PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 441 



styled Nata, literally 'dancer.' Etymology thus points to the fact that the 

 drama has developed out of dancing", which was probably accompanied, at 

 first with music and song only, but in course of time also with pantomimic 

 representations, processions, and dialogue." 



And though, himself offering another interpretation, he quotes 

 Lassen to the effect that 



" The Indian drama, after having acquitted itself brilliantly in the most 

 varied fields notably too as a drama of civil life finally reverted in its 

 closing phases to essentially the same class of subjects with which it had 

 started to representations from the story of the gods." 



Greek history yields various facts of like meaning. In Spar- 

 ta 



"The singing chorus danoed around it ['the sacrifice . . . burning on 

 the altar'] in the customary ring ; while others represented the subject of 

 the song by mimic gesture." 



That the drama had a religious origin is shown by the fact that 

 it continued always to have a religious character. Says Moulton 

 " the performance of every drama was regarded by the ancients as 

 an act of worship to Dionysus." And to like effect is the state- 

 ment of Mahaffy that " the old Greek went to the theater to 

 honor and serve his god." The dramatic element of religious 

 ceremonies was at first mingled with the other elements, as is 

 implied by Grote, who speaks of the importance of the united 

 religious celebrants 



" in the ' ancient ' world, and especially in the earlier periods of its career 

 the bards and rhapsodes for the epic, the singers for the lyric, the actors 

 and singers jointly with the dancers for the chorus and drama. The lyric 

 and dramatic poets taught with their own lips the delivery of their com- 

 positions." 



The process of differentiation by which the drama arose is well 

 shown by the following extracts from Moulton : 



" Only one of these Ballad-Dances was destined to develop into drama. 

 This was the Dithyramb, the dance used in the festival worship of the god 

 Dionysus. 



"... the ' mysteries ' of ancient religion were mystic dramas in which 

 the divine story was conveyed." 



" The choi*us started from the altar in the center of the orchestra, and 

 their evolutions took them to the right. This would constitute a Strophe, 

 whereupon (as the word 'Strophe' implies) they turned round and in the 

 Antistrophe worked their way back to the altar again." 



In lyric tragedy " the Chorus appears as Satyrs in honor of Dionysus, to 

 whose glory the legend is a tribute ; they maintain throughout the com- 

 bination of chant, music, and dance." 



"The work of Thespis was to introduce an 'actor,' separate altogether 

 from the chorus." 



That along with differentiation of the drama from other social 

 products there went differentiation of the dramatist and the actor 

 from other persons and from one another, may fairly be inferred, 

 however little able we may be to trace the process. Already, by 



