This sculpture portrays the great God Shiva in a dynamic posture. The aim of the sculptor here is to highlight Lord Shiva as an ascetic wanderer, who never stays at one place. Towards this end, the artist has depicted His left leg with a mild thrust forward, placed on a higher level, denoting ascent. This signifies that always being on the move is essential for an ascetic’s (sannayasi’s) spiritual progress.In his two legs, Lord Shiva wears the typical wooden sandals used by ascetics to this day in India, with its knob gripped between the thumb and the adjacent finger, holding the sandals in place. Around His waist is an animal hide, tied over which is a horn and two bells. On His neck are malas made of Rudraksha and skulls. Lord Shiva is also wearing large circular rustic earrings (kundalas), as well as typically ethnic open-ended anklets.
