Solah Shringar

The science behind it

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'I adore wearing gems, but not because they are mine. You can't possess radiance. You can only admire it,' said Elizabeth Taylor, my favourite actor.

The radiance of ornaments, jewels, pearls or gems have always been fascinating. But here in India, we don't just admire the radiance. Here it is a belief through the ages that it is wise to embellish ourselves with ornaments. Excavations revealed and cave paintings depict that during the early historical periods both men and women favoured wearing ornaments.

Indian literature is replete with descriptions of women arraying themselves with ornaments while shringar rasa is a significant motif in all Indian classical dance forms. In Bhanushinger Padavali beautifying herself for a tryst with Krishna, Tagore's Radha says:

Dress me with pearls and jewels

Decorate my forehead with mantika

My hair is spilling to the ground

Bind it with garlands of champak

Given that Shringar is interwoven into all Indian arts, shouldn't we pause to ask why wearing ornaments, throughout the vast and diverse India, has become almost ritualistic?