I have been a lover of dance since I was a child. When words were not enough, as a young girl in Iran I remember finding rythym and moving as if I were in a timeless spell. I found my own version of trance as I slithered my arms, the skinny pale girl, a gypsy in a whirling dance. Remember when as a child you were spun around as you got dizzy, asking to be spun around again?

When one thinks of a Whirling Dervish, it is likely to conjure up an image of the tall hats perched precariously, long white robes and the spinning than in continuum. Arms outstretched head cocked to one side, the Whirling Dervishes trace their origins to the 13th century Ottoman Empire. Islam is imbedded in those roots, where beauty and history merge. The dance is often practiced by the, "Mevlevi Order (Sufis) in Turkey aligns the physical and religious ecstasy."

The dance is a poem of which each movement is a word.
Mata Hari

 

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