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.
Civilization in Equipoise
Form, movement, and narrative in the art of M. F…
An Orgiastic Aha! Epilogue: Tucci in His Own Words
The unique legacy of a scholar and an adventurer
Giuseppe Tucci, an Orgiastic Aha! Part Three
Familiarity with sexual power as something to honor and utilize for spiritual cultivation is not common, but upon a study of ancient cultures, we see
Giuseppe Tucci, an Orgiastic Aha! Part Two
This three-part series examines tantric deities in the yab-yum posture of symbolic sexual congress.
Giuseppe Tucci, an Orgiastic Aha! Part One
Giuseppe Tucci (1894–1984) was an Italian scholar-adventurer who supervised archeological digs in Iran, Persepolis, and the Himalayas.
When Guanyin Jumps Off a Cliff
The words fable and fabulous share the same root, the Latin word fabula, meaning story. Over time and use in the French and English languages, a fable
Meet the Khandum
Introducing the dancing wrathful dakinis of the bardo…
Tibetan Book of the Dead, Part Three: One Last Dance
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
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
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