Sacred bodily geometry
Eyes are therefore one of the fundamental features of Indian dance. Face is also important because of its role in expressions and its mask-assimilation. Next after the face, we could consider the head. It too has a strong expressive ability. There is a great amount of different head positions and motions, more than in any other dance tradition. Head, arm and leg gestures give an elegant geometry to the rhythm. The extensive use of hand positions betrays a taste for fine and profuse details. Like flowers on a tree, the hands play a key part and contribute to the dance's delicacy. They prolong the arms' elegance. Even the toes have that role, albeit less powerful.
The body is a moving yantra. It is very structured. Like a tree, it is rooted on the ground and is divided into trunk, branches and secondary branches. Finger gestures are like the leaves. Nails, jewels and makeup are like the fruits. Each part of the body is in the right place.
Limbs and trunk typically take angular shapes. Articulations are crucial for the elegant and intricate geometry. The leg position is typically splayed, with bent knees. This is reminiscent of the seated position used in Indian daily life. Most activities, from eating to meditation are done seated on the ground, the legs being in various low-sitting positions. In Indian sculpture and painting, the lotus position is a recurrent theme. Hindu and Buddhist deities are often depicted seated in that position (or others in which at least one knee is folded). This proximity to the ground appears also in the dance's ground-rootedness. Gamelan instruments are also strongly grounded.
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