Scholar, Serpent, Yogin, and Devotee: The Many Faces of Patañjali in Indian Traditions

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This study illuminates the many faces of Patañjali in Indian traditions. Often regarded as an incarnation of the cosmic serpent Ādiśeṣa or Anantanāga, Patañjali is celebrated, in both story and art, as a grammarian, scholar and practitioner of yoga, physician-alchemist, medical authority, teacher, ascetic, and devotee of the Dancing Śiva (Naṭarāja).
The first three chapters examine the literary works attributed to Patañjali, explore legendary accounts and beliefs associated with this multifaceted figure, and survey temples and shrines dedicated to the sage. The following five chapters trace the development of Patañjali’s iconography from its earliest forms in Tamilnadu, South India, to contemporary examples.
Copyright Year:
2026
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978-90-04-74306-9
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18 Aug 2025
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978-90-04-73695-5
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04 Sep 2025
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Gudrun Bühnemann, Ph.D., University of Vienna, is a professor in the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. She has published extensively on South Asian iconography and ritual.
List of Figures
A Note on the Transliteration of Sanskrit and Tamil Words

Introduction

1 Patañjali: Author(s), Works, and Contemporary Relevance
 1.1 Works Ascribed to Authors Named Patañjali
 1.2 The “Unified” Patañjali
 1.3 On the Contemporary Relevance of the Figure of Patañjali

2 Legendary Accounts of Patañjali
 2.1 Introduction
 2.2 Legends in the Tradition of the Naṭarāja Temple in Cidambaram
 2.3 Legends in the Tradition of the Mīnākṣī Sundareśvara Temple in Madurai
 2.4 Legendary Material in Rāmabhadra Dīkṣita’s Patañjalicarita
 2.5 Legends Principally about Patañjali as Grammarian
 2.6 Legends Concerning Patañjali’s Foster Parents
 2.7 Legends Explaining the Etymology of the Name Patañjali
 2.8 Conclusion

3 Sites, Shrines, and Temples Associated with Patañjali
 3.1 The Grammarian
 3.2 The Philosopher of Yoga
 3.3 The Tamil Siddha and Practitioner of Yoga

4 The Predominantly Two-Armed Iconography of Patañjali in the Tradition of the Naṭarāja Temple in Cidambaram and Beyond
 4.1 Sculptures
 4.2 Paintings
 4.3 Summary and Conclusion

5 Four-Armed Representations of Patañjali in the Tradition of Yoga Authority Tirumalai Krishnamacharya
 5.1 Krishnamacharya and the Iconography of Ananta (Ādiśeṣa)
 5.2 A Widely Recited Verse in Praise of Ādiśeṣa/Patañjali
 5.3 Visual Representations of the Four-Armed Patañjali

6 Mostly Anonymous Representations of Patañjali as a Two-Armed Meditating Sage
 6.1 Engravings in Birlā Temples in North India
 6.2 Representations in Tamil Siddha Traditions and Beyond

7 Selected Contemporary Paintings of Patañjali as a Two-Armed Figure
 7.1 Ajithan Puthumana
 7.2 Norman E. Sjoman
 7.3 Pieter Weltevrede
 7.4 Kalathi Adiyen Aadi Nandhi

8 Epilogue

Appendix: Variations in Transcriptions of Tamil Place and Temple Names
Bibliographical References
General Index
Historians of religion, scholars of South Asian cultural history and Sanskrit grammar, and practitioners of yoga.
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