Product Description

Nataraja is derived from the Sanskrit words narta rajan "lord of dance". Shiva is shown as the source of all movement within the cosmos. The purpose of the dance is to release humans from illusion, and the place where it is said to have been performed, Chidambaram (an important Shaiva centre in South India), called the centre of the universe, is in reality within the heart. The gestures of the dance represent Shiva’s five activities (pancakritya): creation (symbolized by the drum), protection (by the “fear-not” pose of the hand), destruction (by the fire), embodiment (by the foot planted on the ground), and release (by the foot held aloft). Idols are not the idle fancies of sculptors, but shining channels through which the heart of the devotee is attracted to and flows towards God.Though the image is worshipped, the devotee feels the presence of the Lord in it and pours out his devotion unto it.