The second chakra in the mela scheme is called ‘Netra’ meaning eyes which are two in number. Rajam has drawn two eyes in the inset on this page. He has chosen to depict the immortal, inseparable celestial couple — Rati and Manmatha for this chakra. The purana-s describe Rati as dark skinned, and Manmatha as fair. Manmatha corresponds to Cupid, god of love, and he is responsible for bringing two soulmates together! He holds a bow of sugarcane, and an arrow of five flowers symbolic of the ‘pancha baana’. As they are heavenly beings, they move about in the skies with gay abandon. Their movement is indicated by the displacement of their ornaments while in flight. The sky and clouds in the background show the shifting colours at various times of the day