The Concept of Nataraj

“The whole thing is there, you see. The world of space and time, and matter and energy, the world of creation and destruction, the world of psychology…We (the West) don’t have anything remotely approaching such a comprehensive symbol, which is both cosmic and psychological, and spiritual.” ~Aldous Huxley

Have you ever wondered what Nataraj actually symbolises? Many people think of it having a deeper connection with mythology, but, practically it’s way beyond that. It rather has scientific and spiritual values.

The cosmic dance of Lord Shiva is purely associated with cosmology, science, spirituality and arts. One can surely look up for the idol of the Nataraj in house or institution of a classical dancer. And this is because the Nataraj as a mudra is a very prevalent and predominant posture used by the dancers. The Shiv Tandav Stotram is again associated with the same.

The Nataraj in itself is a symbolism of cosmic dance of creation as well as destruction,where balancing the cosmic particles remains a major theme. Not only this, but for a spiritual healer, the idol of Nataraj have a deeper essence, where the idol depicts a sense of spiritual attainments. The entire cosmos functioning has been reflected in it, where the concepts of universal existences have been shown.

Historically speaking, the concept of Nataraj as an idol was first emerged during the Chola period. In fact the first idol of Nataraj was made of bronze, that’s a part of the Chola Bronze Period. Ironically if we analyse, then it is also possible to say that perhaps the people in the Chola period or the Chola rulers knew what a Nataraj is and for this reason, they chose bronze metal, instead of stones, to be used for making the Nataraj idols, hence.

Astonishingly, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN),which is one of the world’s largest scientific research centres situated in Geneva (Switzerland), has the statue of Nataraj, in its campus. One must be thinking what is the relationship between Nataraj and science, then consider the statements given by renowned physicist Frijtof Capra.

In the direct words of Capra, “hundreds of years ago, Indian artists created visual images of dancing Shivas in a beautiful series of bronzes. In our time, physicists have used the most advanced technology to portray the patterns of the cosmic dance. The metaphor of the cosmic dance thus unifies ancient mythology, religious art and modern physics.” So in simple words, it can be compressed from his quote that Capra is able to understand the efficient works of the Cholas and how they have had combined the ancient science and mythology, giving it an angle of religious art meticulously, thus.

Also it was Carl Sagan who drew the metaphor between the cosmic dance of Nataraj and the modern study of the cosmic dance of the subatomic particles. Not only this, but it has been found that a nebula named Southern Crab Nebula exactly looks like the Damru of Lord Shiva or Nataraj, again showing a part of this entire universe.

Further, Capra mentions in his book, The Tao of Physics that – “The Dance of Shiva symbolises the basis of all existence. At the same time, Shiva reminds us that the manifold forms in the world are not fundamental, but illusory and ever-changing. Modern physics has shown that the rhythm of creation and destruction is not only manifest in the turn of the seasons and the birth and death of all living creatures, but is also the very essence of inorganic matter. According to quantum field theory, the dance of creation and destruction is the basis of the very existence of matter. Modern physics has thus revealed that every subatomic particle not only performs an energy dance but also is an energy dance; a pulsating process of creation and destruction. For the modern physicists then, Shiva’s dance is the dance of subatomic matter, the basis of all existence and all-natural phenomena.” These are the direct explanations of Capra, that he has jotted down in his book.

Therefore, on a simpler explanation, one can rely upon the facts that the cosmic dance of creation and destruction of Lord Shiva actually showcases –

• the creation and destruction of subatomic particles of the cosmos.
• how subatomic particles are generated or created with various forces and energies existing in the universe.
• the behaviour of subatomic particles scattered in the universe.
• the nature and functioning of those particles, that are having a capability of generating other energies.

Hence, one can say a Nataraj is a symbolism of cosmic dance of subatomic particles, scattered in this universe, generating several energies too.