Mega Raksaya Item Number: 3392/19 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
A watercolour painting which depicts a spiritual being with the head of a horned animal at its feet. The being has four arms and three eyes. Its head is blue, and its body is gold. The being is wearing a red skirt which ends just below the knee and curls outward at the hip. The bottom of the skirt has a border made up of white, brown, yellow and blue horizontal stripes. The main body of the skirt is covered in thinner horizontal stripes, and consists of two pieces which come together in the front. A piece of fabric hangs down from the waistband, which is decorated by a repeating circular pattern. Adornments wrap around the being's chest and neck, and decorative bands encircle the its biceps, wrists, and ankles. The being has large, round eyes and a grinning fanged mouth. It is wearing a headpiece that comes to a point at both sides. Two large discs protrude from the side of its head. All of the being's arms are raised and holding objects. The three gold arms are holding a round object with a handle, a long object that is pointed at both ends, and an irregularly shaped object with bumps along the top. The green arm is holding a round object with an eye. The animal head at the being's feet is light grey, with a long face and ears, and horns that curve slightly inward. The painting's background is blue, and a rectangular black background surrounds the image. Blue and white oblong rings radiate from the being's head and shoulders.
The imagery is possibly associated with ritual healing in Sri Lanka. The set of watercolours (3392/3-34) is said to depict spirits that inhabit planets, or deviyo (minor gods) or rakshas and yakkas (evil or mischievous beings). These beings are often depicted in masked dances and exorcisms.
Identified as a Raksha (demon)/Yakka; mischievous or evil..
The collector, Dr. Michael Egan, wrote his doctoral thesis on healing rituals in Sri Lanka. His fieldwork was carried out in the south of Sri Lanka, in the village of Kadurupokuna (Hambantota District), between Sept. 1965 and Nov. 1966.