Mudras

A dance is made up of several korvais put together; a korvai is made up of several adavus put together and adavus are composed of mudras and mandalas, which I mentioned in an earlier post. In this post I'll be talking about what a mudra is, why it is used and the different types of mudras used in Bharatanatyam.

A mudra is simply a hand gesture. It is used to express a feeling, an idea or a story to the audience, visually, without using any words. This applies to a Niruthiyam dance. In a Nirutham dance, mudras are used to create aesthetic pleasure and to accompany the leg movements.

Many mudras together form hastas, or hand movements, which depict certain things. Form example, Deva hasta is a group of hastas used to portray different gods like Indra, Agni, etc. Also, one mudra may have several viniyogas, which means meanings or uses. These terms will be explained in upcoming posts.

There are two different types of mudras in Bharatanatyam, Asamyutha Hastas and Samyutha Hasthas. Asamyutha means single-handed and Samyutha means double-handed. There are many different hand gestures, but right now, only 28 single-handed ones and 24 double-handed ones are used. 

Thandavam

Thandavam consists of fast and forceful foot movements, quick turning, majestic appearance and intricate foot movements. It belongs to the element of dance, Nirutham. It contains many different beautiful and sculptural poses. This dance cannot be performed in split up portions. It should be performed with vigour and intense energy, in accordance with the song and rhythm. It is said that this dance was only danced by men, in the ancient times. 

It was originally performed by Lord Shiva, in the 'avatar' of Lord Nataraja, during 'Srishti', meaning creation, and 'Pralaya', meaning destruction. It was also performed in instances such as destroying 'Apasmaar', who is ignorance personified, after his first consort Goddess Sati's self immolation, etc. Other gods such as Saraswati, Brahma, Vishnu, Lakshmi and Indra play accompanying instruments and sing Shiva's Stotras or praises. When Shiva performs the Thandavam, Parvati, his consort, dances the graceful Lasyam along with him, to sustain a balance.

At the beginning, there were 108 different Thandavams (they will be listed below). Then they were reduced to 64 Thandavams, and now finally have become 7 principle Thandavams, collectively known Sapta Thandavams. They are the Gauri Thandavam, Tripura Thandavam, Samkara Thandavam, Ananda Thandavam, Santhiya Thandavam, Kalika Thandavam and Urthuva Thandavam.

The 108 Thandavams are:

ThalapushpapudamThandavam

VarthithamThandavam

LalithorukamThandavam

AbaviththamThandavam

SamangamThandavam

LeenamThandavam

SwasthikareshithamThandavam

ManadalashswasthikamThandavam

NiruttakamThandavam

ArththaniruttakamThandavam

KadichchinnamThandavam

ArththareshithagamThandavam

VasashwashthikamThandavam

UnthmaththagamThandavam

ShwashtikamThandavam

BirushtaswashthikamThandavam

ThiksswashthikamThandavam

AlaathakamThandavam

KadeesamamThandavam

AshipthareshithamThandavam

VishipthashipthakamThandavam

ArththaswasthikamThandavam

AnchithamThandavam

BujangathrashithamThandavam

OorththuvajanuThandavam

NigunjithamThandavam

MaththalliThandavam

ArththamaththalliThandavam

ReshithaniguttithamThandavam

PaathaabaviththamThandavam

LalithamThandavam

KoornithamThandavam

LalithamThandavam

ThandabatchamThandavam

BujangathrasthareshithamThandavam

NooburamThandavam

SyvasagareshithamThandavam

BrahmaragamThandavam

SadhuramThandavam

BujankaanchithagamThandavam

ThandagareshithamThandavam

ViruchigakuttithamThandavam

KadippranthamThandavam

LathaviruchagamThandavam

SinnamThandavam

ViruchigareshithamThandavam

ViruchigamThandavam

IvyamsithamThandavam

ParsuvaniguttagamThandavam

LalaadathilagamThandavam

KiranthagamThandavam

KunchithamThandavam

SakramandalamThandavam

UromandalamThandavam

AashibthamThandavam

ThalavilasithamThandavam

ArkkalamThandavam

VitchipthamThandavam

AavarththamThandavam

DolaapaathamThandavam

VivirththamThandavam

VinivirththamThandavam

PaatchuvakraanthamThandavam

NisthambithamThandavam

VithyuthpranthamThandavam

AthikranthamThandavam

VivarththikamThandavam

GajakreedithagamThandavam

ThalasamspodithamThandavam

GarudapluthagamThandavam

GandasoosiThandavam

ParivirththamThandavam

PaarsuvajanuThandavam

KiruthravaleenagamThandavam

SannathamThandavam

SoosiThandavam

ArththasoosiThandavam

SoosiviththamThandavam

AbakraanthamThandavam

MayooralalithamThandavam

SarppithamThandavam

ThandapaathamThandavam

HarinapluthamThandavam

PrengkolithamThandavam

NithambamThandavam

SkalithamThandavam

KarihasthagamThandavam

PrasarppithagamThandavam

SimmavikreedithamThandavam

SinkaakarshithagamThandavam

UthruththamThandavam

UbasirythagamThandavam

ThalasangkattithamThandavam

AynithamThandavam

AvakiththagamThandavam

NivasamThandavam

ElakaakkireedithamThandavam

OoruthviruththamThandavam

MathaskalithamThandavam

VishnukkiraanthamThandavam

SampraanthamThandavam

VishkambamThandavam

UthkattithamThandavam

VirushabakkireedithamThandavam 

LolithamThandavam

NagaapasarppithamThandavam

SagadasyamThandavam

GangavatharanamThandavam

Lasyam

• The term Lasyam, in the context of Hindu mythology and Indian dance, describes the dance performed by Goddess Parvati since it expresses happiness and is graceful and feminine. 
• This is because the word Lasyam literally means beauty, happiness, joy and grace, in Sanskrit. 
• Lasyam is the feminine counterpart of the masculine Tandava and Parvati is believed to have danced the Lasyam in response to the vigorous Tandava performed by Lord Shiva, to balance it out. 
• The Bharatanatyam term 'Thala' has been claimed to have been derived from the union of the first syllable of the words Thandavam and Lasyam, since they are important elements in the dance.
• Parvati taught the Lasyam dance to Usha, the daughter of Banasura, who then taught it to the gopis of Vrindavana, who then subsequently spread it to more people.

Korvai

A korvai is a sequence containing many different adavus. A combination of many different korvais together make a natiyam, or a full Bharatanatyam dance. Korvais should be performed according to the rhythm of the song, as in, the footwork or the steps should be done in accordance with the beat of the talam. The finale should also be in accordance with the talam. So if the korvai is being performed in Adi talam, which contains 8 beats, then it should end on the 8th beat. A korvai should end with a Theermanam and with the solkattu Tha thing kina thom or Kita thaka thari kita thom. Korvais should always be balanced on both sides, both for aesthetical reasons and so that the adavus fit in with the talam. By using the word 'balanced', I mean that the adavus or movements performed on the right side must also be performed on the left. So if, for example, you perform a Nattadavu using the right hand first, then you must make sure that you also do that adavu using the left hand. To make the korvai look attractive and visually appealing, you can start it in Vilamba kalam, followed by Madhima kalam and finish it in Thuritha kalam. This can be compared to its analogy of a new bud blooming into a mature flower. Finally, when you compose a korvai, you must remember not to have any repetitions, as in that after a pair of adavus are performed once, they shouldn't be repeated within the same korvai.

About Me

Hi! This is Madhumitha here from Norway. I'm currently a young teenager who has recently finished her Diploma in Bharatanatyam, after learning it for about 7 years, as the disciple of Ms. Prianka Sebastian. It so happens that I have a passion for writing and an interest for dancing, so I thought, why not mix them up and blend them together? And the answer I got was... a Bharatanatyam Blog!

While learning an art, one faces many internal and external struggles, which especially becomes true when someone is taking exams in that subject or is performing in front of a large audience. Having been there myself, I wondered, why not ease the burden of other fellow Bharatanatyam dancers by lending them a helping hand, by writing information related to different aspects of Bharatanatyam and by posting videos of adavus, mudras, hastas and other important movements.

And well, here it is... I hope you enjoy reading it and learn something new! 😀😉

(P.S: Feel free to leave back structured criticism in the comments below, if there's anything that you think needs improving on. I'm always glad to find a way to do better!)

Adavus

Let's begin with identifying what an Adavu is, as they are the basic components of dance.

• Adavus are made up of the union of mudras (hand movements) and mandalas (foot movements). 
• The word 'Adavu' is supposedly derived from the Tamil word 'Aadu', which means 'to dance'
• A combination of Adavus together form a Korvai, which is like a routine or a sequence of movements
• Adavus are accompanied by normal vocal solkattu, by which I mean the nattuvanar recites the verbal syllables, such as 'Theiya Thei', and plays the nattuvangam. The mridangam and the other instruments won't be used for accompanying Adavus.
• They can be present in all 3 kalams or speeds, namely Vilamba, Madhima and Thuritha
• They are like the alphabets of Bharatanatyam. 
• There used to be so many different Adavus, but now they have been shortened down and organized into specific groups, such as Tattadavu and Nattadavu, by a group of people known as the Tanjore Quartet
• As of now, there are about 12-15 groups of Adavus, depending on the style of the Bharatanatyam, such as Kalakshetra and Vazhuvoor, and the Guru.
• Some groups, such as Tattadavu, have as much as 8 different varieties, while some, such as Kartari Adavu, have just 1.

New students should first take a lot of time to master the basic Adavus before moving on to learning dances like Alarippu and Jatiswaram, as Adavus are the foundation of dance and it's always important to have a strong foundation before moving on to more complex aspects