About Course

Introduction

There is an urgent need for children to be introduced to the treasures of Bharatiya knowledge systems. This workshop aims to help teenagers understand and appreciate the Indian aesthetic tradition of Alankaara shaastra in a fun, interactive way. The discussions include examples from Sanskrit and English literature with many contemporary applications that will help in their overall development into well-rounded, happy, and successful young adults.

Objectives

• To develop a broad understanding and appreciation of Indian Aesthetics.
• To become skilled at applying concepts to interpersonal communication, self-presentation, problem-solving and emotional awareness.
• To hone skills like emotional maturity, judgement, perception, analysis in daily life.

Expected Outcomes

• Children will gain familiarity with Indic ways of thinking and learn key concepts from Alankaara shaastra or Indian aesthetics.
• Children will be able to apply their learnings from Alankaara shaastra for real-world success and personal effectiveness.

Beneficiaries

• Children in their teens from grades 7-12 who wish to develop their personality while getting an introduction to Indian aesthetics or Alankaara shaastra.
• Children learn classical music or dance.

Syllabus

Day 1: Why do we like art, and why do we study aesthetics? Kavya prayojana. Poetry is personified as a person. Kavya sharira and aatma.  Overview of the workshop. A brief introduction to 7 key concepts explained by Alankaara shaastra in terms of day-to-day applications.

Day 2: Introduction to emotions through stories and anecdotes. Why emotional awareness is important in the modern world. Walkthrough of contemporary books and other useful material. The concept of rasa is described in Natya shastra. Interactive exploration of different types of emotions. The focus is on the application of emotional awareness in daily life.

Day 3: The importance of perception in today’s information-rich world. Word and its meaning are explained at three levels. Introduction to the concept of Dhvani from the work Dhvanyaloka. Focus on the application of concepts to analyzing advertisements, newspaper reports, and media in general. The goal is to become a smarter consumer of information.

Day 4: Live discussion on propriety in behavior, clothing, and dealing with people. Introducing Auchitya as a concept in aesthetics, with examples. The quality of discernment as Viveka. The metaphor of the swan as a symbol of Viveka in Indian literature. Auchitya with respect to harmony and beauty. A handy list of questions that will help to analyze one’s actions and apply the concept to daily life.

Day 5: Vakrokti and the art of making things interesting. Examples from English and Sanskrit literature. Developing creativity as a skill through simple games.

Day 6: Innate qualities of objects and people. Gunas. Introduction to Reeti as the arrangement of gunas. Style as presenting oneself to the world. Examples of Reeti from real life, as applied to the analysis of flower garlands, Mehendi designs, interiors and spaces, architecture, rangoli.

Day 7: Importance of communication. Understandability is a key concept. Using paaka to improve intelligibility. Three types of paaka – analysis and practice. Making one’s communication easy to understand.

Day 8: A case study. Elements of aesthetics as applied to the Navaratri Kolu arrangement of dolls.

Day 9: Discussion of small homework problems assigned at the end of every session.

Day 10: what do you need for success in the arts? 3 factors from the text Kavyalamkara are surprisingly relevant for the modern age. Interesting test cases and scenarios will be taken up for live discussion to apply all the concepts learned.