The Theory and Technique of Classical Indian Dancing

Author(s): Kapila Vatsyayan

Source: Artibus Asiae, Vol. 29, No. 2/3 (1967), pp. 229-238
Published by: Artibus Asiae Publishers
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3250274
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 KAPILA VATSYAYAN

THE THEORY AND TECHNIQUE OF

CLASSICAL INDIAN DANCING

RY/hile the Indian dance is very popular today, there is still a great deal of haze which
W surrounds its original character.There are some common fallacies which exist either
about the danceor frequentlyabout its origin. It is not uncommon to read in journalsof music
and dance that the dance emerged as a full-fledged art by the mere wish of Siva, or that the
Natyasastrais a treatiseonly on the dance.Ourattempttodayis to definethe techniqueof the
danceas it emergesfromvarioustreatisesfromthe Natyasastra downto someof the medieval
writers of the i6th and the I7th centuries. It is also our attempt to reformulatethe technique
of the dancein terms of the basic instrumentof expressionwhich it uses, viz., the humanfigure.
It is not usually understood that the Indian dance synthesisesinto itself the technique of other
arts, and that it uses these techniquesto the maximumdegree to evolve an art which was con-
sidered the most significantof all. It is not an accident that the dance of Siva symbolises the
cosmicrhythmof the world.
Thetheoryof Indiandancingcannotbe understoodin isolationandhasto be comprehended
as a complex synthesisof the artsof literature,sculptureand music. The writerof the Na.tyasstra
is fully consciousof the all-embracingquality of the art of drama(n.tya, which includes
dancing)when he statesat the very beginning of his treatisethat "this artwill be enrichedby the
teaching of all scriptures (sastra) and will give a review of all arts and crafts", and when he
statesfurtherthat "thereis no wise maxim,no learning,no art or craft,no device, no action that
is not foundin drama";andfinallywhenhe asserts:"HenceI havedevisedthe dramain which
meet all the departmentsof knowledge, differentarts and various actions." There are no limi-
tations of theme or content in this art, and it depictsboth the exploits by the gods, asuras,kings
as well as ordinaryhumanbeingsandits rangeextendsto the sevendivisionsof the world(i.e.,
saptadvipa),and thus when the entire limitless range of humannaturewith its joys and sorrows
throughgesturesetc., it is calleddrama(natya).
is depictedby meansof the representation
The theory and technique of Indian dancing is an integral part of this conception of the
dramaand cannot be understoodwithout the full realisationof implicationsof these assertions,
which have been so aptlymadeby Bharata.Withoutgoing into the detailsof the historical
developmentof dancing,and into the controversy,whetherdanceemergedas an art-form
before the dramaproper, and vice versa, it is sufficientto point out here that at a very early
stage of development both these arts fused themselves into one another and that by the time
Bharatawrote his treatise,(whetherdramaarose out of dance,or danceout of drama)the dance
was very much a part of drama,and, at manypoints of contact,both were consciouslyconceived
as one. The Nayasadstra thus is neither a treatiseon dramaalone, as understoodby some, nor a

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treatiseon dancingalone as believed by quite a few practisingartistsof the dance: the theory and
techniqueof Indiandancinghas actuallyto be pickedout andits principlesselectedwith acute
discriminationfrom the entire technique of dramaturgyprescribedby Bharata.Dancing as an
independentartdoes emergeonce this is done, but, all the same,it continuesto be a very impor-
tant limb of the many-branchedtree of drama, and indeed such an important part that the
characterof the Indian dramais lost once the most importantaspectsof what we understandby
dancetodayandwhat the Sanskritdramatistunderstoodas angikdbhinaya
aretakenout, or even
ignoredin the techniqueof Indiandrama.
The principleswhichgovern the techniqueof Indiandancingarethe sameas thosewhich
govern the technique of classical drama in India. Most theoreticians of Indian dramaturgy
agree that the conventions of stage presentation are a vital part of the structure of Indian
dramaandthatthe literarypiece canbe understoodfully only as a configurationof variousaspects
of stagepresentation.The ruleswhichgovernthis stagepresentationarethe manifoldconven-
tions of the Sanskritstage: thus the principleof the two modesof presentation,
namely,the
dharmis(modes), n,atya(stage way or stylised way) or loka (realisticor the way of the world);
the following are the differenttypes of vrttis(styles, namely, the kaisiki (graceful),the satavati
(grand)at rhat (energetc)
the and
andand
(en(vergetic) the
(verbal);
ratplay on full the
play of the four types of
abhinaya(enacting), namely, the anrgika(gestures), vdcika(vocal), adharya
(costume, make-up,
stage props, etc.) and sdttvika(involuntary,of the temperament
and emotionaletc.) are the
threebroadprincipleswhich governthe structureof Indi a nd stagepresentation.It
is these three principles, along with other related ones such as the concepts of bdbya(external or
irregular) and abhyantara(inner or regular) enacting, of the pravrttis (local usage) of samnanyabhi-
naya(basic representation)and citrabhinaya (specialrepresentation),which govern the technique
of Indian dancing also, and indeed if these principlesand conventions are witnessed to this day
in their unpollutedform in actualpresentationanywhere,it is in the stage presentationof some
of the compositions of the classical dances of India. In the Na.tyasastrathese principles have
been discussed in dramaturgyand histrionics and not particularlyin the context of the dance
or dramaalone, and it is only the later texts dealing with dance as an independent art which
consider these principlesonly in relationto the dance. It is not until the Abhinayadarpana that
we find a full and independenttreatmentof the dance from the point of view of the principles
enumeratedabove. This is then followed by the laterwritersof the treatiseon the dance proper.
Sarangadeva,the writersof the Visnudharmottara Puranaand the NatyasadstraSangraha all follow
this analysis.
The differentaspects of dramaturgyas pertinent to dance can thus be shown in the follow-
ing chart:

Dramaturgy(Na.ya)

(a) modesof presentation(dharmis) (b) styles (vttis) (c) typesof enacting(abhinaya)

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 . a
h

lokadharmi natyadharmi kaiuiki arabha#f sattvat[ bharati

used in used in drama (graceful) (energetic) (grand) used (verbal)
dramaproper but always in specially in the in dancing of little value
dance and suitable for ta.n.dava in the depiction in dancing
music dancing more aspects of of rasabut not
particularly dancing, but too often
in the lasya occasionally
aspects

Aspect(c) above,i. e., typesof enacting,canbe furtherbrokenup as:

Types of enacting (abhinaya)
I
angika(body gestures) vacika(verbal) aharya sattvika
recitation and (costumes and make up) (of the temperaments,
music in dance as in drama-used in the and involuntary states):
vakyabhinaya in drama nd?yadharmiconvention not used in dance
in dance

a?
I
mukhaja(of the face) Jarira(of the body) (of the entire
cesfTkr.ta
upanga(minor limbs) anga(major limbs) body)

eyebrows, eyelids, eyeballs, head, chest, sides, hips,

nose, lips, chin and mouth thighs, hand and feet

sdkha ankura nrtta

used pro- used occa- not relevant dance
lifically sionally for dancing proper
in dancing in dancing

The techniques of sdmdnayabhinaya (basic representation),bdbya(irregular) and abhyantara

(regular,or inner coherent) and citradbhinaya
(specialrepresentation)are in turn made up by the
combinationof the differentelements tabhinaya
of whichare seen above.The
technique of the dance is evolved directly out of the diverse elements of the dharmis,the vrttis,
and the abhinayamentioned above. Judging from the divisions which are made in the later
texts like the Abhinayadarpana and the Sangitaratnadkara,
etc., the technique of dance, as distinct
from the techniqueof the dramaproper,utilises the drama(natya)as one of its aspects,as much
as drama (naeya)utilises nrtta(dancing proper)and nrtya(dancingwith miming and gesticula-
tion) as one of its many aspects of technique.

TECHNIQUE

Accordingto the Abhinayadarpana and the Sangitaratndkara and other medievaltreatises,

dancingis dividedintothreedistinctcategories,viz.,natya,nrtyaandnrtta.Ndtyaherecorresponds
to drama,and nrtyato gesticulationwhen it is performedto the words sung in a musicalmelody:
nrttacorrespondsto pure dancingwhere the movements of the body do not expressany mood

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(bhava),and do not convey any meaning. All these aspectsuse the movements of the limbs and
poses of the human body as their medium. The other type of distinction which is stated by
and ladsya:the Natyasadstradoes not make this distinction in so
these texts is that of tadndava
many words, though it is implied in certain portions of it: the Naftyasastrauses the word
(tadndava)as a generic term for dancing which cannot necessarilybe interpretedas denoting
violent dancing,or as that performedby men alone,or even a specialtype of dancing.The
fourth chapteris entitled tdndava-laksaVam and the term tadndava
is used for the particulardance
which Tandu composed, by combining the recikis,the arigahadra and pindi (invented by Siva)
with song and instrumentalmusic, etc. This dance was to be performed generally for the
adoration of the gods and its gentler aspect, which is termed as sukumdra-prayoga, was to be
used in the erotic (s.rngrarasa) sentiment.The is in
word dlasya used laterchaptersas a synonym
and in descriptionof the ten typesof drama,ladsya
occasionally, is one of the formsmentioned.
and the Sangitaratndkara,
The Abhinayadarpana etc., however clearlydescribetdndava
as derived
as derivedfromPrvati who taughtit to Usa,daughterof Bana.
fromTanduanddlasya
From the above it is clearthat the art of dancing has been clearlyclassifiedinto nrtya, nrtta
and natyaon the one hand and tdndavaand ladsya or sukumdra on the other. The entire technique
of the classicalIndian dancing can be broken up into these constituentsand these divisions are
faithfullyfollowedin all the stylesof Indiandancingto this day.The termsnrttaandabhinaya,
are also prevalentamong practisingdancers,and from the north to the south,
and ladsya
tadndava
and from the east to the west, we find that the dancersspeakan identicallanguageof basic
technique even though there are significantdifferencesin stylisation. The amazing continuity
is preservedin these dance-styles,and an accuratesystematic
of tradition of the Nadtyasadstra,
studyof the academicandoraltraditionsof the dancehasyet to be attempted.
On the basis of classificationgiven above, we can analysethe technique of dancing under
two clear heads, nrtta (pure dancing) and nrtya(dancing with miming and gesticulation). It
would be more appropriateto term the second adngikdabhinaya or just abhinaya
which is also the
termpopularlyusedby practisingdancersfor the mimeaspectsof the dance.
The nrttatechnique of the Indian dance as discussedin the treatises
Nrtta (dance)technique:
hasto be understoodas the lawsandmethodologyof humanmovement.The sculpturesque
in
Indian dance does not need to be re-emphasised,but it must be pointed out that the pose (the
stance) in this dance is all important and in fact the Indian dance is a stringing together of a
number of highly stylized and symbolic poses. The nrttatechnique has to be understood not
merely as the technique of renderingtala (metrical cycle) through movements which do not
havemeaning,but hasto be understoodas the techniqueof attaininga significantpose within
a given metricalcycle. Indian dancing seeks to depict the perfect point or moment of balance,
along the vertical median (the brahmasutra) so much so that all movements emerge from the
sama(thepoint of perfectbalanceakinto the sama-bhanga of sculpture)andcomebackto this.
It is movementof the humanform in directrelationto the pull of gravitythat Indiandance
conceives,andthis explainsits deliberateavoidanceof terrificleapsandglidingmovementsin
the air, so characteristicof the Westernballet. In the latter,a moment in spacewhere the human
form is free from gravity even if temporarily,is emphasised,and it is the stages of movement
which are depictedin the composition of the dance. It strives thus to elimrinatespace by cover-
ing as much of it as possible,whetherit is floor-spaceor space in the air: this space is cut out in

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chunks of movement in leaps and in floor choreographyand is woven into the most intricate
patterns. The Western dancer is reaching out into space, vertical and horizontal,in order to
arresta moment of perfect dynamicmovement in space: he seems to strive thus for a point of
time in spacelessness,and whateverperfectionthe dancerachieves,he achievesby making
geometrical patterns in space, where movement is conceived as an attempt to be free from
gravity either by having just the one toe touch the ground, or the entire human form thrown
into spacein a leap.The Indiandancerattemptssomethingquitethe opposite,andthe two are
completely differentin their approachto movement. The Indian dancer'spre-occupationis not
so much with spaceas with time, and the danceris constantlytrying to achievethe perfectpose,
which will convey a sense of timelessness.The humanform thus achieves geometricalshapesin
timeratherthanin space,for the intricacyof the nrttatechniquedependson the very fine and
deliberatemanipulatingof time (tala) to achievea seriesof poses- andthe perfectpose is a
moment of arrestedtime- in limited space:it is thus thatwe find that, exceptfor certainaspects
of Kathdkali,in none of the Indian dance styles are there leaps evident; nor have they been
discussedin the treatisesof the Indian dance. Bharatacould have easily analysedand discussed
the possibilitiesof movementin spacewhereboth handsandfeet lose contactwith the ground,
but he does not do so in any one of the I08 karanasor the thirty-twoangahadraswhich he discusses
in great detail. The entire system of 'movement' composition has thus to be understood with
this basicdifferencein view and withinthis broadframework.As muchas Indiandramade-
liberatelyand purposelyavoidedcertainfeaturesof life for depiction,so also Indiandance
purposelyandwith deliberatedesignemphasizedonly certaintypesof movement,andexplored
the full possibilitiesof movementwithinthe limitationswhichit consciouslyimposedon itself
as discipline.
Like the Indian sculptor, the Indian danceralso does not lay much emphasison the muscles
of the humanform,andtakesthe jointsandthe fundamental anatomicalbone-structure of the
humanformasits basis:thisenablesthedancerto achievethe'absoluteform',andin so faras the
whole process of dancingis consideredayogathis is inevitable, for the muscles cannot suggest
absoluteform and createabstractgeometricalpatternseasily.The differentpartsof the body
and their respectivemovements have been analysedwith this point in view also: the knee, hip
and shoulder joints constitute the key points from which movement emerges in the lower and
upperlimbs: the neck joint is the pivot joint responsiblefor the movementsof the headand
face. The Natyaasdtragives us two types of classificationof movement: there is first the analysis
of differentpartsof the humanbody from the point of view of the possibilityof movement, and
accordingly,in chaptersVIII and IX, Bharataanalysesin great detail the movements of major
limbs (the angas)and the movements of the minor limbs (upatigas); there is then the discussion
of theseprimarymovements,in chaptersXII, XIII andIV, ascras,nma.ndalas,
on the combination
karanas,etc. According to this classification,the head, hands, breast or chest, sides (waist), hips
andthe eyes,eyebrows,nose,lips, chin,mouth,etc.
andfeet constitutethe majorlimbs(aangas),
constitutethe upadgas(minorlimbs).Bharatauses the word upaigaandpratyanga practicallyas
synonyms, but does not the the the
classify neck, arms, belly (udar), the shanks and the knees
in eithercategoryand the latertexts like the Abhinayadarpana andtheSangitaratnakaraclassifythese
as prayarigas.The Natyasastradoes not also analysethe knee (jadnu),the ankles (gulpha)and the
toes of the feet, which is done by the other texts. It does mention the wrist movementsbut does

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not devotea separatesectionto it. An attemptcanbe madeto makea comparative
studyof the
movements of these majorlimbs, and these can be correlatedto each other. Hastas (hands)are
the only parts of the human body which have both nrtta hastasand abhinayahastasseparately:
in treatingall the other partsof the body the movement of the particularpartis describedfirst.
This is followed by its usage (or viniyoga)which constitutesa part of the abhinaya technique:this
is certainlymore true of the movement of the minor limbs (the upadngas), especiallythe mukhaja
ones like the eyebrows, eyeballs,eyelids,chin, nose, lips, etc., ratherthan the thighs, waist, side,
and chest, which have been primarilydiscussedfrom the point of view of nrtta.Their viniyogas
(usage) does make them relevantin the study of the abhinaya techniquealso.
Bharatadiscussesand analyseson the basis of these movements of the separateparts of the
human body fundamentalunits of movement: the 'carz'is the most important single unit of
movement in the nrttatechnique as enunciatedby Bharata.When one foot is moved from a
samaposition of the feet, then one foot (pada) cari is the result. Bharatadevotes one chapterto
this and says that "whateverhas been prescribedas histrionic representation(natya)is included
in the carzsand no part of it can take place without the same". Since the canrsalso form a whole
systemof exercise,they arerelatedto eachotherandcannotbe consideredin isolation. The move-
ment mainly with one foot is termedas a cari,the two feet movement is called as karana:(this
karanais however different from the karanaof chapter IV where he describes the karana
as a completeunit of movementof boththe handsandthe feet).Threekaranas in combination
forma khanda andthreeor fourkhandas constitutea mandala:
this is alsodifferentfrom the two
whichariseout of the caris.InChapterX, thirty-twocarisaredefinedof which
typesof mandalas
sixteenaretermedearthlyor bhaumiand sixteenarecalledaerial(dkdasiki): the differencebetween
the two is reallyone of degree and frequencyof movement ratherthan of quality.The first type
has aboutsevenstaticpositionsandindicatespositionsof the shanks,etc.: the secondtype of
carisconstitutesmovementand utilises both feet often, even though the main movement
whether it is the atikrantaor the urdbvajianu
cari belongs only to one leg or one foot. Next in
importanceto the cazrsaloneis the unit of movementcalledthe karanadiscussedin detailin
ChapterIV of the Ndtyasastra,
wherethe I08 karanas
aredescribed:it is necessaryto pointout,
in this context that it is not possible to understandthe chapterIV or the descriptionsof the
karanaswithoutknowingthe movementsof the separatepartsof the bodylike the feet, thighs,
waist,and nrttahastas,all of which have been discussedlater,especiallyin ChaptersVII, IX,
X andXI. The karanas thusarenot particular posesas is commonlybelieved,but arecadences
of movement. In fact the karapais the first single unit of movement which can then combine to
form a madtrkaor angahara.The cars also combine to form mandalaswhich are describedin
Chapter XI. The distinction between the aerial and the earthly cartsand the mandalasis clearly a
distinction of the use of the one or the two. Whenever that contact with the ground is the maxi-
mum, then it is earthly (bhaumi) and when there is any attempt at the release from gravity, then
it is aerial.
Apart from the carzs,karanas,mandalasand angahdra,the other important aspects of movement
depiction in the nrtta technique are the movements and compositions indicated by the technical
terms called recika, bhramariand utplavana,and the group composition indicated by the term
pindibandha.The Natyasadstraonly mentions the recikasand pindibandbas,even though the bbra-
maris (spiral movements) and the uttplavanas(jumps) are all mentioned and also occasionally

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describedin thedescriptionof the karanas.
The lasttwo, namelythe bhramaris
andthe utplavanas
have been discussed in the Abhinayadarpana and the Sangitaratnikara.
Nandikesvarastates five
of
types utplavanas, namely, the and
alaga,kartari,asva,motita, krpalaga,and seven types of bhra-
maris, viz., t_plta, cakra,garpda,ekapada,kuicita, akafa, and ariga.The Abhinayadarpana also
enumerateseight types of caris but these have nothing in common with the carzsof the Ntya-
sdstraandbelongmoreto the classof movementtermedasgatiby Bharata.
The bhramarisof the Abhinayadarpana and the recikaof the Natyasadstra
both belong to the
class of circularmovements and denote turning of one part of the body or the whole body,
which would be termed as 'spinning'round or 'cakkara'in contemporaryKathakterminology.
The Natyasadstra prescribes recikasof the feet (pdda), waist (kati), hands (hasta) and neck
(grvd).The waistandthe neckarecapableof completecircularmovementandthe feet andthe
hands would achieve only a restricted movement within the limitation of the wrist and the
anklejoint,but what Bharatameansbypddaandhastarecikais the completecircularmovement
of the whole leg or arm, and this is stated clearlyin the Natyadastra.The frequentreferencesto
theserecikasin literatureandin the descriptionof the karayasandin the descriptionof the in-
dividual movements of the differentpartsof the body tell us of the great popularityof the spiral
and spinningand circularmovementsin the danceof the Natyasdstraperiod,whichseemedto
enjoythe samepopularitydownto the timesof Rajesekharaandlater.
The most importantterm in the sphereof dance composition found in the Natyasadstrais the
Thepinis aresaidto have fourvarieties,pi.ndisrikhaliki,latdbandha,
pi.ndibandha. and bhedyaka.
The firststandsfor a collectivedance,andthe wordpindisuggestsagulma(or a cluster).Perhaps
afterthe main dancerhad enteredthe stage, she was followed by a group of dancers:the nature
of the formation of the group has not been mentionedby the Natyasadstra but the name suggests
a composition where a closed clusterwould be madeby the dancers.The second type of compo-
where a chainformationis suggested and the partnershold hands:latadbandha
sition is the srtrnhala
suggests a dancecomposition where the dancersput their armsaroundeach other. The bhedyaka
is the solo dance,apartfromthe group.All theseareemployedin the beginningof the play,and
relatedto adsaritas is thus appliedin the firstdsaritad,
of various kinds. Thepindibandha the srinhalda
is employed at the transitionof tempo, the latabandha in the middle one and the bhedyaka in the
longest dsaritd.A perfect systemof nrttatechniqueis thus visualizedandthis completes Bharata's
discussionof the nrttatechniqueof dancing.

NRTYA OR ABHINAYA

The miming aspect of the ndtyatermed as adgikabhinaya in the Natyadastrais an aspect of the
dramaproper,which is also an integral part of dancing, and, as has been pointed out before,the
principleswhich govern the aingikdbhinaya
technique of nadyaalso govern the nrtyaor what we
havetermedas justabhinayain dancing.
The danceremploysonly the limbsandvariousotherpartsof the humanbody for expres-
sion, and the vdcikdbhinaya
of the ndatya
(wherethe actorsthemselvesuse speech)is replacedby
the music which accompaniesthe dance. In the nrttaportion, the musicalaccompanimentutilises
svarasor melody in a given tala(metricalcycle)and the variationsof tdlaare interpretedby the
feet and the other angasor tupagasof the body: in the abhinaya
portions, the musicalaccompani-

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ment invariablyconsists of poetry, lyrical or narrative,which is set to music and rhythm. It is
this poetry which is interpretedby the dancer: the actualinterpretationof it, especiallyin the
solo dancing of all the classical styles, consists of portrayingthe various sancrari of the
bha-vas,
particularsthdyibhavaand this is done througha seriesof variationsof the adgikdbhinaya
in
whicheachword of the poetryis interpretedin as manydifferentwaysas possible,the dancer
of the themeof the poemwhichis sung.In doingso, the principle
giving a visualpresentation
of na.tyadharmi is fully followed: here the one dancerassumes differentroles, without change
of dress or costume. Bharata,while giving examplesof natyadharmi, tells us that if the same actor
assumesa differentrole (in the same play) then it is natyadharmi, he adds furtherthat in any play
wheredance-gesturesareemployed,andwhere thereis a pre-dominanceof gracefulgesticulation,
it is the sphere of natyadharmi: indeed the whole sphere of dance belongs to the natyadharmi
mode of presentation,for the principleof imitationis nowhere followed and it is the principleof
'suggestion' which the danceris guided by. There is no attempt therefore to present things as
they are, and an artistic stylisation is already implied when the whole range of impersonal
humansituationsand experiencehas to be shown throughgestures.The stylisationis also seen in
the depiction of those emotions which would ordinarilybe the sphere of sadttvikdbhinaya in the
dramaproper, for in the dance abhinaya, even tears etc., are to be shown through gesticulation
in ndtyadharmi ratherthan by actual weeping. The three types of gesticulation,which are seen
of the body in drama,are the suca,the sdkhaand the ankura;and these have
in the abhinaya
been mentioned by us before: of these three types, the sadkha type of angikdbhinaya belongs
most to the sphere of dancing, for here the representationof the theme is made by the use of
the head, face, thighs, feet, hands, etc. The vrttimost suitablefor the dance is the kaisikiwhich
is seenin both the nrttaandthe nrtyaportions,and Bharatatellsus that thisvrttiis particularly
interestingon accountof the dancingand singingwhichareusedfor its representation. In so
faras the vrttishavetheircorresponding rasa(or sentiment)they areall witnessedin dancing,
especiallyin the narrativethemes and presentationof the sentimentsin a dance style like the
Kathdkali.
Among the angasand upadngas of which we have spoken earlierthe nrtyaor abhinaya portion
depends most on the gesture of the hands, (hastadbhinaya) and mukhajabhinaya,especially the
drstis,the movements of the eyes, eyebrows, eyeballs, etc.; next in importanceare movements
of the head, vaksa(chest) and the thighs. The feet are important,but it is in the nrttaportion
that they have a most significantpart to play; here they are governed by the demandsmade by
the theme, and the hastadbhinaya.The hastas(hands) have been grouped under the categoriesof
the single hand gestures and double hand gestures (asamyutaand samyuta):each of the hands
mentioned under these categories has endless possibilities of movement and is the vehicle
of an entire language of gesticulation.The gesticulation of the hands is indeed the focal point
around which everything else revolves. It is with this in view that Nandikesvara and the
writers after him lay down the famous dictum that 'where the hand goes eyes follow: where
the eye goes, there the mood (bhrdva) follows, and where the mind goes there arisesthe senti-
ment (rasa)'. It is necessaryto point out that all the primaryhands of both varietiesmention-
ed can be used purely imitatively or suggestively: they can be used to convey ideas and
emotions, and can also be used as symbols: through the hand-gesticulationthen, the universe
canbe comprehended,through them the seven spheres,the oceans,river,planets, humanbeings,

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and animalscan be represented.These hands along with the movementsof the eyes and eyeballs
are employed in the basic representation(sadmdanyadbhinaya) and in the special representation
(citrdbhinaya).
The movement of the differentparts of the face and head, especiallythe movements of the
eyes, are almost as (if not equally)importantas the hastasin the abhinaya
techniqueof the dance,
and each of the glances(andthe movementsof the eyeballs,eyebrows)is relatedto its correspond-
ing vyabhicdribhava,the sthayi-bhdva and the rasa.
The above discussion will make it clear then that the technique of the Indian dance is as
complex in nature as the techniques of any of the other arts in India and it builds from its
smallest part into a composite whole by a series of laws applied systematically,and all with a
tech-
view to evoking a particularstate of mind or rasa,be it the nrttatechnique or the abhinaya
niques. The following genealogical chartwill give some idea of their mutual relationshipsand
derivations.

Dancing (Nrtya)
I
I
II
nrtta abhinaya
!I
(a) (b)
static positions movements and
of poses compositions
.
.

(i) ( I
(i) (ii) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv)
sthanasfor asanas mandalas pindibandhas atigahara gati
men and of three Iearthly aerial
women
pindi
types I I
earthly aerial pindi Srnkhala lata bhedeyaka
carIs IS

earthly aerial
(bhaumi) (akaiki)

(iii) above,i.e. atgaharacanbe brokenup as:

I
I I
{r"
"i karanas (combination of karanas)
I~.
I.
I
carl recika bhramaris utpluta nrtta
I hasta
earthly aerial I i I I I I
// pada kafi hasta griva pada janu
l

pada (5 types) I I
pada trkad

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 1
II abhinaya

(a) (b)
mukhajabhinaya sakha
. . . . . . . .

d.r.sis eye head neck nose lips mouth chin

hastas arms other

(bahu) atgas

hasta
asa.myuta hasta
sa.myuta

I The subdivisionsof each of these movementsand theirusagehas not been shown in the above charts:the angasand
the upangasare utilised in both the nrtta technique and the abhinayatechnique.

238

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