The prince Babhruvahana fights the king of the snakes, from an illustrated series of the Mahabharata

In this painting of an episode from the Mahabharata (Great Chronicle of the Bharata Dynasty) prince Babhruvahana, a son of the story's main hero Arjuna, is fighting to obtain the nectar of immortality that would save his father's life. This painting focuses on the confrontation between two powerful enemies, the mongoose and the snake. Babhruvahana (literally "he who rides a mongoose") is shown with his army of mongooses on the left, while the king of snakes with his menacing fanged serpents is on the right. The composition immediately conveys that the balance of power is weighted towards the snake army. However, as the story tells us, the power of virtue and faith must not be underestimated, as the potent chant by the mongoose army brings victory to Babhruvahan