CHAPTER TWO belief thatthe@it DANCE AND RELICION 6-hamen. -+MEDICINE D Oh! how'beautiful! . - ForYr:u men and women strike the tambour:ine' The ln manY cultures, I)ivine-Powers, the stars. dan.ce foryoLr' ! o to the Egyptian Coddess tlatharl restore the health -Hvmr1 g!-easilg 4gpeelE Let them praise t{is name in the dance: let them siflg praises ufito Him oreventative, {€!8 wilft timbrel and harp. tommunity freg-d 149:) -tlsalms iffi which an bad fortune, fall in airange these dan< their gods and to request I ong ago itrthe mists of preliterate time, early peoples danced to please COMMEMO] I i"rirJirom them. Cave paintings found in France and ltaly, dating back to the Paleolithic period, contact with and dependence o{tg L a"pi.t dancers in animal skins iimulating a hunt. Living in close These Qan999. iml on animals motivated early peoples to imitate them. With the development of agriculture, other commemorate of request dances-for rain, fertility of the fields and good harvests-also developed' The evidence 59r-4mer solstices' role r stone carving, potterymaking and later wriften languages gives us further proof of the importance of a grouP, a glds.oi' a t of danced rituals. Dance became a wav to connect wjih the spirit world 9f-11c-99.1o19 commemorative in means of ensuring nealtn and-gooa io.tune and a vital part of ceremonies for major events individuals:.birth, the community. examPle,,h1| them as well as Pl pure joy of movement, most Although early man probably danced to express feelings and for the wo rthi ne tl. l5".r.lora dance historians agree that a belief system generated the first forms of organized dance. Today, masked dances d This chapter will exPlore both specialrSWffi ancient and modern forms of religious dance. lt is useful to put these dances into several general DANCES F( categories, based on their intent. These dances an sPi' ,.urii6 gods or examPle, after a TYPES OF RTLICIOUS DANCE DANCES OF IMITATION Wworld; the sPirit Without question, the movements of other Iiving are means of re; things and natural phenomena were one of the Other sPiritual < g earliest inspirations for dan-ce. Even animals hunted to a Particular for food were not revered as spiritually inferior to humarls; often, animals or birds were considered WORLD RI messengers from the spirit world. Animal imitation evider dances, for example the lh*eArril&hgfu lo Our best the wot DRACON DANCE ar4eagt6"-dffi€a'honor such qualities as the around oerformed at a Chinese New Year celebration in Texas, is courage of a particular animal. Other imitation so widesPread i-roth a commemorative dance and an imitation dance that tq9! qs.a pattle, with+he- sacred sPot aru captures the qualities of is featured creature. dairccidepiglgd gl "rql. 6 I il,{i\cF,4N [] l{Ll-lc }oN belief that the depiction ,.-w_oljd-make-rhe-desiredsu1cpJ1r9. ll'grslikcly -7"*J-r-4t6-haooen. te.The MEDICINE DANCES ln many cultures/ shamans, priests or Hathart =< re sto re t h e h ea I th o{ a n i n d-i ii d uii b,y" "ward iw.off .ev-ilSptfjE -sr}.J" The dances may a|so be TIim p!-gq;j!S a.9p,e-cific-So-d.-,o,feeddett. i re pieventative, dgg1glgdjg.;uotect an i n d ivi d ua I, fam ly or enti The elaborate serpent rituals found alm 149:3 community from-danger,er'dis.ga-s-e. irJrif! which are intended to prevent blindness, skin diseases and bad fortune, fall into this category. A special caste of priest/ performers airange these dances for families, and they may last several weeks' rgods and to request the Paleolithic period, COMMEMORATIVE DANCES th and dependence are used to These dances often inyqlyqirn gnlirq com;ngplty and yiculture, other SHAMAN important events in the calendar, such as WfnfefAn-d- commemorate A painting by the author. ln some d. The evidence of preserving the history -sulllmer solstices. They also provide a means of cultures, a shaman leads sPiritual f the importance quests, dcting as a medium a group, a role especially important in nonliterate cultures' Some of between the and il95ildgedE a PhYsical commemorative dances also eelgb-r-ate m-Lleslpner in the lives of spiritual worlds. for events in Fo r i n d i vi d u a l s :,b ! n ! ti o-! !.th,o.gdr d.eath" ! f b, ati inlo-.g-d-u Tqf li Sge.o.r: . :m:f;lHw:f;:ml,*X.l;.'**H::"J.jl[:;r.i;I''-ffi ffi ;l"eu:rv novement, most and worth!pes9, knpwlg4g:--lld'e-l-d.gl9-'1c9.l{ffih*dtffiif may intlude elaborately costumed dance. Today, a masled dances aesig#d 6'iiiist the departed's voyage to the spirit world. Dances commemorating rill explore both special r$-$ffrfiu*Btry often include a processional to a sacred site. igious dance. It is weral general DANCES FOR SPIRITUAL CONNECTION collectio-n T!1ese dancgs are u-qed a.s a means of reaching a more spiritual qlane and establish+inpa Da;ces that are spontaneous expressions of gratitude ioward a deity, for -urifh gods or spirits. L*"rpt", aftera crisis is resolved, fall into this category.,C,onnection may be achieved by spinning ...t- ,ANCE ^i!:-^ ^^'- --^.,@ rnd al<n in thffijiflffi,ldt{hir*rs ON mk#;somecultures,uffiragedtoachievetheconnectionrvith -ffiH;i;;;ld; dancing into a state of exhaustion, using hallucinogens or inflicting pain on oneself s of other living possessiol.py god's. spirit' are means of reaching this ecstatic state. The ultimate*.8g-?l "l!."!q"99[ieve -the is pleaiirfg ere one of the Other spiritual dances are designed to a su*"-oi 6e"uty,.-o1der 411d harmqly-, which en animals hunted to a particular god and beneficial to humans.',eatq tually inferior to vere considered Animal imitation WORLD RELIGIOUS DANCE rha+hu&lo Our best evidence of an be found in the examination of alities as the around the world thatffi-to perform dance rituals today. Some very old dance forms became to a drer imitation so widespread that they appear in several belief systems as well as in social dance. Processionals l a battle, wjth+he- sacred spot and circle dances, which were performed by both ancient Egyptians and ancient APPRECIATINC DANCE c A CUIDE TO Tl'lE VVORLD'S LIVEt-l[5T ,{1{T made signs of the zodia llSE."ty_lr.gr.g considered the oldest dance formati_ons. Both of them also appeared in ancient Greece the courses of the Plane earth.2 example and-hqBritish lsles are relics of ancient tree-worshiping planet rituals, but are dances that were once connected with ln West Africa, tribes il have become entertainment for other ritual dances, for example, those to the have religious Pradice volcano goddess Pele, have retained their sacred context. Osun, the river goddes white and dance with r Following is a sampler of the rich diversity of sacred dance, both ancient and modern, found in goddess, and it is a cultures throughout the world. the culminate in a Process zZ---\ AFRICA Th(eg(nggrlcerelngn communication wlm i The earliest evidence Ll lctica q-omeslomston-e-q4ryi0g! gq rgwtlg t"T!y' {tSyS|agrc-" skirts and head c depicting complex fun6ral rituals that included dancers and acrobats. Egyptian pharaohs and their long his Perso families were considered gods, and elaborate preparations were madelSi[Effi6iiation and that PortraYs greatlY from village to resurrection after death. Royal families had troupes of dancers and musicians who were used on lasting a week or mor The ultimatE{Piritual through whftffi?d thus, ihe Practices of svstem for a large Pat Vaudou, or Vodun (d While the religion ol prohibited dance an ihe Mevlevi Dervish continuouslY for lon directlY exPerience t AU STRALIAN ln aboriginal Austra z,,{ mentrd -J include, for ljlru-z women, significant :zc menoPause' These examPle, Denise C Thost ECYPTIAN FICURE DANCES recei may have expressed the order and harmony of the stars as part of sacred rituals. conil newl sacred and secular occasions. Also, bands of female singing dancers were attached to temples for the a sig honor of specific gods, including Osiris, his sister-wife Isis, and the goddess Hathor. ln another ritual' < One elaborate Egyptian dance ritual, the Astronomic, was described by Plato, although he never site' The t actually observed it. Performed by priests around a central altar representing the sun, the dancers totemic [- LIEST AilT r}ANCT ANI} I{TI-ICION nred in ancient Greece made signs of the zodiac with their hands while turning rhythmically from east to west, representing igious sign ificance; for the courses of the planets. After each turn, the dancers froze in place to represent the immobility of ent tree-worshiping planetearth.2 re connected with ln West Africa, tribes including the Ashanti, Congolese, Dahomean, Ibo, Koromantyn an{ Yoruba ) ample,-those to the song and dance. The follow€r:\f./ have religious practices that are primarily carried out through -\ Osun, the rivei goddess associated with curing the sick and with blessing women with children, wear modern, found in white and dance with calmness and dignity. Proper dancing to the proper drums is a way of pleasing the goddess, and it is an honor if one of the dancers is possessed by her spirit. The ceremonies culminate in a processional to the river, where Osun is offered her favorite foods and spices. ,Z--\\ ., fh(6gr.inglCcege!res, from Nigeria in West Africa, are designed to open direct channels of gyptian tomb/ commfi-ication with?nEbis-fmuglr dance.