You see, it is these things of the soul that are real—the only real things in the universe.

Religion and culture, life and art are inextricably bound together in the web of Indian life. Art, like religion, is a way of looking at things. And when the work of art best expresses the passion that animates it, it is no doubt most worthy of praise.

The several schools of miniature painting that flourished between the 16^th and 19^th centuries in various principalities of Rajasthan, derived from the inexhaustible fountain of Hindu religious and lyrical imagination, acquaints us with all that is best and of universal appeal in the emotional life of Indians—their poetry, music and drama. The subject matter was by no means confined to illustrations of myths and poems. Hunting scenes, festival celebrations (as in Radha celebrating Holi) or royal visits to holy men (as in Akbar and Tansen visiting Swami Haridas in Vrindavan) were included besides court scenes. Both religious and secular literary sources provided the Rajasthani painters with sources of inspiration. These include episodes from the Hindu puranas and the Ramayana and the Mahabharata; the Krishna legends; Shiva and Parvati; ballads and romantic poems; seasons (baramasa) and the ragamalas (garlands of musical modes). Well-known stories like Nala and Damayanti, the Devi-Mahatmya of the Markandeya Purana were illustrated by series of drawings, sometimes with inscribed texts.

The Analyst Magazine, Religion and culture, Myths and Poems, Rajasthani Painters, Hindu pantheon, Emotional Coloring, Secular Literary Sources, Visual Representations, Pahari Masterpieces.