Varaha, Deccan, India, c. 1800
British Museum

Apart from the subject matter of the painting, one cannot fail to be enlivened by the glorious use of colour. Bhumi is again represented as a cow, as can be seen in the close-up of the picture.

The picture can be seen at the British Museum.

Varaha, Pahari school, early 19th c.
British Museum

Varaha Saves the Earth, Guler School, Pahari, c. 1800
San Diego Museum of Art

Varaha Lifting the Earth, Pahari style, c. 1810
Royal Collection Trust

We were unable to locate the origin or date of the above painting, though it follows the classical depiction of the flat-Earth with Bhumi represented as a cow, and the landscape dotted with temples.

Sri Varaha Avatara, Patna, c. 1800s
Wikipedia CC 3.0

Vishnu as Varaha or Boar incarnation, Kangra, c. early 19th c.
Agefotostock.com

We were unable to find the date and origin of the above painting.

The above painting can be seen at the Welcome Collection Museum in London.

Varaha Defeating Hiranyaksha, Rajasthan, Devgarh, c. 1800

Basholi, Chandigarh Museum

The date of this painting is not given but it is said to be in Basholi style and can be seen at the Chandigarh Museum. Again we see the cow, the temple, and the lush landscape depicted as the most important features on the Earth.

Varaha, North India, Pahari region, c. 1800

Varaha, the Boar Avatar of Vishnu, Patna, Bihar, 19th c. Company School

As can be seen in the above image, the Earth is sometimes depicted like a boat. In the Srimad Bhagavatam, Bhu-devi said to King Prthu:

"The cow-shaped Earth continued: My dear King, I am just like a strong boat [navam], and all the paraphernalia of the world is standing upon me. If you break me to pieces, how can you protect yourself and your subjects from drowning?" (SB 4.17.21)

Again:

"My dear Lord, in this way You once protected me by rescuing me from the water, and consequently Your name has been famous as Dharadhara—He who holds the planet Earth. Yet at the present moment, in the form of a great hero, You are about to kill me with sharpened arrows. I am, however, just like a boat on the water, keeping everything afloat". (SB 4.17.35)

Here the word for boat is navi. As the Earth goddess declares here, all the beings in the universe are dependent on the gigantic Earth-circle for various resources. This is clearly illustrated during the lila of King Prthu when all the various groups of beings came to milk their various powers from the Earth who appeared to them in the form of a cow. There are several verses in the Puranas that compare the Earth to be a boat resting on the water.

"The sages said: O demon, listen to the virtues of man and similar other beings who dwell on the surface of the Earth and the seven continents (dvipas). This Earth of ours, fifty crores yojanas in extent rests on the water, like a boat on the water of a river." (Vamana Purana, chapter 11, verse 30-31)

Although the gigantic Earth is compared here to a boat, the circular nature of the Bhu-mandala would suggest that the comparison is more to the circular types of boats that are found in many ancient cultures spanning from India to Ireland.

We also have this interesting example of Noah's Ark which is roundish in shape, and said to be a scale model following the original description. (CSMonitor.com.

The important point to note in the comparison between the Earth and a boat is that below the gigantic Earth-circle (which is fifty crores yojanas in diameter) is a great ocean of water that fills the bottom half of the universe. We discussed this point previously in Part 1 of this paper. It is not that the Earth is floating in space and that below the Earth is an infinite dark space where all manner of planets and stars are situated (as modern images of the Earth suggest). In Vedic cosmology all the stars and planets are above the Earth. The only thing below the Earth is Ananta-sesha who resides on the Garbhodaka Ocean and holds the Earth on His head.

Vedic statements that the Earth rests on the water like a boat do not contradict other statements which say that the Earth rests on the head of Ananta-sesha; this is because at the time of the pralaya or inundation, the Earth is first submerged in water; when Varaha again lifts the Earth, He is said to make it float on the water (SB 3.18.8); finally after killing Hiranyaksha the Earth is replaced on the head of Ananta-sesha:

"Seeing the Earth fallen (from the demon's head), He lifted it with his fang [tusk], and putting it on Sesha's head as before, took up the form of a Tortoise. Seeing great Vishnu of the form of the hog, all deities and sages, with their bodies bowed with devotion, praised him." (Padma Purana, Vl.237.11-19)

Thus although the Earth is sometimes said to be floating on the water like a boat, her permanent position is to reside above the waters on the head of Ananta-sesha. The image below shows another boat-like Earth. We should bear in mind that this is still a flat-Earth concept since (as is the case with an ordinary boat) all the places of residence are clearly situated on a horizontal surface.

Vishnu as Varaha Raising the Earth, Rajasthan, c.. 1800
Philadelphia Museum of Art

In Part 4 of this paper we shall discuss the dramatic change that occurred in the 20th century when Indian artists ceased to depict the Earth as a flat-Earth, and ceased also to depict the presiding Goddess of the Earth, the cow and the temple, which were all traditionally shown as the most important features on the Earth's landscape.

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