Colestial Dancers
Apsaras-divine dancing girls and wives of the divide musicians ( grandharvas )-feature prominently in Angkor's stone carvings. Apsaras first appeared during the ''Churning of the Ocean of Milk'' the act of creation and quest for immortality in ancient Hindu mythology.
According to this legend, a row of demon gods( Asuras ) pulled the head of a giant serpent while a row of guardian gods( devas ) pulled the serpent's tail in tug-of-war the lasted for 1000 years. As the devas and the demons pushed and pulled the serpent back and forth, the ocean began to churn, giving rise to the elements. The role of the apsaras was to sing and dance, thereby encouraging the churning. The ocean was '' Milked '' , and the earth and the cosmos came into being. This legend is celebrated in the famous bas-relief in the south section of Angkor Wat's East Gallery. Legend also holds that an acts of love between the apsara Mera And the hermit Kumpu, conceived the nation of Kumpu_Mera-what we know as Kampuchea or Cambodia. Apsara dance has roots in two majors forms of Khmer dancing. The oldest form of dance originated in animist practices and primitive magic. Its Hindu forms were introduced during the time of Indian influence beginning in the 1st century AD. The second, classical form of traditional dance, the Court of Dance of Cambodia, adopted its own unique style, broadening its movement s and meaning during the reigns of King Jayavarman II to VII. The graceful movements of Apsara dancers are central to classical dance as it is still performed today. Dressed in skin-tight silk tunics embellished with the gold and silver thread, barefoot wearing ornate headdresses and with outstretched arms, the dances perform with incredible grace to a pinpeat orchestra of gongs, drums, xylophones, horns and stringed instruments. Most of the the classical dances are like Western plays, but usually tell stories taken from a classical Hindu, epic, the Ramayana. It's estimated tha 3000 apsaras dances were performed in the 12th-century court of King Jayavarman VII. By the 13the century, the form was more Khmer than Indian, and unlike any other dances tradition in the world. Classical in the world. Classical dancing has been dormant since since the sacking of the Empire around AD 1400, when the glory of Angkor faded and, with it, the Kmer cultural dominance of Southeast Asia. Apsara dancers were seized and taken to what was know as Siam( now Thailand ). Over many centuries, the dance of the apsaras inspired the traditional dances of both Thailand and other neighboring countries, its postures and movements permeating numerous Southeast Asian dance forms. Traditional dance has never died out in Cambodia, unlike classical dance, which was once threatened with extinction and only recently revived by Queen Kossomak and Princes Buppha Devi. Today, both forms are flourishing. Queen Kossomak modernized many dance traditions, herself visiting numerous primary schools searching for girls who would make good dancers. She sough out girls with fine bones and graceful, limbs who were then tough, to begin with, at schools outside the palace. In time, they were trained within the palace, a system that continues to this day. Classical dance includes over 4,500 hand gestures and flowing body movements. Each and every gesture and movement has meaning, some of them very subtitle. A dancer's fingers pointing to the sky represents'' today'', while arms crossing the chest means'' very happy''. Fast switching in a downward direction depicts two of the four parts of human life in Buddhist teaching: birth, life, sickness, and death. Most professional performers began to dance about age of 5 and, by the age of 30 on average, they are fully skilled in this technique. They start to learn hand exercises at this early age to loosen their joints.(Dancers must be tough while their bones are still pliable.)
Formerly, classical dance was the Royal dance, staged only before royalty to commemorate their ruling ancestors and to honor the gods. Nowadays, it can also be enjoyed by ordinary Cambodians and foreign tourists alike, often in such venues as hotels and restaurants. The carvings on the Angkor's Temples immortalize the spirit of the Apsaras, ensuring that their heritage in passed on across the generations.
According to this legend, a row of demon gods( Asuras ) pulled the head of a giant serpent while a row of guardian gods( devas ) pulled the serpent's tail in tug-of-war the lasted for 1000 years. As the devas and the demons pushed and pulled the serpent back and forth, the ocean began to churn, giving rise to the elements. The role of the apsaras was to sing and dance, thereby encouraging the churning. The ocean was '' Milked '' , and the earth and the cosmos came into being. This legend is celebrated in the famous bas-relief in the south section of Angkor Wat's East Gallery. Legend also holds that an acts of love between the apsara Mera And the hermit Kumpu, conceived the nation of Kumpu_Mera-what we know as Kampuchea or Cambodia. Apsara dance has roots in two majors forms of Khmer dancing. The oldest form of dance originated in animist practices and primitive magic. Its Hindu forms were introduced during the time of Indian influence beginning in the 1st century AD. The second, classical form of traditional dance, the Court of Dance of Cambodia, adopted its own unique style, broadening its movement s and meaning during the reigns of King Jayavarman II to VII. The graceful movements of Apsara dancers are central to classical dance as it is still performed today. Dressed in skin-tight silk tunics embellished with the gold and silver thread, barefoot wearing ornate headdresses and with outstretched arms, the dances perform with incredible grace to a pinpeat orchestra of gongs, drums, xylophones, horns and stringed instruments. Most of the the classical dances are like Western plays, but usually tell stories taken from a classical Hindu, epic, the Ramayana. It's estimated tha 3000 apsaras dances were performed in the 12th-century court of King Jayavarman VII. By the 13the century, the form was more Khmer than Indian, and unlike any other dances tradition in the world. Classical in the world. Classical dancing has been dormant since since the sacking of the Empire around AD 1400, when the glory of Angkor faded and, with it, the Kmer cultural dominance of Southeast Asia. Apsara dancers were seized and taken to what was know as Siam( now Thailand ). Over many centuries, the dance of the apsaras inspired the traditional dances of both Thailand and other neighboring countries, its postures and movements permeating numerous Southeast Asian dance forms. Traditional dance has never died out in Cambodia, unlike classical dance, which was once threatened with extinction and only recently revived by Queen Kossomak and Princes Buppha Devi. Today, both forms are flourishing. Queen Kossomak modernized many dance traditions, herself visiting numerous primary schools searching for girls who would make good dancers. She sough out girls with fine bones and graceful, limbs who were then tough, to begin with, at schools outside the palace. In time, they were trained within the palace, a system that continues to this day. Classical dance includes over 4,500 hand gestures and flowing body movements. Each and every gesture and movement has meaning, some of them very subtitle. A dancer's fingers pointing to the sky represents'' today'', while arms crossing the chest means'' very happy''. Fast switching in a downward direction depicts two of the four parts of human life in Buddhist teaching: birth, life, sickness, and death. Most professional performers began to dance about age of 5 and, by the age of 30 on average, they are fully skilled in this technique. They start to learn hand exercises at this early age to loosen their joints.(Dancers must be tough while their bones are still pliable.)
Formerly, classical dance was the Royal dance, staged only before royalty to commemorate their ruling ancestors and to honor the gods. Nowadays, it can also be enjoyed by ordinary Cambodians and foreign tourists alike, often in such venues as hotels and restaurants. The carvings on the Angkor's Temples immortalize the spirit of the Apsaras, ensuring that their heritage in passed on across the generations.
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