Lakulisha

East Face of the tower
Parashurameshvara Temple, Bhubaneshwar

Born about 200 AD, Lakulisha was the chief leader (although perhaps not the founder) of the Pashupata sect of Shaivism to which this temple belonged. The seated holy man, who is considered by his followers to be an incarnation of Shiva himself, brandishes a club (his traditional attribute) and rosary while surrounded by four disciples arranged upon lotus blossoms.

In the finely-worked decorative panel below this sculpture, an effusion of foliage is grasped by a divinity.