{"id":7533,"date":"2016-03-20T14:54:56","date_gmt":"2016-03-20T09:24:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/patriotsforumindia.com\/?p=7533"},"modified":"2016-03-20T14:54:56","modified_gmt":"2016-03-20T09:24:56","slug":"navratri-and-dandiya-raas-in-the-indus-valley-e-sanskriti","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/patriotsforumindia.com\/?p=7533","title":{"rendered":"Navratri and Dandiya Raas in the Indus Valley? – e sanskriti"},"content":{"rendered":"

Navratri and Dandiya Raas in the Indus Valley?
\nBy Bibhu Dev Misra 14 March, 2016
\nThe Kalibangan cylinder seal K\u201065 has a complex imagery. An impression of the seal shows two men
\ndressed as warriors (since they are wearing their hair in a divided bun at the back of the head)
\nspearing each other. They are holding the hand of a lady who is wearing a long head\u2010scarf, bangles in
\none arm, and a long skirt. Behind them is a woman partially dressed as a tiger, wearing a horned
\nheaddress with a leafy branch, head\u2010scarf, bangles, and a long skirt.\"kalibangan<\/a>
\nFig 1: The Impression of Kalibangan cylinder seal K\u201065 shows two warriors spearing each other,
\nand holding the hand of a lady, while a woman dressed as a tiger stands nearby.
\nAt first glance it appears that the two men, who are dressed as warriors, are fighting over a lady. But
\nif that were the case, why is the woman dressed as a tiger standing next to them? She looks
\ncompletely out of place in a fighting scene.
\nIt seems more likely that the seal imagery is a depiction of a martial dance with spears performed by
\nthe Indus inhabitants. Traces of such cultural practices are still present within the various folk and
\ntribal traditions of India.
\nMany tribal groups of Chhattisgarh such as the Gonds, Baigas, Ahirs and others perform a postharvest
\ndance called the Saila dance. The Saila is a martial dance with fast and vigorous movements,
\npredominantly performed by men, although women also take part. Men used to dance it holding
\nspears or swords in their hands. In the modern day, however, the spears \/ swords have been
\nreplaced by sticks, because of which the Saila dance is also called a danda nach (stick\u2010dance). The
\ndancers have small sticks in their hand which they use to strike the stick of the person who is
\ndancing next to them. They move in circles, in a clockwise and anti\u2010clockwise direction, to the beat
\nof drums.
\nThe Saila is performed during and after the ten\u2010day Dussehra festival dedicated to the goddess
\nDanteshwari. Like Durga, Danteshwari Mata is a tiger\u2010riding goddess. She offers protection to the
\nvillagers from tigers. Legend has it that the Danteshwari temple at Jagdalpur was built by the kings of
\nBastar at the spot where the daanth i.e. tooth of Sati (wife of Shiva) fell.
\nWe can, therefore, conjecture that the two warriors spearing each other on this Kalibangan seal are
\nperforming the Saila dance with spears during the Dussehra festival, while the woman dressed up as
\na tiger symbolizes the tiger\u2010riding goddess Danteshwari. Interestingly, she is wearing a horned headdress
\nwith a leafy branch in the center, which is still worn by the Bison\u2010Horn Maria Gonds of
\nChhattisgarh during their dances.
\nFig 2: A dance of the Bison\u2010Horn Maria Gonds of Chhattisgarh. The men
\nwear horned head\u2010dresses with plumes while the women hold the
\ndancing sticks. Credit: Retlaw Snellac
\nFig 3: A Dokra idol of the tiger\u2010riding, trishul
\nweilding, Danteshwari Mata. Source:
\nwww.trimandir.org
\nA more well\u2010known version of the stick\u2010dance is the Dandiya Raas, which is a folk dance of Gujarat
\nand Maharashtra, performed during the nine nights of Navratri, in honor of the goddess Durga, who
\nis called Amba Mata in Gujarat. The Dandiya Raas originated from Lord Krishna\u2019s Raas Lila (dance of
\nlove) with the gopis of Vrindavan.
\nThis energetic dance form enacts a mock\u2010fight between the goddess Durga and the demon
\nMahishasura. It was traditionally performed by men, although women also joined in later. The
\ncolourful sticks (dandiyas) are believed to represent the sword or spear of goddess Durga. At the
\ncenter of the dance arena is placed a small earthen pot with holes in it, with a small earthen lamp lit
\nand placed inside it. This is called the \u201cGarbo\u201d (from the Sanskrit Garbha meaning \u201cwomb\u201d)
\nsymbolizing the creative potential and divine energy of Amba Mata. Images and statues of the tigerriding
\nAmba Mata are placed near the Garbo.
\nDuring the Dandiya Raas dance, men and women wearing vibrant costumes dance around the
\nGarbo, holding colorful sticks. They move in circles and rhythmically strike their own sticks and those
\nof the dancers next to them. The dancers generally form two concentric circles, one revolving in a
\nclockwise direction and the other anticlockwise. They are accompanied by a drum\u2010player who
\nprovides the beats. In form and spirit, the Dandiya Raas is very similar to the Saila dance of
\nChhattisgarh.
\nFig 4: Dandiya Raas perfomed by men during Navratri. Source: http:\/\/
\nhttp:\/\/www.utsavpedia.com
\nFig 5: Amba Mata riding a tiger. Source:
\nwww.trimandir.org
\nThe image on the Kalibangan seal can, therefore, also be interpreted as the performance of the
\nDandiya Raas with spears in honor of the tiger\u2010riding goddess Amba Mata, during the Navratri
\nfestival.
\nMartial dances with spears and swords are practiced by tribal cultures of India, and are particularly
\npopular among the hilly tribes of the Northeast. For instance, the traditional martial art dance of
\nManipur is called Thang ta \u2013 the art of the sword and spear. The tribes of Nagaland usually wield
\nweapons such as the spear and the sword, and wear colourful costumes and elaborate plumed headdresses,
\nduring their dances.
\nFig 6: Thang\u2010ta performance with spear and
\nsword. Source: http:\/\/www.vajramutthi.org\/
\nFig 7: Naga dancers with spears during the Horbill Festival. Source:
\nhttp:\/\/www.indiasnortheast.com
\nNor do the tribal folk shy away from dressing up as animals during their dances. In Orissa, a popular
\ntribal dance form is the Tiger Dance (Bagh Nritya) which is dedicated to the tiger\u2010goddess Durga. For
\nthe dance, local artisans have their bodies painted with yellow varnish and black stripes like a tiger.
\nWearing a prominent set of hand\u2010crafted ears, and a tail, they are quite a visual spectacle, as they
\nwalk down the village streets, dancing to the tune of musical instruments.
\nSimilar dances are called Puli Attam in Tamil Nadu, Puli Vesham in Andhra Pradesh, Huli Vesha in
\nKarnataka, and Puli Kali in Kerala. Most of these dances are performed during and around the time
\nof Dussehra.
\nFig 8: Bagh Nritya performers from Orissa. Source:
\nSanctuaryasia.com
\nFig 9: Puli Kali dance performed in Kerala during Onam
\nfestival. Source: www.hotelpooram.com
\nTherefore, we can infer that the Indus Valley tradition of performing martial dances with spears in
\nhonor of the tiger\u2010goddess has been preserved within the tribal and folk cultures of India. Some of
\nthese practices are no longer observed within mainstream Hinduism, which has undergone many
\nmodifications over the course of the past 3000 years, due to the emergence of indigenous
\nphilosophies, artistic and literary forms, and the influence of external cultures. But the tribal groups,
\nmany of who migrated into India following the collapse of the Indus Valley civilization, have been
\nable to preserve certain elements of the ancient Indus heritage, due to their habitats in remote
\nforested tracts, outside the reach of homogenizing influences.
\nIn conclusion, the theme of the Kalibangan cylinder seal K\u201065 can be summarized as follows: It shows
\na post\u2010harvest folk dance such as Dandiya Raas or Saila being performed with spears during the time
\nof Navratri in honour of the tiger\u2010 riding goddess Durga, also known as Amba Mata or Danteshwari
\nMata. In the modern day, the spear has been replaced by a stick (dandiya) and, instead of a woman
\ndressed up as a tiger, an image or statue of the goddess is kept within the dancing arena.
\nFig 10: Interpretation of Kalibangan cylinder seal K\u201065
\nAbout the author: Bibhu Dev Misra is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology and the Indian
\nInstitute of Management and has been working as an Information Technology consultant for more
\nthan 15 years. He is also an independent researcher and writer on various topics related to ancient
\ncivilizations, myths, symbols, science and religion. His articles have been published in many journals,
\nmagazines, and websites. He can be contacted at bibhumisra@gmail.com and via his personal blog:
\nhttp:\/\/bibhudev.blogspot.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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