Shiva Nataraja
India, Chola dynasty, c. 1100
Bronze
35 x 28 x 10 in. (88.9 x 71.12 x 25.4 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Eugene McDermott, the Hamon Charitable Foundation, and an anonymous donor in honor of David T. Owsley, with additional funding from The Cecil and Ida Green Foundation and the Cecil and Ida Green Acquisition Fund, 2000.377

In the Hindu tradition, music and dance are a pathway to divinity. The Hindu god Shiva is not only Lord of the Dance but also the deity of creation, destruction, and rebirth. In his most transcendent form as Nataraja, the Divine Dancer, he embodies the energy of the entire cosmos. Shiva dances the rhythm of the universe, surrounded by flames. With his drum he beats out the universal rhythm; in another hand he holds the flame of death.
His lower hands promise release from the endless wheel of rebirth. His beautiful body, foot raised in rhythmic dance, and his sweetly expressive face are the incarnation of power and love.