For the classroom 5-11

Beginnings and endings – An exploration

Shiva Nataraja, Lord of the Dance, is one of the most well-known of all Hindu images. It is enigmatic on first encounter, but its complexity makes it an exciting resource for exploring Hindu beliefs about the cycle of life. Used creatively in the classroom, it invites pupils to reflect on and share their own ideas about life and death, good and evil, hopes and fears. But for that to happen, the object needs to be permitted to express its intense mystery and to pose the profound questions intrinsic to it. So ask before you tell, and then invite reflection.

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