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Learn the lingo
Photo: M. Karunakaran
Vira rasa Kathakali exponent Sadanam Balakrishnan as the valorous King Nala.
Dance
Vira: One of the navarasas, vira rasa is the sentiment of valour. It is associated with courage and heroism, and at its root is the feeling of enthusiasm (utsaha). Courage may be of a physical, mental or emotional nature. It requires courage to face a physical enemy. What strengthens the feeling of valour in this case is the physical and mental strength of the character considered valorous. Heroes like Arjun of the Mahabharata, Ram and his brothers in the Ramayana, and kings such as Nala and others — trained in the arts of war and leadership, brave and skilled in the use of arms — are seen as epitomes of valour or vira rasa.
But courage is also required to make a great sacrifice. A person who makes a great personal sacrifice willingly is known as a dana vira. In stories commonly depicted in dance, two instances of dana viras spring to mind.
One of these is Bali Chakravarti, the king who was willing to give his life to satisfy the hunger of a hawk hunting a dove. The story goes that the dove flew to the king and asked him for refuge. The king, being a dana vira, could not refuse to protect anyone who asked for refuge, so when the hawk demanded to be allowed to eat the dove as it was nature’s way, he refused. However, the hawk pointed out that it was the king’s duty to protect all his subjects. If the dove flew free, the hawk would starve, thus the king would be failing in his duty on that account. The king, to keep his word on both counts, volunteered to donate his own flesh in place of the dove. When placed on the scales, the dove grew heavier and heavier, and the flesh taken from the king’s thigh refused to equal its weight. Eventually the king climbed the scales himself, ready to give up his body to save the dove. This was the moment for divine intervention, when it was revealed that the episode had been a test of Bali Chakravarti’s generosity and willingness to keep his promise.
Karna, the tragic hero of the Mahabharata, could never refuse a request for something that belonged to him. Just before the Kurukshetra war, Indra came in disguise and begged Karna for his golden armour, a protection he had been born with. This armour that made him almost invincible, was a legacy of Karna’s father the Sun god, who had warned his son in a dream not to be taken in by Indra’s disguise, as the latter only wanted to weaken Karna before the war. Karna, knowing that Indra was on the side of the opposing army, still could not refuse to part with his armour, as his nature was to offer help unconditionally.
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Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
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