Dr.V.AshaKumari
Head & Research Supervisor
Centre for Post Graduate Studies and Research in English,
Muslim Arts College,Thiruvithancode.
(Affiliated to ManonmaniamSundaranarUniversity,Tirunelveli) 

Abstract

Indian traditional art forms are an important part of Indian Knowledge System (IKS) because it preserves Indian traditional knowledge of philosophy, spirituality, the human body, nature, community, ethics and modes of learning. Along with acting as a mode of entertainment, traditional art forms of India transmit knowledge through embodied practice, oral narrative traditions, ritual performances, symbolism, music, gesture, costumes and audience experience. When it comes to IKS, that is, the Indian knowledge systems, its traces can be found in a variety of art forms in India. Whether it is the long-standing classical arts or the Performing Arts that require stage presentation, all contain traces left by this system.The art forms of Southern India like Kathakali, Kutiyattam, Theyyam, Yakshagana, and several folk, ritual performances carry the Indian Knowledge Systems that have been passed down from generations back. The contemporary Indian Knowledge Systems initiatives recognize performing arts as an important area of knowledge that encourages interdisciplinary research in these traditions. This research article examines the conceptual relationship between IKS and Indian traditional performing art forms which focuses primarily on embodied knowledge, aesthetics. The core directions covered in this research include guru-sisya transmissions, spirituality, ecology, community memory.

Keywords: Indian Knowledge System (IKS), Indian traditional knowledge, Kathakali, Kutiyattam, Theyyam,  Yakshagana.

Introduction

Indian Knowledge system (IKS) refers to the interconnected diverse knowledge developed in the Indian subcontinent. It developed through centuries of intellectual, cultural, oral traditions that existed in the subcontinent. The origins and development of the contexts in centuries-old Indian Knowledge in the fields of philosophy, literature, linguistics, astronomy, medicine, mathematics, agriculture, ecology, music, dance, theatre, visual arts and spirituality can all be found in this system. These contents, passed down from ancient times, have always been bound to this system and inherited together to this day.

In addition to literary intellectual texts, Indian Knowledge System includes living traditions preserved through communities, oral transmissions, and every day practices. Performing arts and fine arts can be included in the areas of IKS. Traditional performances evolved out of literature, music, philosophy, rituals, psychology, and discipline of the body, and community knowledge integrates Indian knowledge, experience, practice and cultural memory, growing from the land of India.

IKS usually enquires into the interconnectedness between human beings, society, nature and the cosmos, which is acquired through practice and experience instead of theoretical study. Since many traditions have been passed down orally – through stories, songs – and oral instruction, many existing studies have focused on the Indian guru-sisya tradition, all centering on the same core question: how this ancient master-apprentice inheritance model directly transfers knowledge from teacher to student, exploring what role this tradition plays in the entire process of knowledge inheritance.

Its focus on traditional community-based knowledge attaches importance to knowledge transmitted through communities, families, practitioners and indigenous groups. IKS, this Indian knowledge system, breaks away from the modern academic knowledge framework we are familiar with, offering another way of thinking that helps us re-understand what knowledge, culture, nature and society are, and how they influence each other. It is relevant as an interdisciplinary way of understanding the contemporary world. It gives scholars a chance to investigate Indian intellectual and cultural traditions that go beyond the long-standing inherent assumption that knowledge only exists in the theory-centric modern academic system, with the boundaries of knowledge defined within this system, and nothing outside it counts as real knowledge.

Interconnectedness between IKS and Indian Traditional Art Forms

The contemporary Indian Knowledge Systems framework recognizes “Performing Arts” as an important area of research within Indian knowledge traditions (Indian Knowledge Systems Division). Present IKS framework scope ranges across wide areas including historical and civilization studies, speech and linguistics, mathematical and astronomical sciences, health sciences, agriculture, performing arts, architecture, fine arts and sculpture, and other fields. This interdisciplinary character can also be applied to Indian traditional art forms. For example, an Indian classical dancer must have the knowledge of rhythm, music, gesture, mythology, literature, mudras, costumes and narrative traditions connected to the performance. Thus, these traditional art forms are not paper-based knowledge floating in books, but a kind of “living knowledge”. It cannot be learned by sitting in classrooms reading lecture notes and taking exams. To truly grasp this knowledge and engrave it into one’s bones, several things must be achieved: one must practice hard day after day in accordance with the rules, without slacking or interrupting; one must observe carefully following the examples of predecessors, taking in all the details; one must proactively imitate and polish every link, not altering it arbitrarily; one must memorize all the contents carefully, without ambiguity or omission; one must fully devote oneself to every step of the art inheritance process; and finally, one must continue to perform on stage, activating and passing on the knowledge in real presentations.

Bharata Muni’s Natyasastra, the text traditionally associated with dramaturgy and performance, is one of the important foundations for understanding the relationship between IKS and traditional performing arts. Its scope extends across multiple dimensions of artistic knowledge. The book explains how an artistic performance becomes systematic knowledge by discussing dramatic composition, acting, gesture, movement, music, dance, stage design, costume and makeup, emotional states, aesthetic experience and performance conventions. In a stage performance, content is not only conveyed through the lines spoken, but also through abhinaya – that is, bodily performance. It is not only about telling the story to the audience through speech; the performers’ bodily movements, expressions and gestures, these physical expressions, are also core parts of conveying information in the performance. They must cooperate with language to fully present the intended content.

This integrated understanding of gestures, facial expressions, costumes and external representations, the concept derived from this ancient text, has been passed down to this day and still promotes the development of Indian performing arts. The rasa theory proposed in this text requires performers to not only replicate movements in the performance, but to master how to convey the emotions and aesthetic feelings hidden in the movements to the audience. The performer must be careful to communicate emotional experience through organized aesthetic vocabulary. The Natyasastra identifies different modes of abhinaya, including bodily expression, speech, costume and representation, and emotional expression (Bharata). The relationship between the performer, performance, emotion, and the audience thus becomes a knowledge system. Thus Natyasasthra is considered as an interdisciplinary text connecting aesthetics, psychology, Indian philosophy, music, movement, language and social experience.

Embodied knowledge in traditional art forms explains the connection between IKS and the art. Performers learn knowledge through their body with repeated body practice rather than through textual studies. For example in the South Indian classical art form Kathakali, performers learning this art have to practice too many things: they must be able to move their eyes to produce specific expressions, control every muscle in their face to convey emotions, strike every correct body posture, perform every established specialized gesture, and accurately follow the beat to produce coherent movements. These abilities cannot be self-taught from books; they rely on years of rigorous training. Even one day without practice may lead to unfamiliar[loss of proficiency], and they have to be honed into one’s own body year after year. Kutiyattam, another Indian traditional performance art, also has the same rigorous training requirements. Behind these bodily movements lies a complete inheritance logic, which precisely shows that the body itself is a medium through which knowledge is transmitted between people. It does not need to rely on written records or textual transcription; as long as a movement is performed correctly and a posture is passed on accurately, the knowledge hidden within can be passed from one learner to the next through practice and performance.

A performer’s movement can preserve a cultural memory, a gesture can communicate a complex narrative and a ritual or action can transmit philosophical meaning. Thus embodied knowledge is important to understand Indian performances. The performers who inherit these traditional arts are both practitioners and custodians of knowledge. They spend a lot of time every day repeating bodily movements, memorizing performance content, polishing performance details, integrating the knowledge passed down from their predecessors into their own bodies, and practically using this knowledge to complete every performance; at the same time, they preserve this knowledge, which cannot be fully written on paper and can only be passed on through hands-on teaching, in their own experiences and skills, waiting to pass it on to future learners.

The guru-sisya tradition, which is very pivotal in learning traditional Indian art forms, also explains the connection between IKS and traditional art forms. Knowledge based on observation, repetition, discipline, correction, memory and internalization could only be possible through face-to-face interaction between teachers and students to transmit the knowledge that cannot be written on paper and can only be passed on through hands-on teaching. This learning method relies on the long-term close relationship gradually established between the two. This mode of transmission includes tacit elements that cannot be communicated by only reading written texts; one must dive into practical training and truly acquire the knowledge through repeated practice.

Traditional arts of India are closely associated to Indian aesthetic theories of rasa, bhava, abhinaya, dhvani, which are essential for understanding the artistic experiences. “Vibhavanubhava-vyabhicari-samyogad rasa-nispattih” (Bharata 6.31). Based on rasa theory, artistic performances need to transform individual emotion into aesthetic experience which is shared between performer and the spectator. Thus the role of art goes beyond representation and entertainment. For example, Kathakali is one of the art forms which bring together literature, music, dance, acting, martial training, costume, makeup, ritual, and philosophy. Its knowledge structure can be studied through several dimensions:

1. a) At the aesthetic level the performer needs to apply concepts associated with rasa, bhava and abhinaya
2. b) At bodily level, the performance demands the performer’s control over eyes, face, hands and movements
3. c) At musical level singers and the persons who handle musical instruments contribute to the emotional and dramatic structure of the performance
4. d) At linguistic level the performance is based on the literary and poetic traditions
5. e) At the visual level, the costumes and makeup of the character convey symbolic meanings.
6. f) At philosophical level the stories of the performance deal with the concepts of dharma, morality, devotion etc. These are the core contents often carried in Indian traditional art performances, which are gradually conveyed to the audience through the movements, symbols and stories in the performance.

Thus Kathakali, the classical art form exemplifies the relations between traditional art form and IKS.

Kutiyattam is another example that shows the application of IKS and traditional art. It is not an art form born out of thin air; it developed by integrating the Indian Sanskrit theatrical tradition with the local indigenous practices passed down in the region.

UNESCO identifies Kutiyattam as a living theatrical tradition that has existed for more than a thousand years. It is defined as a product of the integration of Sanskrit classicism and the local traditions of Kerala. In the entire performance, performers do not only rely on lines to convey content; they also use rich facial expressions, precise eye movements, established gestures, and a complete set of bodily movements to convey the story to the audience. This form illustrates how theoretical knowledge affects the performance. Kuttampalam, the ancient theatre space where Kutiyattam is performed, also demonstrates this connection, which must be broken down into specific scenarios to be explained: the interrelationship between architecture, ritual and performance. These three are not isolated entities; they are interlocked and intertwined. The architectural space must cooperate with the ritual process, the logic of the ritual must support the content of the performance, and in turn, the development of the performance must follow the layout of the architecture, and the implementation of the ritual must rely on the form of the performance. From the planning of the venue to the specific execution, every link is connected to another, and cannot be separated and discussed alone.

Interconnectedness between IKS and Ritual, Folk Performances

Ritual and folk performances also show the connection between IKS and traditional art forms. Ritual performances like Theyyam, Mudiyettu, Padayani, Yakshagana, Ramaila etc combine artistic expression with community memory, ritual, mythology, ecology and social identity. This shows that art, religion, community and knowledge are inseparable in the Indian context. A ritual performance thus becomes a religious ceremony, an artistic event, a pedagogical practice, a gathering of community, and a means of preserving cultural memory. Traditional performances function as repositories of cultural memory because they preserve myths, narratives, gestures. The contents passed down and preserved from generation to generation include the music used in performances, the supporting ritual procedures, the exclusive costumes of the performers, and the traditional customs that the same community jointly abides by and practices (UNESCO).

IKS and Eco criticism

Many traditional performances which are closely associated to forests, agricultural landscapes, sacred groves and seasonal cycles show the connection between art forms and the ecological knowledge. Preservation of community knowledge about the local environment is possible through these artistic representations. Ritual performances can establish among the spectators the consciousness of the relationship between humans, nonhuman beings, ancestors, deities and landscapes. Thus IKS can be connected to eco criticism. The traditional art conceptualizes human dependence upon and responsibility towards the natural world. Theyyam and Gaddhika are examples of tribal performance traditions in Kerala which are closely related to ecological knowledge in the Indian knowledge system discussed in this content.

During ancient times when knowledge was circulated through oral traditions, performance became a powerful archive. Through performing an art, the performer participates in the preservation and renewal of cultural memory. Stories, myths, songs, gestures, costumes can carry collective memories from one generation to another. Thus the concept of community, when it comes to the collective memories passed down from generation to generation in the community, the shared memories hidden in the stories, gestures and rituals of the performances, not only preserves the heritage of the ancestors, but also expands the scope of application of Indigenous Knowledge Systems to a wider and farther range.

Role of IKS in the Modern Era

Even though traditional art forms are the reservoir of knowledge, they face several challenges in the modern world. Changes in patronage, commercialization, urbanization, the decline of the traditional training system, changing audiences and economic difficulties may affect the continuity of these performance-based shows, that is, whether they can always be completely passed down and maintain their original state of existence.

The decline of traditional patronage created serious difficulties for the continuity of Kutiyattam and the communities traditionally associated with its performance (UNESCO). Traditionally, Indian performance arts were supported by royal courts, temples, aristocratic families, and religious institutions. Back then, performers could devote themselves completely to training because of the support provided by these institutions. With the decline of these institutions, performers have to depend on grants provided by the government or private enterprises, the only sources of funding that support traditional art practitioners today. However, whether these funds can be received, how much can be obtained, is uncertain, and even whether they can be sustained is questionable. Without basic income security, no one is willing to choose this path as a lifelong career. The younger generation is unwilling to take traditional art as their profession, so artists can only shorten and modify their performances in accordance with modern commercial events, the requirements of tourists and for television festivals. Thus their performances are controlled by market demands. This creates tension between cultural authenticity and marketability. They are forced to discard several ritual and philosophical elements behind their arts to suit contemporary audience preferences, which have changed. The originally complete traditional performances have to be shortened to keep up with market demand, and the commercialization of art has caused a negative impact on traditional performances.

Urbanization is another challenge faced by the traditional arts. As people migrate to the towns and cities we live in today, the traditional places that originally carried local culture, such as villages, temples that enshrine beliefs, and sacred groves revered by local people, have disappeared. The specific scenarios where these traditional arts are rooted, and the unique value they carry in their respective communities, have been adversely affected, causing harm to the performances.

The decline of traditional training centers creates a serious problem. Nowadays, students learning ritual arts can no longer have the guru-sisya master-apprentice relationship of the past – the once close, day-to-day bond between teachers and students has long lost its soil. In the past, to learn this kind of traditional ritual art, all the detailed knowledge that could not be written on paper and could only be taught and passed on personally by the teacher relied on this kind of day-to-day coexistence to be transmitted. The teacher had to supervise and correct the student’s every movement, explain in detail the subtle considerations hidden in the ritual, and the student also had to immerse themselves in the teacher’s daily life to engrave the unspoken expertise into their bones. But now the environment that allows teachers and students to stay together every day is gone. Young people who want to learn ritual arts can no longer find that opportunity to receive the complete heritage passed down from their ancestors through such a close relationship, through which specialized knowledge are transmitted.

Modern audiences prefer shorter performances through cinema and social media, instead of long night performances that require several hours and may extend across multiple days. For them, traditional performances are difficult to understand and unattractive. These external demands force performers to shorten their performances. The originally complete performance that might have taken several hours or even an entire night is abruptly cut short, with most of the content removed. As a result, many traditional elements passed down from ancestors that were originally hidden in the complete process disappear from the streamlined performance.

The income generated from performances is unpredictable and seasonal, so artists face financial insecurity. Performances also require expensive costumes, instruments, makeup materials and training facilities. As a result, talented young people choose occupations that bring them stable income. The most core challenge among all is the separation of an art form from the cultural context in which it was originally rooted. The performances that were once connected to temples, rituals, sacred landscapes, and the festivals that were originally held in accordance with different seasons of the year based on mythological backgrounds, have gradually lost their original cultural core today, becoming mere entertainment items for pastime, losing their cultural knowledge. This can be seen in ritual arts like Theyyam, Padayani and Mudiyettu, the art forms mentioned in this article, all of which belong to India’s folk ritual performances, are part of India’s indigenous traditional performing arts, and have a profound connection with the inheritance of Indian Knowledge System.

These challenges are important from the perspective of Indian Knowledge System because traditional arts are not merely performances. They contain knowledge about aesthetics, philosophy, body discipline, music, mythology, ritual, and community. If a genuine traditional art form disappears completely, the knowledge system that has relied on it to survive and live in the present will also disappear completely from the land that originally carried it. This knowledge has never been dead content gathering dust in books; it is living content that actually circulates in the community, following the artist’s every rehearsal and performance, the rules passed down orally from generation to generation, and the empathy and memory of the audience sitting together. When the art is gone, the carrier that supports the circulation of this knowledge is also gone, and this living knowledge system naturally cannot be retained. Thus the preservation of these art forms is necessary. It should include recording live performances, documenting their techniques and ritual contexts, recording the oral histories, preserving the performance spaces, creating digital archives, and promoting existing research in this field, which is exploring the path of studying traditional art as interdisciplinary knowledge – to understand it, one cannot only focus on the art dimension to analyze it; one must connect the contexts of multiple fields to see the whole picture. Even just looking at a complete performance, it may cover literature, philosophy, music, dance, theatre, psychology, ritual, and architecture, costume, and community studies. This character corresponds to the objectives of IKS division.

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