Gajasamharar is one of the forms of Lord Siva, an anger-mood dance of  Siva (Gaja means Elephant; Samhara means killing – destroying).      This is a very finest Stone sculpture of our Art Gallery.   An arresting image of perfect beauty and wonderful marvelous posture in Stone by the Chola Sculptors of  12 th Century.

A puranic story is  behind this posture of  Lord Siva.  Some sages in THARUGAVANAM sent one very big mighty  elephant  towards Lord Siva to kill him.   Lord Siva caught hold of  the elephant upwards down and pressed it’s head with his right leg and tore it’s stomach and hooked the skin of  the elephant and covered his body as Shawl and dancing in a ferocious mood by twisting his hip.

If we see from the left side of the sculpture, we can realize a grace in his left eye with a gentle smiling  towards his Consort Parvathi and his son infant Muruga and at the same time on seeing from the right side, we can realize his ferocious mood in the right eye which viewing upwards.    Expression of  two feelings in a single stone is the special talent of  the Chola Sculptors.