Overview
Kaumodaki (Sanskrit: कौमोदकी, Kaumodakī, literally 'captivator of the mind') is the gadā or mace of Vishnu, a principal deity in the Hindu tradition. Vishnu is commonly depicted with four hands holding his characteristic attributes — the chakra (discus), the shankha (conch), the lotus and the Kaumodaki. The mace also features in the iconography of several of Vishnu's avatars.
The name 'Kaumodaki' is first attested in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, where it is associated with Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu. Depictions of Vishnu carrying a gada are found in Indian sculpture from around the 2nd century BCE. The earliest forms of the weapon are unadorned, while the size and shape vary across later depictions. Over time, more elaborate features such as flutes and segmented sections were incorporated into images of the mace.
Although the Kaumodaki is often shown as an inanimate weapon, it is sometimes personified in sculpture as a female figure called Gadadevi or Gadanari. In such representations, Vishnu rests one of his hands upon her head, while she herself holds the gada, is shown emerging from it, or bears the mace carved upon her head or crown.
Within Hindu textual and iconographic traditions, the gada is regarded as among the oldest and most powerful weapons, and the Kaumodaki is interpreted as a symbol of Vishnu's shakti (power). Various Sanskrit texts discuss the symbolism associated with the Kaumodaki and its place in the iconography of Vishnu.
References
Adapted from the English Wikipedia article on Kaumodaki.