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About Belly Dancing
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Belly Dancing: A Misunderstood Art By Lauren Paulauskas, belly dance student
“Locked in this dance is a secret language that tells the story of women’s lives ... their passions and their spirituality, their sacrifices, their joys, their intuitions, their emotional life drama.”
--Delilah (an internationally acclaimed belly dancer)
While a dedicated belly dancer views her art as the key to self-expression and enjoyment in life, a vast majority of the public views it in a far different light. When asked to describe belly dancing, many Americans assume that it is a type of exotic entertainment for men. However, belly dancing has not always been interpreted that way and owns quite an interesting history.
Many experts agree that belly dancing is the oldest form of dance, originating from the Middle East, Mediterranean, and parts of northern Africa. The women of ancient empires throughout these areas would dance during pagan goddess worship, using pelvic and hip movements to emphasize the sacredness of childbearing. Belly dancing was also used during fertility rites and during rituals preparing a girl for marriage. After the rise of Islam, circa 600 AD, Muslim women of all shapes and sizes would belly dance to the rhythms of hollow dumbek drums, clanging tambourines, airy bamboo flutes, and clinking finger cymbals. Known at this time as “raks sharqi,” meaning “the dance of the East” or “the Oriental dance,” belly dancing was performed either as a solo or a group. It was as an enjoyable activity for women after the completion of daily chores. Because Muslim households were gender segregated and men were not allowed to observe, women would belly dance for their own benefit and fulfillment.
Extending from the torso, the core movements of belly dancing are natural for a woman’s body structure. Various dance components consist of the lifting, sliding, and circling of hips and ribcages, as well as belly pushes and pelvic tucks. By isolating certain parts of the body and moving them independently in melodic patterns, belly dancing brings together the entire feminine form. Professional belly dancers master their art to look like a snake slithering through their veins. Similar to how their bodies evolve to mimic a serpent, belly dancing has evolved throughout the modern age.
In present times, many Americans misinterpret belly dancing as a seductive dance for male amusement. Authentic Middle Eastern dance was introduced to the United States at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. Shocked crowds gaped as fully-clad dancers twisted their torsos in ways that the fashionable corsets worn by women of the time would have never allowed. Event advertiser Sol Bloom presented this Oriental dance form as “belly dancing,” a name that has stuck throughout the decades. Many burlesque troops at the turn of the century embraced the publicity of the scandal and created their own interpretation of “raks sharqi,” called the “hoochy coochy”. Throughout the twentieth century, the vaudeville rendition has transformed into today’s definition of modern striptease. However, women who have taken classes or have done research on authentic belly dancing would concede that, while it may look alluring and seductive, the main objective is not for a man’s enjoyment. The fulfillment still lies in the original objective of personal satisfaction and self-expression.
Lauren Paulauskas is a student of Belly Dance at the Maya Zahira School of Belly Dance
Sources:
www.shira.net
www.joyofbellydancing.com
www.visionarydance.com
www.bellydance.org
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