Bharata
(2) In the Ramayana, the earlier of the
two great Hindu epics, Bharata is the
son of King Dasharathaby his wife
Kaikeyi and the righteous younger
brother of the god Rama, the epic’s pro-
tagonist. Bharata’s loyalty to his family
has to endure several tests. The strictest
one comes early in the epic when,
through Kaikeyi’s treachery, Rama is
sent into exile in the forest for fourteen
years, and Bharata is named king in his
place. Despite the obvious temptations
of wealth and power, Bharata refuses to
assume the throne in place of his
brother, curses his mother for her
deceit, and sets off to live in exile with
Rama. Rama commands Bharata to
return to Ayodhya and rule during
his exile, on the premise that the people
will suffer without a king. Bharata
reluctantly agrees to act as a temporary
king, but with two symbolic adjust-
ments: He moves the court from the
capital city of Ayodhya to the village
of Nandigramaas a symbol of Rama’s
exile, and throughout his rule sits at
the foot of the royal throne; a pair of
Rama’s sandals are placed upon the
throne as a symbol of the rightful king.
Many characters in the Ramayana
are paradigms for Indian cultural values,
and Bharata stands for the ideal younger
brother. In the traditional joint house-
hold the brothers are the heart of the
family, since it is they who remain at
home their entire lives, whereas their
sisters live with their husbands’ families
after they are married. The eldest brother
in every generation eventually becomes
the head of the joint family after the
older members have passed away. He
carries primary authority and responsi-
bility for the family as a whole but can-
not succeed without the cooperation of
his younger brothers, who must
acknowledge and support his authority.
By refusing to usurp his elder brother’s
rightful leadership, Bharata is a para-
digm for the ideal younger brother, who
puts aside his own desires and opportu-
nities to uphold and promote the wel-
fare of the family as a whole.
Bharatanatyam
One of the classical danceforms of
India; some of the others are Kathak,
Orissi, Kuchipudi, Kathakali, Chau,
and Manipuri. Bharatanatyam has its
home in the temple towns of the state of
Tamil Nadu, particularly Tanjorecity’s
Brhadeshvar temple. This temple is
dedicated to the god Shiva, whose most
famous form is Nataraja, the “Lord of
the Dance.” According to tradition the
name bharatacomes not from the sage
Bharata, the reputed author of the text
on dance called the Natyashastra, but
from an acronym of the dance’s three
most important elements: “bha” from
bhava (“feeling”), “ra” from raga
(“melodic mood”), and “ta” from tala
(“rhythm”). The second word in the
name, natyam, simply means “dance.”
Bharatanatyam’s historical roots are
uncertain. The existence of dance can
be dated to the early centuries C.E. sinceBharatanatyamA dancer performs in the classical
Bharatanatyam form. She assumes the pose of
Nataraja, the “Lord of the Dance.”