Therapeutic Mindfulness through Rasa

Abstract

Is the training and experience of rasa therapeutic in nature? Rasa, aesthetic essence, is the final goal of arts, and the quintessential flavour in all spheres of life. It is ultimate pleasure and satisfaction leading to spiritual bliss. In any field when work becomes a spiritual passion, complete satisfaction is achieved and thus there is rasa in it. This is possible when such activity becomes a vehicle for mind, body and spirit alignment, or yoga. On this I will draw reference to a Taittiriya Upanishad shloka Chapter 2, Section 7: Bliss is the essence of existence. Brahman is bliss. Spiritual bliss in aesthetic satisfaction is akin to the realization of the Brahman (Radhakrishnan, 1997, p. 549). According to Abhinavagupta, the principle commentator on rasa, there are five levels of aesthetic experience for the presenter and the perceiver; the sense level, the imaginative level, the emotive level, the carthartic level and the transcendental level. So how does Rasa work in realm of the spirit?For the performer when the enactment is a embodied representation it becomes encompasses all the five stages described by Abhinavaguta. Richard Schechner, discussing Rasaesthetics, perceives the Rasic performer, defining the performer as the first spectator. Kudiyattam training as a vehicle: Natyasastra does not explicitly refer to a yogic breath training but Kudiyattam, the ancient Sanskrit Theatre has specific breath training system to emote which requires focussed mind concentration, akin to a meditative technique. The Satvika Abhinaya practice of the form can easily be identified as a mindful practice. Phenomenological Studies, Empathy and Mirror Neurons: In the recent times there have been studies in Phenomenology with Empathy or concept of ‘In Feeling’ which resonate rasa sutra. First coined by Robert Visher as “aesthetic sympathy” or Einfulung, it was Theodore Lipps who first discussed empathy. Later Phenomenologists, Husserl, Scheler, and Stein, discussing the subjectivity of individual experiences, notes that everybody has their own lived experiences. Scheler and Stein hold that imitation is not required to understand the emotive content of the other being. Discovered a decade ago in Italy by Rizzolatti, the functioning of the mirror neurons explains why we empathize. Experiments showed that a monkey, observing another in pain or pleasure, had the same reaction. The same neurons are said to be present in human brains This paper will discuss the mindful and contemplative training and experience of Rasa which can be of therapeutic value. Pedagogically devised, this can become an important tool of art practice as therapy.