This phenomenally majestic ‘panchaloha’ bronze statue, made of the traditional five metals as laid down in the Shilpa Shastras – zinc, tin, copper, silver, and gold – is the sacred image of Shiva as Nataraja, performing a ‘tandava’ dance. As the ‘Lord of the Dance,’ this sculptural image is the most remarkable personification of that supreme being on which rests the celestial path of creation, salvation, and destruction. These contrasting yet complimenting qualities are most perfectly realized in the Hindu visualization of the ‘tandava’ of Shiva – a dance that carries various attributes, as seen in this work of art.
Nataraja’s legend – whether performing the ‘Rudra tandava’ or the ‘Ananda tandava,’ or the dance of destruction or the dance of bliss – comes from Chidambaram, where his divine powers transformed him into the wandering mendicant Bikshadana, along with Vishnu disguised as Mohini, to confront a group of heretic saints or ‘rishis.’ Bikshadana, incurring the wrath of this entourage, was attacked by an onslaught of deadly snakes and a fierce tiger – symbolising the evil vice of egoism and the beastly nature of an untamed mind. Shiva almost playfully and easily vanquished these attacks, and adding insult to injury, wore their skins as a hide that his ascetic form is today famous for. Finally, the sages manifested the dwarf Apasmara, who in Shaivite tradition stands for arrogance and ignorance. Shiva easily overcame his presence, stepping on his back and began dancing, thus giving birth to the ‘tandava’ we know today.
This beautifully executed image, with its large proportions, has allowed the ‘sthapati’ from Swamimalai to ornately incorporate minute details chronicling the legend of Shiva’s tandava. The graceful four-armed avatar carries Shaivite attributes that are common as well as rare: the hands on the right have his battle axe or ‘parashu,’ the snake that he vanquished, a dagger-like weapon that is either a ‘khatvanga’ or ‘girish,’ and the bovine guardian deity of Kailasha and Shiva’s mount, Nandini. The hands on the left present Shiva holding the ‘mriga’ or deer, symbolising his lordship over the animal kingdom, the eternal fire which purifies the devotee’s soul, a ‘ghanta’ (curiously in place of the traditional ‘damru’) and a raised hand in the ‘pataka-hastha’ gesture, as part of the ‘tandava.’ Shiva is encircled in a fiery arch called ‘prabha mandala,’ signifying the cosmic fire that creates, consumes, and destroys the cosmos. The ‘prabha mandala’ is topped with a decorative ‘kirtimukha.’ The two animals at the base of the arch are the ‘makaras’ which breathe life into this cosmic fire. The ‘tandava’ is performed on the dwarf Apasmara – an allegory which symbolises that arrogance and ignorance (the dwarf) can only be removed by continuous efforts and action (the ‘tandava’).
This iteration of the blissful dance of Shiva is also unique because of the way in which Shiva raises his right leg, almost perpendicular to the ground – for this is Shiva performing the ‘Urdhava tandava.’ When Kali witnessed Shiva’s graceful and sinuous body dancing, she contested her skill against his. Shiva, to teach Kali humility, accepted the challenge and ruled that whoever won would not only be the Lord of Tillai but would also have to leave their shrine. Kali and Shiva’s duel of such an artistic fate reached a climactic moment when Shiva raised his leg in such a baring manner, knowing fully well that Kali’s modesty would not allow her to do the same, and thus making the latter concede defeat.
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