Chapter 10: Components of Dance
Body, words, costume and feeling — the four abhinayas and the alignment that make dance dance.
Original notes — ready CBSE (NCERT, English Medium) • Class 9 • Arts • Book: Madhurima
Chapter 10: Components of Dance — EG's own notes, in simple words
Book: Madhurima (CBSE, Class 9) | Chapter 10 | Section: Dance | Medium: English
Diagram (labels are printed on the image): A dancer combining hand gestures, footwork and facial expression. A general picture about dance components; it is not a scene from the book.
Students practising hand gestures and steps in a dance class.
What the chapter is about
Dance is more than steps. A dancer's body, words, appearance and inner feeling all speak at once, and the audience reads all four together. This chapter names those parts so you can watch a performance the way a dancer plans it.
Two ideas organise the chapter. The first is body alignment, or saushthava: holding the body correctly so that an ordinary movement becomes a stylised dance movement, almost like a sculpture coming to life. The second is abhinaya, expressive communication, which has four kinds.
Chaturvidha Abhinaya: the four ways of expression
Angika abhinaya uses the body: stylised movements, footwork, hand gestures, rhythm, tempo and mood in dance sequences. Seraikella and Purulia Chhau use impressive masks with such body work, and the Koli dance of Maharashtra's fisherfolk is a mimetic representation of their work through movement.
Vachika abhinaya uses verbal elements: spoken or sung words, poetry, music and rhythmic syllables that support the dance. The Maharis of Shree Jagannatha Temple (Odisha) and temple dancers of the Somnath Temple, and archival Sadir artists who sang live while dancing, show this tradition.
Aharya abhinaya uses appearance: costumes, jewellery, make-up and props help create the character and mood. Sattvika abhinaya uses inner emotion: derived from sattva (purity and harmony), it is an immersive enactment in which the dancer truly feels, and the audience feels through bhavas into rasa.
Nrtta, nritya, rasa and rhythm
Dance is watched through linked ideas: nritta is pure dance, movement for its own beauty and rhythm; nritya is expressive dance, movement carrying meaning and story. Abhinayas, rasa and rhythm join them: a performance is judged by whether its body work, expression and beat agree.
Legends matter here because students fill blanks with their names in this chapter's exercises: the great dancers whose abhinaya — especially sattvika — carried emotion to the whole audience. Watching with these words in mind turns a dance from a blur of steps into a readable performance.
What you should learn
Dance = aligned body (saushthava) + four abhinayas (angika, vachika, aharya, sattvika), read together with nritta, nritya, rasa and rhythm.
Key Terms
- Saushthava — Correct body alignment in dance.
- Abhinaya — Expressive communication in dance.
- Angika abhinaya — Expression through the body: gestures, footwork, movement.
- Vachika abhinaya — Expression through verbal elements: words, song, rhythm syllables.
- Aharya abhinaya — Expression through appearance: costume, jewellery, make-up, props.
- Sattvika abhinaya — Expression through inner emotion, from sattva (purity, harmony).
- Nritta — Pure dance: movement for beauty and rhythm.
- Nritya — Expressive dance: movement carrying meaning and story.
- Bhava / Rasa — Emotion shown / feeling felt by the audience.
Remember
- Alignment (saushthava) turns ordinary movement into dance movement.
- Four abhinayas: angika (body), vachika (words), aharya (appearance), sattvika (inner emotion).
- Chhau uses masks; Koli dance mimes fisherfolk work.
- Sadir artists sang live while dancing (vachika).
- Read a dance by nritta, nritya, abhinaya, rasa and rhythm together.
Common mistake: watching only footwork. A dance is read through all four abhinayas — body, words, costume and inner feeling — plus rhythm.
Chart / Table: The building blocks of dance
| Point | Detail |
|---|---|
| Saushthava | Body alignment: holding the body correctly |
| Angika abhinaya | Body: gestures, footwork, tempo, mood |
| Vachika abhinaya | Words: spoken/sung words, poetry, rhythm syllables |
| Aharya abhinaya | Appearance: costume, jewellery, make-up, props |
| Sattvika abhinaya | Inner emotion: sattva, purity and harmony |
| Nritta / Nritya | Pure dance / expressive dance |
Practice set — try it yourself
- Show saushthava: stand in alignment, then let it go. What changes?
Hint: Notice how the same movement looks ordinary without alignment. - Perform one idea in angika only, then in vachika only.
Hint: Compare what the body alone and words alone can say. - Identify the abhinaya in three pictures: mask dance, singing dancer, costumed dancer.
Hint: Match body, words, appearance. - Recreate a tiger dance with your own interpretation.
Hint: Use alignment, breath and shapes, not just speed. - Watch a dance and note its nritta and nritya moments separately.
Hint: Pure movement versus story movement.
Questions with Answers
- What is saushthava, and why does it matter?
Saushthava is correct body alignment. It transforms an ordinary movement into a stylised dance movement, almost like a sculpture coming to life. - Name the four abhinayas.
Angika (body), vachika (verbal elements), aharya (appearance) and sattvika (inner emotion) — together, chaturvidha abhinaya. - How is vachika abhinaya shown in dance?
Through spoken or sung words, poetry, music and rhythmic syllables that support the dance — as when Sadir artists sang live while dancing. - What is the difference between nritta and nritya?
Nritta is pure dance, movement for its own beauty and rhythm. Nritya is expressive dance, movement that carries meaning and story. - What is sattvika abhinaya?
Expression through inner emotion. From sattva (purity and harmony), it is an immersive enactment in which the dancer truly feels, and the audience feels through bhavas into rasa.
Extension questions — go deeper
- Which elements are NOT essential for proper body alignment? Justify.
Answers test the chapter's list: alignment needs posture, balance and awareness of the body's lines; speed or loud music alone do not create it. - Explain one abhinaya in depth, with an example from the chapter.
For example, aharya: costume, jewellery, make-up and props create character and mood before a single step is danced. - Identify the abhinaya in a picture and fill in the missing labels.
Mask work points to angika; live singing points to vachika; costume detail points to aharya; a tearful, felt expression points to sattvika. - Fill in the blanks with the name of a legend of the dance forms.
Use the chapter's legends: their abhinaya, especially sattvika, is what carried emotion to the whole audience. - Journal your observations of a dance performance.
Note alignment, each abhinaya you saw, moments of nritta versus nritya, and the rasa you felt.
- Saushthava = alignment that makes movement dance.
- Chaturvidha abhinaya: angika, vachika, aharya, sattvika.
- Chhau masks, Koli mime, Sadir live singing: examples to remember.
- Nritta = pure dance; nritya = expressive dance.
- Read dance by abhinaya + rasa + rhythm together.
How to use this page: Read the summary, say the Key Terms in your own words, then try the practice set without looking. Use the Questions with Answers to check yourself afterwards. Ask your teacher or parent to check your answers.