Nandikeshvara and his treatise Mirror of Abhinaya

Translation from Sanskrit of the ancient Indian treatise «Abhinayadarpaṇa» on traditional Indian dance art, with comments, explanations, and critical research. Abhinayadarpaṇa, or «Mirror of Abhinaya», — is an ancient Indian treatise on dance art, authored by Nandikeshvara. The treatise describes movements of the head, neck, and eyes, discusses hand gestures, their meanings and rules of use, provides descriptions of positions and movements of the legs (steps, walks, jumps, etc.), narrates the qualities of a dancer and ankle bells, types of dance and abhinaya, and the origins of ritual dance. This book is not only a translation of the «Mirror of Abhinaya» into Russian from the Sanskrit original, but also includes a critical section discussing important aspects of Indian dance art that are essential for understanding the treatise.