Vishnu, the Hindu God of Preservation, is asleep on the five-headed serpent named Ananta (Eternity) or Shesha (Remainder), who is atypically shown supported by a cot (charpoi) floating on the primordial ocean of milk. His wife Lakshmi is massaging his foot, thereby stimulating him to dream the history of the universe during each cosmic age (kalpa). Vishnu is crowned and has four arms. His upper right hand supports his head. His lower right hand holds his mace. His upper left hand holds his discus. His upper lower left hand grasps his conch. A now-damaged figure of Brahma, the God of Creation, sits on a lotus rising out of Vishnu’s naval. Seated along the top edge are the seven mother goddesses (sapta matrikas) on the left and the nine planetary deities (nava grahas) on the right. The planetary deities are represented from right to left, with the final divinity somewhat obscured behind Brahma. Beneath the cot are three seated figures, two vessels, and a horse. They likely represent Lakshmi, the divine physician Dhanvantari, the elixir of immortality (amrita), and a poison, all of which emerged from the sea with Vishnu’s help in a related myth, the churning of the milk ocean.
