Art, Symbol & Imagination
The Dance of Shiva: Khitindra Nath Mazumdar
Original caption: The Dance of Shiva
Shiva’s extended limbs and lifted foot establish the movement of Mazumdar’s composition, while the surrounding shapes suggest an atmosphere as active as the figure. The book joins a legend of the dance to an explanation of its cosmic significance: creation, preservation, destruction and the release of souls are gathered into one ceaseless action. The plate therefore presents movement as a governing image of existence, rather than an isolated display of divine power. Its flowing contours allow the dancer’s gestures to continue through the surrounding space without turning the scene into a rigid diagram.
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Citation
Khitindra Nath Mazumdar. "The Dance of Shiva: Khitindra Nath Mazumdar" [source caption]. In Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists, Sister Nivedita and Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. Original scan, 1914, George G. Harrap & Co.. Source scan leaf 375. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/hindu-dance-shiva
Source details
Title from the printed caption. Editorial description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Artist credited in the printed list of illustrations. Full source leaf and the adjacent narrative reviewed; historical scan colour and texture retained.
Sources
From the book
Myths of the Hindus and BuddhistsSister Nivedita and Ananda K. Coomaraswamy1914More from this book
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Cite this illustration
Khitindra Nath Mazumdar. The Dance of Shiva: Khitindra Nath Mazumdar. Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists. Scan leaf 375. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/hindu-dance-shiva