Dance in India (like all other
traditions and beliefs) has a mythological beginning as well. Centuries ago
when the world was steeped in anger and jealousy, greed and desire, pleasure
and pain the people went to Brahma to seek an end to this misery.
It is said that Brahma created the
Natya Veda, the fifth scripture to save humanity from deterioration from moral
values. He created this Veda by taking elements from the other four Vedas. He
took
- Speech
from the Rig-Veda.
- Abhinaya(the
entire gamut of speech, body, dress and facial expressions) from the Yajur
Veda.
- Music
from the Sama Veda.
- Aesthetic
experiences from the Atharva Veda.
He revealed this Veda to Sage Bharata.
The Sage went to Lord Shiva to learn and add dance movements to the drama
he had created according to the Veda. And thus dance and drama were created.
Sage Bharata's Natya Shastra is the most exhaustive text on theatre art. It is
the easily the oldest in the world and is the common basis for the Indian
classical tradition of music, dance, drama and iconography.
Sage Bharata has noted in his colossal
work that
"Natya teaches duty to those who
go against it, love to those who desire it, chastises those who are ill-bred or
unruly, promotes self restraint in those who are undisciplined, gives courage
to the cowards, enthusiasm to the valorous, enlightenment to those of poor
intellect and gives wisdom to the learned. It gives diversion to the kings,
solace to those with a sorrowful mind, wealth to those desirous of it and
composure to a mind of conflicts."
Dance is a sacred movement of the various limbs with deep divine feeling.
Dance is a sacred movement of the various limbs with deep divine feeling.
The songs are purely devotional love
songs with the dancer being the devotee and God being her beloved.
The heroine longing for her lover is
not a male chauvinistic theme as considered today but is the Jeevatma (Individual
Self) longing for the union with the Paramatma (Divine
Self).
When the dancer believes in this, she
not only transports herself to a higher plane of consciousness but also takes
her audience with her. Her audience walks out of the performance feeling
exactly like what Sage Bharata said!!!
Today when moral values are declining and violence is increasing, it is the duty of the dancer to create an atmosphere of peace through her dance and the deep spiritual dedication that accompanies any performer of the classical dance style.
Today when moral values are declining and violence is increasing, it is the duty of the dancer to create an atmosphere of peace through her dance and the deep spiritual dedication that accompanies any performer of the classical dance style.
After
all, Brahma created this audio-visual art form to check the moral deterioration
in the world.
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Techniques and Terminologies in
Indian Dance !
- Indian dance does not concern itself with the layout of
the muscles in the human body and instead focuses on the joints and the
bone structure.
- Indian dancers are always trying to achieve the perfect
pose. This is only possible after clearly understanding bone and joint
structure of the body.
- The basic theory of Indian dance assumes the body to be
a mass which is equally divisible along a central median.
- When weight is perfectly balanced the samabhanga position
emerges.
- When there is a slight imbalance the abhanga position is achieved
- When there are two deviations on opposite sides then a
thrice deflected position appears known as the tribhanga .
- According to the Natyasastra there are
two broad classifications for the different parts of the body, they are
the major and minor limbs (the angas and the upangas ).
- The angas are the head, hands, chest,
waist, hips and feet.
- The upangas are the eyes, eyebrows, nose, lips, chin and mouth.
- Indian dance movements are divided into
several units of movement, depending on which parts of the body are used,
and combinations of certain events also have certain names.
- Movement with one foot is known as a chari and
movement with both feet is known as a karana .
- Akarana is also used to refer to a unit of
movement which combines both hands and feet.
- There are a few other terminologies like for instance when contact with the ground is maximum it is known as bhaumi and when there is any effort to release from gravity it is known as akasiki .
- A circular movement is called a rechika ,
turns are known asbhramiris , jumps or elevations are known
as utplavanas .
- These are just a few of the terms used in dance, and
each of the classical dances have their own set of such terms.
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Traditional Indian
dance comprises three aspects, Nritta, Nritya and Natya.
·
Nritta are rhythmical and
repetitive elements, i.e. it is dance proper
·
Natya is the dramatic art, and is
a language of gestures, poses and mime. cf. Abhinaya
·
Nritya is a combination of Nritta
and Natya
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Nritta can
be broadly divided into Chari, Karana, Angahara and Mandala.
- One-leg
movement are called Chari.
- Two-leg
movements are Karana.
- 3
Karanas make a Khanda.
- 3
to 4 Khandas make a Mandala.
- 4
to 9 Karanas make a Angahara.
- 4
to 5 Angaharas also make a Mandala.
108 Karanas and 32 Angaharas are
defined in Natyashatra.
The 13 Nritta Hastas are
used to perform nritta.
Aduvus !!!
- The
rythmic body movements along with hand gestures are called aduvus.
- A number of aduvus constitute a jati.
- Jati will
generally end with a Muktaya or Teermana.
- There
are diferent types of Aduvus: Tattaduvu, Mettaduvu, Nataduvu,
Kattaduvu, Kudittamettaduvu, Maiaduvu, Mandiaduvu, Jati, Nadai, Ardi.
- There
are 12 aduvus in each type, making it 120 aduvus in total.
- Only
about 70-80 are generally practised by an average traditional
Indian dancer.
- Aduvus
are often confused with the 108 Karanas carved in the Chidambaram Temple
in Tamilnadu, India.
Abhinaya :
- Communication is the main and important aspect of
classical dance.
- Abhinaya is common to all Classical Indian dances.
- The expression, which is shown to express poetic
meanings, is Abinaya.
- Here the emphasis is more on facial expressions than
rhythmic movements.
- Abhinaya is the expressional aspect of dance.
There are four kinds of Abhinaya:
1. Angika (of limbs)
2. Vachika (of speech)
3. Aharya (of costumes)
4. Sattwika
The entire body is divided into Anga, Pratyanga and Upaanga.
- Anga -Head, Hands, Chest, Waist,
Bottom, Legs are the Six Angas. Some traditional Indian dance experts
distinguish also Neck.
- Pratyanga-Shoulders, Arms,
Stomach, Thighs, Knees are the Six Pratyangas. Some traditional Indian
dance experts distinguish also Wrists, Elbows and Ankles .
- Upaanga-Sight, Eyebrow, Eyelids,
Eyeballs, Cheeks, Nose, Gums, Lower lip, Teeth, Tongue, Chin and
Face are the 12 Upaangas. Some
traditional Indian dance experts distinguish also Heels, Fingers, Feet and
Palms. Pratynaga and Upaangas should move along with the Angas.
Anga Lakshana, the movements of body parts, are described below.
Anga Lakshana, the movements of body parts, are described below.
Shirobhedha - Head Movement
Greevabhedha - Neck Movement
Drushtibhedha - Eye Movement
Paadabhedha
Mandala - Standing Posture
Utplavana - Leaps
Bhramari - Circling Movement
Chari - Leg Movement
Gatibhedha - Characteristic walks
Hastas or Mudras - Hand
Movements:
- Asamyuta Hasta
- Samyuta Hasta
- Deva Hasta
- Dashavatara Hasta
- Navagraha Hasta
- Jaati Hasta
- Bandhu Hasta
- Nritta Hasta
Asamyukta hastas are done with one hand, while samyukta hastas are done with two.
Mudras are a separate set of hand gestures used across a number of classical Indian dance forms. There are about 108 mudras in total.
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Angashudhi
- When all Angas(main body parts) are coordinated (along with pratyanga and upaanga), the traditional Indian dancer is said to possess Angashudhi.
- Anga meaning body parts, and shudhi means perfection or purity.
- The Natyashastra has shlokas describing how to perform all the above movements.
Bhava
Bhava is the
secondary and complementary features. Bhavas may be of four kinds.
1. Vibhava, which is
again sub divided in to abalambanam and its accessory Udipan. Love in the Radha
Krishna dance may be expressed through the former, while the latter helps the
mood with the external aid of moonlight setting.
2. Anubhava expresses the effect of a mood such as the ravages of anger or
sorrow, or the rapture of love.
3. Vyavicharibhava pertains to the temporary changes of settings to fit in with
the mood of particular scene.
4. Sattwikbhava consists of eight standardized movements to express such
emotions as joy, fear or disgust.
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TANDAVA !!!
The Dance performed by Lord Shiva is
known as Tandava, virile aspect.
- The tandava performed with bliss is called Ananda Tandava.
- The tandava of the violent and destructive aspect is called Rudra Tandava.
There are 7 types of Tandava in traditional Indian dance of
Bharatanatyam:
- Ananda Tandava,
- Tripura Tandava,
- Sandhya Tandava,
- Samara Tandava,
- Kaali tandava,
- Uma Tandava
- Gauri Tandava.
There are some traditional Indian dance
experts who distinguish 16 types of Tandava. Tandava produces vigourous, brisk
movements.
Lasya !
When the dance is performed by Goddess
Parvathi, it is known as Lasya, where the movements are soft, gentle, graceful
and sometimes seen as erotic. Some traditional Indian dance scholars consider
Lasya as the feminine version of Tandava. Lasya is of 2 kinds:
- Jarita Lasya and
- Yauvaka Lasya.
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Difference between Indian form of dance
and Western form of dance ?
- Indian dances differ significantly from Western Dance
forms.
- Western dancers are concerned more with space, and their
dance movements involve moving around in space.
- Hence they are characteristic by great leaps into the
air, or the rapid movement from one place to another.
- Western dancers create movement by reaching into space
and carving out intricate movements in the air, and the central aim is to
make movement appear free from gravity.
- Indian dancers on the other hand have a very different
concept, they do not concern themselves with spaces but with time.
- The central aim of Indian dance is to make a pose so
perfect that it appears timeless.
- Hence the movements take place in time and must be
perfectly synchronized with the rhythm, in order to create a series of
perfect poses.
- A perfect pose would be able to capture time for a
moment, and in a limited space.
- As a result most Indian dances, except for certain
movements in Kathakhali, do not feature any major leaps or other sudden
changes in space.