Lasya

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The term lasya, in the context of Hindu mythology, describes a highly sensuous and languorous dance, which the goddess Parvati performed as a counterpart but in a completely different style. It was as a reaction to the cosmic dance of Tandava performed by Shiva, and was performed concurrently while tandava was in progression.

In Shiva is said to have been revealed both faces of dance - 'lasya' and 'tandava', of which all subsequent dance forms were offshoots. Lasya, the dance of aesthetic delight revealed beauty, grace, love and all tender aspects of existence. Lasya is the mode that defined many of Shiva's iconographic forms - Kalyana-Sundara, Vrashavahana, Yogeshvara, Katyavalambita, Sukhasanamurti, Vyakhyanamurti, Chinamudra, Anugrahamurti, and Chandrashekhara.

[edit] References

• Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend (ISBN 0-500-51088-1) by Anna Dallapiccola

• Dance: The Living Spirit of Indian Arts by Prof. P.C. Jain and Dr Daljeet.