Editing Nataraja (section)

==Depiction==
[[File:Shiva Nataraja(Lord of the Dance).webm|300px|(Shiva) Nataraja (Lord of the Dance)|right]]

The sculpture is symbolic of Shiva as the lord of dance and dramatic arts,<ref name="panthey1987" /> with its style and proportions made according to Hindu texts on arts.<ref name="rao227" /> The two most common forms of Shiva's dance are the ''[[Lasya]]'' (the gentle form of dance), associated with the creation of the world, and the ''Ananda [[Tandava]]'' (dance of bliss, the vigorous form of dance), associated with the destruction of weary worldviews—weary perspectives and lifestyles. In essence, the [[Lasya]] and the [[Tandava]] are just two aspects of Shiva's nature; for he destroys in order to create, tearing down to build again.<ref name="Elephanta: The Cave of Shiva">Carmel Berkson, Wendy Doniger, George Michell, ''Elephanta: The Cave of Shiva'', (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983).  {{ISBN|0691040095}}</ref>

According to [[Alice Boner]], the historic Nataraja artworks found in different parts of India are set in geometric patterns and along symmetric lines, particularly the ''satkona'' mandala ([[hexagram]]) that in the Indian tradition means the interdependence and fusion of masculine and feminine principles.<ref>{{cite book|author=Alice Boner|title=Principles of Composition in Hindu Sculpture: Cave Temple Period|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=doQLZ21CGScC |year=1990|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0705-1|pages=163–164, 257}}</ref>

It typically shows Shiva dancing in one of the ''[[Natya Shastra]]'' poses, holding [[Agni]] (fire) in his left back hand, the front hand in ''gajahasta'' (elephant hand) or ''dandahasta'' (stick hand) [[mudra]], the front right hand with a wrapped snake that is in ''abhaya'' (fear not) mudra while pointing to a ''Sutra'' text, and the back hand holding a musical instrument, usually a ''[[Udukai]]'' ({{langx|ta|உடுக்கை}}).<ref name="rao227" /> His body, fingers, ankles, neck, face, head, ear lobes and dress are shown decorated with symbolic items, which vary with historic period and region.<ref name="Verma2011p19" /><ref name="T. A. Gopinatha Rao 1997 236–238, 247–258" /> He is surrounded by a ring of flames, standing on a lotus pedestal, lifting his left leg (or in rare cases, the right leg) and balancing / trampling upon a demon shown as a dwarf ([[Apasmara|Apasmara or Muyalaka]]<ref name="natarajabrit" />) who symbolizes spiritual ignorance.<ref name="rao227" /><ref name="artic.edu" /> The dynamism of the energetic dance is depicted with the whirling hair which spread out in thin strands as a fan behind his head.<ref name="coomaraswamy18">[[Ananda Coomaraswamy]] (1922), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4169808 Saiva Sculptures: Recent Acquisitions], ''[[Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin]]'', Vol. 20, No. 118 (Apr., 1922), pages 18-19</ref><ref>Gomathi Narayanan (1986), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/40874102 SHIVA NATARAJA AS A SYMBOL OF PARADOX], ''Journal of South Asian Literature'', Vol. 21, No. 2, page 215</ref> The details in the Nataraja artwork have been variously interpreted by Indian scholars since the 12th century for its symbolic meaning and theological essence.<ref name="jharle309" /><ref name="coomarados" /> Nataraja is a well known sculptural symbol in India and popularly used as a symbol of Indian culture,<ref name="narayanan208" /><ref name="Anna Libera Dallapiccola 2007 28" /> in particular as one of the finest illustrations of [[Hindu art]].<ref name="David Smith 2003 1–2" /><ref name="Frank Burch Brown 2014 489–490" />