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Le temple de Chidambaram représente le corps humain ; l’homme qui accomplit son introspection est comme le dévot qui fait le tour du temple et y entre : macrocosme et microcosme se rejoignent.
-Après avoir fait ses offrandes d’eau, de lumière et de fleurs, le fidèle franchit le seuil du temple. C’est d’abord Ganapati qu’il voit, le 1er fils de Shiva ; le danseur relate le mythe de ce dieu à tête d’éléphant.
-le dévot avance et rencontre le second fils de Shiva : Vêl-Murugan, le dieu préféré des Dravidiens, qui porte sa lance (le Vêl) et chevauche son paon. Le danseur incarne ce jeune dieu.
-le fidèle continue son chemin dans les profondeurs de plus en plus secrètes du temple et, arrivé dans le Karivuarai (saint des saints), il découvre le symbole phallique de Shiva ; c’est de cet emblème, à la fois masculin et féminin, tout de sérénité pure, que va peu à peu tressaillir le désir de vie et s’éveiller la Création. Le danseur retrace la danse Tandava (cosmique) de Shiva.
-la veena, très ancien instrument à cordes envoyée par Shakti vient, par sa féminité rafraîchissante, apaiser la danse colérique de Shiva. De cette rencontre, naît l’Union
Shiva-Shakti, le mariage de Shiva et de Paravati.
-Voyant cette scène divine, le dévot aperçoit le Garudan° (l’aigle cosmique), lien symbolique entre la Terre et le Ciel, qui le saisit et l’emporte vers le Shivalogam (le Paradis de Shiva).
°Vieille de quelque 200 ans, cette danse de Garudan avait été transmise à Ram Gopal, qui en a fait Raghuanth Manet son dépositaire. Elle sera interprétée ici spécialement en hommage à Ram Gopal, ce danseur légendaire dans les bras duquel a pleuré Nijinsky. |
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He has sometimes been called the Indian Nijinski. We won't go as far as that, as one does not need systematically to copy occidental cultural references in order to be important. And Raghunath Manet is important. He is most probably one the rare dancers using Indian techniques who is known by a european public.
No prudishness in this evocation full of life and enthusiasm, where eroticism is mainly linked to the beauty of Raghunath Manet's body in motion. Kannapa the devout is a hunter who does not belong to any cast. Sincere, generous, a believer, he ignores everything about the rites according to which the Brahman must venerate Shiva. However, it is he who received the divine grace, which is the proof that God distinguishes first and foremost the one whose heart is rich with Love. This philosophical tale provided Raghunath Manet with the inspiration for a show in which he recreates an imaginary world. He is the God of dancing with multiple powers, he is also the hunter and his universe, the forest, the river, and the animals which live there.
A dancer and a musician, surrounded by four instrumentalists (flute, drum, percussions) that are placed according to the action taking place - at the rear, on the sides, at the front - Raghunath Manet appears out of the shadows and takes over the stage. Bare-chested, clad in a loose saroual, he wears beautiful ornaments around his ears, his ankles and on his belt. He is the epitome of virile grace. Beauty in each gesture, extraordinary language using his feet, winged hands which tell the story in strictly coded language. Meanwhile, the incredibly expressive face underlines through movements of the eye, the eyebrow or the neck each emotion dictated by the story.
Dancing is an exacting art, it requires precision, firm steps, jumps demi-plies poses, whirls and rapid leaps, steps with the toe or heel' It is a complicated art, from which music cannot be dissociated. Expressive music, which in the beginning was the preferred vector of communication with God, where each note has a symbolic value. It is supposed to set off mystical and cosmic energies.
The whole show is enhanced by artful luminous brushstrokes, which make the ruby, white and gold costumes sparkle. In the center, towering over the scene, is the Linga, Shiva's phallic emblem, a high golden torch. It is said to draw to it all the forces that surround it.
Towards the end, surrounded by his musicians, Raghunatha Manet plays the veena, a form of luth with a long neck. It is an amazing musical moment, to which the audience's applause adds a rhythm that the musicians in turn take on. A moment of sharing human warmth.
This poetic show is captivating and also unsettling. For the non-initiated who do not have the key, it provides something totally new and unfamiliar. It is a form of happiness that has no name. |
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