Stone Craft in India

To the worshipper, a stone assumes a powerful spiritual form the moment it is lifted, washed and put under a tree or a canopy with a tripund, trident, marked on it. Consecrated thus, it charges the cultural milieu with emotional and religious significance. The stone, now sanctified, becomes a being to be revered, loved and feared. This stone, whether cut or uncut, carved or just a roughly hewn shape, represents the human aspiration to visualise God. This aspiration, over the centuries, has inspired the Indian artist to created a tradition, singularly rihc in artistic imagination.Stone images in India concretise a spiritual longing, ensuring the continuance of a tradition.
In Madhya Pradesh, too, as in other parts of the country, tribal Stone Craft reflects the emotonal and spiritual aspirations of the tribal people, with the carvings and sculptures of deities giving them a sense of security and well-being. Different tribal areas produce different deities, some special to a particular tribe, others from amongst the more pan-Indian Hindu ones. Besides the deities, memorial stones and pillars, and small household vessels are also important products of the stone carvers' skill.
Soapstone is the main material used for shaping and carving idols. Many villages in Bastar have shrines with stone idols. The villages of bade Dongar, Chhota Dongar, Dantewada, Narangpal, Bastar, Kondagaon, Chapka and Amravati are well known for their stone dev-gude, shrines.
The main centres of Stone Craft in the Bastar area are Ektaguda, Pujaripara, Parasapara and Deogaon, as well as Khhachgaon, Golabund and Bahara. The main objects of stone craft in this area are idols of locally worshipped deities and these are usually sanctified and worshipped by the entire village.