What does Alekhyam mean? Chitrasutra

According to Vatsyayana's Kama Sutra, Painting (Alekhyam) was considered one of the 64 Arts, ranking fourth on the list. In fact, Vatsyayana's concluding Shloka suggests that the art of painting was already well-developed during that time, with the six limbs of painting (Shadangas) already being in practice in India. These six limbs of Indian paintings include Rupabheda, Pramanam, Bhava, Lavanya Yojanam, Sadrisyam, and Varnikabhanga.

The Chitrasutra, which is a part of the Vishnudharmottara Purana, is an ancient text that carefully documents the art and technique of painting. It is believed to have been an oral tradition, which was later transcribed on paper around the fifth century A.D. As the oldest known treatise on painting in the world, the Chitrasutra contains rules and suggestions on how to effectively depict different themes, the proportion of human figures, the use of colors to convey ideas, and the intricate details of movements and stances of the human body in various situations and moods.

The Chitrasutra emphasizes the importance of paintings as they have a positive impact on the viewer, and it was carefully formulated to be passed down from generation to generation through guilds of painters. The purpose of this documentation was to preserve the legacy of collective knowledge and understanding of the finest minds in the art of painting, in accordance with the ancient Indian tradition where knowledge is considered sacred and should be approached with reverence.