"Hands tell you"

the creation of gesture.

The first "Mudra"( it literally means "seal" of a personal will )was born near of 4000 years ago,with the first signals of Yoga, and still present nowadays in the singing of vedic anthem,meanwhile they make precise movements with their fingers.
Mudras are also used in a therapeutic way with the purpose of heal insufficiency sickness, give back the balance to the energetic systems of the body and increase the clarity of the thoughts.
Indian and chinesse medicine says that feet and hands are highly related to the main organs. The touch of one finger on certain parts of the hand let press and stimulate the right organs as acupuncture does.

(Picture: Vanashree using a Mudra to represent God Brahma)

In the indian dances through this positions of the hands they tell myths and epopees,histories that are part of their culture, and because of that reason the audience can understand that gestures making a language in this way.
That magical gesture has a poetic function. The art of hands gesture symbolize the aspects of human life and the Universe.With them, the actor-dancer can express almost everything:things, animals, stars, gods, and also thoughts, feelings, actions and situations.They are the vehicle to make the dance talking. Their communication happen using "Abhinaya", which is the technique of expression,divided into four kinds:

1-ANGIKA-ABHINAYA Body expression , that code the movements of the whole body.
2-VACIKA-ABHINAYA Voice and music expression , based on poetry and dramatic play.
3-AHARYA-ABHINAYA Ornamental expression ,represented by all the external elements.
4-SATTVIKA-ABHINAYA Emotions expression . The actor- dancer must be able to reproduce all the complex of human and spiritual nature through the eight main feelings.

Natya, indian theatre, has a huge diversity of styles according to the different regions of India.Each one forged through the centuries with the diversity of mudras,hasta,creating hunderds of new mixtures.
The most famous treatise dedicated to the gesture language is called Srihastamuktavali of S. Kavi, written between the centuries XIII and XIV, which has one thousand verses,giving details about for example the 213 meanings of Pataka Hasta, the fisrt hands positions,and 124 for Chaturra Hasta. From this text theres only one translation to assamais-bengali.
Those gestures are present in arts of representation as also in painting, sculpture, spiritual practises,cult,rites and meditations.

(Picture: Karla temple, 11 km far from Lonavla.Maharashtra.Picture Vanashree.®)

"Mudra and Hasta."

According to the tradition of theatre-dance, the hands gestures are named "Hasta".The arts of sculpture,painting and music name it "Mudra".This last term is related to their own religious gestures of rites, or the used by yoguis for their meditation and positions.Also there are used in dance where they represent to the Gods.
"...As some kind of magical operation,the hand create a whole Universe where the origin is sealed in the heart of people.(Katia Legeret, Manochhaya)"

The Hasta of theatre-dance present a vocabulary much easier to understand that the one of mudras forged over the codes of the rites.
The danced gestures are asociated to another parts of the body and the eyes expression. The symbolic gestures with only one hand ( "Asamyuta-hasta" ) and with both hands ( " Samyuta-hasta" ) may have a symbolic charge.The nrtta hasta are the danced gestures without symbolic charge.
The oldest indian treatise related to dramatic art,the Natya Sastra (NS) written by the wise Bharatamuni, dedicate a whole chapter to the subject of Hastas,the ninth chapter.

"Hastabhinaya (hands gestures)"

Asamyuta (not mixed) and Samyuta (mixed). The hands gestures Asamyuta are twenty four and the Samyuta are thirteen.

Asamyuta:
(1) Pataka (2) Tripataka (3) Kartarimukha
(4) Ardachandra (5) Arala (6) Sukatunday
(7) Usti (8) Sikhara (9) Kapittha
(10) Katakamukha (khatakamukha) (11) Sucyasya (Sucimukha) (12) Padmakosa
(13) Sarpasirsa (14) Mrgasirsa (15) Kangula (Langula)
(16) Alapadma (Alapadya Alapallava (17) Catura (18) Bhramara
(19) Hamsasya (20) Hamsapaksa (21) Sandamsa
(22) Mukula (23) Urnanabha and (24) Tamracuda.

Samyuta:
(1) Añdali (2) kapota (3) karkata
(4) Svastica (5) Katakavardhamanaka (khataka) (6) Ustanga
(7) Nisadha (8) Dola (9) Puspaputa
(10) Makara (11) Gajadanta (12) Avahitha and
(13) Vardhamana. » (N.S pag. 132)

The book keep mentioning the Nrittahastas (hands gestures in the technical part of dancing) enumerating them on thirty, and explains the utilization and meanings of Samyuta Hasta and Asamyuta Hasta.

The Abhinayadarpanam (AD) from Nandikesvara s nowadays is the treatise of reference for the artists of Bharatanatyam and artists of other styles, like Odissi, Kathak and Kuchipudi. It presents some changes according to the N.S. in the hands classification. Enumerating twenty eight gestures for only one hand,plus four extra and twenty trhee gestures for both hands.

Gestures with one hand:
“…Pataka, Tripataka, Ardhapataka, Kartatimukha, Mayura, Ardhachandra, Arala, Sukatunda, Musti, Shikara, Kapittha, Katakamukha, Suci, Chandrakala, Padmakosa, Sarpasiras, Mrgasirsa, Simhamukha, Kangula, Alapadma, Catura, Bhramara, Hamsasya, Hamsapaksha, Sandamsa, Mukula, Tamracuda y Trisula”. (AD pág. 48)

The extra that you can watch in the draws of the book are:
Vyaghra, Ardhasuci, Kataka, Palli.

Gestures mixed with both hands:
“…Anjali, Kapota, Karkata, Svastica, Dola, Puspaputa, Ustanga, Sivalinga, Katakavardhana, Kartarisvastica, Sakata, Shanka, Cakra, Samputa, Pasa, Kilaka, Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Garuda, Nagabandha, Khatva y Bherunda ». (AD pág. 55)

The professor teach the student those positions with both hands with a chant:

ASAMYUTA HASTA
patakas tripatako-ardhapataka. kartarimukha. mayurakhyo-ardhacandrascaaralah sukatundakah mustisca sikharakhyasca kapitthah katakamukhah suci candrakala padmakosah sarpasiras tatha mrgasirsah simhamukhah kangulascaalapadmakah caturo bhramarascaiva hamsasyo hamsapakhakah sandamso mukulascaiva tamracudah trisulakah.

SAMYUTA HASTA

anjalisca kapotasca karkatas svastikastatha dolahastah puspaputa utsangah shivalingakah katkavardhanascaiva kartarisvastikas tatha sakatam samkhacakre ca samputa. pasakilakau matsyah kurmo varahasca garudo nagabandhakah khatva bherunda.

Then, the professor teach the meaning of each hasta, and it utilization.For example with pataka you can ask silence,bless, open doors, open a book,indicate the pass of the time.With tripataka: an explosion, a crown, a bird, show the blue sky...This way the actor-dancer start including his/her hands language that later will will be helpful to talk without words.

MY ROAD IN THE MAGICAL GESTURES

® Picture Vanashree, indian shadows.

I remember the first time that i found this new world of movements. In the begining it was hard for me,how it was posible that this part of the body that is part of my body doesnt do what i order to do.

The practise helped me to face that problem,my hands obey me more than before.

In that moment i was using the hands gestures in the theatre practise.When i found the indian classic dance my hands were prepared for that but i found a new problem: to take those hands to the coordination with movements of the legs and arms, the expression of the eyes and dance.

Again the practise helped me to find the solutions,which i really wanted to find.

After some time i surpassed the tension at the moment of making the gestures.One day, there was something different.There wasnt a technical subject, i already did those gestures before,the same... in each practise, in each dance.

One feeling changed the gestures that in the begining were an esthetic purpose.Now they were not mine anymore.

Since then i started using those gestures freely in the theatre,dance and life, in improvisations, choreographies,moments in nature.Sharing with people.Going beyond of technique and their way,making them live,vibrate, energize.

Those symbols and gestures,that always has been inside of me,has been discover to feed my expressiveness and creativity.To initiate myself into an infinite road,reconoce my body,my mind and my spirit, in the exactly moment that im living, meet with the kindness to myself: the humility.

The problem helped me to leave my "i cant".

The practise helped me to surpass myself and find my "its posible".

The solutions that i desesperatly wanted to find,teached me that practise is infinit,that solutions are not enlightening,anxiety is part of time and come inside of those gestures take you into a non timing dimension.

Outdoor theatrical show « La proboscide del monte beve acqua ». Teatri del Vento.
Photo by Sefano Lanzardo® . Italia 2009.

Outdoor theatrical show « La proboscide del monte beve acqua ». Italia 2009
Using hand position Anjali Hasta.

Photo Stefano Lanzardo®

Photo Stefano Lanzardo.®

Dancing in nature .

Photo Stefano Lanzardo ® Italia

“La proboscide del monte beve acqua”. Teatri del Vento
Photo Stefano Lanzardo ® Italia.

Photo Stefano Lanzardo®Italia.

Photo by Stefano Lanzardo®Italia

Bibliography

» La gestuelle des mains dans le thèâtre dansè indien- Katia Legeret, Manochhaya.
» The Natya Sastra de Bharatamuni, traducción al inglés por Board of Scholars.
» Nandikesvara Abhinayadarpanam, editado y traducido por Manomoham Ghosh.

Photographs show “La proboscide del monte beve acqua” and the journey made by the company's Teatri del Vento in Italy as a teacher sharing a partnership addressing the theme:"The relationship between dance and theater, ""expressivetechniques of India in the western actor. "

These written materials are the result of study and dedication, if they are used, name the author. Thanks

Lakmé Thank you for your support and great efforts in spreading the culture of India and all of you for your interest in reading this article.

Vanashree
Vanesa Vera Vernhet

danzaindiana@libero.it

Translated by Elizabeth Rodriguez

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