Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
36 lakshanas! Every performer knows this. A play or a dance is not made alive by words alone. It shines through structure. The Natyashastra lists thirty-six lakṣaṇas, or excellent points of dramatic composition. They are the very foundation of how rasa flows on stage.
Let’s understand what each lakshana is and how you can use it.
Why the 36 lakshanas matter?
Without these points, a performance feels bland. With them, the work of choreography breathes. The audience senses wit, discovery, brilliance, persuasion. The play becomes layered. Even a dancer performing solo can bring new life to abhinaya by weaving just a handful of these lakshanas.
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The 36 lakshanas explained
1. Ornateness (bhūṣaṇa)
Meaning: Use of poetic figures like alaṅkāras that decorate the work.
In practice: Add grace to speech or gesture. When speaking of beauty, show a blooming lotus.
2. Compactness (akṣara-saṃghāta)
Meaning: Expressing deep sense in very few words.
Example: “Life is breath.”
On stage: A single sigh with a drooping head tells a whole story of despair.
3. Brilliance (śobhā)
Meaning: Playing with double meanings, often bringing out the less obvious one.
Practice: While saying maya as illusion, also hint at Māyā as the goddess through a glance.
4. Parallelism (udāharaṇa)
Meaning: Using one situation to suggest another.
Example: “The rising sun guides the world as dharma guides kings.”
On stage: A heroine waiting for her lover is shown like a lotus waiting for the sun.
5. Causation (hetu)
Meaning: A short, pleasing line that directly produces effect.
Performance cue: Tears roll, then a gesture to separation. The reason is clear.
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6. Hesitation (saṃśaya)
Meaning: Ending without finishing, leaving doubt.
Dance use: The heroine starts to confess love but turns her face away.
7. Favourable precedent (dṛṣṭānta)
Meaning: Quoting a known example that supports your point.
Practice: A king shows mercy by recalling Rāma’s compassion.
8. Discovery (prāpti)
Meaning: Inferring something from signs.
Example: A heroine sees disturbed sandal paste and knows her lover has returned.
9. Fancy (abhiprāya)
Meaning: Conceiving new ideas based on similarity.
Performance: A poet compares laughter to falling jasmine.
10. Unfavourable precedent (nidarśana)
Meaning: Giving examples to reject an argument.
Example: “Even mighty Raavana fell through pride.”
11. Additional Explanation (nirukta)
Meaning: Words added to strengthen or clarify a statement already made.
Example: “He is brave, for he never turned away from battle.”
Performance cue: After showing courage through gesture, add a confirming line with strong stance and lifted chin.
12. Persuasion (siddhi)
Meaning: Mentioning names or qualities of relevant people to achieve one’s aim.
Example: Appealing to elders by recalling their wisdom.
On stage: A heroine convinces her sakhi by recalling the friend’s loyalty and past help.
13. Distinction (viśeṣaṇa)
Meaning: Differentiating something from greater, well-known objects.
Example: “The moon is bright, but your face shines more.”
Performance: Contrast gestures, first showing the moon, then the beloved’s face, raising the eyebrows in wonder.
14. Accusation of Virtue (guṇātīpāta)
Meaning: Praising virtues with words that twist into gentle reproach.
Example: “You are too generous, giving away what should be kept.”
Dance cue: Smile sweetly while showing a gesture of loss.
15. Excellence (guṇātiśaya or atiśaya)
Meaning: Pointing out special qualities after listing common ones.
Example: “Many are strong, but you are fearless.”
Performance: Build layers in movement, from ordinary to extraordinary.
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16. Inference from Similitude (tulya-tarka)
Meaning: Drawing belief from metaphor or simile.
Example: “As fire consumes wood, so anger consumes friendship.”
On stage: Mime fire spreading, then show breaking bonds with the hand.
17. Multiplex Predication (padoccaya)
Meaning: Using groups of words together for variety or emphasis.
Example: “By wisdom, by courage, by patience, he succeeds.”
Performance cue: Repeat with rhythmic gestures, stacking qualities one after another.
18. Apt Description (diṣṭa)
Meaning: Describing objects or incidents in harmony with time, place, and mood.
Example: A dawn scene with birds, dew, and gentle breeze.
Dance cue: Align gestures with the context: wings for birds, shivering hands for morning chill.
19. Pointed Utterance (upadiṣṭa)
Meaning: Saying something with authority, often from śāstra, to please the learned.
Example: Quoting a dharmic principle at a crucial moment.
Performance: Deliver the line with firmness, steady gaze, and slow hand movement.
20. Deliberation (vicāra)
Meaning: Establishing meaning through reasoning and elimination of errors.
Example: “If he is not here, then he must be at the temple.”
Dance cue: Show the act of thinking with hand on chin, moving eyes side to side.
21. Inversion (viparyaya)
Meaning: Altering deliberation when doubt arises.
Example: “I thought it was my friend, but it is a stranger.”
Performance: Show recognition, then shock, shifting gesture midway.
22. Slip of Tongue (bhraṃśa)
Meaning: Sudden change of words, often from arrogance or distraction.
Example: Calling the queen by another woman’s name.
Stage cue: Enact embarrassment through covering the mouth and looking away.
23. Mediation (anunaya)
Meaning: Words that please two people with opposed desires.
Example: A minister pacifying both king and queen with clever speech.
Dance cue: Show balancing movements, turning towards one side, then the other.
24. Series of Offers (mālā)
Meaning: Suggesting many possibilities to achieve a goal.
Example: “Shall we walk, or rest, or sing, or dance?”
Performance: Use garland-like flow of gestures, stringing options one after another.
25. Clever Manners (dākṣiṇya)
Meaning: Pleasing another with kind face, sweet words, and graceful movements.
Example: Greeting with a smile, folded hands, and lowered head.
Dance cue: Begin entry with soft eyes, open palms, and curved body line.
26. Censure (garhaṇa)
Meaning: Presenting faults as virtues, or virtues as faults.
Example: “Your silence is stubbornness, not wisdom.”
Performance: Say it with playful sarcasm, showing both praise and mockery.
27. Presumption (arthāpatti)
Meaning: Understanding one thing from another’s words.
Example: “He eats at night, since he is never seen at meals in the day.”
On stage: Hint at what is unsaid by pointing away while emphasizing another detail.
28. Celebrity (prasiddhi)
Meaning: Mentioning famous exploits or known qualities.
Example: “Like Arjuna who never missed his mark.”
Performance: Refer to heroic figures with proud chest and raised arm.
29. Interrogation (pṛcchā)
Meaning: Asking questions with gestures or words.
Example: “Where have you been?”
Dance cue: Tilt head, widen eyes, and gesture with the hand outward.
30. Identity (sārūpya)
Meaning: Recognizing something by its likeness to another.
Example: A son seen as the image of his father.
Performance: Point to the face, then to the remembered figure, connecting them.
31. Indirect Expression of Desire (manoratha)
Meaning: Hinting at one’s own wish while speaking of another’s.
Example: “She must be longing for the festival,” while desiring it yourself.
On stage: Speak outwardly of “her,” but gesture inward to the heart.
32. Wit (leśa)
Meaning: Clever words that resolve or turn situations lightly.
Example: A playful remark that breaks tension.
Performance: Add sparkle through quick glances, short laughs, and agile movements.
33. Concealment (saṃkṣobha)
Meaning: Taking another’s faults as one’s own, or shifting blame.
Example: “It was I who broke it,” though innocent.
Dance cue: Show false acceptance with a gentle bow, then reveal truth with side glance.
34. Enumeration of Merits (guṇa-kīrtana)
Meaning: Attributing many great qualities to one person.
Example: “He is wise, brave, generous, gentle, and strong.”
On stage: Repeat gestures one after another in rhythmic sequence.
35. Semi-uttered Expression (anukta-siddhi)
Meaning: Leaving words unsaid, but understood by implication.
Example: “If only you…” leaving the rest for imagination.
Performance: Begin a sentence, stop midway, and let the expression complete it.
36. Compliment (priyavacana or priyokti)
Meaning: Pleasant words spoken to honor and celebrate.
Example: “You are the joy of our eyes.”
Dance cue: Soft hands, open smile, forward movement, expressing welcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
They are the thirty-six marks of excellence in dramatic composition described by Bharata to refine plays and performances.
By weaving them into abhinaya, dialogue delivery, and expression, dancers bring depth, wit, and clarity to performance.
No. They apply equally to dancers, actors, storytellers, and teachers of classical arts.
Hesitation, Discovery, Compliment, and Censure are especially powerful for expressing subtle emotional shifts.
They help performers connect traditional wisdom with contemporary audiences, keeping the art relevant and alive.
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Closing thought
The thirty-six lakshanas give performers a rich palette. Each one is a tool, subtle or bold, for shaping rasa. The dancer can draw on them to enrich abhinaya. The playwright can weave them into dialogue. Together, they make the performance shine with depth and clarity.
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