Nata Sankirtana

Understand

Where Nata Sankirtana comes from

Nata Sankirtana is the Manipuri devotional narrative-dance tradition of the Vaishnavite cultural reorganisation of Manipur in the 18th century (after the rise of King Bhagyachandra and the adoption of Vaishnavism as the royal religion). The dance is the sung-narrative form of the Vaishnavite devotional practice, performed at the temple of Shri Govindaji in Imphal and at the regional Vaishnavite centres of the Meitei community. The dance draws on the devotional songs of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (the 16th century Bengali Vaishnavite saint) and on the Ramayana of Tulsidas, sung in the Meitei classical style. The Nata Sankirtana is one of the four ritual-based Manipuri dance forms (with Lai Haraoba, Huyen Langlon and Raas Lila) and is part of the broader Manipuri classical-dance tradition.

How it's practiced

Nata Sankirtana is performed by the Maibas and Maibis of the Manipuri community at the temple of Shri Govindaji in Imphal and at the regional Vaishnavite centres of the state. The dance is a devotional narrative-and-song cycle, with the male and female priest-dancers performing the slow, lyrical steps of the Manipuri vocabulary in coordinated sequences. The dance is performed in a slow, reverent style, with the pung and the small cymbals accompanying. Costume is the Vaishnavite traditional dress — the white dhoti and turban for the men and the cylindrical kumil for the women. Performances are at the temple of Shri Govindaji and at the cultural programmes of the state.