 An illustration of theManipuri Raas Leela dance, being depicted in a stamp fromArmenia | |
| Native name | Meitei:Jagoi Raas, Raas Jagoi[1][2][3] |
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| Inventor | Rajarshi Bhagyachandra (Meitei:Ching-Thang Khomba)[4][5][6] |
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| Part ofa series on the |
| Culture ofIndia |
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Manipuri dance, sometimes also referred to as theManipuri Raas Leela (Meitei:Jagoi Raas/Raas Jagoi[1][2][3]), is ajagoi and is one of the majorIndian classical dance forms, originating from the state ofManipur.[7][8] It is one of theMeitei intangible cultural heritage.[9] The "Manipuri dance" is a confluence of four ritualistic traditions –Lai Haraoba,Huyen Langlon,Meitei Nata Sankirtana andRaaslila.[10] Owing to theMeitei civilization,[11] the classical dance form, first formally developed byMeitei Hindu kingChing Thang Khomba (Meitei for 'Rajarshi Bhagyachandra') of theKingdom of Manipur,[4][5][6] is considered to be the highest spiritual expression of the worship of Hindu deityKrishna.[12] Owing to its huge influences on the diverse cultural heritages across theIndian subcontinent, it is recognised by theSangeet Natak Akademi of theMinistry of Culture of theGovernment of India as one of the few primary classical dance forms of theRepublic of India,[9] and is honoured with theSangeet Natak Akademi Award for Manipuri annually.[13]It is referred to as the "national dance" during the Armenia-India joint issue of postage stamps, as a part of theArmenia-India international relations.[14][15][16]
It is imbued with the devotional themes ofMadhura Raas ofRadha-Krishna and characterised bygentle eyes andsoft peaceful body movements. The facial expressions arepeaceful mostly expressingBhakti Rasa or the emotion of devotion, no matter if a dancer is Hindu or not. The dance form is based on Hindu scriptures ofVaishnavism and is exclusively attached to the worship ofRadha andKrishna. It is a portrayal of the dance of divine love of Krishna with goddess Radha and the cowherd damsels ofVrindavan, famously known as theRaas Leela.[17][18][19]
Kapila Vatsyayan said‘Manipuri may be described as a dance form which is at once the oldest and the youngest among the classical dances’ signifying the ever changing structures of Manipuri dance.[20]
The roots of theManipuri Raas Leela dance, as with all classical Indian dances, is the ancientHindu Sanskrit textNatya Shastra, with influences and the cultural fusion of the traditional Meitei art forms.[21] At a time when other Indian classical dances were struggling to shake off the stigma of decadent crudity and disrepute, the Manipuri classical dance was a top favorite withgirls of 'respectable' families. This Manipuri dance drama is, for most part is entirely religious and is considered to be a purely spiritual experience.[22][23] It is accompanied with devotional music created with many instruments, with the beat set bycymbals (kartal ormanjira) and double-headed drum (pung or Manipurimrdanga) ofsankirtan.[24] The dance drama choreography shares the plays and stories ofVaishnavite Padavalis, that also inspired the majorGaudiya Vaishnavism-related performing arts found inAssam andBengal.[17]
Though the termManipuri Dance ismore commonly associated with theRaslila, its identity is also related totheJagoi (the Raas and theLai Haraoba), thePung Cholom and theThang Ta (a combat form ofHuiyen Lallong).[25][26][27] To certain extent,Meitei Nat Sankirtana, a traditional Meitei form ofKirtan, is also related to its identity.[10]
The first reliably dated written texts describing the art of Manipuri dance are from the early 18th-century.[28]
Historical texts of Manipur have not survived into the modern era, and reliable records trace to early 18th century.[29] Theories about the antiquity of Manipuri Raas Leela dance rely on the oral tradition, archaeological discoveries and references about Manipur in Asian manuscripts whose date can be better established.[29]
TheMeitei language textBamon Khunthok, which literally means "Brahmin migration", states thatVaishnavism practices were adopted by the king of Manipur in the 15th century CE, arriving from ShanKingdom of Pong.[30] Further waves of Buddhists and Hindus arrived fromAssam andBengal, after mid 16th-century during Hindu-Muslim wars ofBengal Sultanate, and were welcomed in Manipur. In 1704, the Meitei KingPitambar Charairongba (Meitei:Charairongba) adopted Vaishnavism, and declared it to be the state religion.[30] In 1717, the Meitei KingGareeb Nawaz (Meitei:Pamheiba) converted toChaitanya style devotional Vaishnavism, which emphasized singing, dancing and religious performance arts centered around Hindu godKrishna.[30] In 1734, devotional dance drama centered around Hindu godRama expanded Manipuri dance tradition.[30]
Meitei KingRajarshi Bhagyachandra (Meitei:Ching-Thang Khomba) (r. 1759–1798 CE) ofManipur State adopted Gaudiya Vaishnavism (Krishna oriented),[31][32] documented and codified the Manipuri dance style, launching the golden era of its development and refinement.[33] He composed three of the five types ofRaas Leelas, theMaha Raas, theBasanta Raas and theKunja Raas, performed at the Sri Sri Govindaji temple inImphal during his reign and also theAchouba Bhangi Pareng dance. He designed an elaborate costume known asKumil (the cylindrical long mini-mirror-embellished stiff skirt costume, that makes the dancer appear to be floating).[31] TheGovinda Sangeet Lila Vilasa, an important text detailing the fundamentals of the dance, is also attributed to him.[33][31] Rajarshi Bhagyachandra is also credited with starting public performances of Raas Leela and Manipuri dances in Hindu temples.[31]
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Meitei KingGambhir Singh (Meitei:Chinglen Nongdrenkhomba) (r. 1825–1834 CE) composed twoparengs of thetandava type, theGoshtha Bhangi Pareng and theGoshtha Vrindaban Pareng. KingChandrakirti Singh (r. 1849–1886 CE), a gifted drummer, composed at least 64Pung choloms (drum dances) and twoparengs of theLasya type, theVrindaban Bhangi Pareng andKhrumba Bhangi Pareng.[31] The composition of theNitya Raas is also attributed to these kings.[34]
In 1891, the British colonial government annexedManipur into its Empire, marking an end to its golden era of creative systematization and expansion of Manipuri dance.[35] TheManipuri Raas Leela dance was thereafter ridiculed as immoral, ignorant and old-fashioned, like all other classical Hindu performance arts.[35] The dance and artists survived only in temples, such as inImphal'sShree Govindajee Temple. The cultural discrimination was resisted and the dance revived byIndian independence movement activists and scholars.[35]
The classicalManipuri Raas Leela dance genre got a second life through the efforts of the Noble LaureateRabindranath Tagore.[36][37] In 1919, he was impressed after seeing a dance composition ofGoshtha Lila inSylhet (in present-dayBangladesh). He invited Guru Budhimantra Singh who had trained inManipuri Raas Leela dance, as faculty to the Indian culture and studies center namedShantiniketan.[35] In 1926, Guru Naba Kumar joined the faculty to teach theRaas Leela. Other celebrated Gurus, Senarik Singh Rajkumar, Nileshwar Mukherji and Atomba Singh were also invited to teach there and assisted Tagore with the choreography of several of his dance-dramas.[38]
The Manipuri classical dance form, which is a masterpiece ofMeitei Hindu kingChing Thang Khomba (Meitei for 'Rajarshi Bhagyachandra') of the historicalKingdom of Manipur,[4][5][6] is regarded as the highest spiritual expression of the worship of Hindu deityKrishna.[12]
Native to theMeitei civilization ofManipur, India,[39] having significant cultural influences on the different civilizations across theIndian subcontinent, the Manipuri classical dance is recognised by theSangeet Natak Akademi of theMinistry of Culture of theGovernment of India as one of the few primary classical dance forms of theRepublic of India.[39] At the same time, it is annually honoured with theSangeet Natak Akademi Award for Manipuri.[40]
According toBanglapedia, the national encyclopedia ofBangladesh, the importance of Manipuri classical dance inMeitei civilization is described as follows:[41]
“Dance and music play a vital role in the life span ofManipuri people. The most flourishing branch ofManipuri culture is dance. TheManipuri synonym of dance isjagoi and in this dance, body movements create either circle or ellipse. Rasa dance is the finest product of Manipuri culture.Maharaj Bhagyachandra innovated it and it was first performed in Manipur in 1779 in thefullmoon of Kartik.”
Chali orChari is the basic dance movement in ManipuriRaas dances.[42] The repertoire and underlying play depends on the season. The dances are celebrated on full moon nights, three times in autumn (August through November) and once again in spring (March or April).[42] TheBasanta Raas is timed with the Hindu festival of colors calledHoli, while others are timed with post-harvest festivals ofDiwali and others. The plays and songs recited during the dance performance center around the love and frolics between Radha and Krishna, in the presence ofGopis named Lalita, Vishakha, Chitra, Champaklata, Tungavidya, Indurekha, Rangadevi and Sudevi.[43] There is a composition and dance sequence for each Gopi, and the words have two layers of meanings, one literal and other spiritual. The longest piece of the play focusses on Radha and Krishna.[42] The dancer playing Krishna expresses emotions, while the body language and hand gestures of the Gopi display their feelings such as longing, dejection or cheer.[44]
The rhythmic depiction form ofabhinaya[acting] is to show theashtanayika [eight shades of a heroine] in everynayika, which are colored by the scenes of the season in which the "abhisarika" expresses her love for Krishna; so that akuaasha abhisarika who dances in the foggy winter is very different to thevarsha abhisarika who faces the thunderous downpouring rain.[45]
In other plays, the Manipuri dancers are more forceful, acrobatic and their costumes adjust to the need of the dance. Dozens of boys synchronously dance theGopa Ras, where they enact the chores of daily life such as feeding the cows. InUddhata Akanba, states Ragini Devi, the dance is full of vigor (jumps, squats, spins), energy and elegance.[42]
The classical Manipuri dance features unique costumes. The women characters are dressed, in doll-likePotloi costumes.[46] The brilliant design of the Potloi was conceived in a dream by Vaishnavite Meitei King Rajarshi Bhagyachandra, in which he saw his daughter dancing in a Potloi. The Potloi costumes for women are tailored such that it is avoidsarousal of any unhealthy stimulus in the audience.
Kumin is an elaborately decorated barrel shaped long skirt stiffened at the bottom and close to the top. The decorations on the barrel include gold and silver embroidery, small pieces of mirrors, and border prints of lotus,Kwaklei orchid, and other items in nature.[46]
The dancers do not wear bells on ankles but do wear anklets and foot ornaments. Manipuri dance artists wearkolu necklaces on the neck and adorn the face, back, waist, hands and legs with round jewellery ornaments or flower garlands that flow with the dress symmetry.[47] The face is decorated with the sacred Gaudiya Vaishnava Tilak on the forehead and Gopi dots made of sandalwood above the eyebrows. The symmetrical translucent dress, states Reginald Massey, makes"the dancers appear to float on the stage, as if from another world".[48]
Koknam (gauze oveerhead, embossed with silver zari),Koktombi (cap covering the head) andMeikhumbi (a transparent thin veil) thrown over the head to symbolically mark elusiveness.
Men wearLeittreng (Kajenglei) (golden headdress around the head) andChura (made of peacock feathers, wired on top of the head).
The male characters dress in adhoti (also calleddhotra ordhora) – a brilliantly colored broadcloth pleated, wrapped and tied at waist and allowing complete freedom of movement for the legs. Dancers wear a bright yellow-orange dhoti while playing Krishna and a green/blue dhoti while playing Balaram. A crown decorated with peacock feather adorns the dancer's head, who portrays Krishna.
ThePung Cholom dancers wear white dhoti that covers the lower part of body from waist and a snow-white turban on the head. A shawl neatly folded adorns their left shoulders while the drum strap falls on their right shoulders.
The costume tradition of the Manipuri dance celebrates its more ancient artistic local traditions, fused with the spiritual themes ofpremabhava of Radha-Krishna found in the tenth book of theBhagavata Purana.[46][49]
TheHuyen langlon dancers, however, typically wear costumes of Manipuri warriors. The costume varies depending on their gender.
The musical accompaniment for Manipuri dance comes from a percussion instrument called thePung (a barrel drum[50]), a singer, smallkartals (cymbals),sembong, harmonium, and wind instrument such as aflute.[51]
The drummers are male artistes and, after learning to play the pung, students train to dance with it while drumming. This dance is celebrated, states Massey, with the dancer wearing white turbans, whitedhotis (for Hindu dummers) orkurtas (for Muslim dummers), a folded shawl over the left shoulder, and the drum strap worn over the right shoulder.[50] It is known asPung cholom, and the dancer plays the drum and performs the dance jumps and other movements.[50]
Another dance calledKartal cholom, is similar toPung cholom, but the dancers carry and dance to the rhythm created with cymbals.[52] This is a group dance, where dancers form a circle, move in the same direction while making music and dancing to the rhythm.[53] Women dance too as groups, such as in the Manipuri dance calledMandilla cholom, and these usually go with devotional songs and playing colorful tassels-string tied cymbals where one side representsKrishna and the otherRadha.[53] Shaiva (tandava) dances are choreographed asDuff cholom andDhol cholom.[53]
The songs inHuyen langlon can be played with any Meitei instruments such as thepena and are usually aggressive sounding but they contain no lyrics.
The traditional Manipuri Raas Lila is performed in three styles –Tal Rasak,Danda Rasak andMandal Rasak.[54] A Tal Rasak is accompanied with clapping, while Danda Rasak is performed by synchronous beat of two sticks but the dancers position it differently to create geometric patterns.[54] The Gopis dance in a circle around the Krishna character in the center.[54]
The Manipuri dance comes in two categories -tandav (vigorous dance for the dancer who plays Krishna) andlasya (delicate[55] dance for the dancers who play Radha and Gopis).[56][57]
The Manipuri Raas Leela dance style embodies dreamy wavelike movements where one movement dissolves into another like the waves of an ocean. The dance features rounded soft movements of women, and occasional fast movements by male characters.[22][23] Unlike the other classical dance forms of India, the Manipuri dance artists do not wear anklet bells and the footwork is subdued and gentle in the Manipuri style. The stage movements is part of a composite movement of the whole body.[22][23]
There are five types of accepted Ras Leela, they are Maharas, Basantaras, Kunjaras, Nityaras and Dibaras.[58]
The Maharas Leela is the most prominent. This dance is performed in the month of Kartik (around November) on a full moon night.[59] It is a story of the Gopis sorrow after the disappearance of Krishna. After seeing the Gopis disheartened, Krishna then reappears and multiplies himself so that he is dancing with each Gopi.[60]
The Basantaras is celebrated on Chaitra (around April) on a full moon night welcoming the spring season.[61] During this time Holi is also celebrated where participants throw colored water or powder at each other.[62] The story of Basantaras is based on Jaidev's Gita Govinda and the Brahma Vavairta Purana.[63]
Kunjaras is celebrated on Ashwin (October) in Autumn on a full moon night.[64]
Nityaras is celebrated any night of the year except for the previous three raas (Maharas, Basantaras and Kunjaras).[59] The story is of the divine union of Radha and Krishna after Radha surrenders herself to Krishna.[62]
Dibaras is celebrated any time of the year during the day besides the periods of Maharas, Basantaras and Kunjaras.[61] The performance comes from the chapters in theShri Krishnaras- Sangeet Samgraha,Govinda Leelamritya, Shrimad Bhagavata andSangitamahava.[63]
Manipuri classical dance is illustrated in a postage stamp issued byArmenia in 2018,[15][65] where it is referred to as the "National Dances" (of India and Armenia respectively), along with the ArmenianHov Arek, in theArmenia-India joint issue of postage stamps.[14][15][16]
The Manipuri classical dance is recognised as well as honoured in numerous international platforms, including but not limited to theInternational Classical Manipuri Dance Festival,[66][67] theInternational Dance Day,[68] theInternational Dance Festival-Silicon Valley,[69] theSamarpan, an international classical Manipuri dance festival,[70] theInternational Indian Classical Dance festival (INDICLAD),[71] theInternational Folk-Lore Festival, theOpening Ceremony ofAsian Games,Seoul, 1986 as well as the5th International Theatre Festival, London, 1989.[72]
The classical dance of Manipuri was born out of rituals that are danced by the Meitei community residing in Manipur, India. The style of Manipuri that we see on stage is a confluence of traditions that are associated with four rituals. These rituals are observed as devotional service, or rites of passage, or propitiation rites, or all. Dance is derived from each of these rituals – Lai Haraoba, Huyen Langlon, Nata Sankirtana and Raaslila. These dances are considered as genres of Manipuri dance, alongside being integral part of Meitei social fabric. However, the classical Manipuri tradition is often associated with only the Raaslila tradition (which is debated by different institutions).
... Dance and music play a vital role in the life span of Manipuri people. The most flourishing branch of Manipuri culture is dance. The Manipuri synonym of dance is jagoi and in this dance, body movements create either circle or ellipse. Rasa dance is the finest product of Manipuri culture. Maharaj Bhagyachandra innovated it and it was first performed in Manipur in 1779 in the fullmoon of Kartik. ...
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