Dancing
is a way of engaging in the very essence of life and expressing how you feel
through that medium. So those who
have an urge to express how they feel through dance will usually find a dance
form that best expresses the kind of person they are and fits with the kind of
music they prefer – not to mention how much of life they wish to bite off and
chew over on a regular basis!
Indeed,
in partner dancing, it is possible to perceive much in those first few moments
about the other person, should we care to notice. This brings me to another observation about different dance
styles – they each involve different levels of connection, and therefore
beautifully display how willing each participant is to engage in the depths of
life, for it’s never just about the other person, but also what they reflect
back to us.
Some
people will be happy to stay within the same dance genre for many years,
perhaps finding it a suitable vehicle for a decent social life and to maintain
a modicum of fitness. Yet others
will move every few years through different dance styles as if searching,
although they may not know what they seek. These types may eventually form their own fusion dance,
although this carries the danger that few can synchronize with them and their dance
is in danger of becoming one of frustration.
So,
folks go into dance with some notion about what they want from it, the path of progress
turning this way and that over the years as they mature personally. Plateaus of comfort punctuate the dance
lifetime, usually accompanied by a decision of whether to stay put or move
forward into a further growth phase.
The need for growth may be driven by the surfacing of uncomfortable
emotions from deep within – some aspect of the self has been subject to a
growth spurt and we have to work out how to deal with the fallout. The dance floor then becomes a safe
haven in which to feel and subconsciously process the emotions we
perceive. On the dance floor, the
feelings we have are an inadvertent blend of our own and the ones we sense and
reflect from others, but because they don’t need to be vocalized in that space,
it feels easier to process them, carried along by the emotional wave of the
music.
* * *
Some observations of the
types of people who exist in some dance genres:
Arm-led dances such as Modern Jive, Ceroc, Lindy Hop, Rock &
Roll tend to be favoured by people who appear to be happy-go-lucky, like to
believe their life is pretty much on track and don’t really want to go digging
down inside to see what else is there – they might find something they don’t
like. They are wary of intense
relationships, tending to prefer the arms length variety.
Salsa tends to be danced by people who are happy to engage with
others in a deeper, more earthy way.
They believe in the power of their own bodies and prefer not to
over-think things, favouring more physical relationships. Not for analytical types.
Tango – the Argentine variety – tends to be favoured by people
who have an active mind. They are
naturally curious and like to develop, in body, mind and spirit. These people know there’s more to life
than what you see on the surface and are willing to do some exploring. However, tango has its share of
mechanical dancers - people who are attracted by its aesthetics but lack an
emotional connection, perhaps because of their design (see below); they can
still do well in tango if they work hard and may even get to the same emotional
place as others but by another route.
Their relationships involve growth and change because these people don’t
like to stagnate.
* * *
In the
system known as Human Design, where we are acknowledged as being 9-centred
beings (the centres being representative of the chakra system), it is
recognized that the ones who have a ‘defined’ solar plexus centre are naturally
emotional beings, making them sensitive types who are used to interpreting life
by how it feels to them. Because
they are accustomed to riding the emotional roller coaster, they embrace each
obstacle (or change) and maintain a steady course ahead.
Now,
some people don’t have a defined solar plexus and, although they may seem to be
emotionally cold on the surface, they can actually feel deeply as they amplify
the current emotional wave. They
have quite a different outlook upon life, and upon the dance. These types of people can take much
longer than emotional types to learn a dance because they don’t feel the music,
their movement or their partner in the same way. Their dance is, and always will tend to be more mechanical, because
they lack that ability to feel it.
They sense the defined solar plexus in those who possess it and are subconsciously
envious, because what skills they have developed have been hard come by rather
than natural and easy.
However,
although these two groups can seem quite disparate, it is possible for them to
come together, simply by accepting each other’s differences. As humans, we will always be different
from each other – that’s what creates interest. In human design, we will always seek to fill the spaces
within our own design – usually by surrounding ourselves with people who
possess what we don’t have.
If
you’re interested in knowing more about Human Design, go to www.jovianarchive.com or play some of the many free recordings on
YouTube – there is a rich seam of information just waiting to be tapped into if
you’re serious about learning how to play the game of life instead of being
happy to struggle against a head wind.
11th
June 2012
