Chapter Three
Natyasastra, Kudiyattam and Actor’s Consciousness
Introduction
So far in this book I have examined various views relating to the actor’s consciousness, starting from the theoretical and practical approaches of the contemporary Western scholarship to a brief description on the Natyasastra view of the actor’s consciousness in performance which was followed by a very long and descriptive account of actor-training and acting devices of Kudiyattam. The intention here was to assimilate the various views on the actor’s consciousness and also to identify a performance form which might serve as a model of an actor-training and acting which contains structured and highly systematised training method providing the actor with presence, spontaneity and imagination. What is also crucial here is whether this training method can systematically train the actor’s consciousness in a structured way and if so whether we can identify such elements in the actor-training of Kudiyattam. This chapter is hence a more focused enquiry into the actor’s altered state of consciousness in Kudiyattam, particularly the various elements that contribute to such levels in performance. In this chapter I am also closely examining a few materials on Indian philosophy and performance along with a detailed discussion of rasa model of consciousness. This chapter is mainly divided into the following sections and subsections:
Rasa and consciousness a.Abhinavagupta and Rasa b.Natyasastra and consciousness 152 Kudiyattam Theatre and Actor’s Consciousness
Yoga and Kudiyattam Actor’s consciousness in Kudiyattam a.Breath and Kudiyattam: training and performance b.Pakarnnattam and consciousness
Rasa and Consciousness
I had elaborately discussed what is meant by rasa theory in the previous chapter along with a brief outline of a different level of the actor’s rasa experience. In this section, I am observing the nature of rasic consciousness particularly by examining Abhinavagupta’s perspective on rasa. In this subsection, I am investigating Abhinava- gupta’s understanding and his philosophical proposition of the rasa theory. I will also be examining the actor’s consciousness as proposed by NS by undertaking a thorough investigation of its physical acting or angika abhinaya, since this may lead to the unfolding of a syste- matic approach to training the actor’s consciousness.
Abhinavagupta and rasa
Abhinavagupta is a Kashmiri Saivite monk who is the most important among Bharata’s commentators. His Abhinavabharati not only offers a very elaborate discussion on Bharata’s rasa theory but also summarises the earlier commentators of Bharata such as Bhatta- nayaka or Lollata whom we now know of only by means of this summary. He is also credited with the introduction of a ninth rasa known as santa (expressing no emotions). The interpretation that he offers on rasa theory is highly systematic and based strongly on Advaita philosophy of monism.
In the process of interpreting rasa in par with brahma- ananda, Abhinavagupta categorically distinguishes between worldly happiness and rasic pleasure. Brahman is characterised by the Advaita philosopher Sankara as existence, consciousness and bliss. In this sense, it is the non-dual entity as a ‘whole’ and there is no split or no distinction between self and other. The ananda aspect in this non-dual entity is brahma-ananda. It is also translated as the ‘absolute bliss’, which is free from the worldly, material cycles of wish and despair. Abhinavagupta says that “since our daily experiences and hence our