Shiva Statue - Antique Indian Style Bronze Dancing Shiva statue as Lord Nataraja - 66cm(26") Tall

Nataraja Statue - Antique Indian Style Bronze Dancing Shiva statue as Lord Nataraja - 66cm(26") Tall

Measures (Height) 66cm/26"

An antique Indian style dancing Shiva, depicted as Lord Nataraja in refined 10th‑century Chola style.

Here Shiva appears as the divine dancer and Lord of the dramatic arts, his body perfectly balanced within the circle of flame. With poised limbs and harmonious proportions, the sculpture captures the classical Nataraja pose in which Shiva’s dance sustains the endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution. In the Indian tradition, dance is not only a form of yoga but an image of the very act of cosmic creation; as Lord of Yoga, Shiva is the source of this primordial rhythm.

The Tamil sculptors of the Chola dynasty (mid‑ninth to early fourteenth centuries) gave Shiva the Dancer his most complete and enduring form, a vision that has become emblematic of Indian civilization. This piece follows that lineage closely. Shiva dances in a Natya Shastra based posture, his upper right hand holding the drum (damaru), whose beat signifies the first sound at the birth of the universe. His lower right hand makes a gesture of reassurance, offering protection and fearlessness.

In his upper left hand Shiva holds agni, the flame of destruction and transformation, while the lower left arm sweeps gracefully across the body, pointing toward the raised left foot—the refuge of the soul and symbol of liberation. Beneath his right foot lies the dwarf‑demon Apasmara (Muyalaka), embodiment of ignorance, crushed under the weight of divine awareness. Together, these elements map a complete path from delusion to enlightenment.

Shiva’s body is richly adorned: fingers, ankles, neck, face, head, elongated earlobes and garments are all carefully detailed and bejewelled. His broad shoulders and proud, composed visage are echoed by the explosive rhythm of his flying locks, which arc outward with the motion of the dance. The wavy strands recall the sacred Ganges flowing from his hair, underlining Shiva’s intimate connection with water as a life‑giving force.

Behind him rises an aureole with beaded border and flaming rim, crowned by a decorative finial that proclaims his divinity. Emerging from a lotus pedestal, this ring of multi‑tongued flames represents the universe itself—its primordial origin and its eventual dissolution by fire. The lotus, in turn, speaks of purity, compassion and the joy that arises from spiritual awakening.

Shiva stands upon a rectangular double‑lotus base, lifting his left leg in elegant suspension while firmly subduing Apasmara below. The contrast between the energetic sweep of the dance and the sculptural stillness of the pedestal gives the work great visual tension and power. His hair is piled in a tripartite chignon, discreetly ornamented, and he wears only essential sacred adornments: a necklace, diamond‑shaped earrings, the yajnopavita (sacred Brahmanical thread) and a single bangle on each wrist—details that emphasise both asceticism and majesty.

On his forehead shines the trilochana, Shiva’s third eye, the eye of wisdom that sees beyond māyā—the illusions and dualities of ordinary life—and is said to be the source of his untamed transformative energy. As destroyer and renewer, Shiva is regarded as limitless, transcendent and unchanging, as well as patron god of yoga, meditation and the arts. He forms part of the sacred Hindu Trimurti alongside Brahma and Vishnu.

Traditional in appearance yet timeless in impact, this Nataraja will add a commanding, contemplative presence to any home, workspace or sacred setting—a finely wrought embodiment of Shiva’s divine unity, rendered with compelling grace and authority.

To aid with safe transport your Shiva Nataraja will be packed in a wood crate before shipping, with DHL. The cost of wood crating, packing and shipping (with DHL) is included. 

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