Sacred Ecstatic Dance

When you put the psyche in motion it heals itself.

Ecstatic dance is a form of dance in which the dancers, sometimes without the need to follow specific steps, abandon themselves to the rhythm and move freely as the music takes them, leading to trance and a feeling of ecstasy. The effects of ecstatic dance begin with ecstasy itself, which may be experienced in differing degrees.

The described effects of ecstatic dance include a feeling of connection with others, indeed of "universal relatedness”, and with the dancer's own emotions; serving as a meditation, providing a way of coping with stress and restoring serenity; and serving as a spiritual practice.

The ethnologist Maria-Gabriela Wosienidentified four degrees of ecstasy that dancers may experience: "the warning, the whisper of inspiration, the prophecy, and finally the gift, the highest grade of inspiration."

Dance as meditation is as ancient as our humanity. Cave paintings from 40,000 years ago depict groups of people dancing wildly.

Sacred dance is present in nearly all cultures and many religious traditions around the world. 

In the ancient and widespread practice of shamanism, ecstatic dance and rhythmic drumming are used to alter consciousness in spiritual practices. In Europe, this ended in the Middle Ages, prohibited by the Christian church, while it continued among native peoples in America, Siberia and elsewhere.

“Sometimes you have to lose your mind to come to your senses.” -- Alan Watts