Dancing Shiva - South Indian Temple Wood Carving

The beautiful wooden figure of Lord Shiva performing his cosmic dance is given a refine and detail treatment. Nataraja (The King of Dance) is the dancing posture of the Shiva, who performs his divine dance as a part of his divine duties of creation and destruction. The Lord Shiva is shown dancing in a circle of flames, lifting his left leg and balancing over a demon or dwarf (Apasmara) who symbolizes ignorance. It is a well-known scultptural symbol in India and popularly used as a symbol of Indian culture. The form is present in most Shiva temples in South India, and is the main deity in the famous temple at Chidambaram.
The upper right hand holds a small drum shaped like an hourglass that is called a damaru in Sanskrit. It is called Dhamarukha in Hindi. A specific hand gesture (mudra) is used to hold the drum. It symbolizes sound originating Creation.
As the Lord of Dance, Nataraja, Shiva performs the tandava, the dance in which the universe is created, maintained, and resolved. Shiva's long, matted tresses, usually piled up in a knot, loosen during the dance and crash into the heavenly bodies, knocking them off course or destroying them utterly.