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BharataNatyam
is the dance technique of Tamil India.It is usually danced by a
solo woman dancer. Its songs are
purely
devotional love songs, the dancer being the devotee and god, the
beloved. The Thiruvilayadal Purina explains the meaning of
'Bharata' as a combination of Bhava , raga and Tala. Vedanta
Dashiki also suggests this in his'Sri hastigiri Mahatmiyam'.
It was usual in olden days to begin a Bharata Natyam preformance with a rhythmic recital,which was
called 'melaprapti'The muscians and the nattuwanar conducted this introduction and certain special rasas and talas were prescribed for it.Beginningwith drumming on the mriddangam, the instruments would be played and then the nattuwanar would beat the time with 'jalrai' and recite the 'sollukathas'. In between a song of invocation called the 'thodaya' would be sung.This was followed by more 'solukathas' and a 'mangalam' then the four fundamental rhythamic syllables 'tha', 'dhi', 'thom', 'nom' were recited in various time measures, which ended the preliminary ritual, before the dancer entered.
| Today a recital commences
with the rhythamic utterances of voice and drum in the
invocation called the 'alarippu', both of blessing and of welcoming, the dancer offering a namesake to the gods above the head, to the gurus in front of the face and to the audience in front of the chest. Then it slowly moves in to the mood where the rhytham is depicted in all its various patterns.The dancer dances to the mood of the music in the'jatiswaram' in varied ragas with the swaras and jatis in combined patterns. From rhyms, she moves swiftly in to abhinaya. Now she is begining to transcend the technique. Here it is her understanding of the art makes the audience comprehend the true meanings of the songs. This is 'abhinayam', where she may tell the tale of Krishna or rammer or shiva, but it must be told with respect and interpretation. Here in the 'shabdam', she begins to show the result of her knowledge and all that she has assimilated. After that she must gather her resourses together in a great crescendro in order to dance the most difficult piece of all, the 'varnam'. The 'Varian' reveals the rich variety of Bharata Natyam. Few people realize the tremendous strength of emotional expression and physical exertion required in a 'varnam'. It is because of the depth of thought necessary in this item that the more mature the artist, the more exciting it is to watch.Where as a young student may go through the 'varnam' with excellent rhythm and facial expression, the artist who is more experienced will bring a whole wealth of new ideas to this composition it becomes so personal and intimate an expression that the one who seeks. This is the true power of Bharata Natyam. Even a moment of forgetfulness is the begining of awarness. Art, at its greatest, liberates the spirit of man. The dancer is the seeker or devoteeandthedeitythehighestTruth. |
The mood is of 'shringara bhakthi', the worship through love, that is the constant theme of all the songs of Bharata Natyam and indeed of most of the ancient art forms of India.After the'VARNAM', the tempo of a performance slows down. Now the lyricalaspect is emphasized in padams' or songs relating to God which are sung with delicate and subtile gestures and expresion, the dancer relating the stories of the experienced dancer to elaborated on the theme. She has to have a deep knowledge of the content of the padams which are sung.
Almost the last item is the gay 'tillana', where, the dancer abandonds herself purely to rythm and movement. Intricate beats and steps and rhythmic variation of music form wonderful patterns that are so akin to the sculptures on South Indian Temple walls. The training for Bharata Natyam took seven year under the direction of Nattuwanars who were scholars and persons of great learning.