Devi, giver of joy

This is the opening folio of a series of seventy paintings that form part of Basohli Tantric devi series. This painting is covered by a distinctly decorated Mughal style border as opposed to a plain red border found in most of the other paintings of the school. 

The artist in his visualisation of the image clad her with garments and adorned her with jewellery in accordance with her description in the poem scribed on the verso of the painting. “Clad in blue garments, tinkling pearl anklets, rosy lips reddened with betel leaf, heavenly pearls, forehead bearing third eye and crescent moon with a girdle binding her beautiful hips, she is radiant as sun and giver of joy”.