Gratitude Dance

Wednesday 2nd June 2021

“For things I can’t seem to put into words, Thank you, Dance.”

_unknown

In a world surrounded by the perfect media images of how we should look, how we should behave and generally how we should live life, it is really refreshing to be reminded that we are unique beings and perfect exactly the way we are. In this world it is easy to be consumed by shortcomings, limitations and even comparisons to others making it important for us to stop and appreciate who we are through the dance and appreciate what life has given us, not what it has deprived us of. In this spirit we can enter the dance to feel and practice gratitude.

In the dance we realise that each of us has different abilities whether they are physical or emotional expression. These are linked to our story. Our background, our family, our culture are all factors that have shaped us to give expression to this life. We find gratitude when we dance and connect to our own unique abilities and expression. We form a deeper connection to self through our body. We recognise and honour our own feelings forming a deeper understanding of our self and world around us.

When we reach this point, then we have the freedom to explore and grow, free from any judgements, comparisons or expectations. Dance and specifically Biodanza which does not prescribe your dance gives us access to our creativity allowing to give expression to life in our unique way through our dances. We honour and celebrate this life through by not taking it for granted and entering the dance wholeheartedly alongside our friends as we support each other in our beautiful dances, on our wonderful journey through life.

Want to be happy? Be Grateful – David Steindl-Rast

Dancing is LOVE in action...

Wednesday 26th May 2021

“Self-care is never a selfish act 

– it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, 

the gift I was put on earth to offer to others.”

_Parker Palmer

Love seems such an abstract concept. We only really understand when we start to feel it.

People with good intentions will sometimes tell us to ‘love our self’ – ‘put yourself first’ – etc. And then follow that up with some suggestions. Go have a massage. Buy yourself something nice. Eat chocolate – lots of chocolate! These are all lovely activities but they premise loving ourselves on DOING something. In reality love starts with FEELING something. If we are going to do anything to experience love then we have to do something that allows us to FEEL first.

When we dance we let go our thinking and our imaginings and we open up our feeling centers. To dance is to feel with your whole body – in fact body and soul. If the dance experience is positive and we feel good, we begin to connect to the positive feelings and open up the possibilities of loving our self. The positive effects of dance work on many levels. Releasing feel-good chemicals in our brain complemented with the relaxation and exhilaration we can feel in our body means that we can immerse into something like love – embody it totally so that it becomes part of who we are. We can dance ourselves into becoming beings of love! When we open the doors to pure love – it includes everyone and everything. Just as our experience is undifferentiated – so is our love.

Christos Daskalakos

Here is How to Love Yourself as a Dancer!

ENJOY the DANCE!

Wednesday 19th May 2021

“Make the impossible possible, the possible easy, the easy elegant.”

_Moshe Feldenkrais

Can we ever be dancing just for the sake of dancing?

The short answer is yes. But that does somewhat obscure the fact that when we dance there are a whole lot of effects of our dance, some of which we are not even aware of.

Physiologically dance like any other activity that engages the body will have positive effects such as improved muscle development, strength and endurance. Perfect to counteract the sedentary lifestyle we all tend to follow especially as we grow older. For a couple of years I have suffered with sciatica and the pain that follows. Thanks to carefully crafted movements I have been able to manage this condition to almost to the point of it having a nil effect. Of course, there are times when my body reminds me – such as when I lift heavy objects or relax into cushions that are too soft to support my body. But on the whole, focused attention on my dance has made a huge difference.

Of course there are other physical benefits such as flexibility, agility and co-ordination. The embodied experience of such characteristics has an effect on the brain where distinctions between body and mind don’t seem to have much importance. Our positive physical experiences influence our mental state and there are moments of insight and awareness where we connect with things for example, like flexibly and balance, and recognise how we can translate these into other areas of our life – work and family relations for example.

This magical relationship between our dance and life has a far greater depth than the few words captured here. It can be truly magical and the beauty of this is that all we really need to do is dance – and brain and body work behind the scenes. This leaves us free to ENJOY THE DANCE.

Christos Daskalakos

What is Somatics? Thomas Hanna’s Clinical Somatic Education

The Sparkle of Dance

Wednesday 12th May 2021

“He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead;

his eyes are closed.”

_Albert Einstein

Have you ever felt your eyes sparkling, your heart singing and your body feeling totally alive? Those are the sensations can be felt when we dance. The more we let go of our hold on ordinary reality and enter the magic of movement, the more we can experience our world as transforming, morphing and changing. This is a mirror to the amazing things that are taking place in our body as we dance.

At the ordinary physical level, increased heart rate facilitates the easier flow of blood to our organs and skin. This begins to create more sensitivity in our senses and our connection to the world is heightened. At an emotional level, as we move and connect with the positive effects of dance our body is flooded with molecules of happy emotions. Candice Pert in Molecules of Emotion first identified the relationship of our body cells to the information molecules we generate through our emotions. We are all familiar with the concept that ‘we are what we eat’ when it relates to food and body. However more important is what do we feed our heart? Our heart and our experience of life depend on the emotions we feed upon. When we hold onto negativity – that translates into the dis-ease of the body. Dance give us the opportunity to change that!

Dance releases endorphins and other neurotransmitters that change our endogenous mood. If we are willing to let go of negative emotions and thoughts and immerse our self into the dance, we access the transformative power that makes dance sparkle – makes US SPARKLE!

_Christos Daskalakos

Role of Dance in Brain Development

Dance BLISS

Wednesday 5th May 2021

“Bliss is a state of complete euphoria and ecstasy which can only be experienced not described with words. Bliss has to be danced!”

_Christos Daskalakos

Blessed is such an old fashioned word but so appropriate when we reflect on the things we take for granted. Every time we are on the dance floor free from political and other cultural factors we are free to dance. Even more this beautiful body, the instrument of our creation is able to move, to dance and to express itself. These are powerful drives and I am moved by the efforts that the human spirit makes to dance. The grace with which we sometimes move is testimony to the creative instinct in each of us which yearns to give itself expression.

When we dance we are connecting with life itself in all its facets – physical, emotional and mental. The experience of dance when we are present is to become aware of our wholeness and presence in this body and by extension in this life. Very few people have the opportunity to stop and reflect on the grace and blessing that is life. When we dance and we lose ourselves at the centre of life then we access a place in which we are blessed. Blessed to dance, blessed to feel, blessed to express. Not only does this bring joy and a smile onto our face but often extends into a place of bliss.

Isadora Duncan: The Dancer of the Future

POSSIBILITIES and DANCE

Wednesday 28th April 2021

“To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak.”

_Hopi saying

Dance is more than just a physical activity. It involves us on so many levels that the outcomes and benefits are many and sometimes quite unexpected. The mind body integration of dance means that when we dance we often develop cognitive skills such as thinking, being creative and finding focus. There is also a connection to the emotional centres of the brain and so we find that movements and emotions are also linked. It’s quite complex and difficult to unravel but the magic of dance is that we don’t have to do or think anything, we just dance.

When we are willing to venture into the world of dance all possibilities open up before us. For some it may be meeting a new friend and finding connections with other people. For others it may shift stuck emotion and energy opening up feelings of freedom and liberation. Sometimes simple insights seem to emerge out of nowhere and suddenly in the middle of the dance we have flash, an idea, or even see the solution to a problem.

The point is, we never know where our dance is going to take us and that is part of the magic. Each time we step onto the dance floor it’s like we are opening up another gift from life. It often feels like our dance knows what we need and offers us the most appropriate experience. The only thing we really need to do – is get our mind and ego out of the way, and let the dance weave its magic.

I Believe in the Power of Dance – Cara Scrementi

CONNECTION: Dancing across time and space

Wednesday 21st April 2021

"Dance is the timeless interpretation of life."

_Shah Asad Rizvi

Through the dance we practice both presence and connection. We engage with our whole being; physical, emotional and mental. But dance is also the practice of dis-connection which ultimately brings its own gifts. The first dis-connection is from that of time. In the dance we create our own sense of time depending on the experience. Sometimes time stretches out and sometimes it’s over in a second. The same applies to space, so that our dance really dis-connects us from ordinary time and space and instead offers us a beautiful connection that is both timeless and space-less.

This means that through the dance we can feel deeply connected to anything and anyone because our normal mode of operating is suspended and we enter a magical space where all things are possible. As I dance I deepen my connection to self but at the same time I can open my heart and feel my connection to you whether you are dancing next to me or on a ZOOM screen. Beyond measured time and space – we find an alternative way of relating and connecting.

This is possible because dance by its very nature is always a shift from the everyday way of being to a special experience in which it’s creative and holistic nature is about expanding possibilities. Overcoming our limitations and boundaries we can experience connection a deep and profound levels.

May I have this dance, please? – Pierre Dulaine