; DANCING GIRLS.
Hierodulft; . of BABYLON. neva-clan, . . . SANSK. Bayadere Fa. Basava, . . . .
Kasbin ; Kanchni, HIND. Jogin, . . . . „ Murali, . . . . MAR. Bogum wank*, . „ Tialladuras, . . . PORT.
Amongst the British in India, dancing girls is a term in general use to indicate tho Hindu women devoted to the service of the IIindu idols in the temples, as also the bands of Hindu and Mahome dan women who practise singing and dancing fur hire. For Hindu dancing girls seo Deva-Da.sa ; for Mahomedan dancing girls, see Taifa. In the performance of the Ilindu dancing girls in the two dances, tenned avalICUM alld kailaCCDO naeteum, their movements are combined with great agility, ease, and gracefulness, and with their nimble steps, tho turning and twisting of their hands, eyes, face, features, and body agree, whilst they beat time with their fect. The feet generally placed flat, as they seldom dance on 85 their toes, the movements and position combine samething of the waltz and Spanish cachucha,— they advance, retire, whirl around, drop down and rise again with ease and rapidity, whilst the several movements are kept in order with the twirlinu and twisting of their hands, features, body, ebtc. Some portions of the step resemble the hornpipe and ji,g, whilst they hop and skip from One lee, to another, keeping time, now turn ing, now wffirling, now capering, and now droop ing, performing a coquettish pantotnime with their antics, then affecting coyness, and dancing away from the assembly, by suddenly turning away as if careless of their allurements, bat returning to the attack with greater vigour and increased blandishments. It is indeed surprising to witness their feats of strength and bodily powers of endurance, for, notwithstanding their frail make and delicate appeatance, the amount of fatigue they endure, dancing RS they do from nightfall to early.hours of the morning, is astonishing. Their dancing is perfection ; and the bodily fatigue they must undergo, from the attitudes and positions they combine in their dances, tnust be great. In what is called the sterria eothoo, athletic feats are performed,—resting their hands on the ground, and flinaing their feet in the air with great rapidity, anStlius twirling round and round, successively, performing various soiner saults ; lying full length on the ground with their bands and feet resting, contorting, twirling, and twisting their bodies in various ways •, or, whilst resting on the hands and legs, with their backs to the ground and their chest and abdomen turned upw,ards, drawing the hands and feet as close together as possible ; whilst their bodies are thus arched they, with their mouths will pick up rupees from the ground. In this arehed position, beating time with their hands and feet, they work round and round in a circle. During their per formance they join their attendants in the songs that are sung, and reg-ulate the various move inents of their bodies to the expression given vent to in the song.
.211odiye thiciirlithii.—In this dance the word niod ' is a term used to designate a craft or en chantment practised by a conjuror, who places or hides money or other valuables in a certain place, and often in the presence of his opponent, with the view of testing his ability, and challenges him to remove it, which the opponent endeavours to do by playing on a pipe termed ‘maked ; ' and if lie be not equally skilled, be is struck to the ground in a mysterious manner, sick and ill, frequently bleeding from the nose and mouth profusely. The dance is in imitittion of this, by the girl playing on a maked,' dancing at the same thne, and throwing herself on the ground ; the right leg is stretched out at full length, forming a perfect angle with hcr body out on one side ; the other, the left leg, doubled under the kuee, is stretched out in like manner on the opposite side, producing a most singular appearance, and as if there were no joint in the hips.
Colu auteum, or the stick dance, is formed by a number of girls of the same age, size, and dress, numbering from twelve to twenty-four or more, each having two sticks, one in each band, about eighteen inches long, well turned, and painted with circular stripes of yellow, green, and red. Either to the roof, or across a piece of wood raised in support for the purpose, a stout skein of thread in different colours is suspended, and having as many strands as there are girls ; the free ends of the strands are tied to the ends of the painted sticks each holds ; the dance begins with the usual song and accompaniment of music, when each girl, striking her sticks, dances a kind of jig and hops from place to place, exehanging places with each other. This is done with Bitch order and regularity, that the several strands are, plaited with the utmost evenness into a stout cord or tape of many colours, according to the design. At a sign from the conductor, the same is undone with equal order and regularity, the girls dancing and exchanging places with each other without a, single mistake or false step, either in the plaiting or unplaiting of the strands of thread. The readi ness, grace, and ease with which the several movements are effected, are worthy of admiration. t some places, on festive occasions, during the peregrinations of the Hindu idol around the town in procession, these girls perform the stick dance on a platform, which is carried and precedes the idol. More frequently these and other dances are performed on foot in front, and at some distance from the procession, which stands still at a certain distance to allow of its being properly carried out.
Mahomedan daneing women attitudinize with their feet and hands, and move their eyes and change the expression of their face to indicate various emotions.