Yali Dwaya
"They have stood at temple entrances for 1,400 years. Now they stand at yours."
Before the Yali Dwaya came to your home, they stood — or rather, creatures exactly like them stood — at the pillared entrances of some of the greatest temples ever built on Indian soil. The Yali is one of the oldest and most powerful guardian figures in South Indian sacred art: a mythical leogryph combining the strength of a lion, the memory of an elephant, and the speed of a horse into a single creature of extraordinary, composite power.
These two handcrafted brass Yali — 3.5 inches each, sold as a facing pair — are cast from the temple pillar tradition of the Pallava and Chola dynasties, the golden age of Dravidian architecture that gave the world the great temples of Mahabalipuram, Thanjavur, and Madurai. The rearing posture — forepaws raised, body coiled with energy, head turned outward — is the classic Vyala stance, the guardian pose that announces: nothing harmful passes here.
Each piece is cast in solid brass and finished in a deep antique gold patina — the surface carved with dense scrolling foliage, scalloped scales, and ornamental wings that speak to the exceptional skill of the artisan who shaped them. Place the pair facing each other on a console, a mantelpiece, or either side of a shelf centrepiece, and they create a gateway — a threshold of protection — wherever you choose to set them.
The Yali Dwaya is the most historically rooted piece in the Kanasu catalogue. Every home that receives them becomes part of a living artistic tradition that began in the 7th century CE.
Before the Yali Dwaya came to your home, they stood — or rather, creatures exactly like them stood — at the pillared entrances of some of the greatest temples ever built on Indian soil. The Yali is one of the oldest and most powerful guardian figures in South Indian sacred art: a mythical leogryph combining the strength of a lion, the memory of an elephant, and the speed of a horse into a single creature of extraordinary, composite power.
These two handcrafted brass Yali — 3.5 inches each, sold as a facing pair — are cast from the temple pillar tradition of the Pallava and Chola dynasties, the golden age of Dravidian architecture that gave the world the great temples of Mahabalipuram, Thanjavur, and Madurai. The rearing posture — forepaws raised, body coiled with energy, head turned outward — is the classic Vyala stance, the guardian pose that announces: nothing harmful passes here.
Each piece is cast in solid brass and finished in a deep antique gold patina — the surface carved with dense scrolling foliage, scalloped scales, and ornamental wings that speak to the exceptional skill of the artisan who shaped them. Place the pair facing each other on a console, a mantelpiece, or either side of a shelf centrepiece, and they create a gateway — a threshold of protection — wherever you choose to set them.
The Yali Dwaya is the most historically rooted piece in the Kanasu catalogue. Every home that receives them becomes part of a living artistic tradition that began in the 7th century CE.
