Hari Aum.
Many of us would be familiar with term 'Veda'-- this term represents spiritual knowledge that was intuited by seers or 'rishis' in ancient times. There are four well-known Vedas-- the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda and the Atharva Veda. The knowledge of the Vedas was preserved from ancient times to the modern day by a rigorous system of teaching (that requires the student to spend years memorising the ancient texts and perfecting the pronunciation and intonation of mantras).
As part of my recent study of Bharatanatyam, I have come to discover the existence of the Natya Veda; some people refer to this as the 'fifth Veda'. I find the legend of the origin of the Natya Veda interesting and will explain a bit about this here.
According to our scriptures, a very long time ago, during the Treta Yuga (the second yuga after the Satya Yuga), the devas (demi-gods) observed that the spiritual consciousness of human beings was declining. People were less inclined to contemplate the divine and thus experienced more negative thoughts. This led to an increase in the number of conflicts and suffering on Earth.
The devas were greatly concerned by this situation and desired to help humanity. They approached Brahma (the creative aspect of the Supreme Being Narayana) and requested him to find a solution.
Brahma listened to their concerns and assured them that he would help. He went deep into meditation and the answer was revealed to him. He intuited that music and dance was the answer to humanity's problems.
Music and dance that would elevate the restless, negative human mind to sublime spiritual heights was what was required he said. This would allow people to feel the Divine within themselves and others and thus experience bliss.
Brahma took an element from each of the four existing Vedas (e.g. words from the Rig Veda, music from the Sama Veda and so on) and synthesised a unique and beautiful scripture dedicated exclusively to the arts-- this was the 'Natya Veda'. This explained in great depth the use of various types of music (both vocal and instrumental) and dance to express devotion to the Divine.
He taught this Veda to a sage known as Bharata. The sage Bharata then compiled this knowledge into a famous text known as the 'Natya Shastra'. He then gave this knowledge to his sons, who taught it in turn to their disciples (both celestial and human). Thus, the knowledge of the Natya Shastra was preserved for many centuries via the Guru-disciple tradition.
After imbibing the knowledge of the Natya Veda, the devas decided to put up their first performance-- this was known as 'Asura Parajaya' (meaning the defeat of the demons, the arch enemies of the devas). The asuras came to know about the production of this play and were furious. They were determined that the play should not go ahead and vandalised the building and attempted to attack the artists.
Brahma then commanded the divine architect of the demi-gods, known as Vishvakarma, to construct an extremely strong and secure theatre that would withstand any attack by the asuras. Vishvakarma did as requested and the devas were delighted to be able to put up their first performance (related to the churning of the milky ocean and the procurement of the divine amrita/nectar).Various illustrious guests were invited to attend the play including Lord Shiva, the Divine Mother Parvati and Lord Narayana.
After watching the play, Lord Shiva was very pleased. He decided to bless the performers by revealing to them the knowledge of His own sacred dance. He taught this knowledge to a beloved disciple known as Tandu. The disciple then went on to teach this to others; thus this dance of Shiva came to be called 'Tandava' (this dance is a highly energetic one that reflects the power and glory of the masculine aspect of the Divine).
Mother Parvati too was most delighted by the performance and taught Her beloved disciple, Usha, the knowledge of Her form of dance. This is a more gentle, feminine style of dance and is called 'Lasya'. Usha then shared this teaching with others (including later, the gopis).
Over the centuries, many great Gurus of classical music and dance have studied the Natya Shastra of sage Bharata and written further texts and commentaries upon this. One particularly famous work is the 'Abhinaya darpana' of Nandikeshvara. This Sanskrit text contains detailed information about dance-- the use of various hand gestures, movements, expressions and more. For instance, it explains the 'mudras' (hand positions) used to represent the deities, the nine 'grahas' (planets), the various avatars of Narayana and so on. It is this text that I have been studying in the past year as part of my learning of Bharatanatyam.
As part of my study for my upcoming examination in Bharatanatyam (there is a theory and a practical portion), I have been asked to contemplate upon Lord Nataraja and the message that He represents. Nataraja is a manifestation of Lord Shiva. I regard Him to be one of the most beautiful manifestations of the Divine and would therefore like to write a bit about Him here.
In Sanskrit, 'nata' means 'dance', and 'raja' means 'king'; thus, 'Nataraja' means 'King of dance'. In this manifestation, Shiva is portrayed in a dramatic and beautiful form (unlike His popular serenely meditating form, here He is highly active and energetic as He dances).
He has four hands-- in His upper right hand, He holds a special type of drum (shaped like an hourglass and called 'damaru' in Sanskrit'). The drum represents 'Shabda Brahman', or God in the form of sound (this includes all mantras). The sound generated by this sacred is Om, and it is said to be the origin of all the alphabets of the Sanskrit language and all sound.
His left upper hand holds a ring of fire that surrounds Him. This fire (Agni) represents the cosmic fire of destruction that occurs at the end of a cycle of Creation so that a new cycle can begin. His other hands are held in a posture to grant blessings and protection to His devotees (abhaya mudra).
He stands with His right foot placed over a being known as Mulayaka; this being symbolises all that is dark, negative and spiritually ignorant in Creation. By standing upon this being, Nataraja symbolises conquest over the lower forces in the Universe. His left foot is held above the ground and crossed over His body indicating the vigour and energy of His dance.
Like the serene meditating form of Shiva, this energetic and active form as Nataraja, also has long, matted hair through which the sacred river, Ganga, flows (She represents the waters of immortality). He too has the crescent moon in His hair, representing conquest over the mind.
The essence of the form of Nataraja is said to be the great panchakshara (five syllabled) mantra of Lord Shiva, namely "Namah Shivaya"
The dance of Nataraja is said to represent the Divine Lila of Creation, preservation and dissolution of the Universe. According to Sivananda, He dances in order to free jivas (individual souls) trapped within the cycle of birth and death known as samsara.
I came across a wonderful composition by Maharishi Patanjai recently known as the Nataraja stothram (prayer to Nataraja). It is a poem in Sanskrit and the image of Nataraja it portrays is exceptionally beautiful. (I confess I am totally smitten and now aspire to have His darshan in addition to Lord Narayana and Mother Durga! They are all One of course. In my mind's eye now when I meditate upon Narayana, in His heart centre, I see Nataraja, the Lord of Dance, as described in this poem and what a wonderful sight it is!)
I will conclude by sharing Sivananda's wonderful work on Lord Shiva (there is much written about Nataraja and Tandava here): https://www.dlshq.org/download/lord-siva-and-his-worship/#_VPID_37
I would also like share the beautiful Nataraja stothram that I mentioned above:
Om Salutations to Lord Nataraja, the manifestation of the grace of God in the form of beautiful dance. May He bless us all with His darshan.
Om Sri Natarajaya Namah.
Om Namah Shivaya.
Om Sri Durgayai Namah.
Om Namo Narayanaya.
Hari Aum Tat Sat.
No comments:
Post a Comment