Kandyan dance
History
pose of the Kandayn dance
According to the legend, the origins of the dance lies in dance ritual known as the
Kohomba Kankariya,
which is also known as Kohomba yak kankariya or Kankariya. Traditional
dance masters believe that originally the King Malaya the king of
"Malaya rata" and his two brothers performed the first Kohomba
Kankariya. Some believes that this "Malaya rata" was located in India.
According to legend, the three
shamans came (to the island) as a result of a trick of God
Śakra
in order to cure the King Panduwasdev who was suffering from a
mysterious illness. The king was said to be suffering from a recurring
dream in which a leopard was directing its tongue towards the king,
believed to be as a black magic of "Kuweni" the first wife of the king
"Vijaya". After the performance of the Kohomba Kankariya the illness
vanished, and many natives adopted the dance.
It was originally performed by dancers who were identified as a
separate caste under the Kandyan Fudel system. They were aligned to the
Temple of the Tooth and had a significant role to play in the Dalada Perahera (procession) held each year by the temple.
The dance waned in popularity as the support for the dancers from the
Kandyan kings ended during the British period. It has now been revived
and adapted for the stage, and is Sri Lanka's primary cultural export.
Tänze (Uda Rata Natum) Ves Tanz "Ves" dance, the most popular,
originated from an ancient purification ritual, the Kohomba Yakuma or
Kohomba Kankariya. The dance was propitiatory, never secular, and
performed only by males. The elaborate ves costume, particularly the
headgear, is considered sacred and is believed to belong to the deity
Kohomba.
Only toward the end of the 19th century were ves dancers first
invited to perform outside the precincts of the Kankariya Temple at the
annual
Kandy Perahera
festival. Today the elaborately costumed ves dancer epitomizes Kandyan
dance.Kandyan dance highlights Sri Lanka's culture.Kandyan dance can be
carried to the future as an example of Sri Lanka's miraculous culture.
Naiyandi dance
Dancers in Naiyandi costume perform during the initial preparations
of the Kohomba Kankariya festival, during the lighting of the lamps and
the preparation of foods for the demons. The dancer wears a white cloth
and white turban, beadwork decorations on his chest, a waistband, rows
of beads around his neck, silver chains, brass shoulder plates, anklets,
and jingles. This is a graceful dance, also performed in Maha Visnu,
(Vishnu) and Kataragama Devales temples on ceremonial occasions.
Uddekki dance
Uddekki is a very prestigious dance. Its name comes from the
Uddekki,
a small lacquered hand drum in the shape of an hourglass, about seven
and half inches (18 centimeters) high, believed to have been given to
people by the gods. The two drumskins are believed to have been given by
the god Iswara, and the sound by Visnu; the instrument is said to have
been constructed according to the instructions of Sakra and was played
in the heavenly palace of the gods. It is a very difficult instruments
to play. The dancer sings as he plays, tightening the strings to obtain
variations of pitch.
Pantheru dance
The pantheruwa is an instrument dedicated to the goddess Pattini. It
resembles a tambourine (without the skin) and has small cymbals attached
at intervals around its circumference. The dance is said to have
originated in the days of Prince Siddhartha, who became Buddha. The gods
were believed to use this instrument to celebrate victories in war, and
Sinhala kings employed pantheru dancers to celebrate victories in the
battlefield. The costume is similar to that of the uddekki dancer, but
the pantheru dancer wears no beaded jacket and substitutes a silk
handkerchief at the waist for the elaborate frills of the uddekki
dancer.
Vannams
Originally a Vannam (or
Wannam) was a kind of recitation. Most
Vannams describe the behaviour of animals such as Elephants, monkeys,
rabbits, peacock, cocks, serpents etc. Later dancers have used the
Vannam as a background song for their performance. There are 18 Vannams
in the Kandyan Dance form. Traditionally a dancer would have to learn to
perform all of these Vannams before they would be gifted the Ves
costume. The most well known among these are the Hanuma Vannama
(Monkey), The Ukusa Vannama (Eagle) and the Gajaga Vannama (Elephant).
The word "vannam" comes from the Sinhala word "varnana" (descriptive
praise). Ancient Sinhala texts refer to a considerable number of
"vannams" that were only sung; later they were adapted to solo dances,
each expressing a dominant idea. History reveals that the Kandyan king
Sri Weeraparakrama Narendrasinghe gave considerable encouragement to
dance and music. In this Kavikara Maduwa (a decorated dance arena) there
were song and poetry contests.
It is said that the kavi (poetry sung to music) for the eighteen
principal vannams were composed by an old sage named Ganithalankara,
with the help of a Buddhist priest from the Kandy temple. The vannams
were inspired by nature, history, legend,
folk religion,
folk art, and sacred lore, and each is composed and iterpreted in a
certain mood (rasaya) or expression of sentiment. The eighteen classical
vannams are gajaga ("elephant"), thuranga ("horse"), mayura
("peacock"), gahaka ("conch shell"), uranga ("crawling animals"),
mussaladi ("hare"), ukkussa ("eagle"), vyrodi ("precious stone"), hanuma
("monkey"), savula ("
cock"),
sinharaja ("lion king"), naaga ("cobra"), kirala ("red-wattled
lapwing"), eeradi ("arrow"), Surapathi (in praise of the goddess
Surapathi), Ganapathi (in praise of the god Ganapathi), uduhara
(expressing the pomp and majesty of the king), and assadhrusa (extolling
the merit of Buddha). To these were added samanala ("Butterfly"), bo
(the sacred bo tree at Anuradhapura, a sapling of the original bo tree
under which Buddha attained enlightenment), and hansa vannama ("swan").
The vannama dance tradition has seven components.
