Centenary Souvenir 1916-2015: 100 Years' Service to the Nation

Jeevan Dhaara – The Flow of Life: Life or ‘Jeevan’ is believed to have originated in the prebiotic Ocean from a ‘Primordial Soup’. The mythical ‘Samudra Manthan’ or the Churning of the Ocean of milk is akin to this phenomenon propounded by evolutionary biologists. Churned by Vasuki the serpent, the oceans released Amrit or the nectar of immortality, the elixir of life, The ZSI Centenary Sculpture “Jeevan Dhaara” portrays this “Dhaara”. The waves at the base of the sculpture depicts the cradle of life with the Amritkumbh floating above it and the towering Vasuki at the centre of the Manthan. The coils of the snail on the face of the Amritkumbh depict the  golden proportion of beauty in all creations. Life gradually evolves in a definitive order from simple to more complex forms. With the Dashavataars foreshadowing the modern theory of evolution, the Indian Avatarism reflects the ascending scale of both creation and evolution. The sculpture embodies this evolutionary flow or the Dhaara through the Matsya or the fish, the Kurma or the turtle and the Varaha or the boar and several other animals all entwined in the flow finally evolving to the supreme perfection – Man. Conservation of animal starts with him at the centre and the protects all that have evolved with him. The three tiers of the sculpture depicts the different life forms inhabiting the Jal or the aquatic forms, the snail, the fish, the turtle and the crocodile at the base, the Sthal or the terrestrial with the hog, the gaur, the horse, the elephant in the middle, and the Antariksha portrayed by the eagle soaring towards the skies – all embodied in this flow of Jeevan Dhaara. The ‘Jeevan Dhaara’ is thematically profiled, conceptualized, and sculpted by Bhabatosh Sutar and is a dedication by the ZSIIANS to the nation on the 100th year of the Zoological Survey of India.