Sringara ( sa, शृङ्गार, ) is one of the nine
rasas
Rasas ( ar, رساس, also spelled Rsas) is a village in southern Syria, administratively part of the al-Suwayda Governorate, located south of al-Suwayda. Nearby localities include Ira, Syria, 'Ira to the southwest, Sahwat Bilata to the east, al-Ru ...
, usually translated as erotic love, romantic love, or as attraction or beauty. ''Rasa'' means "flavour", and the theory of rasa is the primary concept behind classical
Indian arts including theatre, music, dance, poetry, and sculpture. Much of the content of traditional Indian arts revolves around the relationship between a man and a woman. The primary emotion thus generated is Sringara. The romantic relationship between lover and beloved is a metaphor for the relationship between the individual and the
divine.
Classical theater/dancers (i.e.
Bharatanatyam,
Odissi,
Mohiniyattam) refer to Sringara as 'the Mother of all rasas.' Sringara gives scope for a myriad of other emotions including jealousy, fear, anger, compassion, and of course for the expression of physical intimacy. No other Rasa has such a vast scope.
The treatment and performance of Sringara varies on a large scale from the grotesque (as in
Koodiyattam
Koodiyattam ( ml, കൂടിയാട്ടം; IAST: kūṭiyāṭṭaṁ; ) is a traditional performing art form in the state of Kerala, India. It is a combination of ancient Sanskrit theatre with elements of ''Koothu'', an ancient perfor ...
) to very refined and subtle (as in some styles of Bharatanatyam, or in Odissi).
The attraction between lover and beloved is a metaphor for the relationship between the individual and the
divine, the Nara-Narayana relationship.
Natya Shastra
The ''Nāṭya Śāstra'' (, ''Nāṭyaśāstra'') is a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts. The text is attributed to sage Bharata Muni, and its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary ...
lists Vishnu as the presiding deity of the Sringara rasa.
See also
*
Natyakalpadrumam
*
Kutiyattam
*
Mohiniyattam
*
Māni Mādhava Chākyār
External links
Sringara- a Knol article elaborating on the subject
{{Rasa theory, state=expanded
Hindu philosophical concepts
Indian culture
Theatre in India
Performing arts in India
Hinduism and sexuality