One of the most striking features of Indian classical dance is the use of hand gestures. Speaking in dance via gestures, rather than orally, in order to visually convey outer events or things, as well as inner feelings, two classifications of specific traditional mudras (hand/finger gesture) are used in Indian Classical Dance, and indeed are a prominent part of the dancer's vocabulary..
Bharatanatyam Mudras Pdf Download
- 2Indian dance
- 2.1Bharatanatyam
Mudras are expressive hand gestures that form an intrinsic part of Indian Classical Dance, Yoga and visual arts. Mudras are believed to channelize natural forces and aid spiritual and mental well being by enhancing the flow of energies through the body.
Background[edit]
The Abhinaya Darpa (a descriptive primer for dancers) mentions that the dancer should sing the song by the throat, express the meaning of the song through hand gestures, show the state of feelings in the song by eyes, and express the rhythm with his or her feet.
Bharatanatyam Mudras Chart Pdf
From the Natya Shastra, a text on the arts, this beautiful quotation and translation is often quoted by Indian classical dance instructors:
- 'Yato hastastato drishtihi'...'Where the hand is, the eyes follow'
- 'Yato drishtistato manaha'...'Where the eyes go, the mind follows'
- 'Yato manastato bhavaha'...'Where the mind is, there is the feeling'
- 'Yato bhavastato rasaha'...'Where there is feeling, there is mood/flavour, sweetness (i.e., appreciation of art; aesthetic bliss)'
Mudra Dance Academy
So vast are the subtleties expressed in the hand gestures of hasta that the vastness of what being human entails, and perhaps even what the entire universe contains, might be expressed by the dancer.
Hence as 'hasta' form a distinct coded language which brings a unique poetic element while performing, so too when abhinaya (traditional facial expressions), pose (attitude), and rhythm complete the language, the dancer may express practically anything and everything to an attentive audience.
Indian dance[edit]
Books On Mudras Pdf
Bharatanatyam[edit]
In Bharatanatyam, the Classical Dance of India, approximately fifty-five root mudras (hand/finger gestures) are used to clearly communicate specific ideas, events, actions, or creatures in which thirty-two require only one hand, and are classified as `Asamyukta Hasta', along with twenty-three other primary mudras which require both hands and are classified as 'Samyukta Hasta. [NB these fifty-five are the roots; the branches permit of many more mudra, some of which are used primarily as aesthetic or decorative enhancements.]
Asamyukta hastas (single hand gestures)[edit]
| Name in Sanskrit | Translation(s) in English | Other meanings | Illustration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pataka | Flag cloud,forest | ||
| Tripataka | Flag in three parts crown,tree | ||
| Ardhapataka | Half flag | ||
| Kartarimukha | Scissors face | ||
| Mayura | Peacock | ||
| Ardhachandra | Half moon | ||
| Arala | bent | ||
| Shukatunda | Beak of a parrot | ||
| Mushthi | fist | ||
| Shikhara | Peak | ||
| Kapitta | Elephant Apple | ||
| Katakamukha | Opening of a bracelet | ||
| Suchi | Needle | ||
| Chandrakala | Face of the moon | ||
| Padmakosha | Lotus bud | ||
| Sarpashirsha | Snake head | ||
| Mrigashirsha | Head of a deer | ||
| Simhamukha | Face of a lion | ||
| Langula or Kangula | Lily | ||
| Alapadma | lotus | ||
| Chatura | Four | ||
| Bhramara | Bee | ||
| Hamsasya | Swan head | ||
| Hamsapaksha | Swan wing | ||
| Sandamsha | Pincers | ||
| Mukula | Flower bud | ||
| Tamrachuda | Rooster | ||
| Trishula | Trident | ||
| Ardhasuchi | Half needle | ||
| Vyagraha | Tiger | ||
| Palli | Knot | ||
| Kataka | Resting Place |
Samyukta mudras (double hand gestures)[edit]
| Name in Sanskrit ;' | Translation(s) in English | Other Meanings | Illustration |
|---|---|---|---|
| [[Añjali Mudra | Offering | ||
| Kapotam | Dove | ||
| Karkatam | Crab | ||
| Swastikam | Auspicious sign | ||
| Dola-Hastam | Drummer's hands | ||
| Pushpaputam | bag of flowers | l | |
| Utsangam | embrace | ||
| Shivalingam | sign of Lord Shiva | ||
| Kataka-vardhanam | chain | ||
| Kartari-swastikam | |||
| Shakatam | carriage | ||
| Shankha | Conch-shell | ||
| Chakram | Rotating disc | ||
| Pasha | Ropes | ||
| Kilaka | bolt | ||
| Samputa | round shaped casket | ||
| Matsya | Fish | ||
| Kurma | Tortoise | ||
| Varaha | Boar | ||
| Garuda | Half-eagle, half-human mount of Lord Vishnu, a bird/birds flying | ||
| Nagabandham | snakes entwined | ||
| Khattva | cot | ||
| Bherunda | A pair of birds |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to mudras. |
- Indianartz.com. Hasta Mudras - Gallery.
- Ramm-Bonwitt, Ingrid (1987). Mudras - As Maos Como Simbolo do Cosmos.