Tattva

The origin of all Indian classical performing art forms, holds Hinduism at its heart. In this article, let us take a brief look at the history of our dance culture to explore how it is inseparable from our religion and our parampara, or traditions.

Natya Shastra: The fifth Veda

Natya Shastra, written by Sage Bharath Muni and considered to be the ‘Fifth Veda,’ serves as a definitive guide for performing arts in our culture. According to this Shastra, Lord Brahma created Natya Veda for the pleasure of the layman, to help him realize the ‘Ultimate’ or the Universal power. Lord Brahma passed on this Natya Veda to his son, sage Bharata Muni, who later penned this as Natya Shastra and passed it on to his sons.

Thus Indian dance descended to Bhuloka (earth) from Sivaloka (heaven). Natya Shastra is composed of four main aspects: (1) Literature derived from the Rig Veda, (2) Song from the Sama Veda, (3) Abhinaya, or expression, from the Yajur Veda and (4) Rasa, or aesthetic experience, from the Atharva Veda. Over time, many classical dance forms followed the rules specified in the Shastra, and emerged into beautiful forms such as Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Kathakali, Mohini Attam, Kathak, Odissi and Manipuri, and numerous other vigorous folk dances.

Dance forms in India

Dance forms in India were originally performed by devadasis or temple dancers. Devadasi means servant of lord, Deva referring to the Lord of the temple and dasi, meaning servant. Hence, the dance repertoire had pieces performed in praise of God displaying feelings of bhakti and spiritual love. Nrittam (dance), Geetham (music), and Vadyam (instruments) take a place in the Shodasha Upacharanam or the sixteen types of pooja (services/honors). Although temple dancers are absent today due to several social reformations, because of the efforts made by great visionaries, namely Thiru. E. Krishna Iyer, Smt. Rukmimi Devi, and many others, the art forms did not die. They were instead taken to greater levels and made reachable to a larger percentage of the society.

Structure of the dance forms

Now, let us take a look at the structure of our dance forms before we discuss how Hinduism and dance are strongly related. According to the Natya Shastra, our classical dances broadly consist of three elements: Nritta (rhythmic elements), Natya (dramatic element, or Abhinaya, or expression) and Nritya (combination of rhythm with expression). The Shastra extensively codifies every aspect of the above mentioned category which includes the usage of body, emotions, music, instruments, ornaments, stage etc. Abhinaya means to bring towards or communicate. Of the different types of Abhinaya, Satvika Abhinaya deals with the emotional aspect that anybody can easily relate to and understand. Satvika Abhinaya is comprised of the Nava Rasas or the nine aesthetic flavors or sentiments which give rise to Bhava or human emotions. The Nava Rasas are Shringara (love), Haasya (humor and laughter), Karuna (compassion), Roudra (anger), Veera (heroism), Bhaya (fearful terror), Bheebatsa (disgust), Adbhuta (wonder-awe), and Shanta (peacefulness). The emotional stories depicting these rasas are generally interspersed with nritta or rhythmic movements.

Connection with Hinduism

In Hinduism, salvation or moksha, can be attained through several ways. One of which is Dhyanam or meditation. Dhyanam can be explained as the process of achieving Sama-Bhava or single-mindedness devoid of fluctuating human emotions. In such a state, the Ahamkara or ego is completely subdued and the Jeevatma (human soul) feels a sense of unity with Paramatma (Universal Soul or God). Let us see how our dance forms help the performer and the audience to get to the state of Sama-Bhava and further.Sama-Bhava or single-mindedness can be achieved when an individual develops an objective outlook towards human emotions. This objective outlook can be achieved if the person has understood their temporal state in human life.

Performing the Nava Rasas helps the dancer to have a tremendous exposure to this aspect as she personally observes the shift in emotions, causes and effects of the same and other subtle aspects. She learns about human emotions in a positive manner and is able to analyze them better. The audience is also given a chance to analyze their own emotions while watching the dance. They feel nourished seeing human emotions handled in a divine way.

Furthermore, the performer enters a state of Dhyana when she seamlessly blends the different aspects such as Nritta, Nritya and Natya with very high concentration. This is the same impact she gives to her audience who are carried with the performer to a state where they are able to ignore worldly pressures and feel a sense of satisfaction or bliss. The spiritual satisfaction of wanting the Jivatma (human soul) to merge with the Paramatma (universal soul/God) can be experienced through natya. This concept can be expressed through the stories of the nayaki (heroine/Jivatma) yearning for the love of the man (hero/Paramatma) with the help of sakhi (friend/Guru). Such story pieces aim at transcending the individualistic Ahamkara to merge with the Ultimate. It is important to note this inner spiritual meaning for us to appreciate our dance forms. To attain a stage when a performer can render a performance leading to Dhyana needs intense training for several years which teaches the artist discipline and ‘Guru Bhakti’, (appreciation and respect for the Guru, or teacher, for his patience and wisdom).

Another vital concept of Sanatana Dharma is the worship of nature; in Hinduism, a tremendous amount of respect is given to all aspects of nature, from animals and plants to the earth itself. One evident example of this in all our Indian dance forms is the concept of ‘Bhuminamaskar,’ Bhumi - earth, Namaskar- bow to show respect. During the beginning and end of a dance recital, the dancer prays to her ancestors, God, her guru, the audience for their support and begs apology from Mother Earth for striking her foot while dancing.Apart from the above mentioned connections to our religion, our dance forms are versatile enough to depict anything from a living thing, natural phenomenon, to any contemporary thing, even a computer. According to the Natya Shastra, “There is neither wisdom nor knowledge; neither art nor craft; neither device nor action that is not to be found in Natya.” With the permutation and combination of the different postures and the nava rasas specified in the Shastra, the performer is able to express her true self and bring out any concept or idea in a beautiful and ever lasting form to her viewer. Indian dance forms can give the performer and the audience a wholesome feeling as this particular art form has all in itself: spirituality, emotion, melody and rhythm.

Swathi Kamakshi is a Seattle-based Bharatanatyam dancer with over nineteen years of performance experience. She is a software engineer by profession and can be contacted at sswathik@gmail.com

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