Belly Dance – Shimmy, Shake and Slither for Awakening Your Creativity

Dance, and make joyous the love around you. Dance, and your veils which hide the Light shall swirl in a heap at your feet.

– Rumi

I found belly dance brightly fresh out of my Saturn Return. Every 27 to 29 years, Saturn returns to the sign it was in when you were born, a cycle called The Saturn Return. Saturn Return is a cosmic wake-up call to pick a career path that is in alignment with your soul’s highest purpose.

When Vincent Van Gogh stepped out of his Saturn Return at 30, he embarked on his calling to become a painter, instead of a minister. While Eckart Tolle began his new life as a spiritual teacher after his illuminating Saturn Return.

And let me tell you, my Saturn Return was particularly transformative. I was working for a hefty corporation where stiff suits, machoism and bullying were the norm. I felt like I was wasting precious time in a job that didn’t value art, beauty, intuition, or really any of my soul gifts. And so, I left the corporate job, and signed up for all the classes that peaked my interest – belly dance, fine art, and graphic design.

From my very first baby shimmies, belly dance not only put me in touch with my feminine powers, but it also reignited my creativity and zest for life. My world went from dull and grey to technicolor and awakened.

It was as if shaking to the hypnotic beat of the drum literally shook off all the negativity, societal expectations and stale energy. Little by little, belly dance stripped me down to the core of my being. I could suddenly hear my inner voice and creative muse. I went from a corporate zombie to a vibrant and creative woman.

And my transformation is no accident.

Trauma therapist Peter Levine wrote in his book the Waking the Tiger, that animals don’t get PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Why? Because once out of the danger zone, they shake to release the trauma from their bodies.

He says that humans develop PTSD because of “frozen emotions” or stale energy that builds up and crystallises in the body.

With loads of stale energy sitting in our bodies like a sticky pool of mud, it’s no wonder we feel “stuck” in our less than stellar lives.

However, more than releasing trauma, belly dance fast tracks your spiritual journey, helping you step into your limitless creative potential. Here is how belly dance supports your spiritual journey:

1. Helps to be present in your body and feel all your emotions; therefore releasing the non-stop inner dialogue in your head and promoting a meditative state
2. Awakens the sacral and solar plexus chakras; in other words your creativity gets a boost and you feel empowered to share your art with the world
3. Harnesses the power of the sacred number 8. When you draw the number 8 with your hips and chest, your subconscious is calling upon strength, prosperity, limitless creativity, and abundance.
4. Harnesses the divine power of circles with chest and hip circles. Circles represent unity, wholeness, enlightenment and energetic protection.
5. Connects to ancient feminine wisdom since the very first fertility rituals thousands of years ago
6. Heavy hip drops and folky movements promote a grounding energy so that you can manifest your dreams for the long haul
7. Releases energetic blockages in our bodies through ecstatic shimmies
8. Promotes feelings of connectedness with others and community by bonding belly dancers across space and time
9. Celebrates the cycles of life with sensual movements that honor the body at every age

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Lifestyle

Sources

• Your Saturn Return by the AstroTwins
• Therapeutic Tremoring – Shake Off Stress And Trauma by ACES
• Sage Goddess’s Soul Shift online program
• Geometric Shapes and Their Symbolic Meanings by Learn Religions

Featured photo by Sarah Zahno Photography