Somato-Cognitive Architecture in Solo Bharatanatyam: Somatic Automatization, Pātrāveśa and Split Consciousness on the Bare Stage
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) August 27, 2026 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.22132695 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Practice-as-research Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that the practitioner decouples expressive spatial gaze from rigid biomechanical talic cycles, enabling the evocation of complex spatial narrative landscapes without physical scenography. |
Abstract
Abstract This practice-as-research (PaR) investigation examines the somato-cognitive architecture of solo Bharatanatyam, focusing on the real-time execution of split consciousness (Saṃvit-Dvaidha), motor automatization, and multi-character role assumption (Pātrāveśa) on an empty stage. Integrating traditional Sanskrit dramaturgical treatises (Nāṭyaśāstra, Abhinayadarpaṇa) with enactive 4E cognition, dual-task motor conditioning, and predictive processing models, this study analyzes empirical studio video logs of Śrī Nṛsiṃha Kautuvam. Through detailed timestamped movement documentation, the paper demonstrates how the practitioner decouples expressive spatial gaze from rigid biomechanical talic cycles to evoke complex spatial narrative landscapes without physical scenography. Keywords Solo Bharatanatyam, Practice-as-Research (PaR), Saṃvit-Dvaidha, Pātrāveśa, 4E Cognition, Enactivism, Motor Automatization, Performance Epistemology