Shiva Nataraja - Lord of the Dance (Ancient Art Podcast 31)

Episode 31 takes a look at the iconic figure of the Hindu deity Shiva Nataraja, the Lord of the Dance. Examining two images of the dancing Shiva at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Snite Museum of Art at the University of Notre Dame, we explore the timeless concept of the cosmic cycle of creation and destruction. We see a philosophy of balance and harmony expressed through the union of diverging opposites, like creation and destruction, male and female, life and death -- and we learn how the imagery, symbolism, and iconography of the popular Nataraja figure embody this philosophy and spiritual belief. Plus we discover Shiva's function as the destroyer of the cosmos, the supreme yogi and cosmic dancer, and father of the beloved elephant-headed deity Ganesha, the Remover of Obstacles. See past episodes, image galleries, credits, transcripts, and additional resources at http://ancientartpodcast.org. Connect at http://twitter.com/lucaslivingston and http://facebook.ancientartpodcast.org/.

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[PigSty1985]

thanks i really like your presentation (: cos religion simply doesnt make sense to me but it's mandatory to do art history at school ):

[culturalmut]

sometimes...sometimes...i can't believe my ppl created this...

[SCARABsolutions]

@KaligulaLoves Thanks for the great input! Yes, the snake represents so many things that it's hard to give a straight answer. There's also a helpful summary in Meher McArthur's "Reading Buddhist Art," page 137 (Buddhist and Hindu iconography frequently overlaps).

[chiefamylee]

Thanks for your wonderful presentatrion.

[abby495]

Love your presentation!!! OMG how amazing. I could listen to this all day what a beautiful transcendent faith.

[KaligulaLoves]

@dwantilus yes, it represents many things, the spine, the hidden inner power of our unconscious, its the cosmic serpent, the kundalini, the reptilian brain etc, and much more. the guy said he could spend an hour at least. this symbol can even be understood as a representation of quantum mechanics.... heh!

[dwantilus]

this is awesome..but i was just wondering whether the snake(Cobra) has any form of relation to the dancing shiva, does it symbolizes power?