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Tantra in Flow Arts (Part 3)
Sep
Tantra in Flow Arts (Part 3) – Unity
Unity; Such a widely known term. What does it mean? We see this in a multitude of practices, from religions, to yoga, to corporations and nations! In the world of Tantra, union is the joining together of all things, while recognizing that all things are already one.
In reality, all things are one! One person here, one person there, one deck of cards, one card, one world, – the list is infinite! All is one, so they say, and there are an infinite amount of ones. Masculine and feminine energies are individually unique, and together at the same time. If everything was just feminine energy, no thing would exist, except for nothingness/space, with no thing to perceive that it even exists. If all was masculine energy, well, quite frankly, masculine energy simply cannot exist without feminine, for all material things are within space (or feminine energy as illustrated in the previous Tantra in Flow Arts articles).
Unity in Tantra is vast, as well as tantra in flow arts, because not only is the masculine and feminine one, you can see how they both contain an infinite amount of each other!
Let’s tie this into flow arts!
Because flow arts exists, people recognize it as its own thing. It has its own characteristics and energy in contrast to other dance styles. As we look deeper into this, we see how in order for flow arts to exist, it had to have started first as an idea. It began as feminine energy; a non-physical concept within the mind. In order for flow arts to become recognized as a thing, however, the concept had to be ACTED on (masculine energy) to birth that that is flow arts. Now, looking even deeper, is flow arts a physical thing? No! Flow arts is a practice! You can’t reach out and touch it, because it isn’t a physical thing. In this case, it is a feminine thing! (What a mind bender!)
What About The Props?
Props are physical things! Indeed they are, and unlike flow arts as a whole, props are masculine because they are physical matter; you can reach out and touch them. But for props to exist, there must be space (feminine energy) for them to reside. It gets even deeper than this though! Let’s look at some specific props.
The Hoop
Hoops are circular shaped, thus representing feminine energy. The whole of space is represented this way, but what happens when you turn the hoop and view it from the size? It no longer looks like a circle! In fact, from this perspective, the hoop is now a straight line! It now represents masculine energy! Yet when we look even deeper, the material in which the hoop is constructed from is tubular, or circular from yet another perspective. Feminine again!
Poi
Poi are quite similar, yet more simple. The ball itself, no matter how you look at, is spherical, representing feminine energy. Though it being a physical thing makes it also masculine. Now, take the tethers for contemplation. They can be perceived as straight, or curvy depending on how it’s arranged, yet the material is usually constructed from a tubular fabric or chord (feminine energy again!). Ahhhh the union!
Staffs
Similar to the poi tethers, we look at staffs. They appear to be a straight prop, representing masculine energy, yet the material from which it is created is typically tubular too! Therefore, staffs represent both the masculine and feminine!
All props are both because there are an infinite amount of degrees in which they can be perceived, and an infinite amount of balance between masculinity and femininity.
(Not to mention the things themselves began as an idea in the mind, totally feminine. It was not until someone combined it with masculine energy to create something physical!)
The Act Itself
As mentioned before, action and doingness are masculine. Though while in the flow, we are consistently dreaming, feeling, and allowing fourth the dance, representing the feminine. Before picking up flow arts, you probably had an idea, an inspiration, and a visualization of yourself in the act! Then, by putting this dream into action, you have unionized masculine and feminine energies into a tantric exchange and balance.
It gets deeper. Can you believe it? Though I’ll leave it up to you to discover more layers of this wonderful tantric representation we call flow arts.
Until next time flowmies, live it up with every action you take!
–Liora of Infinite Comings
A Sacred Flow Art Community Blogger
