop Mahisha now: he will soon control the universe and make Nature dance to his tunes," said Brahma the creator.

"It will never be so, Nature can never be conquered,"  said Brahma as his divine strength, his shakti, emerged from his body in the form of the goddess Brahmi.  She rode a swan and held books of wisdom in her hands.

Simultaneously, the shaktis of the other gods emerged taking female forms. From Indra, rose Indrani bearing a thunderbolt, riding an elephant, from Kumara rose Kaumari holding a lance and riding a peacock, from Vishnu rose Vaishanavi on an eagle with a discus whirling on her finger, from Varaha came the sharp tusk sow Varahi, from Shiva came Shiavani riding a bull bearing a trident.

The seven shaktis, unrestrained by the bodies of the gods, were fearsome beings - unbridled, untamed, restless energies of the cosmos.  They would not submit to the authority of any man, beast or god, let alone a demon.
They rose to the sky and merged with each other in a blinding light.  The sounds of the conchs, drums and bells filled the air.  With bated breath, the gods watched the light.  From the heavenly light arose a beautiful goddess.
"Who are you" asked the gods.

"I am Durga, the inaccessible one," replied the goddess.  "I am Prakriti, the substance that gives form and identity to all things.  I am Shakti, the power that enables all creatures to exist, to feel, think, act and react.  I am Maya, the delusion that makes life alluring yet elusive." The gods saluted the great goddess.  "Give me your weapons and I shall destroy he who seeks to dominate me," said the great goddess.

The goddess acquiesced.  Shiva gave his trident, Vishnu his discus and mace, Indra his thunderbolt, Kurmara his lance, Brahma his bow.  Then mounting a lion, Durga prepared for battle.

News of Vindhyavasini, Durga, the beautiful goddess who resides upon a mountain, mount Meru, reached Mahisha.  "She shall be my queen," declared the buffalo demon.  He ordered his two generals, Chanda and Munda, to fetch her.
Chanda and Munda placed the marriage proposal before Durga.

Durga did not reply.  The demons viewed this as insubordination and threatened Durga.  The mighty goddess responded by swinging her sword in one grand sweep she cut off both the generals heads.
The violent rejection of his marriage proposal enraged Mahisha.  "Bring that proud woman before me in chains and I shall show her who is master."

A hundred thousand asuras armed with bows, arrows, spears and swords surrounded Mount Meru, determined to capture Durga.  They marched up the mountain, before long a hundred thousand demon heads were seen rolling down Mount Meru smearing its slopes red.

Durga drank the blood of the demons.  Seizing a lute and drum she made music to celebrate her victory.
Humiliated by the defeat Mahisha asked, "Why won't you marry me, am I not lord of the three worlds?"
"I shall marry only he who defeats me in battle," revealed the goddess. "Then let us fight," responded the buffalo demon.

A great battle commenced.  Mountains shook, oceans trembled, clouds scattered across the sky, as the buffalo demon attacked Durga.  He rushed towards her, sometimes as a buffalo, sometimes as a lion, sometimes as an elephant.  The goddess broke the buffalo's horns with her mace, sheared the lion's mane with her lance, cut the elephant's trunk with her sword.

Weapon after weapon, when hurled at the buffalo demon, but each time he managed to rise up undefeated.
Realizing that her weapons had no effect on Mahisha, Durga threw them aside, dismounted from her lion and with her bare hands sprang upon Mahisha's back.  With her tender feet she kicked his head.  The demon, immune to the weapons of all the gods, fell senseless at the touch of Durga's feet. Durga then raised her trident and plunged it into the buffalo demons heart conquering the unconquerable.

Wood statues are easy to take care of as they just need some annual upkeep to keep them looking as they did when they were first carved. All the wood used by Lotus Sculpure's artists is dried out for months. Moisture causes cracks in the sculpture as the wood contracts and expands in different temperatures. Our wood has little to no moisture in it assuring that the sculpture is not going to crack in its journey into different climates. Here are some simple tips to keep your statue in good condition:

• Dust the statue as needed to prevent dirt build up
• To make the statue shine use a natural wood cleaner and a cotton cloth to buff the sculpture

We prefer Old English to polish and buff our statues. The use of a wood polish like Old English will keep the wood looking fresh and keep the colors looking vibrant. For natural wood and painted wooden statues we recommend Old English for lighter woods. For darker wood statues we recommend Old English for darker woods. Lotus Sculpture cleans and polishes each wooden statue prior to shipping them to the customer.

We recommend keeping wooden statues in an indoor environment. Wood statues can go outside however, they will wear more quickly and develop an antique appearance. If you would like to put a wood statue from Lotus Sculpture outside and keep the same appearance of the sculpture we would recommend first coating the statue with a couple of layers of sealant or polyurethane. We would then recommend placing the statue in a partially covered area. The more exposure to the elements the more the statue will wear over time. Please feel free to contact us directly if you have any questions regarding your wooden statue from Lotus Sculpture, (760) 994-4455 or [email protected].

USA Shipping

This sculpture is in our Oceanside, California store and ready for immediate shipping. The shipping charge is automatically calculated by UPS for shipping within the United States. Each sculpture is usually shipped within 24 hours of the order with the exception of the weekend.
You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page.  Besides the shipping price, the results will also display the date the statue will arrive at your home. Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.

International Shipping

This sculpture is in our Oceanside, California store and ready for immediate shipping to anywhere in the world. ​International shipping charges will be calculated automatically upon checkout. ​
You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page.  Or you can email [email protected] or call us 760-994-4455 to receive a shipping quote. Please include the item number of the statue you are interested in purchasing as well as your country and postal code.​ Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.