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Four lions standing back to back on a circular abacus.
Also known as: State Emblem of India, Sarnath capital, Four lions emblem, Satyameva Jayate emblem
India's State Emblem is an adaptation of the Sarnath capital, and the adaptation is not a copy: only three of the four lions are visible in the emblem, and the original's crowning wheel is absent. The words below are from the Mundaka Upanishad.
Denotes the State Emblem of India: an adaptation of the Mauryan lion capital, showing three of its four lions with a wheel on the abacus below.
Contexts: Public information
Differs from the original sculpture, which is complete with four lions and was crowned by a large wheel that the emblem omits.
Contexts: Public information
Carries the motto Satyameva Jayate — 'truth alone triumphs' — from the Mundaka Upanishad, in Devanagari beneath the abacus.
Contexts: Public information
Is protected by statute: the State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act 2005 restricts its use.
Contexts: Public information
Three carved lions facing outwards, standing on a circular platform bearing a small wheel, above a line of Devanagari script.