Nataraj, The Dance of Shiva

Nataraj, the dancing form of Lord Shiva, is a symbolic composition and summary of some of the most important aspects of Hinduism, and its older basis, the Vedic religion. The term 'Nataraj' means 'King of Dancers'. Nataraj is probably the clearest image of the activity of God which any art or teaching can illustrate, it is a fluid and energetic representation of movement and change illustrating the cycle of all creation.

It has been said that man danced before he spoke. He certainly danced before he painted and sculpted reliefs on his walls. All cultures of the world have given dance a ritual status before any formal ritual or liturgy was established in texts, or recreated through art. Dance, like Yoga is much more than mere physical movement. It is a holistic way of relating to the body that involves an increasing awareness on all levels: the physical, the mental, and the spiritual. Yoga unites the functions of each of these aspects of our personality. This is also true for dance. Certainly any successful dance performance is characterized by a balanced harmony between the body and spirit. What I am suggesting here is that dance, like yoga, is a conscious attempt at integrating all the tiers of our existence. It affirms the sensual nature of our physical being, and treats it as fundamental to any attempt at spiritual awareness. Dance is thus a spiritual channel, an opening of both metaphysical and sensuous doorways.

The cosmic dance of Shiva is called 'Anandatandava' meaning the Dance of Bliss, and symbolizes the cosmic cycle of creation and destruction, as well as the daily rhythm of birth and death. The dance is a pictorial allegory of five principle manifestations of the eternal cycle: creation, destruction, preservation, salvation, and illusion. The image comes to us as a paradox, uniting the inner tranquility, and outside activity of Shiva. Shiva as Nataraj gyrates to the rhythms of his dance, whirling his gracefully carved limbs, as an outpouring of ecstatic energetic force, while inwardly always remaining the tranquil yogi, detached from yet compassionate for the sorrows of the world .

Nataraj encompasses the world and its activities. Visually and symbolically it is important to approach Nataraj in a way that allows us to experience all of the complexities and beauty that are Natarag that cannot be appreciated from a head on approach. Nataraj has four hands, the first hand holds fire, the second a damaru (drum), the third is in abhaya mudra (palm facing us) and the last one points down like an elephant’s swaying trunk. All of the hands have a symbolic meaning. Fire is the symbol of destruction whereas the damaru signifies the nada, sound, the first form of creation. From sound came all language, all music, and all knowledge. Creation and destruction are counterparts without one you cannot have the other; such is the cycle of life.

Shiva is believed to be at the core of the centrifugal force of the universe, because of his responsibility for death and destruction. Unlike the godhead Brahma, the Creator, or Vishnu, the Preserver, Shiva is the dissolving force in life. But Shiva dissolves in order to create, since death is the medium for rebirth into a new life. So the opposites of life and death and creation and destruction both reside in his character. But have no fear; the grace and protection of God is with you, as represented by the abhaya mudra. How do we attain this? The fourth hand points the way. This hand gracefully crossing the body and directing our gaze to the upraised foot holds gaja hasta, the sign of the elephant. This gesture depicts the trunk of an elephant. The trunk represents discrimination; with it an elephant can pluck a blade of grass or uproot a tree. So too we should be discriminating and choose between the higher and the lower, what is good for our growth and what is unskillful.

The lifted leg symbolizes release or emancipation. Just as the dancer raises his foot so too can man raise himself up. While the one foot is raised the other upon which everything is supported during this eternal dance, rests not on firm ground, but precariously upon the body of a struggling dwarf, Apasmara Purusha. This dwarf often depicted as a demon, is the embodiment of all that veils the truth of our real identity. Apasmara Purusha is made up of the ignorance and forgetfulness which resides within our minds preventing us from realizing our own essential divinity. It is up to us to firmly crush out the ignorance, so that we may attain the supreme joy that is our true nature.

The greatest teaching of Nataraj comes when we gaze upon his face and we see that it is in dramatic and vivid contrast to the frenzied movement of the universe, his body, with all of its dissolution and creation. Shiva the greatest of yogis is at peace, absolutely calm and serene, teaching us to remain at peace ourselves while bracing the ecstatic frenzy that is life.