Essence of Life dance form | |
| Formation | 2012 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Dega Deva Kumar Reddy |
| Purpose | Dance Group for Indian classical dance sharing teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti |
| Location |
|
Parent organization | The Pathless Land |
| Affiliations | Jiddu Krishnamurti |
Essence of Life is a performing art group based in Bangalore, established by Dega Deva Kumar Reddy in 2012 to promote teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti.
Essence of Life is a synergy of five Indian classical dance forms - Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Kathak and Mohiniyattam. The group organized several dance performances across India in the past decade.
Naming
The name "Essence of Life" is inspired from Jiddu Krishnamurti's quote "Meditation is not a separate thing from life; it is the very essence of life, the very essence of daily living".
Philosophy
Inspired by Jiddu Krishnamurti's teachings, Dega Deva Kumar Reddy conceptualized and produced 'Essence of Life'. The dance form is based on basic human problems and emotions that Jiddu Krishnamurti often addressed in his talks and books - fear, suffering, jealousy, violence, hurt, love and death.
Prominent artists from established music and dance traditions across India came together to communicate Krishnamurti's teachings through Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Kathak and Mohiniyattam.
Theme
Art of Meditation
Dhyanasya Amukham - Introduction to Meditation Dhyanasya Puravrttam - Myths of Meditation Katham Jaagriti Jaayate - How does awareness come about Dhyana kala - The art of meditation Dhyanaartha kim yatharta maunam - What is true silence which leads to meditation
Essence of Life
Manovignaanam - Understanding our mind Bhayaatah svatantramah - Freedom from fear Samsayaa vina saadhyam kim jeevanam - Can we live without problem Kim saadyam pumsaam parivarthanam - Can human being change Rather saundaryam - Beauty of love
Finale
Thillana - Freedom from self
Dance form
Dance form | Ragam
- Bharatanatyam - Charukesi
- Kuchipudi - Surya & Huseni Kouns
- Kathak - Madhumad Sarang
- Odissi - Mishra Lavangi
- Mohiniyattam - Madhumad Sar
Artists and Musicians
Concept
- Dega Deva Kumar Reddy, Conceptualized and produced
- B Aruna Sivarama Krishna, Conceptual designer and music composer
- Dr Thiagarajan, Sanskrit translation
Dancers
- Smitha Madhav - Bharatanatyam
- Prateeksha Kashi - Kuchipudi
- Achuta Manasa – Kathak
- Pali Chandra - Kathak
- Masako Ono – Odissi
- Rashmi Menon – Mohiniyattam
Vocals
- Padma Vibhushan Hariharan
- Pt. Sanjeev Abhyankar
- Pt. Raghunandan Panshikar, Lalitha Sharma
- Sooraj Santhosh, Saindhavi
- Varijashree Venugopal, Sangeetha
Instrumental
- Ustad Murad Ali Khan - Sarangi
- Bhuto & BV Balasai - Flute
- BV Raghavendra Rao - Violin
- Allam Durga Prasad - Gottuvadhyam
- Bhavani Prasad - Veena
- B Sivarama Krishna - Sitar
- Sarang - Sarod
- Balesh - Shehnai
- Shrikanth - Hawaii Guitar (Steel guitar)
- DA Srinivas - Mridangam
- Kesavan - Chanda, Idakka & Maddalam
- Venkatesh & B Ganesh Rao - Tabla
- Omkar & Jagadeesh - Pakhavaj
- Chandra Sekhar - Pakhavaj
- Manjunath - Percussion instrument
- DA Srinivas & Kesavan - Jathi
- Manjunath & Jagdeesh - Bhols
References
- ^ "Dance and philosophy on a stage". Deccan Herald. 25 February 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Expressing 'Essence of Life' Unique Dance Performance enthralls". Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Discovering the essence of life". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Dega Dev Kumar Reddy - Dega Arts Founder at Essence of Life - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ Kumar, Ranee (16 May 2013). "Concretising the abstract". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "The dance of life". mid-day. 26 December 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Smitha Madhav talking about Dance & Music at Essence of Life - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 19 November 2020.