New find of Lajja Gauri in Karnataka

https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/ancient-idol-goddess-found-roadside-udupi-historians-say-its-rare-find-117781

"On the side of the road in Belakur in Udupi district, an old figurine made of granite was stuck on the pavement of a road. People ran their vehicles over it every day but a few days ago, the pictures of the idol began circulating on WhatsApp. It turned out that the idol is a historically significant one. It is of the fertility goddess Lajja Gauri, who is worshipped even to this day, in several parts of Karnataka. ...

"The ASI has not yet dated the idol. However, initial estimates suggest that the idol is from the 6th century. Further studies will give more information on the idol.

“Lajja Gauri is usually not a principal deity in a temple. They usually have it as a sculpture in a temple. Lajja Gauri is known to be worshipped in the tantric tradition, however, for fertility. It has a distinct ethnographic feature [weird phrasing!] of a nude woman sitting in a squat position with the knees apart,” says Remya VP, an expert in temple architecture in Karnataka, who works in the Karnataka Central University, Gulbarga.

"Remya adds that the goddess is usually worshipped in North Karnataka, and that “it’s a little surprising that they found it in South Karnataka.” "My observation from the photographs is that the artefact does not seem to belong to the spot it was found in. Rather, it looks like it happened to be on the spot out of context. The sculpture must have been part of a structure, like a temple." 

What's unique about this relief is that Lajja Gauri almost always has a lotus in place of her head, but on this goddess the lotus radiates from her vulva. She has an ordinary woman's head, rendered in a Southern style.

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