Traditional Foundations of Art and Life

The book The Dance of Shiva, by the great twentieth-century artist, writer, and thinker Ananda Koomaraswamy, discusses the traditional foundations of art and life and encompasses a wide range of concepts that generally offer a comprehensive view of the philosophy of traditional life and the place of art in religious cosmology. The first chapter is dedicated to a very engaging and readable introduction by the famous writer Romain Rolland, who precisely and seriously highlights the importance of the book and Koomaraswamy’s comprehensive and pioneering perspective. In fourteen chapters, the author talks about aesthetics, the independence of aesthetics, ethical concepts in art, and the place of spirituality and art in life from the perspective of traditionalists. He also explains the relationship between humans and tradition, their connection with modernity, the roles of men and women, as well as the place of traditional women versus modern women and the differences between the two.