Visvarupa is a term used in the Bhagavadgita to describe Arjuna's vision of Krsna manifested as God. This book traces, through the study of selected north Indian sculptures and bronzes, the various artistic attempts to achieve a plastic interpretation of that vision. Maxwell draws on Sanskrit texts to recount the stylistic and iconographical history of this cosmic deity from its origins to its decline, and explores relevant Saiva, Brahma, and Buddhist imagery.
