The tiny drop of water fall from the heavens as the grey clouds cover the land. The lush green trees shimmer as the smell of wet earth awakens the soil. The rain comes down in a rhythmic pattern such that the sound adds to the rhythm in my being. I step out into the courtyard of this now silent temple to discover new emotion, new love, new bhakti in the form of the Lord who resides deep within the sanctum.
There is silence except for the beating raindrops on the wet rocky and the ghunguru on my feet. I face him, decorated in flowers and silks, seated on his throne surrounded by fiery lamp lights. I look up to Nandi, who within my imagination picks up the mridangam and starts to play. I slowly move, swirl and express my feeling, my devotion to the Lord within.
It is a conversation, delightful and profound, as I emote through my eyes and melt in my heart offering every known emotion up to him in abhinaya. There is sound that surrounds me, there is water that bathes me, there is wind that envelops me, there is earth that holds me steady, there is fire that enlightens me and there is space that gives me the freedom to move around it. The body arches, the fingers emote and my internal self wakes up to the divine sounds of deep meditation and complete bhakti that has been expressed by Patanjali for whom the great Lord Nataraja has performed.
In this emotional water fall, my heart beats hard, asking the Lord to come and dance with me. Such graceful moves, as we rest our hands on our hips, move around and raise it to the sky. Express the deep emotion that lingers within, in controlled meditation as it surfaces to the front and blossoms into an expressive art form that is divine dance, that is divine movement, divine experience as my body awakens to divine breath that fills my soul and bathes me in these pure waters from heaven.
The music echoes in my soul, the beat brings my self to drift away into this magical world where I am a form, a divine form made up of the most profound elements and I am the fortress in matter that houses the various devas within me at my energy centers. Its at this moment of heightened experience of bliss that the my perceptive world changes and the temples appears like an imaginary land in paradise.
Time has stopped, there is no world, there is no noise, there is no people, there is no chaos. There is the sun that lights up this floor and shimmers in the water drops making the whole ambiance appear rich and jeweled. There is the rain that gently tickles my being as the water drops slowly roll down my fingers. There is the wet earth that now lies cool and soft, as I stand on it and stamp it at regular intervals. There is the tiny lamps that light the fire in my heart, melting my being to just collapse in his arms in eternal bliss of divine love and overwhelming awe. And there are the divine gandharvas who play the mystical sounds of heaven, so profound and sweet, so pure and unique that it makes my heart jump with childish excitement over this overwhelming experience. And there is he, in his brilliance with his matted hair swirling around him, as he constantly gets bathed by the ever flowing Ganges who resides in his locks. There is he who has sharp and clear eyes, yet warm and loving and full of divine enlightenment that i can barely move away from. And there is he, with the jeweled snake move around him in grace. There is he, fragrant and all empowering enveloping the whole universe around him as he dances ash clad wrapped in tiger skin with divinely handsome charm that could dissolve a woman's being into itself. There is he, who makes all time stop and takes me into that void where my senses fail, my being fades, my body lets go and my consciousness witnesses is all powerful self, so gentle and yet so kind, so compassionate and yet so energetic.
To all the forms of his, to all the directions that he protects, to the elements that sustain me, to the great devas who reside within me, to the enigmatic yet charming world of the celestials, to the divine and mystical world of the sages, to this pantheon of invisible yet enchanting beings of superior intellect and charm, I bow in misery of being just a human.
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Based on the divine Natya of Bharata, which expounds on the various postures, gestures and expression of dance, this is a feeble attempt to meditate upon oneself as one performs the 108 Karnas that have been meticulously carved and documented on the temple walls of Chidambaram, Thiruvannamalai and Tanjavur for our understanding. This is an attempt to deeply understand the movement of the body, the state of the self emotionally and in discipline as one performs this art form in an imaginary world, which I cant perceive and yet I believe truly exists and has been documented in our scriptures. I have attempted to present to you within the limitations of language and yet with creative imagination, the feeling of supreme bliss that we can attain if we try hard enough with every breath.
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Photo Courtesy:
Arjun Kumar - Facebook
In the darkness of the night
the earth trembles
with the resounding drum
a sound that creates
the vibrations of life
the air that swirls
the purity imbibed
and the feet descend to earth
into a circle of fire
that silhouettes this form of the Lord.
Locked into metal is an energy so strong that one can barely imagine the potency of the Lord. A common name, Shiva, but a form so enigmatic and unknown that the more we dwell into His realm the more lost we feel. Such is the enigma that surrounds Lord Shiva. To feel His presence in the self is a moment of enlightenment well lived for.
Within this wall of fire He dances creating the rhythm of life, creating the essence of existance and clearing the clouds of illusion that shade our eyes.
Tirobhava - A ring of fire He lights up to kill the darkness of ignorance.
Samhara - A ring of fire He ignites to burn the self into His being.
Sthiti - A ring of fire He presents to preserve the soul.
Shrishti - A ring of fire that dances to the sound of creation.
Anugraha - A ring of fire that raises us from the misery of living.
It is a flame within, a tiny flame, a potent flame that can set the stage of life alight with Lord Nataraja, the King of dance. He has vigor in his movements and yet a calm in His eyes. He opens His third eye to burn the soul yet His hand rises in abhaya giving us reassurance. The flamboyance of His silent energy just makes the yajnopavita and the rudraksha sway to His gentle moves, to His enchanting presense. He has gentleness and warmth that can make the heart melt when one sets eyes on this form of the Lord. Locked in stone or metal, He shines with all His grace. Coated with dust on the outside but clarity of the being rules supreme. Gentle and tame on the outside but a brilliant flame of life engulfs us from within reminding us of His constant presence.
Such a perfect being, such beautiful imagery that has been painted, sculpted, drawn, sung about, written about and yet He is so difficult to come into our reality. Such perfection that is forever there to stay. Such bliss that the mind rests even in trouble. Such sweetness that the world appears beautiful. Such brilliance that we can see beauty in life and appreciate it if only we make ourselves open to it.
Perfection is so undefined, yet we see it in Him, perfection is so unreachable yet faith in Him lends us that satisfaction. Perfection so unnoticed that He sets us the examples to true and effective living. Perfection so unheard of that we need His presence to comfort us. Perfection is so unreal that we need Him to guide us into the unfamiliar world beyond this life.
Our life breath is a rhytm, one that we are never aware of, one that he creates with his damaru when we are born, our life is a saga, one that He preserves while we live these million births, our ego is our own enemy, one that He destroys and raises us into a new world merged within Himself, our path to heaven is through fire, a life that He destroys to bring us face to face with reality, our mind a whirlpool of ignorance, one that he smashes with His feet and lifts our helpless souls into His warmth.
There is so much more to Nataraja, there is so much more to Shiva, there is so much more to perfect living and no time to explore it. We are part of a man made rat race to higher living with assumed perfections that no one has defined or has a clue of. And all we have to guide us into that promised realm is a hint of the Lord locked into a silent dust coated metal sculpture out on display, the life of which is within us, unknown and untapped.
An open truth
for the world to know
the Lord brings out
from the world of Dhyana
Sprinkling the syllables
potent letters of life
for us to learn
for us to evolve
Simple potent letters
yet so deep are their meaning
seemingly complex
profoundly divine
we sing them out loud,
in all the noise
no sweetness left to see
no divine charm to feel
The Lord is reduced
a speck in a myth
one you want and don't know
whether to believe
A grand temple was made
to secure this faith
to relive this essence
to relive this life
Within a golden hall of flames
a golden hall of life
lies that world unknown
so enchanting and close
the blackness surrounds
but when the bells ring
the black veil falls
reveals the Lord within
Space and silence - a Void
in the fire reveals
rain of letters covers Him
hanging down among golden leaf
syllables of life
untouched and potent
my life breath
my Lord Divine
The dancing flames
form a ring of light
within the deep silence
I hear the sound of His feet
In shimmering moon light
On his brow dances a crescent moon
grace that sways the world
rhythm that makes the heart beat.
Such love I feel
to witness thy divine Self
Such a rain of bliss
to see your dancing step
Fresh life in the air
New life at your feet
Oh wake my soul
Throw away this veil of black
The divine Mother rises
my heart pounds anew
A red hue of life
descends onto me
the path to the Lord
Oh Mother show me the way
Bathe me in your grace
In those letters of life
Fire that burns my heart
Music that makes me move
Rhythm that is my breath
The Lord my only goal
The world ceases to exist
His golden feet I touch
The Lord's feet my home
The Lord's feet my home
Based on the feeling of Divinity, when the Lord dances in the light of the Arti flames that cover His chamber within a ring of light. Flames of Gold bathe His form, a blessing for those who witness His presence.
The tiny drop of water fall from the heavens as the grey clouds cover the land. The lush green trees shimmer as the smell of wet earth awakens the soil. The rain comes down in a rhythmic pattern such that the sound adds to the rhythm in my being. I step out into the courtyard of this now silent temple to discover new emotion, new love, new bhakti in the form of the Lord who resides deep within the sanctum.
Time has stopped, there is no world, there is no noise, there is no people, there is no chaos. There is the sun that lights up this floor and shimmers in the water drops making the whole ambiance appear rich and jeweled. There is the rain that gently tickles my being as the water drops slowly roll down my fingers. There is the wet earth that now lies cool and soft, as I stand on it and stamp it at regular intervals. There is the tiny lamps that light the fire in my heart, melting my being to just collapse in his arms in eternal bliss of divine love and overwhelming awe. And there are the divine gandharvas who play the mystical sounds of heaven, so profound and sweet, so pure and unique that it makes my heart jump with childish excitement over this overwhelming experience. And there is he, in his brilliance with his matted hair swirling around him, as he constantly gets bathed by the ever flowing Ganges who resides in his locks. There is he who has sharp and clear eyes, yet warm and loving and full of divine enlightenment that i can barely move away from. And there is he, with the jeweled snake move around him in grace. There is he, fragrant and all empowering enveloping the whole universe around him as he dances ash clad wrapped in tiger skin with divinely handsome charm that could dissolve a woman's being into itself. There is he, who makes all time stop and takes me into that void where my senses fail, my being fades, my body lets go and my consciousness witnesses is all powerful self, so gentle and yet so kind, so compassionate and yet so energetic.
