Shiva’s Dance

Ananda natanam, the cosmic dance of Shiva

 

Nataraja /nɐ.tɐ.rɑ.dʒɐ/ (The Lord (or King) of Dance), Tamil: [Kooththan] is the dancing posture of the Hindu god Shiva, who performs his divine dance as a part of his activities of creation and destruction. Nataraja is most often depicted through a statue. The sculpture is usually made in bronze, with Shiva dancing in a aureole of flames, lifting his left leg (and in rare cases, the right leg) and balancing over a demon or dwarf (Apasmara) who symbolizes ignorance (Darkness).