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Ricardo Maldonado
Mrs. Weibe
World Dance 1305-171
April 4th
Religion & Dance Final Research Paper: Bharatanatyam
India is a country with a rich culture that is famous globally. Art, dance, and unique
cultural fashion are a hallmark of this country that is popular in all portrayals of the
country, including both Indian and non-Indian pop-cultural references. One of the
most famous and popular of these cultural and artistic works is the Bharatanatyam
dance. This paper will discuss the historical, religious, social, and modern contexts
associated with this dance.
Bharatanatyam is a dance that is traditionally linked to the Hindu religion. The
dance originated from the Tamil Nadu region of Southern India. It was performed in
temples and courts of kings and other powerful rulers. The dance is among the eight
types of dances recognized as Indian classical dances by the National Academy of
Music, Dance, and Drama (Kala Vandanam). Bharatanatyam is a mnemonic made up
of bha, ra, ta, and Natyam. Bha stands for “bhavam” which refers to emotions and
feelings, ra for “ragam,” which means melody and music, ta for “talam,” meaning
movement and rhythm, while Natyam means dance (Britannica). The dance is
recorded in the Natya Shastra, which is an ancient text record of performance arts.
Bharatanatyam is believed to have been recorded in the period between 200
BC and 200 CE. It has existed for over 2, 000 years and is noted in the 200 CE in the
Tamil epic play Silappatikaram, a play about a married man involved with a devadasis
woman (Coorlawala). Its association with Hindu religious themes and Vaishnavism,
Shaivism, Shaktism, and related deities, especially Shiva, has been sculpted numerous
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times in Bharatanatyam poses. The dance consists of three forms: the nrita, nritya, and
the natya. The nrita includes a solo performance that carries no message that is meant
to engage the audience; the nritya is how the dance expresses emotions and
movements that match a story being told, while the natya is a group performance form
of the dance. Traditionally the dance was performed by women called “devadasis”
who were well educated and trained in the arts. In its religious element, the dance was
used to depict the stories of deities and their devotees. However, during the 20th
century, after a revival of the dance, it became a secular form taught in dance schools
and could be performed by dancers of both genders.
The history of this dance that led to its revival in the 1930s and the role of the
“devadasis” is very controversial and disputed. The “devadasis” is a word that means
