Encapsulating Dance in Sculpture: The Story of “Arjuna and the Hunter” as Represented in the Hoysaḷa Temples

Abstract

This article assesses the topic of theatrical performances and sculpture in medieval India through an analysis of the relationship between narrative sculptures, literary works of poetry (kāvya), and theatrical performances, as these are described in the manuals on dance/theatre (nāṭya), such as the Nāṭyaśāstra of Bharata, with the commentary Abhinavabhāratī by Abhinavagupta, Saṅgītaratnākara, and Nṛttaratnāvalī. The sculptures included in this study are found in four temples built by the Hoysaḷa dynasty in the 12th and 13th centuries and represent the story of “Arjuna and the Hunter (kirāta)”, told in the Mahābhārata and in later literary works that were well-known in the courts of South India, including the Hoysaḷa court. After providing a detailed description of the sculptures based on the śilpa and nāṭya śāstras (treatises on sculpture and theatre), the study suggests that the sculptors carving these images adopted the technical language of nāṭya according to its theatrical usage (viniyoga), as an instrument to convey specific meanings and to express the emotions (bhāvas and rasas) evoked in the story, in both dancing and non-dancing figures.