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Nataraja
Hindu God Shiva depicted as Lord of Dance

Nataraja, also called Adalvallan, is a depiction of Shiva, a principal deity in Hinduism, portrayed as the cosmic dancer performing the tandava dance. This iconic murti symbolizes Shiva’s roles of creation, preservation, and destruction, often shown trampling the demon Apasmara, representing ignorance. Nataraja sculptures are widespread in Shaivism temples, especially in Tamil Nadu where the worship of Nataraja dates back before the 7th century CE, exemplified by the Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram. The earliest known sculptures appear in the 6th century, such as in the Avanibhajana Pallaveshwaram Temple. Later, the Chola bronzes perfected this form, which also influenced art across South East Asia.

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Etymology

The word Nataraja is a Sanskrit term, from नट Nata meaning "act, drama, dance" and राज Raja meaning "king, lord"; it can be roughly translated as Lord of the dance or King of the dance.2728 According to Ananda Coomaraswamy, the name is related to Shiva's fame as the "Lord of Dancers" or "King of Actors".29

The form is known as Nataraja and as Narteśvara (also written Nateshwar) or Nṛityeśvara, with all three terms meaning "Lord of the dance". However, Nataraja and Nateshwar represent different forms of Shiva.30 Narteśvara stems from Nṛtta same as Nata which means "act, drama, dance" and Ishvara meaning "lord".31 Natesa (IAST: Naṭeśa) is another alternate equivalent term for Nataraja found in 1st-millennium sculptures and archeological sites across the Indian subcontinent.32

In Tamil, he is also known as “Sabesan” (Tamil: சபேசன்) which splits as “Sabayil adum eesan” (Tamil: சபையில் ஆடும் ஈசன்) 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 at Chidambaram (Tillai).33 The dance of Shiva in Chidambaram forms the motif for all the depictions of Shiva as Nataraja. Koothan(ta: கூத்தன், romanized: Kūththaṉ), Sabesan(ta: சபேசன், romanized: Sabēsaṉ), Ambalavanan (ta: அம்பலவாணன், romanized: Ambalavāṇaṉ) are other common names of Nataraja in Tamil texts.3435

Depiction

The sculpture is symbolic of Shiva as the lord of dance and dramatic arts,36 with its style and proportions made according to Hindu texts on arts.37 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 Ananda Tandava (dance of bliss, the vigorous form of dance), associated with the destruction of weary worldviews—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.38

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.39

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 (elephant hand) or dandahasta (stick hand) 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 Udukai (Tamil: உடுக்கை).40 His body, fingers, ankles, neck, face, head, ear lobes and dress are shown decorated with symbolic items, which vary with historic period and region.4142 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 / trampling upon a demon shown as a dwarf (Apasmara or Muyalaka43) who symbolizes spiritual ignorance.4445 The dynamism of the energetic dance is depicted with the whirling hair which spread out in thin strands as a fan behind his head.4647 The details in the Nataraja artwork have been variously interpreted by Indian scholars since the 12th century for its symbolic meaning and theological essence.4849 Nataraja is a well known sculptural symbol in India and popularly used as a symbol of Indian culture,5051 in particular as one of the finest illustrations of Hindu art.5253

Symbolism

The dance of Nataraja is revealed in a story mentioned in the Koyil Puranam.54 The symbolism has been interpreted in classical Indian Shaiva Siddhanta texts such as Unmai Vilakkam, Mummani Kovai, Tirukuttu Darshana and Tiruvatavurar Puranam, dating from the 12th century CE (Chola empire) and later, and include:555657

  • He dances within a 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 (mythical water beasts) on each end.
  • He looks calm, even through the continuous chain of creation and destruction that maintains the universe, that shows the supreme tranquility of the Atma.58
  • 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.
  • His headdress often features a human skull (symbol of mortality), a crescent moon and a flower identified as that of the entheogenic plant Datura metel.
  • Four-armed figures are most typical, but ten-armed forms are also found from various places and periods, for example the Badami Caves and Ankor Wat.
  • The upper right hand holds a small drum shaped like an hourglass that is called a ḍamaru in Sanskrit.5960 A specific hand gesture (mudra) called ḍamaru-hasta (Sanskrit for "ḍamaru-hand") is used to hold the drum.61 It symbolizes rhythm of creation and time.
  • The upper left hand contains Agni or fire, which signifies destruction.
  • A cobra uncoils from his lower right forearm, while his hand is in the abhaya mudra gesture as a sign to not fear
  • The lower left hand is bent downwards at the wrist with the palm facing inward, we also note that this arm crosses Naṭarāja's chest, concealing his heart from view. It represents tirodhāna, which means “occlusion, concealment.”
  • 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 Guṇas: Sattva, Rajas and Tamas.
  • The dwarf underneath his foot is the demon Apasmara purusha or Muyalaka, who symbolizes ignorance which Nataraja destroys.
  • The slightly smiling face of Shiva represents his calmness despite being immersed in the contrasting forces of universe and his energetic dance.62

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.63 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.64

Interpretation

Coomaraswamy summarizes the significance of Shiva's entire dance as an image of his rhythmic or musical play which is the source of all movement within the universe, represented by the arch surrounding Shiva. Secondly, the purpose of his dance is to release the souls of all men from illusion. And third, the place of the dance, Chidambaram, which is portrayed as the center of the universe, is actually within the heart.65

James Lochtefeld states that Nataraja 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".66 The Nataraja iconography incorporates contrasting elements,67 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 duality.68 Furthermore, Carole and Pasquale note that the deity showcases the eternal cycle of life (Jiva) from death to rebirth, and how a human being should conquer spiritual ignorance and attain self-realization.69

In the hymn of Manikkavacakar's Thiruvasagam, he testifies that at Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram had, by the pre-Chola period, an abstract or 'cosmic' symbolism linked to five elements (Pancha Bhoota). Nataraja is a significant visual interpretation of Brahman and a dance posture of Shiva. The details in the Nataraja artwork have attracted commentaries and secondary literature such as poems detailing its theological significance.7071 It is one of the widely studied and supreme illustrations of Hindu art from the medieval era.7273

Srinivasan notes that Nataraja is described as Satcitananda or "Being, Consciousness and Bliss" in the Shaiva Siddhanta text Kunchitangrim Bhaje, resembling the Advaita doctrine, or "abstract monism" of Adi Shankara, which holds the individual Self (Jīvātman) and supreme Self (Paramātmā) to be one, while "an earlier hymn to Nataraja by Manikkavachakar ... identifies him with the unitary supreme consciousness, by using Tamil word 'Or Unarve', rather than Sanskrit 'chit'." This may point to an "osmosis" of ideas in medieval India.74

According to Ian Crawford, professor of planetary science at University of London, the cosmic dance of Shiva as Nataraja represents particle physics, entropy and the dissolution of the universe.75

History

See also: Pancha Sabhai

Stone reliefs depicting the classical form of Nataraja are found in numerous cave temples of India, such as at the Ellora Caves (Maharashtra), the Elephanta Caves, and the Badami Caves (Karnataka), by around the 6th century.7677 One of the 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.78 The Asanapat inscription also mentions a Shiva temple in the Saivacaryas kingdom.

Literary evidences shows that the bronze representation of Shiva's ananda-tandava appeared first in the Pallava period between 7th century and mid-9th centuries CE.79 Nataraja was worshipped at Chidambaram during the Pallava period with underlying philosophical concepts of cosmic cycles of creation and destruction, which is also found in Tamil saint Manikkavacakar's Thiruvasagam.80

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.8182 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.83

Around the 10th century, it emerged in Tamil Nadu in its mature and best-known expression in Chola bronzes, of various heights typically less than four feet.8485 Nataraja reliefs are found in historic settings in many parts of South East Asia such as Ankor Wat, and in Bali, Cambodia, and central Asia.868788 The oldest free-standing stone sculptures of Nataraja were built by Chola queen Sembiyan Mahadevi.89 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.90

The depiction was informed of cosmic or metaphysical connotations is also argued on the basis of the testimony of the hymns of Tamil saints.91

In medieval era artworks and texts on dancing Shiva found in Nepal, Assam and Bengal, he is sometimes shown as dancing on his vahana (animal vehicle) Nandi, the bull; further, he is regionally known as Narteshvara.92 Nataraja artwork have also been discovered in Gujarat, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.93 In the contemporary Hindu culture of Bali in Indonesia, Siwa (Shiva) Nataraja is the god who created dance.94 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.95

In 2004, a 2 meter 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.96 A special plaque next to the Shiva statue explains the metaphor of Shiva's cosmic dance with quotations from physicist Fritjof Capra:

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.97

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 (lost-wax casting) process.98

Nataraja is celebrated in 108 poses of Bharatanatyam, with Sanskrit inscriptions from Natya Shastra, at the Nataraja temple in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India.99100

In dance and yoga

In modern yoga as exercise, Natarajasana is a posture resembling Nataraja and named for him in the 20th century.101 A similar pose appears in the classical Indian dance form Bharatanatyam.102

Further reading

References

  1. Rajarajan, R. K. K. (January 2018). "If this is Citambaram-Nataraja, then where is Tillai-Kūttaṉ? An Introspective Reading of Tēvāram Hymns". In Pedarapu Chenna Reddy, ed. History, Culture and Archaeological Studies Recent Trends, Commemoration Volume to Prof. M.L.K. Murthy, Vol. II, Delhi: B.R. Publishing Corporation, Pp. 613-634, PLS. 54.1-6. https://www.academia.edu/37222485

  2. Archana Verma (2011). Performance and Culture: Narrative, Image and Enactment in India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 19–26. ISBN 978-1-4438-2832-1. 978-1-4438-2832-1

  3. Encyclopædia Britannica (2015) /wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica

  4. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–224. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  5. Gomathi Narayanan (1986), SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX, Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 21, No. 2, pages 208-216 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102

  6. Anna Libera Dallapiccola (2007). Indian Art in Detail. Harvard University Press. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-674-02691-9. 978-0-674-02691-9

  7. David Smith (2003). The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1–2. ISBN 978-0-521-52865-8. 978-0-521-52865-8

  8. Frank Burch Brown (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Arts. Oxford University Press. pp. 489–490. ISBN 978-0-19-517667-4. 978-0-19-517667-4

  9. ValaiTamil. "அம்பலவாணன், Ambalavanan, Boy Baby Name (Tamil Name), complete collection of boy baby name, girl baby name, tamil name". ValaiTamil. Retrieved 31 October 2022. http://www.valaitamil.com/baby-names/ambalavanan-66.html

  10. "General Compendium-5 - GKToday". www.gktoday.in. Retrieved 31 October 2022. https://www.gktoday.in/topic/general-compendium-5_18/

  11. "The Lord (or King) of Dance". www.speakingtree.in. Retrieved 31 October 2022. https://www.speakingtree.in/blog/the-lord-or-king-of-dance

  12. Saroj Panthey (1987). Iconography of Śiva in Pahāṛī Paintings. Mittal Publications. pp. 59–60, 88. ISBN 978-81-7099-016-1. 978-81-7099-016-1

  13. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  14. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  15. Archana Verma (2011). Performance and Culture: Narrative, Image and Enactment in India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 19–26. ISBN 978-1-4438-2832-1. 978-1-4438-2832-1

  16. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 236–238, 247–258. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  17. Encyclopædia Britannica (2015) /wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica

  18. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  19. Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja), Chola period, c. 10th/11th century The Art Institute of Chicago, United States http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/24548

  20. James C. Harle (1994). The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent. Yale University Press. p. 126. ISBN 978-0-300-06217-5. 978-0-300-06217-5

  21. Archana Verma (2012). Temple Imagery from Early Mediaeval Peninsular India. Ashgate Publishing. pp. 150–151. ISBN 978-1-4094-3029-2. 978-1-4094-3029-2

  22. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  23. James C. Harle (1994). The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent. Yale University Press. pp. 309–310. ISBN 978-0-300-06217-5. 978-0-300-06217-5

  24. Saroj Panthey (1987). Iconography of Śiva in Pahāṛī Paintings. Mittal Publications. pp. 59–60, 88. ISBN 978-81-7099-016-1. 978-81-7099-016-1

  25. Banerjee, P. (1969). "A Siva Icon from Piandjikent". Artibus Asiae. 31 (1): 73–80. doi:10.2307/3249451. JSTOR 3249451. /wiki/Artibus_Asiae

  26. Mahadev Chakravarti (1986). The Concept of Rudra-Śiva Through the Ages. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 178 with footnotes. ISBN 978-81-208-0053-3. 978-81-208-0053-3

  27. Coomaraswamy, Ananda K. (2013). The dance of Shiva. Rupa. p. 56. ISBN 978-8129120908. 978-8129120908

  28. Stromer, Richard. "Shiva Nataraja: A Study in Myth, Iconography, and the Meaning of a Sacred Symbol" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 September 2012. Retrieved 10 March 2016. http://www.soulmyths.com/shivanataraja.pdf

  29. The Dance of Shiva, Ananda Coomaraswamy http://www2.hawaii.edu/~freeman/courses/phil300/18.%20The%20Dance%20of%20Shiva.pdf

  30. "A journey to the past with dancing Shiva". The Daily Star. 27 September 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2020. in an Old Dhaka temple ... a stone statue of Nateshwar, a depiction of dancing Shiva on the back of his bull-carrier Nandi https://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/news/journey-the-past-dancing-shiva-1805938

  31. Brunner-Lachaux, Hélène; Goodall, Dominic; Padoux, André (2007). Mélanges Tantriques À la Mémoire D'Hélène Brunner. Institut français de Pondichéry. p. 245. ISBN 978-2-85539-666-8. 978-2-85539-666-8

  32. Stella Kramrisch (1981). Manifestations of Shiva. Philadelphia Museum of Art. pp. 43–45. ISBN 0-87633-039-1. 0-87633-039-1

  33. Coomaraswamy, Ananda Kentish (1918). The dance of Siva; fourteen Indian essays. Robarts - University of Toronto. New York Sunwise Turn. pp. 57–58, 65. http://archive.org/details/danceofsivafourt01coomuoft

  34. "கூத்தன் சபேசன் அம்பலவாணன் நடராஜன்SAGARVA BHARATH FOUNDATION". SAGARVA BHARATH FOUNDATION. 20 July 2020. Retrieved 9 October 2022. https://connectedindian.net/cultures-and-traditions/natarajar-02/

  35. ":: TVU ::". www.tamilvu.org. Retrieved 9 October 2022. https://www.tamilvu.org/slet/l5F31/l5F31pd1.jsp?bookid=128&sec=11&pno=4696

  36. Saroj Panthey (1987). Iconography of Śiva in Pahāṛī Paintings. Mittal Publications. pp. 59–60, 88. ISBN 978-81-7099-016-1. 978-81-7099-016-1

  37. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  38. Carmel Berkson, Wendy Doniger, George Michell, Elephanta: The Cave of Shiva, (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983). ISBN 0691040095 /wiki/ISBN_(identifier)

  39. Alice Boner (1990). Principles of Composition in Hindu Sculpture: Cave Temple Period. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 163–164, 257. ISBN 978-81-208-0705-1. 978-81-208-0705-1

  40. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  41. Archana Verma (2011). Performance and Culture: Narrative, Image and Enactment in India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 19–26. ISBN 978-1-4438-2832-1. 978-1-4438-2832-1

  42. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 236–238, 247–258. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  43. Encyclopædia Britannica (2015) /wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica

  44. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  45. Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja), Chola period, c. 10th/11th century The Art Institute of Chicago, United States http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/24548

  46. Ananda Coomaraswamy (1922), Saiva Sculptures: Recent Acquisitions, Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin, Vol. 20, No. 118 (Apr., 1922), pages 18-19 /wiki/Ananda_Coomaraswamy

  47. Gomathi Narayanan (1986), SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX, Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 21, No. 2, page 215 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102

  48. James C. Harle (1994). The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent. Yale University Press. pp. 309–310. ISBN 978-0-300-06217-5. 978-0-300-06217-5

  49. The Dance of Shiva, Ananda Coomaraswamy http://www2.hawaii.edu/~freeman/courses/phil300/18.%20The%20Dance%20of%20Shiva.pdf

  50. Gomathi Narayanan (1986), SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX, Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 21, No. 2, pages 208-216 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102

  51. Anna Libera Dallapiccola (2007). Indian Art in Detail. Harvard University Press. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-674-02691-9. 978-0-674-02691-9

  52. David Smith (2003). The Dance of Siva: Religion, Art and Poetry in South India. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1–2. ISBN 978-0-521-52865-8. 978-0-521-52865-8

  53. Frank Burch Brown (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Arts. Oxford University Press. pp. 489–490. ISBN 978-0-19-517667-4. 978-0-19-517667-4

  54. Coomaraswamy, Ananda Kentish (1918). The dance of Siva; fourteen Indian essays. Robarts - University of Toronto. New York Sunwise Turn. pp. 57–58, 65. http://archive.org/details/danceofsivafourt01coomuoft

  55. T. A. Gopinatha Rao (1997). Elements of Hindu Iconography. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 223–229, 237. ISBN 978-81-208-0877-5. 978-81-208-0877-5

  56. The Dance of Shiva, Ananda Coomaraswamy http://www2.hawaii.edu/~freeman/courses/phil300/18.%20The%20Dance%20of%20Shiva.pdf

  57. Shiva Nataraja, lord of the dance Encyclopedia of Ancient History (2013) https://www.worldhistory.org/article/831/

  58. DeVito, Carole; DeVito, Pasquale (1994). India - Mahabharata. Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar Abroad 1994 (India). United States Educational Foundation in India. p. 5.

  59. Alice Boner; Sadāśiva Rath Śarmā (1966). Silpa Prakasa Medieval Orissan Sanskrit Text on Temple Architecture. Brill Archive. pp. xxxvi, 144. https://books.google.com/books?id=itQUAAAAIAAJ

  60. For the damaru drum as one of the attributes of Shiva in his dancing representation see: Jansen, page 44. /wiki/Damaru

  61. Jansen, page 25.

  62. James C. Harle (1994). The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent. Yale University Press. pp. 309–310. ISBN 978-0-300-06217-5. 978-0-300-06217-5

  63. Padma Kaimal (1999), Shiva Nataraja: Shifting Meanings of an Icon, The Art Bulletin Volume 81, Issue 3, pages 390-419 https://www.jstor.org/stable/3051349

  64. Srinivasan 2004, pp. 432–450. - Srinivasan, Sharada (2004). "Shiva as 'cosmic dancer': On Pallava origins for the Nataraja bronze". World Archaeology. Vol. 36. The Journal of Modern Craft. pp. 432–450. doi:10.1080/1468936042000282726821. S2CID 26503807. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/citedby/10.1080/1468936042000282726821

  65. Coomaraswamy, Ananda Kentish (1918). The dance of Siva; fourteen Indian essays. Robarts - University of Toronto. New York Sunwise Turn. pp. 57–58, 65. http://archive.org/details/danceofsivafourt01coomuoft

  66. James G. Lochtefeld (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M. The Rosen Publishing Group. pp. 147, entry for Chidambaram. ISBN 978-0-8239-3179-8. 978-0-8239-3179-8

  67. Gomathi Narayanan (1986), SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX, Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 21, No. 2, pages 208-216 https://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102

  68. James G. Lochtefeld (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z. The Rosen Publishing Group. pp. 464–466. ISBN 978-0-8239-3180-4. 978-0-8239-3180-4

  69. DeVito, Carole; DeVito, Pasquale (1994). India - Mahabharata. Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar Abroad 1994 (India). United States Educational Foundation in India. p. 5.

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