Fabric from Banaras with the Eight Symbols of Good Fortune (Tib. Bkra-shis rtags-brgyad, Skt. Ashtamangala)
Dry clean only. Store folded in a soft muslin pouch away from direct sunlight to keep the sheen alive.
Description
Eight signs, woven in silk: a grammar of blessings that has travelled from Tibetan monasteries to the looms of Banaras without losing a single sacred syllable. The Ashtamangala, those ancient symbols of auspicious fortune, here find expression in the hands of the Kasim family, whose weaving practice is rooted in the dense, devotional textile tradition of Varanasi. Art silk carries the motifs with a luminous sheen, the kind that catches temple light and candlelight with equal grace. The colours, magenta, prism violet, spinach green, and vermilion orange, are chosen with the deliberate intensity that marks ritual cloth across the Himalayan and Gangetic worlds. Each symbol, the parasol, the golden fish, the endless knot, the lotus among them, arrives not as decoration but as intention. This is fabric made for purpose and for meaning. Offer it as a puja spread, a meditation altar cloth, or a generous wrap at ceremonial occasions. Its scale and radiance make it as fitting in a Mumbai apartment shrine as in a monastery offering hall.
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Behind this piece
The Ashtamangala, eight auspicious symbols drawn from Tibetan Buddhist and broader Indic iconography, here find their home in the looms of Banaras. The Kasim family, rooted in the weaving lineage of Varanasi, has long translated sacred geometry into silk, and this art silk fabric carries that same exacting vocabulary: the parasol, the lotus, the endless knot, rendered in garnet red, prism violet, and spinach green. Banaras weaving is among the oldest continuous textile traditions in South Asia, and this cloth honours that inheritance without compromise.
How to style
Cut this fabric into an unstitched kurta in vermilion orange for a Diwali gathering, pairing it with raw silk trousers in ivory and kolhapuri sandals. For a more formal occasion, stitch it as a blouse for a Kanjeevaram saree, letting the woven symbols speak at the neckline. In magenta, it makes a compelling dupatta draped over a churidar ensemble. Across all three, choose oxidised silver jewellery, particularly earrings with circular motifs that echo the endless knot woven into the cloth itself.
Fabric & care
Art silk, a lustrous cellulose fibre, is more delicate than it appears and rewards careful handling. Hand wash separately in cold water using a mild, pH-neutral detergent, and rinse without wringing. Press out excess water gently between two dry towels. Dry flat in shade, never under direct sun, which causes colour shift over time. Iron on a low setting, placing a cotton press cloth between the iron and the fabric. Store folded in muslin, away from humidity, to preserve the weave structure and the depth of colour.
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