Bellydance" does not presume, preclude or exclude particular religions or spiritual paths “ Maureen Pemberton examines the inclusively and the origins of bellydance. She describes how the dance is much more universal than most people assume.
Middle eastern dance otherwise known in the West as
"belly dance", or
"la Danse du Ventre"(French) but correctly known as
Raqs el sharqi
Arabic: Dance of the East) is
a very misunderstood dance, but is a dance/
or collections of dances which incorporates folk/social/former court dances
of Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Mauretania, the Sahara, Libya, Egypt, Somalia,
Yemen, the Sudan, parts of East Africa,
Iran, Turkey, the Balkans (former
Yugoslavia, Montenegro, Bulgaria etc) Greece, Armenia, with dance
historians and anthropologists speculating that these dances had roots either
in
African or in the Indian subcontinent.
Certainly Flamenco dance itself is a mixture of Indian, North
African/Arabic and native Spanish dance stylings with the influence of
sephardic (Spanish-Jewish) formats with a Classical Arabic musical base
(8th century onwards
. "Cabaret" belly dance is merely a
Westernised/theatrical/often balleticised form of all these different
folk/social dances. Middle eastern dance has even deeper roots than people in
the West imagine. Many westerners perceive the form as just a cabaret dance,
-glitzy, glamorous and sexy and just a woman’s dance. Yet throughout the
countries listed, men have also danced a sensual dance that is a strong, athletic, yet a graceful and
masculine dance forms.
Cabaret belly dance has its roots in the 1920s onwards, when the dance
was taken to more theatrical/casino atmosphere in Egypt (still under
British rule). Elements of Western (especially Russian ballet and other dance
forms (Latin American etc) informed
this essentially rural folk dance form.
The two piece costume we are all familiar with (“bedlah" in Arabic) had
its roots in Hollywood cinematic costume, which took its inspiration from the
Art Nouveau period, and the Orientalist art period (19th Century)
The Arab dancers modified the costume and made it their own, wanting
to show a strong femininity and sensuality rather than overt female sexuality.
This period showcased exceptionally talented dancers such as Samia
Gamal, Tania Carioca, (1930s-1940s) who
were actually courageous
pioneers/transformers of this variation of the dance, (Badia Masbasny, a
Syrian or Lebanese dancer/Egyptian citizen, who had the original vision of
using many Russian theatrical/dance techniques, taught both of them).
Spirituality.
Middle East dance forms do not presume or exclude any form
of religion
or spirituality. Because many cultures
in the secularised, the West tend to
divorce sexuality from spirituality and
often sees women as parts, rather
than whole beings, many don't
realise that all dance has spiritual roots-
roots with connections with nature,
with God, with the mind and body and
spirit as a whole.
Middle Eastern dance was the first dance form in the world, - it was
widespread in known existing
civilisations, but disappeared,
remaining around the Middle East/parts
of southern Europe and Asia. As it
was once widespread, it eventually
evolved into other dance forms, as we
know them today. Which is why we can
see similarities between dance forms.
In fact African dance and dances from
the Indian subcontinent are
almost direct descendants of the
original Middle Eastern dance:
aspects regarding certain similarities in moves, postures, energies,
even philosophies are too close to be
merely co-incidental.
Childbirth/women's health
Middle Eastern dance also has its roots in helping pregnant women
ease their way through the different stages of labour, in that the moves
powerfully strengthen the pelvic floor, stomach muscles, calms the mind,
with the slow breathing, before and
after childbirth. Many girls in Arabic
cultures use the dance as a preparation
for the years ahead, (for
strengthening their bodies) for
eventual childbirth. In fact, in parts of Egypt women dance six weeks after
giving birth, which helps to tone their stomach muscles back into shape as well
as tightening pelvic floor muscles, toning the womb and reducing the
incidence of gynaecological problems later on in life.
All in all, the dance has considerable physical benefits for a woman's
menstrual and gynaecological health-
this fact is also attested in many
western Middle Eastern dancers. It
is not a dance to be flippant about, and that applies to many other dances
too. Yet, sadly parts of the Western
civilisation have lost the true a deep understanding of the power of dance, in
all its wide senses. Many many cultures see dance as a vital part of the human
social and spiritual
experience. Even animals dance, with "displays showing territorial
possession,
aggressive dances, showing strength,
excited solo performances to attract
attention. Some like others even have
dances that are just high spirited
fun"(Robert Cohan, The Dance Workshop, p.16)
Dance
as communication
Dance has been with us, since time began and is the most instinctive
of human communication, truer than human words. It is akin to body language
or non-verbal communication. Dance shows us our true selves or psyches, the
celebration, courtships, community and unity, anguish, pain, love,
dignity, relief and release and so on.
Parts of the west have lost touch with dance, in that they feel to embarassed to dance. Many people are stiff
when dancing, in that they can’t move their hips or torso, so that movement is only
in the legs or knees.
Yet as we see across cultures, children and adults naturally dance their
hips, torsos, hands and arms, their
eyes, as forms of vital expression.
Dance is ultimately self or community
expression, communication with
self, with solitude, with God/spirituality, intuition, for fun and relaxation.
As it is physical too, your endorphins from your brain are pumped around the
body to create a feeling of well being and health and euphoria, which helps you
feel good about yourself, and that is one of the many benefits of dance.
Diversity and
Inclusion
As stated earlier
"bellydance" does not presume, preclude or exclude
particular religions or spiritual paths. Middle eastern dance as we know,
existed/exists in a place that
encompasses many different ethic, spiritual
and religious groups, from partly Christian Lebanon, to Jewish communities
in Yemen and Tunisia, Muslim and Christian Balkans, Greece, (whose popular
music originates from the Turks)Somalia and Egypt in Africa, to the
Spanish Andalusian Roma("Gypsy") dancers of the Zambra Mora.(Zambra
Mora is an old dance that is a fluid blend of Arabic dance with softer flamenco
nuances
and moves).Are bellydancers Arab or
Jewish is a purely rhetorical question: they
are both!
Dance in the Bible
The bible has many references to dance . Jesus is said to have danced at a wedding. Some think it was his, to Mary Magdeleine. Perhaps Mary Madeleine was a dancer. She was described as whore and the two (at the time) were synonymous. Maureen Pemberton examines how what ever spirituality one has it can come through your dancing as long as you come from your truth. Bellydance is for all religions.
(Many thanks to Lyn Embling's Article in Mosaic on this)