Laya: a practice that dissolves ignorance

THE design patterns of nature have a strong recurring structure associated with subtle elements that are both destructive as well as elevating.

- Deepa Chakravarthy

THE design patterns of nature have a strong recurring structure associated with subtle elements that are both destructive as well as elevating. While the fundamental physical, mathematical, and chemical properties of these elements that can be observed have been applied to engineering and design principles in Western schools, the same have found an aesthetic value in the Oriental systems. In India's traditional knowledge system, the principles of ebb and flow are the study of laya, a nuanced aspect of beauty hidden within nature.

In Indian literature and culture, laya is the principal thought and idea that is most venerated and celebrated, going beyond rhythm, carrying philosophical weight that can enhance the essence of life and nature. In fact, the esoteric elements of laya have taken shape as the tantra of temple science and art forms, thereby integrating profound experiential knowledge of beauty as an extension of daily discipline.

For knowing more about the aesthetic aspects within laya, I approached accomplished mridangist Mannarkoil Balaji. "Laya is an abstract idea that can't be directly taught. It is a realised knowledge that comes only through repeated practice. Approaches to learning laya through artistic discipline begin with the concrete principles of talam, which actually denotes any measured span of form in space. Mastering laya, thus, boils down to how talam is practised first."