Week 4 - Forum - Rasa, Classical Indian Aesthetics

Indian performer provide the audiences with different types of feelings/"rasa" while performing. The nine principal rasa (navarasa) with examples are as follows:

Hasya
happiness/joy/comic. The most common expression of hasya is humour. Hasya is also joy or sarcasm. Natural joy is the result of seeing the beauty and miracle of life. Sometimes manifested in laughter.

fast high flute, human laugh,

Adbhuta
wonder/reverence. Comes when one realises of their own ignorance. When we know that some things are not understandable, it makes us curious and hence, it makes our life more adventurous and exciting. This is the start of a spiritual journey.

warm pads chord

Veera
courage/heroic. This is the rasa of fearlessness, self-assurance, determination, heroism, valor, and perfect control of body and mind. However, ego, pride and arrogance must be controlled. Competition is encouraged but when one takes winning or losing too seriously, it becomes a problem

dotted rhythm, timpani + snare

Shringara
love/erotic. It's beauty and means the enjoyment of the company of the opposite sex. It could also be the love for the atmosphere, art, family, friends or romance. As love and beauty shares the same word, love should be enhanced by beauty and vice versa.

harp arpeggios,

Karuna - literally means sadness, sorrow
compassion. Sadness isn't our true nature, but bliss is. A higher degree of sadness is transformed into compassion. Main cause of karuna is loneliness. Sometimes when one gets older, karuna takes over as strengths and abilities deteriorate. When one is dying, karuna also normally comes, as one knows that the end is near, except if they believe in eternity.

high strings descending harmony,

Krodha
anger/furious. Can be constructive if used properly. For example: an anger of a mother to a child, or a teacher to a student, etc. But when not controlled, the anger can take over one's life. Expressing it appropriately is better than to let it contain inside oneself. However, when not expressed appropriately, it makes one loses their inner peace.

string bass running notes, volcano eruption, thunderstorm


Bhibasta
disgust/loathing. No rasa is more demonic and useless than disgust. It is vulgar, uncivilised, uses bad words, and shows bad intentions to others. Can be mastered when one enjoys the company of others and oneself. The best thing to do is to ignore the rasa.

powerful trombone descending slides,

Bhayanaka
fear/terror. Caused by ignorance, When something is unknown, assumptions and imaginations take over and when one is not confident, fearful things are imagined. Fear is also a natural feelings that keeps us away from harm.

loud diminished chord, high tremolo strings, chick's distress call, human scream

Shanta
serenity/tranquillity. Comes in meditation. For true Peace, body, mind, ego, and intellect must become perfectly still. Many people recognises saints as people who do nothing. At the same time, no one understand how difficult doing nothing really is. A balance between needs and desires is required.

mellow string chords, french horn, water flow, birds tweetering, celesta chords

Reference: Stephen Whittington. "Week 4 Forum - Rasa, Classical Indian Aesthetics." Lecture presented at the Electronic Music Unit, University of Adelaide, 2008.