Charya Dance Enthralls Janabahaa Audience

Organized by Macchindra Club, a Charya dance program was performed by the Lalitpur-based Singhini Research Center in the evening of July 23, 2010 on the street just outside the main gate of Janabahaa for the benefit of the general public.

Charya Nritya is an ancient ritual dance that dates back to over a thousand years, and is a religious discipline of the Vajrayana priests of Kathmandu, who perform the dance as part of their esoteric meditation practices, ceremonies and rituals.

The Newa Buddhist priests dance the Charya Nritya in a state of deep meditative awareness in order to embody the living presence of the compassionate, peaceful, and fierce divinities of the Vajrayana Buddhist pantheon.

Charya dance, which means “dance as a spiritual discipline,” is a sacred dance form.

Charya dance is a meditation discipline, vehicle of bodily and spiritual transformation, and opportunity for an audience to experience a vision of divine beauty.

After the performance at Janabahaa, the dance troupe has embarked on a trip to Switzerland and USA where they will be presenting special performances of the Charya dance. An excellent reference site to learn more about the Charya dance is http://www.dancemandal.com.

Photos by Alok Tuladhar.