Joana Saahirah´s World Blog

A Collection of Articles, Videos, and Freebies on Egyptian Dance, Self-Discovery & Empowerment

Do THIS today🧚

 

Do THIS today.

If nothing else, do it today. 

(Curious? Keep reading this post)

 


I can only share what I´ve become and, therefore, learned.

 

And here´s an interesting thing I´ve learned:

Not everyone wants to evolve.

All of us grow older - that´s mandatory - but few actually grow up - that´s optional. 

 

Outch.

Take a second.

Yep, that one hurts. 

 

Saying no to growth - dance and/or personal growth - is a part our free will. We choose, at every second, the person w...

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The Courage to be Disliked

 

 

A dear friend once told me, after a backlash from an old friend who´d turn her back on me for no apparent reason: 

-You´re inflammable, Joana. Your presence triggers people - not always in a good way.

 

 

I´d just decided to move to Egypt, leaving family, the beginning of a successful career already established, boyfriend, and everything that I knew behind. My then friend decided that was unacceptable.

 

-Who do you think you are? - She´d yell at me, deranged, with two piercing eyes. ...

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Myth #7 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



Myth #7 - Egyptian Dance is Hermetic & Dangerous


Here´s the last of the 7 Myths about Egyptian Dance I promised to deliver. For once, I´ll have to agree with it. Sort of.


Hermetic comes from "Hermes Trismegistus", considered the founder of science, religion, mathematics, geometry, alchemy, philosophy, medicine and magic. A combination of the Egyptian God Thoth of wisdom, learning and communications and the Greek God Hermes, me...

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Myth #3 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



Myth #3 - 
Egyptian Dance is only for Women.

(is it?)


My first Egyptian Dance teacher was a man - Shokry Mohamed.

My dearest Egyptian Dance teacher was a man - Mahmoud Reda.
 
The best Egyptian Dance performance I´ve ever seen was gifted to me by a man - Aziz, my "bedleh" designer, brother, and friend, who surprised by performing the best Om Kolthoum´s dance rendition I´ve ever seen in my life.

On my first trips to Egypt, as a stud...

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Myth #4 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



Myth #3 - Egyptian Dance is Easy.



Hmmm. Define "easy".

If by "easy", you mean that Egyptian Dance can be learned by everyone, as long as they can move and they´re willing to study it, then, yes, Egyptian Dance is easy.

If by "easy", you mean that Egyptian Dance is so basic it offers no challenge, no need for study or practice, no requirements from the one who´s dancing, we´ve got a myth going on.


Egyptian Dance is democratic ...

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Myth #5 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



Myth #3 - Egyptian Dance is not suited for Children.




Lunch time. Portuguese food and wine (the best in the world if you put Indian food aside). My man and a couple. I was absent, working.

They wondered if it was safe to expose their little daughter to my infamous, untamed, shameful and, that was hard to admit but it was implied, thrilling profession.



- Isn´t what she does inappropriate for children? - They asked, not namin...

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Myth #6 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



Myth #6 - Egyptian Dance is about Moving your Belly.


I mean, it´s been called "belly dance", whatever that means, for a while. Then, there´s a surprise: people believe that Egyptian Oriental Dance - aka "Raks al Sharki" - is about moving the belly.



Let´s clean this mess, shall we?



First, the term "belly dance" is a foreign addition/distortion to the real name of the dance which is "Raks el Sharki", meaning, literally, "Danc...

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Myth #2 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 
 

Myth #2 - Egyptian Dance is Exotic and made for a few.

 
 
When I started to work as a professional Oriental Dancer, I made a point in promoting the dance, the culture, and the reason why I thought it was for everyone. I performed on television often, I was interviewed by the press, I organized workshops, performances and lectures and, basically, I put Egyptian Dance on the map in my country.
 
 
 
One
...
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How to keep the Warmth of your Heart

 

- Foreign dancers may be better, technically, and more beautiful and professional than Egyptians, but they´re cold. This is where they lose the game. 

 

First, let´s hit pause. There´s nothing to lose or gain because, let me repeat this till exhaustion, we don´t have to live and dance in competition mode. Let whoever wants to compete with you, compete. Let them burn in that fire if that´s their wish - you don´t have to participate in it. 

 

Second, the comment I´ve shared relates to what ...

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Myth #1 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)

 

The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯

 



 
Myth #1 - Egyptian Dance is a Seduction Ritual.
 
 
 
And, by saying "a seduction ritual", I´m being nice. Polite. Prudish, perhaps.
 Although I know where this idea comes from, and although a lot of dancers keep feeding it, I never wrapped my head around it. There´s a part of me, the part that knows, that can´t digest this nonsense.
 
 
Yes, Egyptian Dance is harmonious, pleasurable, aesthe...
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