Image: 29 1/2 x 25 3/4 in. (74.9 x 65.4 cm)]]> Image: 30 x 26 in. (76.2 x 66 cm)]]> Image: 30 x 26 in. (76.2 x 66 cm)]]> Iooss loves photographing kids playing sports, you can hear it in his words: “The beauty of the game is seen when you’re a child—when the ball is thrown to you, nothing else exists in the world.”]]>
Knowing he would have to fight the gods to procure the amrita, Garuda asked his father Kashyapa for some food to strengthen him. His father directed him towards a tortoise and elephant that were fighting at a nearby lake; they were, he explained, two fighting brothers who had been sages. In their anger, one sage had cursed the other to become an elephant and the other cursed his brother to become a tortoise. Eating these, Kashyapa assured his son, would give him the strength he required to obtain the amrita.

Garuda grabbed the elephant in one claw and the tortoise in the other and flew with them to a magnificent tree. The tree trembled under his weight and he realized the branch upon which he was sitting was filled with Brahmans performing penance. He broke off the large limb they were inhabiting and carried it in his beak to a great mountain, where he gently put them down and proceeded to eat the elephant and tortoise.

To retrieve the amrita, Garuda battled Indra and the other gods. He defeated all of them except for Vishnu, who was himself injured. Vishnu promised, then, that Garuda would become immortal and become his vahana.

The folio pictures Garuda picking up the elephant and tortoise, the thousand-eyed Indra, and Garuda battling the gods for the amrita.
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Knowing he would have to fight the gods to procure the amrita, Garuda asked his father Kashyapa for some food to strengthen him. His father directed him towards a tortoise and elephant that were fighting at a nearby lake; they were, he explained, two fighting brothers who had been sages. In their anger, one sage had cursed the other to become an elephant and the other cursed his brother to become a tortoise. Eating these, Kashyapa assured his son, would give him the strength he required to obtain the amrita.

Garuda grabbed the elephant in one claw and the tortoise in the other and flew with them to a magnificent tree. The tree trembled under his weight and he realized the branch upon which he was sitting was filled with Brahmans performing penance. He broke off the large limb they were inhabiting and carried it in his beak to a great mountain, where he gently put them down and proceeded to eat the elephant and tortoise.

To retrieve the amrita, Garuda battled Indra and the other gods. He defeated all of them except for Vishnu, who was himself injured. Vishnu promised, then, that Garuda would become immortal and become his vahana.

The folio pictures Garuda picking up the elephant and tortoise, the thousand-eyed Indra, and Garuda battling the gods for the amrita.
]]> On this side, Rama’s strength is evident as he massacres an entire army, without incurring so much as a scratch. Below, he wears the princely attire of a Rajput nobleman, rather than the garb of a forest-dwelling ascetic, emphasizing his nobility. On the other side, Rama is depicted bow in hand, a proficient and elegant warrior. He smiles fearlessly as a demon army approaches, demonstrating the kingly virtue of bravery.]]> This manuscript shows Shurpanakha as a fair-faced, beautiful maiden wearing a sari identical to Sita’s. This depiction contrasts with Valmiki’s portrayal of her as a hideous-looking demoness and humanizes Shurpanakha, especially in comparison to her animal-faced demon brothers]]> Maximum (visible): 15 3/4 x 12 1/4 in. (40 x 31.1 cm)]]>