Dancing to Ecstasy! Biodanza, The Dance of Life

Imagine yourself on the fourth night of a festival in the desert, having been super sick the entire festival, scraping the bottom of your positivity barrel. Is that the moment you would expect to discover one of the greatest passions of your life? Well, that's what happened to me.

There's my back, in the blue tank top, at my first Biodanza! (Zorba the Buddha Festival, Israel)

From the first thirty seconds of the opening group dance, I felt comforted, the warmth of a hundred strangers beaming their warm smiles at me while looking gently into my eyes. The second instructions we were given sounded basic, just to walk proudly around the space and make any sweeping arm movements that came naturally. As Jade, our fabulous blond South African instructor, started the music, I took my first steps and slipped into the beat of the Jason Mraz song. Soon my steps became bigger, my sweeping arm movements became grander, and I was completely, one hundred percent in the moment. I started experiencing boosts of self worth, and a deep connection with myself and the people around me. As I walked past other 'dancers' whose goofy smiles resembled my own, our eyes met and I felt pure, joyous goodwill pouring from their hearts into mine. A few tears squeezed out of my eyes and I was propelled into a state of pure bliss.

The next hour continued in a similar fashion, but each exercise seemed to have a different lesson, calling a different feeling to arise within me. Some of the feelings that came up for me that evening were teamwork, wild abandon, inner calmness, creativity, acceptance, and harmony with all humanity. Later, I found out that Biodanza was created specifically to evoke all of those feelings, and more.

I'm in the blue tank top, lovin' it

Back in the 60s, Rolanldo Toro, an anthropologist and psychologist, developed a system of music and movement to address a large range of what he viewed as essential emotions for humans (to realize their full potential). Rolando called this system "The Dance of Life," but in Spanish, because he was from Chile - "bio" meaning life, and "danza" meaning dance - hence, "Biodanza."

I did a bit of research and discovered that Biodanza is practiced all over the world, and there is even a school for instructors in my home base of San Francisco. Although I only practiced Biodanza for a few short months, I feel that it's going to be a part of my life for a very long time. I aspire to be a great Biodanza instructor, one who brings people together in a spirit of love and openness, celebrating individuality as well as harmony with the world around us.

If you want to embard on a journey of self improvement and self discovery from the comfort of your own city, I encourage you to find the nearest Biodanza class and jump in! And I hope someday soon I will have the pleasure of inviting you to join my own Biodanza class!