Gond Paintings

Ghui Tree 

Wild animals come to eat the leaves of the ghee tree. At the same time, a group of angry Bhanwar fish suddenly attacks those animals. All the animals run away in fear. Bhanwar captures his food.

Gaay bichhakaai ( Cow pinching)

Deepawali is the main festival among the tribals. On this occasion, the cows are pinched after 12 noon on the second day. All the cow herders observe fast. After the calf passes under the calf's legs, they observe silence. This is called Mauni.

Narmada 

Mother Narmada emerges from the Maikal mountain. To stop Mother Narmada, Pandava king Bhima carried Kanwar, Lingon Dongar and Duhi Dongar on his shoulders and placed them between Mother Narmada. But Mother takes the form of a fish and passes through both the Dongars. The same feeling has been depicted in this picture.

Serpent deity

The serpent god is holding the earth on his head

Birth of the earth

There was no one on earth then. There was only a snake and a bird. Shiv ji tells the bird to find out if there are any other animals or not. The bird gets tired. The snake said why are you sitting on my head. The bird flies away. It comes to Shankar ji with soil. Shankar ji creates the earth from that soil.

Banjari Devi. 

Banjari Devi is the goddess of the forest. On reaching the forest, the first thing we do is greet her and pray for safety. We pray to Banjari Devi to bear the weight of my wood and take me home safely. 

Shrimati Nankusia Shyam

Origin of the world.

 How the world came into being has been described through three paintings. Brahma ji obtained soil with the help of a crow and from that soil he created the earth and then the creatures living on it. All these things have been depicted through Gondi painting.

Shri Narmada Prasad Tekam 

The deer and the bird. 

The deer wanders in the forest to fill its stomach. Due to fog, it goes to the fields of the village. The birds chirp there. As soon as the deer realizes its mistake, it runs away towards the forest.

 Shri Vijay Shyam

Bagasur. 

There is a fearsome deity among the tribals. He is known as Bagasur Devta. A pig is offered to him on the occasion of marriage. It is believed that if this is not done, the couple remains childless.

Shri Rajkumar Shyam

Three births of Kadambari 

Shri Tamsiram parste 

 There was a huge silk cotton tree near Manasarovar. Many birds lived on it.One day an old hunter goes for hunting. He kills the parrots and throws them from that silk cotton tree.

Origin of Mahua liquor.

 A Baiga Bagin was returning from the forest after cutting wood. He sat down to rest under a tree. That tree was of Mahua. Then the birds sitting on the tree started screaming and started falling down one by one. Baiga was very surprised. He wanted to know the reason. He climbed the tree. He found that there was a cavity in the tree. In which rain water was collected. Mahua flowers were rotting in it. The birds drank this water and were falling down. Baiga tasted that water and he also started getting intoxicated. Baiga told this to Bagin. Bagin came home and rotted the Mahua flowers and heated the water and collected its steam. He gave it to Baiga to drink. He enjoyed it. Mahua liquor was discovered.

Kajal fish.

-Shri Manish Shyam

 A poor family had a mother and a son. The son used to plough the field. His sister used to go to feed the boy every day. One day after eating, the boy goes to the river to drink water. He sees a fish with black eyes. He gets attracted to it. From the next day onwards, he feeds all his food to the fish and himself remains hungry and becomes thin and thin. The sister sees this and tells the mother. The fish is caught. It is cooked and served for dinner. The boy realizes the incident. The fish starts singing songs. The boy buries the fish under the ground. It is believed that in the next birth, the girl is born as a girl.

Litia Chote.

 It is a story of old times. Litia (bird) flying in the sky and Chote (rat) living on the earth become friends. They become friends while living together and then they have physical contact. They start living like husband and wife. After some time Litia becomes pregnant and lays two eggs. From those eggs a beautiful creeper and a human are born. It was nature's gift that both of them were very beautiful and everyone was fascinated by them. One day a king passes by and he fights with the bull. The bull keeps fighting with the king. The bull was cultured and had knowledge too. He tells his younger brother (human) that I cannot win. As soon as I fall down you cut off my nose and tail!

When the bull falls down, his younger brother (man) cuts off his nose and tail. He makes weapons from his nose and snakes are born from his tail. Three paintings based on this story have been made by artists.

Painting by - Mrs Satrupa bai Uvesi

Matsya Avatar 

This picture depicts the Matsya Avatar of God. When the whole world was about to be submerged in water, Lord Vishnu himself took the Matsya avatar and saved animals, birds, food and other essential commodities in this world.

Gaay jagaai 

Cow Jagai has a special significance in the tribal society. It is connected to the livelihood of all the tribals as well as their religious faith. Cow Jagai is performed on the day of Kartik Amavasya. A picture is drawn and worshipped for this purpose. The next day there is a program of Mauni Bichkai.

Search for Earth 

There was water all over the world. At that time Mahadev had to create Earth. Mahadev made a crow from his dirt and sent it to search for soil. He spent many years flying. He got tired but he was not getting any place to rest. Then he saw something above the water, on which he sat. After getting rid of his fatigue for some time, he thought that many years have passed. I did not see anything here except water, but what is this thing on which I came and sat. Then he asked that thing "Who are you, how are you here"? Then that thing came out of the water. Seeing its huge form, the crow got scared! It was a huge crab. He asked the crow who called me. Then the crow said that Mahadev has sent me and I need soil. Can you tell me where I can get soil? Then the crab said O crow, I am the protector of the netherworld, I am the guard there. What you are asking for is the food of my king and queen. Then the crow requested him a lot.  Then the crab said, "Okay, I will ask my king and queen for the soil and bring it for you." When the crab went to his king and queen, they refused to give him the soil.

On this the crab said that I have promised the crow that if you do not give the soil then my promise will be false. Even then he did not agree then the crab caught his throat with his hand and pressed it. Due to which the king and queen (who were crows) spat out all the soil from their mouths. The crab took that soil and gave it to the crow, the crow went and gave it to Mahadev and Mahadev created the earth.

Lilhaari Kothi. 

Grains are stored in Lilhaari Kothi. This Kothi is quite big, for various types of decorations, pictures of Dhingna, animals, birds, flowers, moon and sun are made.

Rain and fish - 

Rainy season has been depicted in this picture. With the arrival of rain, the whole nature is filled with unique beauty. The croaking sound of frogs is an indicator of the arrival of rain and in tribal society, the arrival of rain is estimated from these natural elements.

Airy Bird.

 Airy bird lives in a pond and eats only fish. In this picture it is shown that the bird has laid two eggs and is worried about their safety. As soon as it tries to take its eggs to a safe place, a baby comes out of one of the eggs. This is what is shown here.

Two Brothers 

There were two brothers, one rich and the other poor. The rich brother did not help the poor brother. One day the poor younger brother was walking through the forest in search of food. On the way, he met an old man. He was carrying a heavy load of wood. He brought the bundle of wood to the old man's hut. Happy, the old man gave him a mill. The mill used to give whatever he asked for. The younger brother brought the mill home and asked for a lot of grains from it. He started selling the grains obtained from the mill in the market as well. He became happy. The elder brother secretly saw all this and stole the mill and put it in the boat and started running away. When the boat was going in the sea, he asked for salt from the mill. The mill started and started filling salt. But the elder brother did not know that the mill stops when the red sheet is covered. The mill was still running due to which all the water of the sea became salty.

Dance of the Peacock 

The whole world becomes cheerful in the rainy season. Peacocks also express their happiness. The arrival of the rainy season in the forest and the dance of the peacocks, both are amazing. This is shown in the picture presented here.

Cat, Mouse and Man 

A cat lived on a tree. She always troubled the mouse. The mouse screams and on hearing her voice a man comes there. The man sees the cat on the tree and the mouse on the mountain. The cat scares the mouse. Thinking this, the man puts a snare near the tree. The cat gets trapped in the snare. The cat screams. The mouse goes to the cat. Thinks that if he opens it, it will eat me. Then suddenly a crow comes on that tree. The mouse runs and goes near the snare. The crow thinks that if it tries to eat the mouse, it will open the snare, the crow goes away. Then the cat says to the mouse that hey, get me out of this snare at any cost. The mouse asks if you will eat me or not. The cat promises and from then on both of them become friends.

Crab 

It is shown in this picture that the crab came out of the earth by tearing it apart while releasing water bubbles. The creatures of the earth slowly come out through the path made by the crab. Some climb trees, some fly in the sky and some run on the earth. In this way this earth becomes beautiful.

Turtle and aquatic animals 

Once upon a time, the aquatic creatures said to the tortoise, "Tortoise King, we live inside the water. Tell us about the outside environment sometime. We will also sit on your back and see it." The tortoise took everyone around, while roaming around, everyone saw many birds and enjoyed.

Women_men equality. 

In the present times, men and women are playing an equal role. It is often seen in cities that men and women are working equally in responsibilities. Women are also working shoulder to shoulder with men in the family and society. Even in rural areas, women are playing their role responsibly in many tasks like ploughing (nagar) with men, bringing water from the mountains and participating in every social festival, sports etc. In both these paintings, equality between men and women has been depicted.

Looti_Looti Kaan Bhaai Tarkin Ke Saan 

When Chote Chuha did not find a house to live anywhere, he came behind his friend Litiya (bird)'s house and started trembling! Then Litiya takes him inside the house. Litiya cooks food but there is no vegetable in her house. Then Litiya thinks that Chote's ears are very good and anyway we both are friends. I also do not have ears. I will cut his ear too and cook vegetable from it. Litiya quietly cuts Chote's ear and cooks vegetable and after picking up the Chote, both of them eat food happily. Then a woman comes from outside with Phudra, bangles, bracelets. She calls out loudly to sell her goods, Tarki wear it Tarki. When she sees Chote's ear, she starts laughing and says "Looti Looti Kaan Bhaai Tarkin Ke Saan".

Nature

Nature is all around us, animals, birds, creatures, forests etc. An attempt has been made to show a small form of the same in this picture in which elephant, birds and trees have been depicted.

Dog and fox. 

There was a deep friendship between the dog and the fox. One day suddenly there was a fight between the two. They were going on their respective ways when suddenly a woman comes and explains to these two friends. Do not get angry and do your work. Along with that the bird also says that this is the right thing. Then the dog and the fox become friends.

Kil Kil Bird.

 The Kil Kil Bird flies by spreading its wings. Its specialty is that it traps fish with its wings and eats them.

The sandpiper bird

The sandpiper bird lays eggs on the ground. It stays near them and screams. It sleeps at night with its legs raised so that the clouds do not fall on the eggs and the eggs are saved from breaking.

Castor leaves and Thakur Dev 

In tribal tradition or customs, castor leaves are mainly put in houses during Diwali festival. It is believed that it protects against ghosts and witchcraft. On the day of Amavasya, coconut, incense sticks, Rori etc. are offered in front of Thakur Dev. Standing in front of the deities, Thakur Dev is worshipped. Going from house to house, they dance and sing. On the day of Gyaras, a chicken is sacrificed and only men eat that chicken. Women do not eat it.

Paddy harvesting

 Tribal society is a self-sufficient society. Here men and women do all the work together. The farms of the tribals are also in the forests far away from home, so harvesting the paddy and bringing it to the barn is also a laborious task. The scene of paddy harvesting is shown in this picture.

Bhanvar 

The marriages of tribal people are not conducted by Pandits. Here the marriages are conducted by Suvasa and Suvasin. The marriage rituals are shown in the picture.

Kalsa Mata: 

This picture depicts the details of the worship of Kalsa Devi. Kalsa Devi is worshipped for ten days and a wish is made to keep the light of life alive. The flame of worship keeps burning day and night.

Kheron Maai

This picture depicts a rural environment. The small Khairo Mai of the village is depicted. If one has to go out of the village, then first of all, one meditates on Khairo Mai so that no obstacle hinders the work. This belief that the work will be successful has been prevalent since ancient times. In the picture, Khairo Mai is shown along with animals, birds, trees, plants and houses.

Saila Dance: 

When there is some festival in the village, all the men of the village get together and perform Saila dance. This dance is mostly performed on Diwali. All of them wear traditional attire, make up attractively and dance in the same rhythm while playing musical instruments. The same environment has been created in this picture.

Fish and Tortoise:

 It is a matter of old times that both the fish and the tortoise were friends. Both of them used to play together since childhood. In this, there was a male tortoise and a female fish, later both of them got married. They started living their lives with each other. A happy family has been depicted in this picture.

Humans and Gods and Goddesses:

 There are many types of tribal Gods and Goddesses. Just like humans work together, similarly Gods and Goddesses also work together. They work together to find out who is causing trouble to their servants and when they get very angry, they take a terrible form and destroy that person. Gods and Goddesses always keep their servants happy.

Heron and Fish

 A heron lived on a tree on the bank of a river along with many other birds. The heron had grown old and had difficulty in catching fish. One day an eagle came flying and sat on that tree. Both of them made a conditional friendship. Together they told all the animals and fishes of the river that the water of the river is becoming poisonous. The possibilities of life in it are ending. Then the fishes asked for a way to save themselves. The heron and the eagle had already made a plan to eat the fishes. The eagle said that there is a pond nearby, if you want, we can take you there. They started taking fish one by one. One day it was the turn of an old crab. As soon as they flew with it, the crab understood that there was no other pond here. The crab grabbed the eagle's neck and the eagle released it. The crab went into the river and warned all the fishes. This picture has been made on the basis of the above story.