Jnana Vigraham

The design of Jñāna Vigraham incorporates three parts of its structure - the anatomical statue, the pedestal, and the radiance board (Prabha).

The core anatomical statue is devoid of any decorative elements. It is a lifelike figure of Narayana Guru, supposedly in his mid-life, in a seated posture and with hands in the ‘dharmachakra mudra’, the gesture of teaching usually interpreted as turning the wheel of righteousness. The hands are held level with the heart, the thumbs and index fingers form circles, symbolising the teachings of the Narayana Guru. The legs are placed in ‘vajrāsana’ an iconographic yoga posture (also referred to as ‘padmasana’), symbolising that Narayana Guru had mastered various yoga practices and endorsed Raja Yoga, which is yoga of meditation and also incorporates Hatha Yoga.

The pedestal has three front-facing panels with relief carvings. The centre panel depicts the conch and lotus, the traditional eastern symbol of dharma. One of the side panels illustrate the historic consecration of the lingam in 1888 at Aruvippuram; an action of Narayana Guru that broke the misconception that such spiritual practices was reserved as a prerogative of orthodox priests of those days, simply being misinterpreted and claimed by them during the british rule, when foreign rule was supported by them, and inturn received land and patronage in the form of jobs, position etc. The third panel depicts the eastern proverbial blind men and an elephant as represented by Narayana Guru in verse 44 of the guru's philosophical magnum opus and scripture Atmopadesa Satakam (one hundred verses of self-instruction).

The radiance board providing the backdrop and halo for the statue incorporates decorative elements and symbolism. The overall structure of the backdrop displays likeness to the Sarnath Buddha. The lower portion of the board figures the relief carvings of two elephants in outward facing and welcoming posture signifying Narayana Guru's openness to the views and beliefs of other religions and philosophies. The radiance board also has relief carvings of fluttering birds representing the guru's words in verse 8 of the scripture Atmopadesa Satakam. The six fluttering birds represent the five senses and the sixth sense of philosophical intuition as visualised by the designers to venerate the guru. The relief carvings of the birds are intertwined with creepers and flowers signifying the growth and fruition of wisdom.

The Jñāna Vigraham incorporates the citation of a Sanskrit verse from the ancient Indian scripture Bhagavata Purana to revere Narayana Guru as follows:

eke tvākhila-karmāni

sannyasyopaśamaḿ gatāḥ

jñānino jñāna-yajñena

yajanti jñāna-vigraham

Translation: In pursuit of spiritual knowledge, some persons renounce all material activities and, having thus become peaceful, perform the sacrifice of philosophic investigation to worship You, the embodiment of knowledge.

• The Life and Teachings of Narayana Guru – Nataraja Guru
• The Golden Age of Sculpture in Sri Lanka – Ulrich von Schroeder
• The Vision of The Buddha – Tom Lowenstein
• Atmopadesa Satakam – Sree Narayana Guru
• Bhagavata Purana (Verse 10.40.6)

• Media related to Jnana Vigraham at Wikimedia Commons
• A 2007 feature on the Jñāna Vigraham in The Hindu newspaper.