Meet the Khandum
Joseph Houseal
7 July 2017
Introducing the dancing wrathful dakinis of the bardo…
Ancient Dances
As a religious, philosophical, and ritual expression, dance has an important role in the practice of Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, and other Asian belief systems. Long unbroken transmissions of movement forms are reflected in religious artistic depictions, where performative iconography is mystical code as well as movement illustration.
In his column Ancient Dances, Joseph Houseal looks at the aspects of dance and spirituality to enhance practice and appreciation among readers, and to raise cultural awareness in our changing world. He uses dance as a lens to explore states of consciousness and symbolic representations.
Ancient Dances is published monthly.
Tibetan Book of the Dead, Part Three: One Last Dance
Joseph Houseal
2 June 2017
Sometimes, dance is what philosophy looks like. Only rarely in my long years of dance research has a painted image been so arresting with its
Tibetan Book of the Dead, Part Two: The Hour of Our Death
Joseph Houseal
5 May 2017
The first metaphysical thing I learned about Buddhist Cham dance was that the same monstrous deities appearing in the annual Cham performance will appear again
Tibetan Book of the Dead, Part One: Cosmic Jumper
Joseph Houseal
7 April 2017
Zaharr was a belly dancer from San Francisco who escaped a convent school in Minnesota, named herself Zaharr, and made a pilgrimage to Haight-Ashbury in
The Great Shravasti Buddhist Cultural Assembly
Joseph Houseal
3 March 2017
Shravasti was a dynamo of a city in the ancient world, home to nearly 1 million people in the Buddha’s lifetime during the 6th century
Self-reflection in Kashmir
Joseph Houseal
3 February 2017
The world is beset by what are often called “intractable problems.” Agitation and response seem to run in circles of escalating violence, with little apparent
Dances of the Luminous Bardo
Joseph Houseal
6 January 2017
A most amazing mural is painted on a six-meter-high cylinder on the second floor of Dungtse Lhakhang in Paro, Bhutan. The temple was designed by
Invisible Twice: A Lost Dance Mural
Joseph Houseal
9 December 2016
The organization I direct, Core of Culture, which had already worked with Tantric Buddhist monks in other parts of the Himalayas, was invited to undertake
Finding Excellence, Part 5: A Buddhist Land
Joseph Houseal
11 November 2016
There are not so many places left on Earth where the population is virtually 100 per cent Tantric Buddhist. Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh, India,
Finding Excellence, Part 4: What Buddhists Do
Joseph Houseal
14 October 2016
Mutual amazement at what the other does not find extraordinary is a situation I regularly encounter when speaking with monk dancers. They usually cannot believe
Finding Excellence, Part 3: Who is the Best Dancer Here?
Joseph Houseal
15 September 2016
Venture into remote places and you will find a joyful purity. During our recent summer fieldwork in Himachal Pradesh, northern India, we distributed copies of
Finding Excellence, Part 2: A Tradition of Transmission
Joseph Houseal
19 August 2016
One needs to take a long view—one that spans vast distances and many centuries—to appreciate the context of the Cham dance traditions that were preserved