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In the Tantric temples, such as the Hirapur Shrine, many of the yoginis especially are depicted in poses reminiscent of present day Odissi.

When Orissa became a big centre of worship of Lord Shiva, it is only natural that dance would be used as a form of worship, since Lord Shiva was a master dancer himself.

He is also known as Nataraj, the Cosmic Lord of Dance.

The Shaivite temples of Bhubaneswar display innumerable sculptures in postures of Odissi.

The Vaishnavite Temples such as Jagannath Temple and Konark Sun Temple abound with an array of dancing sculptures carved into the temple walls, giving testimony that a particular school of dancing had continued from the Shaivite art tradition to the Vaishnavite art form.