The Art of Adornment
Life as Ritual. How can we invite more mindfulness and presence into our daily lives? Aharya translates to, "The Art of Adornment" in Sanskrit. It is one of the 6 Abhinayas mentioned in the Natyashastra. Abhinaya is the art of expression in Indian aesthetics. It signifies, “leading an audience towards” the experience (bhava) of a sentiment (rasa). The concept, derived from the Natyashastra, is used as an integral part of all Indian classical dance styles.
Tales of the Beauty Way
What is beauty but the essence of life itself? The pulsating current of Love that dwells within all of nature. To walk in beauty is to walk in harmony with all of life. Breathing intention into every action, living as a devotional offering.
Darpana translates to "mirror" in Sanskrit. The mirror offers us a reflection of our own soul, experiencing the fullness of ourselves. Rather than going to the "vanity", we explore oneself without excessive pride and insecurity. When you look in the mirror, a thousand ancestors stand behind you, anoint with you..
The Yoga of Adornment is the complete treasuring of your body temple as Divine, as a vessel of beauty, an act of devotion to something greater than yourself. In the Vedic Scriptures, The Divine Mother is repeatedly described as the one who is resplendant with ornaments. The ornaments express devotional offerings, and the effulgent brilliance and radiance of her Love. When we adorn ourselves, we are blessing our bodies, connecting with the earth and the material realms through ritual, recieve the blessings of these handcrafted pieces .. how can we recieve that fully? Embellish our own energy? I invite you to breathe into what nourishes you, and ask yourself, what Beauty is to you? How do you adorn, embellish and riualize your life? What brings you deeper into your body?
Adornment in Classical Indian Dance
I am continuously in awe of Odissi, the nuances, intricacies, & depths that develop over time & which repetition reveal. When adorning myself before dancing, I plunge into a space of stillness, I feel as though I am greeting my greatest Love for the first time, empty, & yet, comforted by an unwavering fullness & tranquil familiarity. Facing myself in the mirror and applying my makeup and costume becomes a deep mediation that brings me into a more embodied, hygenic, and grounded space. We look at ourselves through our own eyes, ultimately looking past our physical body, meeting the reflection that is the container of our truest essence. Feeling the Nadis open with each movement, expanding into a clarity granted by perseverance & grace, dissolving into an ever present effulgence.. I find myself in a space of deep catharsis, transmutation, evocation, & devotion. I am continually stretched to pursue what is beyond my perceived limitations, to pursue what is truthful and just. Sadhana is a forge. And we are carved until what remains is that innocence which seeds All things. Dance is a quite literal carving away of excess movement, & in the context of Indian Classical Arts it’s purpose is to move from a space before thought enters the mind, to Dance as Yoga, to reveal a contained, yet expansive vitality & radiant presence. The process of adornment before dancing allows for one to become hollowed, prepared to take the stage, to greet life with openess, awe, and perseverence.
This Art is an invitation for us to court Beauty, it beckons us to ask ourselves what is possible, to go beyond beginning and ending, to purify, cultivate & beam the luscious touch of the soul, to strive for Glory in embodying the exemplary qualities of the Divine.. to offer & surrender to a current greater than oneself, where God is found in the body, anchored & alive in an eternal temple of pure delight. Each limb & cell of the body is activated, embellished & intentional, seeping with Bhav, saturated in faith. Each movement alive with the breath of lineage. Each movement a homage to creation herself, a solace in the arms of God. Each movement a play between rag & rhythm. An intoxication of the sweetest fragrance. Inhabiting the space between, Bound to Grace, walking poised, in embodied prayer, in reverence, each glance a puja to the Beloved.
