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Eight-armed Shiva

“…we can at once see that the spiritual emotion and suggestions of the cosmic dance are brought out by this device in a way which would not be possible with a two-armed figure….Art justifies its own means and here it does it with a supreme perfection.”

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Eight-armed Shiva, dancing in the alidha or squatting mode. Kailasanatha temple, Kancipuram, Pallava, 8^th century. Photograph by Elizabeth Beck.