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'{{Redirect|Nataraj}} {{EngvarB|date=March 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}} {{Infobox deity | type = Hindu |deity_of=The Lord of Dance |image=Shiva as the Lord of Dance LACMA edit.jpg|caption=A 10th century [[Chola dynasty]] bronze sculpture of [[Shiva]], the Lord of the Dance at the [[Los Angeles County Museum of Art]]|texts=''Anshumadbhed agama'' <br> ''Uttarakamika agama''|affiliation=[[Shiva]]|symbols=[[Agni]]}} {{Saivism}} {{Hinduism}} '''Nataraja''' ({{Lang-ta|நடராஜர் |lit=Naṭarājar}}, {{Lang-sa|नटराज|lit=Nataraaj}}, meaning "''the lord of dance''") is a depiction of the [[Hindu deities|Hindu god]] [[Shiva]] as the cosmic ecstatic dancer. His dance is called [[Tandava]]m or Nadanta, depending on the context of the dance.<ref name="Verma2011p19"/><ref name=natarajabrit>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/Nataraja Nataraja], ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' (2015)</ref> The pose and artwork is described in many Hindu texts such as the ''Anshumadbhed agama'' and ''Uttarakamika agama'', the dance relief or idol featured in all major [[Hindu temple]]s of [[Shaivism]].<ref name=rao223/> The classical form of the depiction appears in stone [[relief]]s, as at the [[Ellora Caves]] and the [[Badami Caves]], by around the 6th-century.<ref name=harlep126/><ref name=verma2012p150>{{cite book|author=Archana Verma|title=Temple Imagery from Early Mediaeval Peninsular India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HOc9RG6MSzgC |year=2012|publisher=Ashgate Publishing |isbn=978-1-4094-3029-2|pages=150–151}}</ref> Around the 10th century, it emerged in [[Tamil Nadu]] in its mature and best-known expression in [[Chola bronze]]s, of various heights typically less than four feet,<ref name=rao227/> some over.<ref name=jharle309/> The Nataraja reliefs have been identified in historic artwork from many parts of South Asia, in southeast Asia such as in [[Bali]], [[Cambodia]], and in central Asia.<ref name=panthey1987/><ref>{{cite journal | last=Banerjee | first=P. | title=A Siva Icon from Piandjikent | journal=[[Artibus Asiae]] | volume=31 | issue=1 | year=1969 | pages=73–80 | doi=10.2307/3249451 | accessdate=2016-09-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Mahadev Chakravarti|title=The Concept of Rudra-Śiva Through the Ages|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yMFwMHH4HzMC |year=1986|publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-0053-3|page=178 with footnotes}}</ref> The sculpture is symbolic of Shiva as the lord of dance and dramatic arts,<ref name=panthey1987>{{cite book|author=Saroj Panthey|title=Iconography of Śiva in Pahāṛī Paintings|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GUBXNueBQo0C |year=1987|publisher=Mittal Publications|isbn=978-81-7099-016-1|pages=59–60, 88}}</ref> with its style and proportions made according to Hindu texts on arts.<ref name=rao227/> It typically shows Shiva dancing in one of the ''[[Natya Shastra]]'' poses, holding [[Agni]] (fire) in his left back hand, the front hand in ''gajahasta'' or ''dandahasta'' mudra, the front right hand with a wrapped snake that is in ''abhaya'' (fear not) mudra while pointing to a ''Sutra'' text, and the back hand holding a musical instrument usually a ''[[damaru]]''.<ref name=rao227/> His body, fingers, ankles, neck, face, head, ear lobes and dress are shown decorated with symbolic items, which vary with historic period and region.<ref name="Verma2011p19"/><ref>{{cite book|author=[[T. A. Gopinatha Rao]]|title=Elements of Hindu Iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e7mP3kDzGuoC |year=1997|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0877-5|pages=236–238, 247–258}}</ref> He is surrounded by a ring of flames, standing on a lotus pedestal, lifting his left leg (or in rare cases, the right leg) and balancing over a demon shown as a dwarf (Apasmara<ref name=natarajabrit/> or Muyalaka) who symbolizes ignorance.<ref name=rao227>{{cite book|author=T. A. Gopinatha Rao|title=Elements of Hindu Iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e7mP3kDzGuoC |year=1997|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0877-5|pages=223–229, 237}}</ref><ref>[http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/24548 Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja), Chola period, c. 10th/11th century] [[The Art Institute of Chicago]], United States</ref> The dynamism of the energetic dance is depicted with the whirling hair which spread out in thin strands as a fan behind his head.<ref name=coomaraswamy18>[[Ananda Coomaraswamy]] (1922), [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4169808 Saiva Sculptures: Recent Acquisitions], ''[[Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin]]'', Vol. 20, No. 118 (Apr., 1922), pages 18-19</ref><ref>Gomathi Narayanan (1986), [http://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102 SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX], ''Journal of South Asian Literature'', Vol. 21, No. 2, page 215</ref> The details in the Nataraja artwork has been variously interpreted by Indian scholars since the 12th-century for its symbolic meaning and theological essence.<ref name=jharle309/><ref name=coomarados/> Nataraja is a well known sculptural symbol in India and popularly used as a symbol of Indian culture,<ref name=narayanan208/><ref>{{cite book|author=Anna Libera Dallapiccola|title=Indian Art in Detail |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JR1rj6wxlo8C |year=2007|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-02691-9|page=28}}</ref> in particular as one of the finest illustrations of [[Hindu art]].<ref>{{cite book|author=David Smith|title=The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTLlcGlkdjkC&pg=PA1|year=2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-52865-8|pages=1–2}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Frank Burch Brown|title=The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GkvSAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA489|year=2014|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-517667-4|pages=489–490}}</ref> ==Etymology== {{See also|Koothu}} [[File:1 dancing Hindu god Shiva Nataraja Tanjore, India.jpg|250x250px|left|thumb|Nataraja iconography]] The Tamil word ''{{IAST|Naṭarāja}}'' ([[Tamil language|Tamil]]: "'''நடராசர்'''" or ''Kooththan'' ''கூத்தன்'') is variously translated as ''Lord of dance'' or ''King of dancers''.<ref name="nat">{{cite book|last1=Coomaraswamy|first1=Ananda K.|title=The dance of Shiva|date=2013|publisher=Rupa|isbn=9788129120908|page=56}}</ref><ref name="king">{{cite web|last1=Stromer|first1=Richard|title=Shiva Nataraja: A Study in Myth, Iconography, and the Meaning of a Sacred Symbol|url=http://www.soulmyths.com/shivanataraja.pdf|accessdate=10 March 2016}}</ref> According to Ananda Coomaraswamy, the name is related to Shiva's fame as the "Lord of Dancers" or "King of Actors".<ref name=coomarados/> Nataraja is sometimes also referred to as ''Nateshvara'' (from ''Nata'' which means "act, drama, dance", and ''[[Ishvara]]'' or "lord").<ref>{{cite book|author1=Hélène Brunner-Lachaux|author2=Dominic Goodall|author3=André Padoux|title=Mélanges Tantriques À la Mémoire DʼHélène Brunner|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7XHXAAAAMAAJ|year=2007|publisher=Institut français de Pondichéry|isbn=978-2-85539-666-8|page=245}}</ref> Koothan is derived from the Tamil word ''[[Koothu]]'', which means dance or performance. A male dancer is termed ''Koothan''. Also known as Natarajan in Tamil, meaning "Naatiyathin" (of dance) "Raajan" (king). Naatiyam is another word for dance in Tamil. ==Depiction== The dance of Shiva in Tillai, the traditional name for [[Chidambaram]], forms the motif for all the depictions of Shiva as Nataraja. He is also known as "Sabesan" which splits as "Sabayil aadum eesan" in Tamil which means "The Lord who dances on the [[dais]]". This form is present in most Shiva temples, and is the prime deity in the [[Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram|Nataraja Temple]] at [[Chidambaram]].<ref name="The Dance of Siva">[https://archive.org/details/danceofsivafourt01coomuoft Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy, ''The Dance of Siva: Fourteen Indian Essays'' New York, The Sun wise Turn (1918), p. 58. Internet Archive.]</ref> The two most common forms of Shiva's dance are the ''Lasya'' (the gentle form of dance), associated with the creation of the world, and the ''Tandava'' (the violent and dangerous dance), associated with the destruction of weary worldviews&nbsp;- weary perspectives and lifestyles. In essence, the [[Lasya]] and the [[Tandava]] are just two aspects of Shiva's nature; for he destroys in order to create, tearing down to build again.<ref name="Elephanta: The Cave of Shiva">Carmel Berkson, Wendy Doniger, George Michell, ''Elephanta: The Cave of Shiva'' (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983). {{ISBN|0691040095}}</ref> According to Alice Boner, the historic Nataraja artworks found in different parts of India are set in geometric patterns and along symmetric lines, particularly the ''satkona'' mandala ([[hexagram]]) that in the Indian tradition means the interdependence and fusion of masculine and feminine principles.<ref>{{cite book|author=Alice Boner|title=Principles of Composition in Hindu Sculpture: Cave Temple Period|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=doQLZ21CGScC |year=1990|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0705-1|pages=163–164, 257}}</ref> ==Characteristics== [[File:Shiva Nataraja(Lord of the Dance).webm|300px|right|(Shiva) Nataraja (Lord of the Dance)]] As the Lord of Dance, Nataraja, Shiva performs the ''Ananda [[Tandava]]'' (dance of bliss, Tamil: ஆனந்த தாண்டவம்), the dance in which the universe is created, maintained, and dissolved. The symbolism in the art has been variously interpreted by scholars since the Chola empire era:<ref name=rao227/><ref name=coomarados>[http://www2.hawaii.edu/~freeman/courses/phil300/18.%20The%20Dance%20of%20Shiva.pdf The Dance of Shiva], Ananda Coomaraswamy</ref><ref>[http://www.ancient.eu/article/831/ Shiva Nataraja, lord of the dance] Encyclopedia of Ancient History (2013)</ref> * He dances within an circular or cyclically closed arch of flames (''prabha mandala''), which symbolically represent the cosmic fire that in Hindu cosmology creates everything and consumes everything, in cyclic existence or cycle of life. The fire also represents the evils, dangers, heat, warmth, light and joys of daily life. The arch of fire emerges from two ''makara'' on each end, which are water creatures of water and part of Hindu mythologies. * His legs are bent, which suggests an energetic dance. His long, matted tresses, are shown to be loose and flying out in thin strands during the dance, spread into a fan behind his head, because of the wildness and ecstasy of the dance. * On his right side, meshed in with one of the flying strands of his hair near his forehead, is typically the river [[Ganges]] personified as a goddess, from the Hindu mythology where the danger of a mighty river is creatively tied to a calm river for the regeneration of life. * The upper right hand holds a small drum shaped like an hourglass that is called a ''{{IAST|[[ḍamaru]]}}'' in Sanskrit.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Alice Boner|author2=Sadāśiva Rath Śarmā|title=Silpa Prakasa Medieval Orissan Sanskrit Text on Temple Architecture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=itQUAAAAIAAJ |year=1966|publisher=Brill Archive|pages=xxxvi, 144}}</ref><ref>For the [[damaru]] drum as one of the attributes of Shiva in his dancing representation see: Jansen, page 44.</ref> A specific hand gesture ([[mudra]]) called ''{{IAST|ḍamaru-hasta}}'' (Sanskrit for "{{IAST|ḍamaru}}-hand") is used to hold the drum.<ref>Jansen, page 25.</ref> It symbolizes rhythm and time. * The upper left hand contains ''Agni'' or fire, which signifies forces of creation and destruction. The opposing concepts show the counterpoise nature of life. * A cobra uncoils from his lower right forearm, while his palm shows the ''Abhaya'' mudra (meaning ''fearlessness'' in [[Sanskrit]]), suggesting not to fear nearby evil, as well as evil and ignorance surrounding the devotee as he or she follows the righteousness of ''[[dharma]]''. * The second left hand points towards the raised foot which suggests the viewer to be active and dance despite the circumstances, or alternatively as a sign of upliftment and liberation. * The face shows two eyes plus a slightly open third on the forehead, which symbolize the triune in Shaivism. The eyes represent the sun, the moon and the third has been interpreted as the inner eye, or symbol of knowledge (''jnana''), urging the viewer to seek the inner wisdom, self realization. The three eyes alternatively symbolize an equilibrium of the three [[Guṇa]]: Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. * The dwarf on which Nataraja dances is the demon ''[[Apasmara]] purusha'' ([[Muyalaka]], as it is known in [[Tamil language|Tamil]]), and which symbolises action and dance that leads to victory over demonic evil and ignorance. * The slightly smiling face of Shiva represents his calmness despite being immersed in the contrasting forces of universe and his energetic dance.<ref name=jharle309>{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LwcBVvdqyBkC|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-06217-5|pages=309–310}}</ref> The above interpretations of symbolism are largely based on historic Indian texts published in and after 12th-century, such as ''Unmai Vilakkam'', ''Mummani Kovai'', ''Tirukuttu Darshana'' and ''Tiruvatavurar Puranam''.<ref name=coomarados/> Padma Kaimal questions some of these interpretations by referring to a 10th-century text and Nataraja icons, suggesting that the Nataraja statue may have symbolized different things to different people or in different contexts, such as Shiva being the lord of cremation or as an emblem of Chola dynasty.<ref>Padma Kaimal (1999), [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3051349 Shiva Nataraja: Shifting Meanings of an Icon], The Art Bulletin Volume 81, Issue 3, pages 390-419</ref> In contrast, Sharada Srinivasan questions the link to Chola, and has presented archaeological evidence suggesting that Nataraja bronzes and dancing Shiva artwork in South India was a Pallava innovation, tracing back to 7th to 9th-centuries, and its symbolism should be pushed back by a few centuries.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Srinivasan|first1=Sharada|title=Shiva as 'cosmic dancer': On Pallava origins for the Nataraja bronze| journal=World Archaeology| volume=36|issue=3|year=2004|pages=432–450 |doi=10.1080/1468936042000282726821}}</ref> ==Significance== [[File:Nataraja The Lord of Dance from Thanjavur Palace.jpg|thumb|Nataraja at Thanjavur Palace]] An essential significance of [[Shiva|Shiva's]] dance at Tillai, the traditional name of [[Chidambaram]], can be explained as:<ref name="The Dance of Śiva">[https://archive.org/details/danceofsivafourt01coomuoft Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy, ''The Dance of Śiva: Fourteen Indian Essays'' New York, The Sun wise Turn (1918), p. 58. Internet Archive.]</ref> * First, it is seen as the image of his rhythmic play which is the source of all movement within the universe. This is represented by the circular or elliptical frame surrounding Shiva. * Secondly, the purpose of his dance is to release the souls of all men from the snare of illusion. * Lastly, the place of the dance, [[Chidambaram]], which is portrayed as the center of the universe, is actually within the heart. Nataraja, states James Lochtefeld, symbolizes "the connection between religion and the arts", and it represents Shiva as the lord of dance, encompassing all "creation, destruction and all things in between".<ref>{{cite book|author=James G. Lochtefeld|title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5kl0DYIjUPgC&pg=PA147|year=2002|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-8239-3179-8|pages=147, entry for Chidambaram}}</ref> The Nataraja iconography incorporates contrasting elements,<ref name=narayanan208>Gomathi Narayanan (1986), [http://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102 SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX], Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 21, No. 2, pages 208-216</ref> a fearless celebration of the joys of dance while being surrounded by fire, untouched by forces of ignorance and evil, signifying a spirituality that transcends all [[dvaita|duality]].<ref>{{cite book|author=James G. Lochtefeld|title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g6FsB3psOTIC|year=2002|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-8239-3180-4|pages=464–466}}</ref> Nataraja is a significant visual interpretation of [[Brahman]] and a dance posture of Lord Shiva. The details in the Nataraja artwork has attracted commentaries and secondary literature such as poems detailing its theological significance.<ref name=jharle309/><ref name=coomarados/> It is one of the widely studied and supreme illustrations of [[Hindu]] art from the medieval era.<ref>{{cite book|author=David Smith|title=The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTLlcGlkdjkC&pg=PA1|year=2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-52865-8|pages=1–4}}</ref><ref name="Craven1976">{{cite book|author=Roy C. Craven|title=A concise history of Indian art|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FqQVAQAAIAAJ|year=1976|publisher=Praeger|isbn=978-0-275-22950-4|pages=144–147, 160–161}}</ref> ==History== {{See also|Pancha Sabhai}} [[File:Shiva's statue at CERN engaging in the Nataraja dance.jpg|thumb|upright|A statue of Shiva engaging in the Nataraja dance at [[CERN]] in Geneva, Switzerland]] One of earliest known Nataraja artworks has been found in the archaeological site at Asanapat village in [[Odisha]], which includes an inscription, and is dated to about the 6th century CE.<ref>Rupendra Chattopadhya et al (2013), ''The Kingdom of the Saivacaryas'', Berlin Indological Studies, volume 21, page 200; [http://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/34129437/Chattopadhyay-Ray-Majumder_2013_BIS_21_db.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAJ56TQJRTWSMTNPEA&Expires=1475259377&Signature=hwZ4LI7DVHndL9pOKOGYlfGiVJQ%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DThe_Kingdom_of_the_Saivacaryas.pdf Archive]{{dead link|date=July 2017}}</ref> The Asanapat inscription also mentions a Shiva temple in the Saivacaryas kingdom. Stone reliefs depicting the classical form of Nataraja are found in numerous cave temples of India, such as the [[Ellora Caves]] (Maharashtra), the [[Elephanta Caves]], and the [[Badami Caves]] (Karnataka), by around the 6th-century.<ref name=harlep126/><ref name=verma2012p150/> Archaeological discoveries have yielded a red Nataraja sandstone statue, from 9th to 10th century from [[Ujjain]], [[Madhya Pradesh]], now held at the Gwalior Archaeological Museum.<ref>C Yamamoto (1971), [http://doi.org/10.11168/jeb1947.1971.96_L74 Catalogue of Antiquities from East Asia], Vol. 1971, No. 96, pages L74-L92</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LwcBVvdqyBkC|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-06217-5|pages=156–157}}</ref> Similarly, Nataraja artwork has been found in archaeological sites in the Himalayan region such as [[Kashmir]], albeit in with somewhat different dance pose and iconography, such as just two arms or with eight arms.<ref>{{cite book|author=Anne-Marie Gaston|title=Śiva in dance, myth, and iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OMLu94PYIkoC|year=1982|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=56, 47, 101}}</ref> In medieval era artworks and texts on dancing Shiva found in [[Nepal]], [[Assam]] and [[Bengal]], he is sometimes shown as dancing on his ''vahana'' [[Nandi (bull)|Nandi]], the bull; further, he is regionally known as ''Narteshvara''.<ref>{{cite book|author=Anne-Marie Gaston|title=Śiva in dance, myth, and iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OMLu94PYIkoC|year=1982|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=130, 57}}</ref> Nataraja artwork have also been discovered in [[Gujarat]], [[Kerala]] and [[Andhra Pradesh]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Anne-Marie Gaston|title=Śiva in dance, myth, and iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OMLu94PYIkoC|year=1982|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=48–50}}</ref> Nataraja gained special significance and became a symbol of royalty in [[Tamil Nadu]]. The dancing Shiva became a part of Chola era processions and religious festivals, a practice that continued thereafter.<ref name="Davis2010p18">{{cite book|author1=Aghoraśivācārya|author2=Richard H. Davis|title=A Priest's Guide for the Great Festival|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ruAfDP0OZyEC |year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-537852-8|pages=15–20, 24–25}}</ref> The depiction was informed of cosmic or [[Metaphysics|metaphysical]] connotations is also argued on the basis of the testimony of the hymns of [[Tamil people|Tamil]] saints.<ref>[http://www.sharadasrinivasan.com/data/shivacosmicdancer.pdf Sharada Srinivasan, "Shiva as 'cosmic dancer': on [[Pallava]] origins for the Nataraja bronze", ''World Archaeology'' (2004) 36(3), pages 432–450.]</ref> The largest Nataraja statue is in [[Neyveli]], in Tamil Nadu.{{Citation needed|date=September 2016}} In the contemporary Hindu culture of [[Bali]] Indonesia, Siwa (Shiva) Nataraja is the god who created dance.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Fredrik Eugene DeBoer|author2=I Made Bandem|title=Balinese Dance in Transition: Kaja and Kelod|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8-vfAAAAMAAJ |year=1995|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-967-65-3071-4|pages=ii–iii}}</ref> Siwa and his dance as Nataraja was also celebrated in the art of Java Indonesia when Hinduism thrived there, while in Cambodia he was referred to as ''Nrittesvara''.<ref>{{cite book|author=Alessandra Iyer|title=Prambanan: Sculpture and Dance in Ancient Java : a Study in Dance Iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LfTVAAAAMAAJ |year=1998|publisher=White Lotus|isbn=978-974-8434-12-4|pages=69–70}}</ref> In 2004, a 2m statue of the dancing Shiva was unveiled at [[CERN]], the European Center for Research in Particle Physics in [[Geneva]]. The statue, symbolizing Shiva's cosmic dance of creation and destruction, was given to CERN by the Indian government to celebrate the research center's long association with India.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cerncourier.com/cws/article/cern/29122/3|title=Faces and Places (page 3) - CERN Courier|website=cerncourier.com|language=en-GB|access-date=2017-01-30}}</ref> A special plaque next to the Shiva statue explains the significance of the metaphor of Shiva's cosmic dance with quotations from [[Fritjof Capra]]: <blockquote>Hundreds of years ago, Indian artists created visual images of dancing Shivas in a beautiful series of bronzes. In our time, physicists have used the most advanced technology to portray the patterns of the cosmic dance. The metaphor of the cosmic dance thus unifies ancient mythology, religious art and modern physics.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fritjofcapra.net/shivas-cosmic-dance-at-cern/|title=Shiva’s Cosmic Dance at CERN {{!}} Fritjof Capra|website=www.fritjofcapra.net|language=en-US|access-date=2017-01-30}}</ref></blockquote> Though named "Nataraja bronzes" in Western literature, the Chola Nataraja artworks are mostly in copper, and a few are in brass, typically cast by the ''cire-perdue'' process.<ref name=coomaraswamy18/> Nataraja is celebrated in 108 poses of [[Bharatanatyam]], with Sanskrit inscriptions from ''[[Natya Shastra]]'', at the [[Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram|Nataraja temple]] in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India.<ref name="Verma2011p19">{{cite book|author=Archana Verma|title=Performance and Culture: Narrative, Image and Enactment in India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iAArBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA19|year=2011|publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing|isbn=978-1-4438-2832-1|pages=19–26}}</ref><ref name=rao223>{{cite book|author=T. A. Gopinatha Rao|title=Elements of Hindu Iconography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e7mP3kDzGuoC |year=1997|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0877-5|pages=223–224}}</ref> ==Gallery== <gallery> Temple troglodytique dédié à Shiva (Badami, Inde) (14146091479).jpg|6th/7th century Nataraja in Cave 1 of [[Badami cave temples]] File:Elephanta Island.jpg|A damaged 6th-century Nataraja, [[Elephanta Caves]]<ref>{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LwcBVvdqyBkC|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-06217-5|page=123}}</ref> 1 Dancing Shiva, Cave 21 at Ellora.jpg|6th-century Nataraja in Cave 21, Ellora Caves<ref name=harlep126>{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LwcBVvdqyBkC|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-06217-5|page=126}}</ref> Dancing Shiva at Kailasa temple, Cave 16 Ellora.jpg|8th-century Nataraja in [[Kailasa temple, Ellora|Kailasa temple]] (Cave 16), Ellora Caves WLA lacma Madhya Pradesh Shiva as the Lord of Dance ca 800.jpg|8th-century sandstone Nataraja from Madhya Pradesh File:Pattadakal si1479.jpg|[[Sukanasa]] with Shiva Nataraja in [[Pattadakal]] Shiva Nataraja (BM).JPG|Shiva Nataraja, mid-10th Century AD, [[British Museum]]<ref>[https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=223693&partId=1&searchText=Nataraja&page=1 British Museum Collection]</ref></blockquote> Madurai Meenakshi temple Nataraja.jpg|Shiva-Nataraja in the [[Meenakshi#Hall of Thousand Pillars|Thousand-Pillar-Hall]] (ஆயிரம் கால் மண்டபம்) of the [[Meenakshi Amman Temple]] in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India Dasabuja rishaba thandava moorthy.jpg|In the Shiva temple of [[Melakadambur]] is a rare Pala image that shows the ten-armed Nataraja dancing on his bull. Shiva Nataraja Sculpture DS.jpg|Nataraja The Lord of Dance. </gallery> ==References== {{Reflist|30em}} ==Further reading== * {{cite book |author=Ananda Coomaraswamy|title=The Dance of Śiva: Fourteen Indian Essays|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dC9KAcy8QNsC|year=1957 |oclc= 2155403 }} * {{cite book |last=Jansen |first=Eva Rudy|authorlink= |coauthors= |title=The Book of Hindu Imagery|year=1993 |publisher=Binkey Kok Publications BV |location=Havelte, Holland |isbn=90-74597-07-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1iASyoae8cMC }} * {{cite book|author1=Vivek Nanda|author2=George Michell|title=Chidambaram: Home of Nataraja|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jurVAAAAMAAJ |year=2004| publisher=Marg Publications|isbn=978-81-85026-64-0|oclc= 56598256}} * {{cite book|author=C Sivaramamurti|title=Nataraja in Art, Thought, and Literature|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4qDzAAAACAAJ| year=1974| publisher=National Museum|isbn=978-81-230-0092-3|oclc= 1501803}} * {{cite book| author=David Smith|title=The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTLlcGlkdjkC&pg=PA2|year= 2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-52865-8}} ==External links== {{Sister project links | wikt=no | q=no| b=no | n=no |s=no | v=no | voy=no | species=no |d=Q545244| display=Nataraja}} * [http://www.jstor.org/stable/41818357 Śiva's Dance: Iconography and Dance Practice in South and Southeast Asia], Alessandra Iyer (2000), Music in Art * [https://www.asia.si.edu/explore/indianart/downloads/iconography_shiva.pdf Shiva Nataraja Iconography], Freer Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian * [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3984707 Nataraja: India's Cycle of Fire], Stephen Pyne (1994) * [http://www.greenmesg.org/temples_chennai/c/choolai_chidambareswarar_temple.php Chidambareswarar Nataraja Temple] * [http://www.i-nataraja.tumblr.com Nataraja Image Archive] {{Dance in India}} {{Shaivism}} {{HinduMythology}} {{Hindudharma}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Forms of Shiva]] [[Category:Hindu dance traditions]] [[Category:Tamil deities]] [[Category:Indian art]] [[Category:Indian sculpture]] [[Category:Hindu iconography]] [[Category:Articles containing video clips]] [[Category:Hindu deities]]'