By Ma Bhakti Shakti (Maria Martins)

History and foundation

The Sanskrit theatre is nowadays recognised  as world heritage. Its roots are in India region at the time when Christianity was not even present there, i.e. over 5000 years back in time.

Over centuries this kind of theatre developed into various forms of cultural expression across multiple epochs, the Vedic time, the Buddhist and Jain eras, and through the subsequent ages of Hinduism. Nowadays Sanskrit theatre is a well-known form of cultural practice in India that follows the heritage of Sanskrit dramatists like Harsha, Bodhayana, Nilakantha, Sudraka, Shaktibhadra, Mahendravikramavaram, Bhasa, Kulasekhara, and four of the ten drama forms in Sanskrit language, i.e. Nataka, Prakarana, Prahasana and Vyayoga.

Other well-known dramatists like Kalidasa and Bhavabhti are relative recent adaptations and not part of the traditional repertoire. Temple dance / theatre is an Indian performing art, a form of Natya Shastra, but with a distinct kind of artistic expression that combines theatre, dance and music. More often it is articulated as dance drama in which various mythological themes are re-enacted. Impersonating popular Hindu gods do participate as actors / players, among them being Kali, Bhagavati, Krishna, Balarama, Indra, Sita, Hanuman, the later being one of the most popular.

By Ma Bhakti Shakti (Maria Martins)

Tantric Dance Origins and Power

Said to be written 2000 years ago by Bharata Muni , it is the seminal source book for dancers and performers. The mammoth book covers all technical and aesthetic aspects of the art of Indian Theatre and Dance.

From the purpose of natya, to the architectural format, stage rituals, Rasa, Bhava, Abhinaya, gestic communication, music, types of instruments…

37 chapters that together form the nucleus of this fascinating performing art. Later century works like Abhinaya Darpana, Abhinaya Chandrike, also have great relevance to the dancer today.

Legend has it that the Gods had vanquished the Asuras (Evil) and were relating happenings to Brahma, the God of Creation. The Asuras thought this was a renewed attack. And retaliated. Brahma intervened- "This is only a performance, henceforth it will only be held on earth." And Brahma passed on all the information on Dance and Drama to Bharata Muni who compiled it as the Natya Shastra.

By Ma Bhakti Shakti (Maria Martins)

There is a lot of misunderstanding regarding Tantra today. This topic is subject to extensive fabrication especially under the name of neo-Tantra. The sad result is that many people uninformed of the truth about Tantra fell victims to those “teachers”, “goddesses” or “schools of Tantra” who in disguises promote lust and prostitution. The incentive is to make money on the expense of the naive. Tantra isn’t a licentious product and has nothing to do with the prostitution industry.

The concept has evolved over thousands of years. It is undoubtedly spirituality of a different kind the Western tradition understands by it under the creed of Christianity. The current set-up of teachings in many so-called “schools of Tantra” is for Tantra to join the porno industry on the assumption that anything that talks about sex is for the market to be exploited as such. Far from being part of the pleasure industry or the religious establishment, Tantra is hard to be understood by the Western mind.

The man-woman sexual relationship in monotheistic traditions was always a sensitive subject. It is simply beyond the minds settings created by monotheism that sexual relationships could be called holy. What Tantra says, particularly Kaula Tantra is that man-woman interaction, which is conducive to creation, could become holy if the relevant conditions are met. The holiness the Tantric way comes from logical thinking. If God, the creator is holy, why the instruments of creation, the man and woman engaged in the sexual act conducive to creation, couldn’t be called holy? Why the sexual act of creation couldn’t be called ‘holy sex’? This is what Tantra does precisely. The restoration of holiness within the man-woman sexual partners is a major topic in Tantra.

By Ma Bhakti Shakti (Maria Martins)

Ananda Tandava - dance of bliss

"I saw cascades of energy coming down from outer space, in which particles were destroyed and created in rhythmic pulses; I saw the atoms of the elements and those of my body participating in this cosmic dance of energy; I felt its rhythm and I heard its sound, and at that moment I knew that this was the Dance of Shiva, the Lord of Dancers." Fritjof Capra, Tao of Physics

According to mythology, Shiva first performed Ananda Tandava (the dance of bliss), to enlighten some sages who had been so immersed in their scholasticism that they had forgotten the existence of God. This Ananda Tandava was later revealed at the Jnana Sabha, one of the shrines of Chidambaram. Myth has it that, at a particular time every year, Shiva still performs the dance here.

In Indian mythology, Lord Shiva is considered as the supreme lord of dance. This divine art form is performed by Lord Shiva & his wife Goddess Parvathi. The Dance performd by Lord Shiva is known as Tandava, which depicts his violent nature as the distructor of the universe. The tandava performed with joy is called Ananda Tandava and performed in violent mood is called Rudra Tandava. There are 7 types of Tandava. Namely Ananda Tandava, Tripura Tandava, Sandhya Tandava, Samara Tandava, Kaali tandava, Uma Tandava and Gauri Tandava. There are few people who believa that there are 16 types of Tandava. Tandava has vigourous, brisk movements.The dance performed by Goddess Parvathi is known as Lasya, in which the movements are gentle, graceful and sometimes erotic also. Some scholars call Lasya as the feminine version of Tandava. Lasya has 2 kinds. Jarita Lasya and Yauvaka Lasya.