Ecstatic Awakening Dance is an active meditation, a concious dance that enables us to move from our chattering mind and into our body and the presence of now. The method is an effective way of releasing tension, stress, anxiety, stuck energy and relax into the body, feeling uplifted and energised. The method moves through 4 stages as follows:
This is the WARM-UP (approx. 15-20 minutes) – a gentle awakening of the body parts using breath, awareness, movement and music. We start at the soles of the feet and work our way up to the crown of the head. Every part of the body tells a story and in this warm-up, we allow fluid movements and rhythmical breath to prepare us physically and mentally for the next phase of the class.
2. AWAKENING LIFE-FORCE:
This is the SHAKE (12 -15 minutes) – this is perhaps the most important stage as it ignites the life-force for the transformative process to begin. Here we allow the body to shake and tremble all over, with eyes closed and breath deep and relaxed. It has its roots in an ancient form of Chi Kung that uses shaking to open blocked energy-meridians. Its purpose is to shake off stress and tension and to awaken our life-force which is often “sleepy”. The effect is refreshing, energizing and balancing. It is also a preparation on physical, emotional and mental levels for the deeper let-go of the next stage.
3: LET-GO
This is the main part of the method THE DANCE (approx. 45 mins) There is an invitation to have your eyes closed if you want a very inner journey & if you want to move around more then the eyes are open. In this phase, we are ready to go deeper and to surrender to the dance. We ignite the letting-go process with a simple Breathing technique called the Breath of Fire to oxygenate the body and brain so that we are fully energized, switch off the rational “everyday” thinking mind and facilitate a “whole-brain” activity which means we access deeper levels of being through the dance. The repetitive rhythms of the breath and the music also enhance synchronized brain activity so that we experience expanded consciousness states. If we allow ourselves to enter into the process fully and let go into the dance, it gives our bodies the chance to experience and express whatever it needs to move on in that moment.
What this means:
• Stuck physical energy and emotions can surface easily to be safely released;
• Relief from everyday worries and the general chatter of the mind;
• Clarity of thinking from a higher perspective;
• Internal visions, insights and inspirations that can help us move forwards in our lives;
• A sense of self-empowerment;
• A sense of calm, peace, joy and bliss;
4: STILLNESS
This is the complete STOP – when the music stops, so does the dance and you simply drop to the ground in silence and stillness to allow the integration of energies and a deep relaxation.
5: GROUNDING
We complete the process with a simple guided visualization to ground ourselves and come back to our everyday lives in a place of peace and clarity.
Ecstatic Awakening Dance™ (formerly known as Ecstatic Trance Dance) is a method that was developed in 1996 by Amoda Maa Jeevan. Her book "Moving into ecstasy" released in 2001 by Thorsons, was heralded as “the most definitive and comprehensive guide to Trance-Dance”. Her method has since then grown in popularity and status and now has over 40 teachers across the UK and in Europe. Ecstatic Awakening Dance™ is a time-tested powerful, fun, transformational process that can break the spell of separation and re-connect us to our natural state.
No experience is necessary, no steps to learn, move how you want at your own pace. Wear loose and comfortable clothing, bring a bottle of water. Classes are drop in.
Nicola Smith is a qualified Ecstatic Awakening Dance Teacher, Meditation & Mindfulness Teacher, Mindfulness Based Addiction Recovery Facilitator, has a foundation certificate in NVC, a CENTRA Certificate in Person Centred Councelling and is currently studying Body Psychotherapy. Nicola has had her own regular concious dance practise for 15 years and meditation practise for 28 years.
