Emotions In Classical Dance

 BHARATANATYAM    

                 Genre            Indian classical dance                     

                                                     Origin           Tamil Nadu

Bharatanatyam, also previously called Sadhir Attam, is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. Bharatanatyam is one of the oldest classical dance traditions in India. It is one of eight forms of dance  and it express South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism.

In Bharatanatyam emotions(9)  play a very important role. The Navarasa means nine emotions evoked in an audience during their experience of a dance. ; rasa (essence)  means emotional state of mind. The Natyashastra, a Sanskrit text on performing arts by Bharata Muni, mentions only eight - Shringaara, Hasya, Karuna, Raudra, Veera, Bhibatsya, Bhayanaka, and Adbhutha. The ninth rasa, Shantha, was later taken from the Abhinaya Darpana by Nandikeshwara.

Nine emotions are : 

1.Shringaara (love),2. Haasya (laughter),3. Karuna (kind-heartedness or compassion),4. Roudra (anger), 5.Veera (courage), 6.Bhayaanaka (fear), 7.Bhibatsya (disgust), 8.Adbhutha (surprise), and 9.Shantha (tranquility or peace).

1.Shringaara (love):

Shringaara is one of the nine rasas, usually translated as erotic love, romantic love, or as attraction or beauty. Rasa means "flavour", and the theory of rasa is the primary concept behind Classical Indian Arts. It can be  used for the love between friends, the love between a mother and her child, the love for god or the love between a teacher and his disciples. The attraction between lover and beloved is a metaphor for the relationship between the individual and the divine, the Nara - Narayana relationship. Natya Shastra lists Vishnu as the presiding deity of the Sringara rasa. This  is indeed the king of all rasas and the one that finds the most frequent portrayal in art. In Indian music too this rasa finds wide portrayal through beautiful melodies.

2.Hasya (laughter) :

Hasya is the rasa used to express joy or mirth. It can be used to depict simple lightheartedness or riotous laughter and everything in between. Teasing and laughing with a friend, being amused and carefree or simply feeling frivolous and naughty --these are all facets of hasya. Lord Krishna's childhood, when he was the love of all Gokul is filled with many stories of his naughty activities. This mirth, which endeared him to all, is one of the common sources of hasya in all ancient Indian art forms. Clearly, where there is hasya, all is well with the world, there is joy all around and all are of good cheer.

3.Karuna (kind-heartedness) :

Karuna is grief and compassion. The feelings of unspeakable tragedy and despair, utter hopelessness and heartbreak, the sorrow caused by the death of a loved one are all Karuna. So also, the compassion and empathy aroused by seeing someone wretched and afflicted is Karuna. The sympathy and fellow feeling that sorrow engenders in the viewer is also Karuna. Karuna can be of a personal nature as when  one finds oneself depressed, melancholy and distressed. More impersonal sorrows relate to the despair regarding the human condition in general, the feeling that all human life is grief and suffering. It is Karuna of this sort that the Buddha was trying to overcome on his path to salvation.

4.Roudra (anger) :

Roudra is anger and all its forms. The self- righteous wrath of kings , outrage over audacious behaviour and disobedience, the fury caused by an offense, the rage evoked by disrespect and anger over injustice are all forms of Roudra, probably the most violent of rasas. Roudra also encompasses divine fury and the fury of nature which is used to explain unexpected calamities and natural disasters. In Indian mythology, Lord Shiva, the Destroyer, is thought of as the master of all disharmony and discord. Shiva performing the tandav -- a violent dance -- is what creates havoc in the three worlds namely the sky, the earth and the nether world.

5.Veera (courage) :

Veera is heroism. It represents bravery and self-confidence. Manliness and valiance are the trademarks of a Veer or a fearless person. Courage and intrepidity in the face of daunting odds is heroism. Boldness in battle, the attitude with which martyrs go to war, and the valour with which they die are all aspects of heroism. Rama, the hero of the Ramayana, is typically the model for this Rasa. His confidence and heroism while facing the mighty ten-headed demon king Ravana is part of Indian legend, folklore and mythology. A somewhat different type of heroism is displayed by characters like Abhimanyu, who went to war knowing fully that he would be severely outnumbered and almost certainly die and yet fought so bravely as to earn accolades even from his enemies. In Indian music this rasa is represented by a lively tempo and percussive sounds.

6.Bhayaanaka (fear) :

The subtle and nameless anxiety caused by a presentiment of evil, the feelings of helplessness evoked by a mighty and cruel ruler, and the terror felt while facing certain death are all aspects of Bhayaanaka. The fear for one's well being and safety is supposed to be the most primitive feeling known to man. Bhayaanaka is the feeling evoked while facing something that is far bigger and more powerful than oneself and which is dead set on one's destruction. Dread, cowardice, agitation, discomposure, panic and timidity are all aspects of the emotion of fear. 

7.Bhibatsya (disgust) :

The emotion evoked by anything that nauseates us, that revolts or sickens us is Bhibatsya. When something comes to our notice that is coarse and graceless, beneath human dignity, something which revolts or sickens us it is Bhibatsya that we feel. When Prince Siddhartha, as a young nobleman, saw for the first time sickness, old age and death, he was moved to disgust which later metamorphosed into sorrow, deep introspection and peace, as he transformed into Gautama, the Buddha -- or the Enlightened one. Not surprisingly, this emotion is usually represented fleetingly. It usually acts as a catalyst for higher and more pleasant emotions.

8.Adbhutha (surprise) :

Adbhutha is wonder and curiosity. The awe that one feels when one comes across something divine and supernatural , some power or beauty that is remarkable and never seen or imagined before is Adbhutha. Adbhutha is the curiosity of man regarding the creation of the world and all its wonders, the astonishment caused by seeing something unusual and magical. The appreciation of a marvel that goes beyond the routine and the mundane is Adbhutha. The glory of a king returning from a successful battle, the magical feats of a god are both adbhutha to a common man. Adbhutha is when divinity makes a surprise appearance in the world of men.

9.Shantha (tranquility or peace) :

Shantha is serenity and peace. It represents the state of calm and unruffled repose that is marked simply by the lack of all other rasas. Because all emotions are absent in Shantha there is controversy whether it is a rasa at all. According to Bharata, the author of NatyaShastra, the other  eight rasas are as proposed originally by Brahma, and the ninth, Shantha, is his contribution. Shantha is what the Buddha felt when he was enlightened, when he reached the higher spiritual plane that led him to salvation or nirvana and freed him from the cycle of life and death. Shantha represents complete harmony between the mind, body and the universe. Sages in India meditate for entire lifetimes to attain this state. In music it is often represented through a steady and slow tempo. Shantha is a clear and cloudness state. Shantha is untroubled steadiness. Shantha is the key to eternity.

" Dance Refreshes your mind,

 makes you confident,

kills the negativity with you. "

THANK YOU