Devnarayan Ki Phad

Devnarayan Ki Phad
Type	Hindu

Devnarayan Ki Par or Devnarayan Ki Phad (Gujari or Rajasthani:देवनारायण की फड़) are cloth paintings which depict the legend of Devnarayan, a medieval hero venerated as a folk-deity. Traditionally, they are used to accompany a ritual in which the heroic deeds of Devnarayan are sung or recited by priests. Devnarayan is worshipped as an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, mostly in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. According to the legend, he was incarnated in Vikram Samvat in 968 as the son of Gurjar warrior Sawai Bhoj Bagaravat and his wife Saadu Maata Gurjari.

Devnarayan Ki Par contains 335 songs in all. The entire narration, recorded in 1,200 foolscap pages, runs nearly 15,000 verse lines. A professional Bhopa must remember all these songs by heart.

The Par of Devnarayan is largest among the popular Pars in Rajasthan. The painted area of Devnarayan Ki Par is 170 square feet (i.e. 34' x 5'). Some other Pars are also prevalent in Rajasthan, but being of recent origin they are not classical in composition. Devnarayan Ki Par has the following attributes:

The color red dominates the Devnarayan Ki Par. Reading of the Par is started from the central figure of Shri Devnarayan. For the purpose of reading, the Par can be divided in three pars. Part A extends from the left to the central figure of Lord Devnarayan. Part B begins with the figure of Devnarayan and ends with the fourth-largest figure, Devnarayan's cousin Bhangi Ji. The rest is part C. The Par reading is initiated with prayers or aarati of Lord Devnarayan and other gods such as Ganesha.

The figure of Lord Devnarayan is the largest in the Par. The central and largest figure of Lord Devnarayan is shown seated on Basag Nag (king of snakes) and the side view of Deoji has a sharp nose and prominent golden ornament. From the ear hangs a large golden ornament which most of the Gurjars still wear in Rajasthan. In one hand, there is a flower, while in the other, the Khanda (a sword).

Bhopa, the narrator, is the main singer who presents the Par to the audience with explanation and poetic narrations. The Bhopa use instruments such as Jantar when the Par is presented to the audience. The study of narrators and folk epics has been undertaken in other countries such as Russia and Finland. In Russia, these narrators are known as Zhiraus and Baksi. But the tradition of Par painting where Bhopas not only dance and sing but use a painting in their narration is found only in Rajasthan.

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Wikipedia