Shadanga
Also called: Six limbs of painting · Topic: Early Indian Art and Architecture: Stupas, Rock-cut Caves, Temples · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Shadanga means the "six limbs" of Indian painting. These are six rules for judging a good picture:
- rupabheda: knowing different forms
- pramana: proportion
- bhava: emotion
- lavanya yojana: grace
- sadrishya: likeness
- varnikabhanga: skilled use of colour
The list comes from Yashodhara's commentary (a book that explains another book) on Vatsyayana's Kamasutra. That commentary was written centuries after Ajanta. Even so, scholars use these six rules to study Ajanta and later Indian painting.
Example
The Bodhisattva Padmapani painting at Ajanta shows several of the six limbs: the right proportions, a calm and gentle mood, a graceful pose, and shading that makes the figure look solid.
Don't confuse with
- Rasa theory: comes from Bharata's Natyashastra. It is about the mood art creates in the viewer, not about the techniques of painting.
Related concepts
- Gupta art
- Sarnath school of art
- Mudras
- Abhaya mudra
- Bhumisparsha mudra
- Dharmachakra mudra
- Dhyana mudra
- Varada mudra
- Vitarka mudra
- Anjali mudra