bellydancing

What visions come to mind when you hear the term "Belly Dance?" A Hoochie-Coochie dance? A sleazy strip show that degrades women? A serious setback to feminism? At the very least, "Belly Dance" conjures visions of voluptuous women in gossamer costumes, seductive undulations, and exotic music. Would it surprise you to learn that in ancient times this dance was considered sacred and not intended to be seen by men at all? Belly Dance is the purest expression of a woman's natural power, a celebration of womanhood. It was a dance of life, a dance performed for women by women.

Hieroglyphs on the walls of ancient Egyptian temples and tombs portray women with arms raised in dance. Sometimes it's called the ancient dance of the Pharaohs, but belly dancing dates back to an era long before the pyramids were built. Its images were reverently painted on cave walls at the beginning of time.

Prehistoric women had a high mortality rate in the childbearing years. The original dance was a form of Lamaze, a primitive ritual that prepared a woman for childbirth. Girls from an early age were taught to practice abdominal undulations, breathing exercises, and concentrate on the isolation and strengthening of muscles that might make the difference in life or death.

When a woman went into labor, her female friends and relatives would gather to act as coaches. They danced to keep her focused on breathing. In the struggle to create new life, this ritual was a way to both celebrate the creation of new life and increase the chances of survival for both mother and child.

Early cultures worshiped fertility, and women danced with bare feet because it connected them directly to the fertility of Mother Earth. This was a mystical way of uniting forces within the physical and spirit worlds. When you learn about the history, it's not any wonder that this revered dance was passed down through centuries as the dance of the people and the ultimate in female expression.

Belly Dance was a way for a poor woman to elevate her position in society by performing in the marketplace. People would throw coins in appreciation of her skills, and she would sew these coins on the sash worn around her hips. This was a way to build and display her dowry so that she could marry into a higher class. To this day, costumes reflect the tradition with sequins or coins sewn onto sashes or belts. Even the word "sequin" is an ancient Turkish term for a gold coin.

With the arrival of patriarchal religions and the Dark Ages, the celebration of womanhood that is belly dance was demoted to a performance for male entertainment. Women's freedoms were taken, and veils were required by law. The original spark of belly dancing went underground and became the first feminist rebellion. Women still performed the dance when they gathered without men present. Imagine how liberating it must have felt to remove those hot and heavy veils and whirl in the cool air of the harem. Belly dance became a dance of protest, an expression of freedom, the first "burning of the bra!"

Some sources say the term "belly" dance comes from the word Baladi which means "of the people," a country dance that belonged to everyone. The French named it "dance du ventre," or dance of the stomach. Middle Easterners also call it "danse orientale" or simply Middle Eastern dance.

Influences come from all around the Middle East, Turkey, India, Persia, Afghanistan and North Africa and many other sources. Elements blended from each region or tribe that had developed its own style.

Rhythmic instruments called finger symbols or "zills" were worn on the thumb and middle finger of each hand. Gypsies brought the Middle Eastern dance to Spain where zills became the Spanish Flamenco dancer's castanets.

Many legends surround Middle Eastern Dance. In the legend of the sword dance, a woman would perform for the enemy camp with a sword balanced on her head. Men of her village would have been killed, but the enemy thought a woman was no threat and welcomed the entertainment. While the men were too mesmerized by her movements to react, she would grab the hilt, stab the sheik, and escape into the desert night.

Women of any age and without any dance background can master the natural and fluid belly dancing movements. It is an artistic expression of the music, like watching the music come alive. Unlike ballet, there are no set rules. Instead, it's based on personal interpretation. Attempts to standardize the dance into named steps have failed because this is a dance of individual expression, a journey of self discovery. There is no wrong way for a woman to express her mysterious, sensual spirit with her own captivating movements. This dance of freedom is unique to each woman. The closest thing to flying without wings.

Health benefits include increased strength and flexibility, weight loss, improved posture, vitality, sensuality and enthusiasm for life. Because the dance is nonimpact, doctors have recommended it for recovery after injuries or childbirth, for the elderly, management of arthritis, and back injury. Most women gain confidence, and improve balance and grace. Practice reconnects the body, mind and spirit in an experience that can be magical for the dancer and for anyone watching.

I can speak from personal experience because belly dancing helped me lose 40 lbs. and gain confidence. Anything that influential has to affect all aspects of your life. I used my dance background in my newly released action-adventure novel, Power of Love. The main character is a Belly Dance instructor who escapes a dangerous situation using her dance skills in a most unusual way.

Isadora Duncan, one of the world's most famous dancers, was a champion of women's rights. She transformed modern dance with influence from Middle Eastern Dance, and gave the most beautiful and profound description of the dance I've ever seen:
"Imagine then a dancer who, after long study, prayer and inspiration, has attained such a degree of understanding that her body is simply the luminous manifestation of her soul; whose body dances in accordance with a music heard inwardly, in an expression of something out of another, profounder world."
Isadora Duncan, The Philosopher's Stone of Dancing, 1920

Go ahead, you can do it. Learn to belly dance! Find hinges in your body that you never knew you had, and loosen up those rusty joints. Put the magic of romance back in your relationship. Join the oldest Women's Movement.
Celebrate your femininity and let your soul fly!