Buddhist and Hindu Cthulhu Icons

Cthulhu's extraterrestrial taint has long been mingled into Christianity, Islam, and other Western religious traditions by gifted artists and writers. But what about the East? Remarkably, there are a few spectacular artistic examples of what happens when Lovecraft's worlds collide with Eastern spirituality. The most common form, not surprisingly, parodies the Buddha statues commonly found in temples, restaurants, and kitsch stores. This seems a natural manifestation of Cthulhu, who is no stranger to appearing in horrific idols. Santani's Cthulhu (upper right) is a highly alien depiction, while the stone statue displays a more tradition look.

Buddhism isn't the only religion to host Cthulhu's nightmarish visage. In another unsettling example, we see Cthulhu as a stand in for Vishnu, the Hindu god often associated with destruction. There's no evidence the paned sculpture is explicitly Eastern or religious, but I decided to include it because it's reminiscent of the wildly detailed carvings seen inside temples in Southeastern Asia.

Blissfully, fiction is far more rife than art with Lovecraftian references and monstrosities colliding with Eastern mysticism. Check out Asamatsu Ken's exemplary series of Lovecraftian tales translated from Japanese, Lairs of the Hidden Gods, beginning with Night Voices, Night Journeys. There's more Cthulhuvian terror mixed with Eastern spiritual traditions than you dare imagine.

-Grim Blogger