MALAYSIAN ARTIST INCORPORATES SACRED GANGA, KAVERI WATERS IN LORD MURUGAN PAINTING

By R.Vikneswaran

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 31 (Bernama) -- For Malaysian artist Naresh Babu, painting Lord Murugan was never merely an act of creativity, but a deeply personal spiritual journey.

The 36-year-old brought together sacred waters from two of India’s most revered rivers, months of meticulous craftsmanship and a symbolic act of devotion linked to Batu Caves, transforming his latest artwork into what he describes as both a prayer and an offering.

Naresh, founder and chief executive officer of Creative Factory Painting, incorporated water collected from the Ganga and Kaveri rivers into the mixed-media depiction of Lord Murugan, saying the idea stemmed from reverence rather than novelty.

“I wanted to approach Lord Murugan the way one would in a place of worship, not merely as an image. The materials themselves had to carry meaning.

“Ganga (a sacred river in northern India) symbolises Lord Shiva, Lord Murugan’s father and celestial origin, while the Kaveri (in southern India) represents the land, continuity and Tamil civilisation. By combining the two, the artwork reflects both Tamil identity and divine ancestry rather than being just a visual piece,” he told Bernama.

The waters were collected during separate visits to India and carefully preserved for the project, which took nearly three months to complete, with final detailing still ongoing.

Throughout the process, the sacred water was incorporated into the medium as a symbolic element to enhance the work’s spiritual significance.

“The artwork features Lord Murugan in a silver form with a golden aura, symbolising purity, strength and divinity. It combines traditional hand-painting techniques with modern composition and symbolic elements,” he said.

For Naresh, whose father was a muralist known for painting temple walls, the project also reflects his upbringing, having grown up surrounded by temple art and religious imagery that shaped his appreciation for sacred aesthetics.

Marking the completion of the main work, he carried the kavadi late last year and again during Thaipusam at Batu Caves, describing the act not as a public declaration but a personal gesture of gratitude.

“It wasn’t just the end of a painting. It marked the end of one stage of the journey,” he said, adding that he hopes the artwork will resonate especially with the Tamil diaspora, offering a sense of unity, faith and cultural continuity beyond borders.

The Thaipusam festival will be celebrated tomorrow (Feb 1).

-- BERNAMA