The Cosmic Dance of Shiva - a mystic destruction

The poet sings:

With each step He tookHe scattered stars in space

With each movement of his outstretched arms

He enveloped space and time

With his long hair flying in the wind

He dances in ecstasy to the delight of his devotees

These words are reflected almost like a mirror image in painstakingly crafted images in stone and bronze. Shiva in a dancing pose is known the world over as Nataraja, The King Of Dance
The dance of Shiva symbolises the cosmic cycles of creation and destruction, birth and death. His dance is therefore the dance of the Universe. The parallel is seen in modern physics, which has shown that the cycle of creation and destruction is not only reflected in the turn of seasons and in the birth and death of living creatures but is also the very essence of inorganic matter.
For centuries, our culture has accepted that the dance of Shiva is the dance of life, myths, symbolism, mystic responses and philosophical explanations all merely add to the strength of such belief in a power that transcends the merely mortal. and when the human dancer enacts this act encompassing concept, he or she only makes a humble offering of acknowledgement. The earliest historical illustration of Nataraja preaching Natyagama in its pure form originates in the Chalukyan sanctuaries of Badami and Aihole in the mid 6th century A.D. The temple rituals necessitated the physical presence of women replacing the imaginative celestials, propitiating the Gods. The allegorical view of dance used for the purpose of the pleasure of devas, transformed into a divine service in the medieval temple traditions. As a result temples vied with one another in having the best dancers and musicians in their services. Thus temple dancing was institutionalised and the dancing girls were patronised by the kings and mahajans and were often respectfully mentioned in many inscriptions of temples built in the medieval age. The famous temple of Belur has several epithets glorifying the Hoysala queen Shantala as Natya Saraswati, Vichitra Suthradhare etc.
The dancing girls of the temples were called devadasis and the temple activity was considered as a means of dedication.
In the times of Vijayanagar the entire South India and parts of Orissa came under one rule and by this time the bhakti movement had lost its essence and the temples were the place of grandeur and celebration of events, the dancing girls were more exhibitionistic in their presentation.
The temples of Khajuraho, Bhubaneswar and Puri echoed with the lyrics of poet Jayadeva. The devadasi system in these temples was a living tradition till recently. Later due to factors like economic constraints, tantric practices and free sex enjoyed by the siddhas, jangamas, charanas, patrons and priests, these dancers in the temples were victimised to become public women and they were completely equated with prostitutes. The term devadasi which was used in the divine sense was replaced by the term Bhogastree and dance and music were used as a means of attracting clients.
The British government in India in order to uplift the women, their emancipation in education and to protect them from social evils abolished the devadasi system.
The present Bharatanatyam style finds its substance from the Dassiattam of colonial times. If at all we regard Indian dance as the spectacular contribution to human endeavour we should recall today with great reverence the entire class of devadasis who were the repository of delivering the tradition in most difficult situations from vedic to colonial times.

Indian Classical Dance - a journey

The Sangeet Natak Akademi currently confers classical status on eight Indian dance forms –
Bharatanatyam
Kathak
Kathakali
Kuchipudi
Manipuri
Mohiniaattam
Odissi
Sattriya
Yakshagana
For lack of any equivalents in the European culture, the British colonial authorities called any performing art forms found in India as "Indian dance". Even though the art of Natya includes nritta, or dance proper, Natya has never been limited to dancing alone and in fact includes singing, abhinaya or expressive acting, mimetic acting and movement, and these features are common to all the Indian classical styles.
'Indian classical dance' is a relatively new umbrella term for the various codified art forms which are rooted in Natya, the sacred Hindu musical theatre styles, whose theory can be traced back to the Natya Shastra of Bharata Muni (400 BC).
Dances performed inside the sanctum of the temple according to the rituals were called Agama Nartanam. This was a spiritual dance form.
Dances performed in royal courts to the accompaniment of classical music were called Carnatakam. This was an intellectual art form.
Darbari Aattam form of dance appealed more to the commoners and it educated them about their religion, culture and social life. These dances were performed outside the temple precincts in the courtyards.
Out of the 8 styles, the most ancient ones and the ones that have their origin in Agama Nartanam are Bharatanatyam and Odissi. These two most faithfully adhere to the Natya Shastra.
Kuchipudi and Mohiniaattam are relatively recent Darbari Aatam forms, just as Kathakali, and two eastern Indian styles, Manipuri and Sattriya, that are quite similar. Kathak was influenced in the Mughal period by various other dance forms, including Persian dance.
A very important feature of Indian classical dances is the use of the mudra or hand gestures by the artists as a short-hand sign language to narrate a story and to demonstrate certain concepts such as objects, weather, nature and emotion.
Classical Indian dance in the Raj and since 1947
The British Raj in India was a time of cultural hardship where these traditional dances were viewed by the British rulers as debauched and of doubtful morality. Furthermore, they were all labelled broadly as 'Indian dance' with no regard to the specifics of style. Later, linking dance with tawaifs and devadasis (both groups whom the government considered to be nothing more than simple prostitutes), British rule prohibited public performance of dance. In 1947, India won her freedom and for dance an ambience where it could regain its past glory. Classical forms and regional distinctions were re-discovered, ethnic specialties were honored.