Dances of India.pdf - Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan

VIVEKANANDA KENDRA PATRIKA10DANCES OF INDIAof the more acrobatic Karanas must beviewed from the point of view of exerciseand in the case of Natya, their proper usein the relevant sequences. For example,the somersault was meant for fightingsequences and certainly not for beingincluded in the Angaharas to represent love.The movements which are more ofacrobatic nature were actually termed asAdhama-inferior in a later work calledMahabharata Chudamani. The ideal Nrittabut not the least Satvikabhinaya-anoutcome of the psychological states ofmind. Vachikabhinaya includes the dialoguesand songs. It may be prose or poetry. Voicemodulation and its control, playa major rolein this form of communication. TheNatyasastra gives even the rules ofprosody. The language employed is alsoexpected to suit the various characters.All the plays of our contemporary theatreseem to utilise only Vachikabhinaya andis that which emanates beauty and joy at that too devoid of songs. Thethe various levels of human understandingand perceptions such as physical,intellectual, emotional and spiritual.Aharyabhinaya included the specific facialmake-up, colours, crowns, jewelry andcostumes for each character.The level of Nritta is directly proportionalto the level of the dancer’s realisation ofher own inner personality; this is quite apartfrom her physical beauty or even skill.Nritta is a spiritual experience for the idealdancer and the ideal audience. It is a meansthrough which the dancer achieves ashedding of her body consciousness. As inYoga, in dance too, the body is trainedonly to be forgotten about. The dancer’sself, integrated with the universal danceof all the constant Cosmic Activity, liberatesher from all the shackles of this earth. Thedancer herself becomes a microcosmicbeing, experiencing within herself unlimitedfreedom and bliss. The result of such aNritta is the same as that of Yoga andYagna.Apart from the art of Angikabhinaya in whichNritta also IS meluded, Indian theatre haslong recognised the use of Vachikabhinayaverbalexpression, Aharyabhinayaexpressionthrough external elements likecostumes, make-up and scenery and lastSatvikabhinaya is perhaps the mostimportant, yet the most difficult mode ofexpression. It cannot be gained throughmere learning or practice. It needs aninnate sense to feel the various situations.It depends on the mental involvement ofthe performer backed by a clear intellectualgrasp of the characterisation to beportrayed. Sat literally means ‘mind’. Evenin actual life, it is most natural that theinner feelings get reflected in the face.Apart from the facial expressions, the eightSatvika conditions are said to be stupor,perspiration, horripilation, change of voice,trembling, change of colour, tears andfainting. The four-fold art of Abhinaya canfurther be classified as Natya- dharmi(stylistic) and Lokadharmi (realistic). TheNatya was the combination of both thesemodes of expression. Natyadharmi pertainsto the conventions of the stage. Forexample, walking around the stage maydenote a change of place. The use ofdance in drama is itself Natya- dharmi.The convention in a play, according to