Leyla’s Updates
by Leyla Najma · 2 Comments
Hip Mastery 6 Video Series
This morning I was thinking about what I would write in my blog and I thought I would bring the subject up of my Hip Mastery videos only because I haven’t really mentioned them much. I tend to create videos and edit them, give them to Daniel and then move on to the next project. The funny thing is that if Daniel asks me a question regarding a video I usually have to go back and look at it because I have made so many besides my curriculum classes that I am not sure how to answer him sometimes.
There are 6 videos in the Hip Mastery series that focus just on the hips. But the best part is that each video connects to the next one. So I didn’t want students trying to figure out how to work in movement and combinations without a guide. It just seemed to me that most women who are passionate about this dance want instruction that will help them get results.
I realized that living the life style of a belly dancer day in and day out means that there is no rest for the choreographer. I constantly think of combinations and different choreographies to share with dancers, it’s almost like a calling. I would rather make videos for dancers or teach workshops then perform because seeing women in the glory of their movement is where the spirit of belly dance lives for me. It’s in the learning process of moving within our bodies where I see the epiphanies come alive for women. To me the stage is the end result of a beautiful journey but it is so much fun watching women learn and grow along their path before they achieve their goals.
Hip Mastery is my answer to the questions that women have asked me about thrusts, mayas and shimmies. Add in soft moves, traveling steps and you can see why this is a 6 video series. To me they make “Belly Dance sense”.
Here’s the website in case you want to check them out. www.hipmastery.com
Drum Solo Choreography”Jibber Jam”
The drum solo choreography “Jibber Jam” is coming along and I am almost finished with it. My daughters first day of school is coming up so I will be able to finish the choreography and get it videotaped. I have to laugh though because I put together what I thought was a simple drum solo choreography and it’s not as simple as I thought. I am excited to offer music never heard before, text and a step by step choreographed video in a way that will make it easy to learn. This will be so cool once I get it done but as with all my projects it is taking a little longer then I thought. Hopefully within the next two weeks it will be done and I can blare my bugle and sing a song but only in the shower!
What’s on Leyla’s Mind
by Leyla Najma · 6 Comments
Re: Exercise and Sexy for my Man
Lately I have been getting women coming in and taking my free classes who are looking at belly dance for various reasons. There are more women who are doing belly dancing for toning their stomachs, exercise or for their boyfriends and husbands. Another young gal said her father wanted her to learn belly dancing and of course I wrote and asked her to explain. But what I am finding is that with the changes in the modern world there aren’t as many women getting into dance to become performers or life long students of dance.
It didn’t occur to me to start belly dancing for my husband or boyfriend and I was in a state of total sell absorption meaning belly dance consumed me. What I’m really saying here is that I didn’t belly dance for anybody else but myself. I feel the same way that famed actress Shohreh Aghdashloo does in regards to either being born an actress or being born a dancer. You don’t become a dancer you are born a dancer who listens to or understands her calling. Most dancers live their lives validating their calling which means a life time of training and dedication so they can transform into their divine inspiration. It’s a calling that takes women on the side paths of lessons, and experiences that make for great adventures. We become the Indiana Jones of our own lives because we search for teachers from far off lands and we travel in search for spiritual guidance and enlightenment. Basically what I am saying is for any woman who has the mark of the Goddess, they are born dancers and they die dancers.
The “sexy for my man” is understandable because we are empowered as belly dancers especially when we understand our bodies. But I think with the connection with belly dancing to stripping we need to explain what belly dancing really does for women. The sexual self is only one of the many aspects of who we are. There is sacred and spiritual meaning to dancing and in many ways when a woman understands herself in a sacred way she shows characteristics of the Goddess. I don’t mean this in a silly way that we are all Goddesses, I think for many of us we have become strangers to the Goddess concept because of it’s meanings misuse. Belly dance makes the path going back to the Goddess fun but also we learn so much about who we are.
There were many Goddesses in Egypt that represented many things to many people. Hathor symbolized the vengeful eye of Ra, Bastet was the Goddess who protected the Pharaoh in battle. Isis was the Goddess of rebirth and fertility and Sekhmet was the Goddess of war and chaos. I think each woman has a specific Goddess that she has an affinity with which makes belly dance different from all other dance forms. We dance in constant connection to the ancient beliefs of the Egyptians and other cultures. To understand the present sometimes we need to experience the past.
I can understand that belly dancing can be intriguing for many women who didn’t experience the drive to dance from a young age. But it’s important to look up the history of this dance form whether you’re a novice or someone experienced. Look up the different Goddesses the Egyptians gave offerings to and see who you have a connection to. If anything it’s fun and it will give you a different viewpoint of what you think belly dance is.
