The origins of Odissi dance go back far into history, to a
time when life, beauty, music and harmony were celebrated as divine
manifestations and an important way to connect with God.
The sculptures at the still existing ancient temples at Konark,
Puri and Bhubaneswar
remain as a powerful testimony to those times. The graceful positions of the
bodies are not veiled by clothes, and each and every pose emanate a great joy
and pleasure.
The celebration of life and pleasure in dance was assimilated
to the dance and music of the natural elements – the movements of the sun and
the earth, the flowing of wind and water, the drifting of clouds, the waves of
the sea, the hammering of rain, the
sudden hopping of lightening. Music and dance as harmonious and rhythmic
movement were also exhibited by animals in various moments of their lives to
express their emotions – peacocks and other birds, elephants, deer, lions,
horses, and so on.
Hindu temples had special pavilions called Natya mandapas,
or dance halls, and a number of dancers called Devadasis, “the female servants
of the Lord”, performed during the main daily rituals for the pleasure of the
Deities and also served the Deities in variety of ways, as for example fanning
them. These women were completely dedicated to the service of the Deity,
considering themselves His wives or personal attendants. Such tradition was prevalent all over India, with clear archeological proofs in Kashmir,
Bengal, Orissa, Saurastra, Rajasthan, Maharastra, Andhra, Mysore, Tamil nadu and Kerala.
In Puri, these female priestesses were called Maha Naris
(“great women”) and with time the name became “Maharis”. Another local name of the Devadasis was
“nachuni”, or “dancer”. Several famous and very respected women consecrated
themselves as Devadasis ("maidservants of God"). Dancing women were also accompanied by both male and female musicians, as we can see in the
sculptures and bas reliefs of temples and archeological monuments.
According to the ancient Vedic culture, music and dance were
extremely respected and considered divine arts, taught to mankind by Siva
himself, who is also known by the name Nataraja, “king of dancers”. The images of gods and goddesses are often depicted in
dancing poses. This is very often the case of Siva and Sakti, Ganesa, and even Krishna and Radha – whose rasalila dance is considered
the highest level of divine interaction.
In the tradition of Orissa, the most recurrent pose of
dancing Siva is Bhairava, depicted with four faces and six arms holding the
damaru (a small two-headed drum), the axe, a trident radiating flames, a japa
mala, a bhiksapatra (alms bowl) and a vishapatra (poison bowl).
The art of dance and music is the characteristic occupation
of the divine Gandharvas and Apsaras in the higher planetary systems, who
constantly perform for the pleasure of the gods. One entire portion of the
Vedic scriptures, the Gandharva sastra, deals with such arts, that have been
raised to the level of sciences.
Such was the power of dance and music as expression of the
higher sentiments of human beings, that even ascetic doctrines such as Jainism
and Buddhism integrated dance and music into their system of values.
The particular importance of “balance” in Odissi dance and
several acrobatic postures called “bandhas” also connect it with the practice
of yoga. The extensive use of mudras also connects dance both to yoga and to
the tantric method of ritual worship.
Dance has always been the main artistic expression of Indian
culture, strictly connected with music, drama, poetry, symbolism and visual decoration
and expression. The costume, ornaments, hair dressing and make up of the
dancers are also very traditional.
Figures of dance have been amply represented in paintings
and sculptures, palm leaf etching and all forms of figurative arts.
In time, India
was invaded by Muslims and then fell under the domination of the Christian British:
both cultures minimized the role of women in religion. The dance of the Maharis
became more and more reclusive and secret, and was performed only behind closed
doors in the temples.
In the 15th century young boys started to be trained as
transvestite
dancers to perform in public instead of the Maharis, during festivals and celebrations,
and for private organizers as entertainers.
They came to be known as goti puas (“single boys”) as they had no family of
origin and they did not marry, but lived together in a commune or
fraternity, establishing strong relationships among themselves.
Gradually the Maharis became less and less respected, and due
to lack of financial support they started to perform in the royal court and for
wealthy patrons, to the point when they came to be considered and treated on the same level
of prostitutes. Finally their service was discontinued by the temple
administration.
In relatively recent times, a concerted effort has been made
to reconstruct the original tradition of Odissi dance, both from scriptural
evidence and from the teachings of the descendents of the dance teachers of the
Gotipuas.
A number of dedicated artists have worked very
hard to bring the proper recognition of Odissi dance as one of the main
traditional classical dances of India – as confirmed by the Natya Shastra of
Bharata Muni, where Odissi is listed together with the ancient styles of dance
such as Avanti, Dakhinatya, and Panchali.
The pillar of Odissi dance is certainly the famous Sanskrit
poem Gita Govinda, written in the 12th century by Jayadeva Gosvami. Still
today, Gita Govinda is considered extremely dear to Jagannatha, and every night
the Deities are dressed with a special red shawl on which the entire text of
the poem is woven.
An ardent devotee of Jagannatha, Jayadeva married a
Devadasi, Padmavati. Gita Govinda narrates the love pastimes of Krishna
with His beloved Gopi (Radha or Vrinda) in a very intense way, offering ample
opportunity for the expression of sentiments (rasa) by the dancer.
The various expressions of Odissa dances are called:
1. Mangalacarana (invocation of auspiciousness)
2. Batu nritya or Sthai (pure dance using the technical
nuances)
3. Pallavi (elaborations on dance movements and postures)
4. Abhinaya (dramatic expression of sentiments in narrating
a story, accompanying the relevant poetic verses of the song).
5. Mokshya (dance of salvation)
All dance performances begin with the offering of respect to
God (especially Ganesh, who destroys obstacles on the path of perfection), to
Mother Earth on which the dancer moves, to the Guru, and to the audience.
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