Thread: Bellydance/Witchcraft fusion DVD

Look what my latest recommendation from Amazon.com is:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NJX6ZS/ref=pe_5140_11238040_pe_snp_6ZS]Amazon.com: Dark Imaginations: Anaar, Paul Nordin: Movies & TV[/ame]

This DVD has bellydance technique and ritual theory. It includes "techniques to draw out the numinous." I don't even dance tribal fusion, but I'm tempted to get it because it just looks so interesting.

A little dark for me, if you get it, let us know what you thought.

Somebody stuck the "gothic bellydance" tag on this movie...I wonder if that was a mistake, or if there's a good reason for it?

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Gothsend-II-DVD/dp/B0012YCJHA/ref=tag_tdp_sv_edpp_i]Amazon.com: Gothsend II /DVD: Everything Else[/ame]

Interesting. Anyone know of any witchy, gothic Cabaret dvds? I've heard there is such a thing as Gothic Cabaret, but haven't really seen it.

Originally Posted by Elianae

Interesting. Anyone know of any witchy, gothic Cabaret dvds? I've heard there is such a thing as Gothic Cabaret, but haven't really seen it.

I thought Gothic/Dark Cabaret was Tempest's style...

Originally Posted by Elianae

Interesting. Anyone know of any witchy, gothic Cabaret dvds? I've heard there is such a thing as Gothic Cabaret, but haven't really seen it.

I can't see those two meshing well, that I would like see.

Originally Posted by Linnyg

I can't see those two meshing well, that I would like see.

Here you go.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU0REs3bKw&feature=related]YouTube - "Bellydance for the Beautiful Freaks" DVD - Tempest - Amazon[/ame]

To each her own I guess.

Originally Posted by Linnyg

I can't see those two meshing well, that I would like see.

There seem to be a lot of gothic belly dance clips on YouTube.

What.

Seriously, what.

I'm going to put out a DVD that teaches belly dance and also techniques for checking spelling and improving your writing. Because they are obviously related. I do both of them, right?

Well, as a card carrying pagan, I can tell you that there are rituals and rites which require dancing. Are they belly dance? Ummmm.... probably not. Unless the witch performing the ritual is, like me, also a belly dancer. . .

the way people connect the dots still fascinates me. . .

{{{{HUGS}}}

Originally Posted by zumarrad

What.

Seriously, what.

I'm going to put out a DVD that teaches belly dance and also techniques for checking spelling and improving your writing. Because they are obviously related. I do both of them, right?

I'd order it!

For myself...and others.

Originally Posted by tahiradancer

Well, as a card carrying pagan, I can tell you that there are rituals and rites which require dancing. Are they belly dance? Ummmm.... probably not. Unless the witch performing the ritual is, like me, also a belly dancer. . .

the way people connect the dots still fascinates me. . .

{{{{HUGS}}}

As a non-Pagan card carrying superstitious lapsed Catholic with slightly pagan leanings, I am extremely uncomfortable with people pissing round with the dark path, especially if they get into it via a belly dance video and think it would be sooo kewl to be an acolyte of Kali or Sekhmet because they, like Laurell K Hamilton, are so darkity dark.

It's not stuff to be played with and it does, genuinely, concern me *if* this video is teaching dark rituals along with BD performance techniques. I'm not 100 percent comfortable with a lot of the fluffy pagan stuff out there that has you addressing random goddesses from multiple random pantheons either. Because you just don't PLAY with that stuff, it is potentially powerful and potentially dangerous to you. IMO.

Found the trailer on youtube to this dvd ( but I don't know what I should think of it either ): [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfOv4f2ZzWg]YouTube - Anaar's Dark Imaginations: Ritual Dance Instructional DVD Promo.mov[/ame]

Wasn't there already a ritual DVD called Sacred Bellydance by Jehan? Or am I mistaken?

Originally Posted by zumarrad

As a non-Pagan card carrying superstitious lapsed Catholic with slightly pagan leanings, I am extremely uncomfortable with people pissing round with the dark path, especially if they get into it via a belly dance video and think it would be sooo kewl to be an acolyte of Kali or Sekhmet because they, like Laurell K Hamilton, are so darkity dark.

It's not stuff to be played with and it does, genuinely, concern me *if* this video is teaching dark rituals along with BD performance techniques. I'm not 100 percent comfortable with a lot of the fluffy pagan stuff out there that has you addressing random goddesses from multiple random pantheons either. Because you just don't PLAY with that stuff, it is potentially powerful and potentially dangerous to you. IMO.

Zum..our minds meet across the waves..is that spooky or are we just 2 cynical practical souls awash in the world?..g.:

I know people who are perfectly comfortable in their pagan skins and once attended a pagan festival ( invited to dance) and found it mostly disappointingly normal.
Messing around with the dark side..dodgy..I know one girl who lost her marbles due to her dabbling in the occult.

signed a non church attending Prod who quites likes what JC had to say..oh and Mohamed and Buddah etc etc
I am quite offended by the idea that anything sinister ( not my normal Pagans I may add)should try to claim belly dance..it's from Egypt,mate and not even the Ancient variety.

..l;,..l;,..l;,

Originally Posted by zumarrad

What.

Seriously, what.

I'm going to put out a DVD that teaches belly dance and also techniques for checking spelling and improving your writing. Because they are obviously related. I do both of them, right?

PS just read the Amazon blurb..heheheh
what a load of dark bo$$ocks

Am I missing something? (I posted over on OD too.) I've been looking on her site for the term "belly dance" and not finding it. She appears to call it "ritual dance."

I m a very curious person, and definitely tempted to check this out. I d love to see what she teaches in bellydance and "ritual" though, the trailer is not enough to put my hard earned cash into it.
will wait for reviews.

As for dangerous: maybe.
But seriously, the established religions, especially Christanity and Islam and Judaism are dangerous enough themselves.
They emotionally cripple people who feel they will go to hell for sexuality they have lived in mind or reality, these religions are doing harm to women and homosexuals the most, and make them feel worthless. The psychoses in women and homosexual men from religious upbringing and their inability to enjoy sexuality to a large extent is a crime against humanity.
I ll not denounce any religious movement for the "danger" it poses to human beings as long as the religions only big and powerful enough are not accused to the same extent.
Just my opinion.

Originally Posted by zumarrad

What.

Seriously, what.

I'm going to put out a DVD that teaches belly dance and also techniques for checking spelling and improving your writing. Because they are obviously related. I do both of them, right?

Oh! I'm an editor by day and I would love a copy.

I'm not surprised by this DVD at all. My witchy/pagany/fairy friends sometimes ask me about ritual dance and magic and whatnot. It gets on my nerves b/c it indicates that they really don't get what I do, but that's beside the point.

Originally Posted by Elianae

Interesting. Anyone know of any witchy, gothic Cabaret dvds? I've heard there is such a thing as Gothic Cabaret, but haven't really seen it.

Can Gothic Cabaret exist? My understanding is that Gothic refers not only to the look, but that there's also a movement vocabulary that is distinct and fused from a vocabulary of specific Goth-style dancing and belly dance.

And I could be totally off mark, but that's what I thought Tempest was trying to explain to me on another thread long ago.

But I guess if the belly dance Gothic is fused with is not cabaret, then it could be another fusion? I don't know.

As a card carrying "dont believe in invisible friends" type of lapsed Catholic, I find the endless variations of parting a fool and her money to be amusing in the extreme!

Originally Posted by LeylaFahada

I'm not surprised by this DVD at all. My witchy/pagany/fairy friends sometimes ask me about ritual dance and magic and whatnot. It gets on my nerves b/c it indicates that they really don't get what I do, but that's beside the point.



Can Gothic Cabaret exist? My understanding is that Gothic refers not only to the look, but that there's also a movement vocabulary that is distinct and fused from a vocabulary of specific Goth-style dancing and belly dance.

And I could be totally off mark, but that's what I thought Tempest was trying to explain to me on another thread long ago.

But I guess if the belly dance Gothic is fused with is not cabaret, then it could be another fusion? I don't know.

I'm not really sure that there a "Gothic" vocabulary of moves, although most performing dancers tend to pick the dramatic moves when they are in Goth mode.

Um, ok, where to start...

Anaar is a very good friend of mine, and we've danced together. (For the last 2 years, we've been invited by Kajira to do an opening ritual dance to kick off Tribal Fest, and we'll be doing it again this year - they're all done improv, no choreography: This is 2007's [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlRJU0NkndI]YouTube - Tempest & Anaar @ Tribal Fest 7[/ame]
and 2008's - [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7saMK4tzvI]YouTube - Tempest and Anaar at Tribal Fest 2008[/ame]
- and we've done things together for Dhyanis' Living Goddess Dance Theater, PantheaCon, etc).

Anaar is an extremely respected member of the Feri Tradition of Witchcraft (I'm blanking at the moment at the title she holds, but it's in the upper echelon). Her expertise in the use of the visual arts with metaphysics - which is referred to as the White Wand in their tradition - White Wand: Intersection of Feri and Art

Her DVD is geared towards individuals who wish to incorporate dance into their spiritual practices (or perhaps those who like to incorporate some more spirit into their dance). It's not a "here's how to bellydance!" - it's specifically about incorporating sacred and spiritual concepts and dance. Bellydance movements are at the base of her moves, but it's not marketed as a bellydance DVD (the only mention is in her bio and from Thorn Coyle's background reference, and having designed the cover, I'm pretty familiar with what's on there).

So, I guess what I want to say is, Anaar is a serious and very seasoned practitioner of her Path, so this is not some "oh look I'm spooky-Witchy-woo-woo dancey dance!" She is a very grounded individual and through her teaching and practice, aids people in unlocking pockets of their minds and exploring spirit in movement. While she's not specifically a Gothic Bellydancer (I think Ritual Dance fits best, though personally & aesthetically, she could be labeled as a Goth), we love having her teach ritual concepts at Gothla US, as she'll be doing again this year.

It's not for everyone, it's definitely a niche product. But it's a very well-done product for the intended audience.

I don't doubt that, Tempest, but my concern is for the people who might pick it up, you know? I don't know what is on it. It might be completely innocuous stuff. It's undoubtedly useful for people who are already in that tradition. But it's the girlies who get it recommended to them because they also bought a gothic belly dance DVD that I worry about. *If* it teaches higher level stuff that they might not know how to work with. There are dumb people in the world and a dance DVD is a lot more accessible than a book.

Originally Posted by zumarrad

I don't doubt that, Tempest, but my concern is for the people who might pick it up, you know? I don't know what is on it. It might be completely innocuous stuff. It's undoubtedly useful for people who are already in that tradition. But it's the girlies who get it recommended to them because they also bought a gothic belly dance DVD that I worry about. *If* it teaches higher level stuff that they might not know how to work with. There are dumb people in the world and a dance DVD is a lot more accessible than a book.

Mmmm...then so maybe putting that "invocation to dance open the 9th gate to hell" on there was a bad idea.

I'm kidding!!! You know I adore you :) I just can't help myself sometimes.

Honestly, I have not had a chance to watch the entire DVD in one sitting, but knowing Anaar, she excels at teaching this sort of information, and I highly doubt that what's presented that could get the neophyte or the numbskull into trouble, and could be used by any open-minded person of any spiritual path to create a solid foundation of understanding without running off into the mysteries.



And the other side of my brain goes, well if some girlie who picked up a GBD DVD picks this up, then GOOD. Maybe they'll focus more on what's inside than getting their costume and eyeliner just right and being someone else. ;)

Originally Posted by Taj

Am I missing something? (I posted over on OD too.) I've been looking on her site for the term "belly dance" and not finding it. She appears to call it "ritual dance."

Yes, it doesn't say anything about "belly dance " on the video blurb either. Just "dance". I'm fine with that.

You could always ask me.

speak of the devil ;)

Originally Posted by anaar

You could always ask me.

Anaar, how do you feel about your DVD being tagged with a "belly dance" label over at Amazon?