Customer Reviews

Grandmother's Secrets: The Ancient Rituals and Healing Power of Belly Dancing

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Step into a women's world of black abayas, large gatherings of women and children chatting, drinking tea, eating Arabic sweets-and dancing. "Excitement always reached its peak when one of the women got up to turn on the music, tie a scarf around her hips, and slowly sway into another world, dancing for us. All attention focused on her, tension grew in the bodies of the other women. They stood up, their eyes filling with an old, so far forgotten knowledge as they began to spur on the dancer-'How beautiful is the shape of her eyes, blessed be Allah!' 'Hold your head high, proud Fatima!' 'Look how softly her hips are circling!' The onlookers clapped in rhythm and trilled shrilly, conveying their enthusiasm...."

Written by a woman raised in the Middle Eastern culture of Baghdad, the book begins with Rosina's stories of how her grandmother introduced her to dance as a young girl, where dance pervaded their lives. She gives a fascinating multi-cultural history of women's dancing, advocates attaining awareness through dancing (doing any movement), and then describes each movement with its benefits, from head to toe. "The art of expressing moods, states of mind, and experiences through dancing is based on movements and shapes that are meant to strengthen the body, keep it flexible, and prepare the dancer for life."

The content is excellent and the writing style is engaging. There are black-and-white photos throughout. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

As a veteran belly dancer (since 1981) and a teacher of the dance, I had mixed feelings about this book.

The opening section, consisting of anecdotes about the author's childhood, was fascinating to read. Each anecdote was told to present a lesson.

The second section, on the history of women's dance, was light in content. It was okay, but anyone who wants to know about the history of the dance won't find much here.

The third and fourth sections, suggesting how to use belly dance movements for personal growth, healing, and spiritual fulfillment, are the real meat of this book. The author provided new ways of looking at familiar movements.

An experienced dancer who is looking for new dimensions to the dance will probably enjoy this book very much, as I did. The exercises provide a source of creative inspiration as well as contributing to an overall feeling of well being.

However, a beginner who is hoping to find a book that will teach her how to become a belly dance performer will find this book disappointing. While some of the exercises are based on moves that would be used in a performance, others are not. There is no information about what kind of music to use, and no suggestion of how to combine moves into a show.

The biggest negative to this book is that it doesn't differentiate between the author's ideas about historical fact and how various moves might be used in ritual. For example, when describing "The Veil Dance", the author says "A woman dances the knowledge of the new living creature that can be born from her. She dances the eternal return of life; even without children, she dances this awareness of life that comes to her from the rhythms inside. She dances Eros beyond the loving embrace; she dances the place in-between, the time between birth and death that is called life." Interesting. The historical fact is that the modern Egyptian practice of beginning one's raqs sharqi performance holding a flowing piece of fabric (ie, veil) arose when a Russian dance coach named Ivanova instructed Samia Gamal to enter with a piece of fabric as a way of improving her arm carriage.

The author's narrative can provide fertile inspiration for a dancer seeking new sources of creative inspiration for her performance, so it's legitimate to put these ideas out there. But I wish she would have acknowledged them to be her own interpretation rather than letting the reader believe she's stating historical fact.

I actually enjoyed the book very much, but I gave it only 3 stars because of my concern it will mislead readers about the history and ethnic context of the dance.

This book has its good points and its bad points.

The firstsection (stories from the author's childhood) is lovely. I only wish it were longer.

The second (the "history" of women's dancing) was a weakly-argued and poorly-supported rant. And while I am inclined to agree with many of her conclusions due to my own opinions and biases, the author didn't make much of a case on her own. Most of what she presents as fact is really conjecture.

The third section attempts to introduce middle eastern dance movements, but the descriptions are not specific enough to follow unless you already know the move. Pictures would have helped; the book has several, but they don't illustrate the moves (with the exeption of the hand posture photo, which was excellent). Not that you can learn any dance form from a book, but this one is unusually unhelpful. This section isn't entirely useless, though. If you're already enrolled in a class, it can give you another perspective on the movements you're learning. I've always found it helpful to have them explained another way.

The fourth section is a description of some dance occasions (birth, weddings, etc.) and the dances that accompany them. However, the descriptions are short and vague, and by this point in the book, I don't quite trust the author anymore, so I'm wary of the authenticity of what she has to say.

I seemed to have bashed this book, but it has its place. The stories in the first section were certainly worth reading. And while it didn't actually teach me anything, this book helped me to add a sort of meaning to my dancing; it gave me a focus and attitude that helped transform what I was doing from just exercising to actually dancing. And that is a valuable and important thing. However, the language is VERY New-Agey. I've hugged my share of trees, but it got to me after a while. If you don't have a good tolerance for that kind of thing, skip this book or only read one section at a time ... END

This was an entertaining book, but hardly factual. The book was also misleading to those who are interested in serious information regarding Middle-Eastern Dance. The author, Ms. Al-Rawi, suffers from the disease which plagues many of us involved in the art of Middle-Eastern dance: "New-Age-itis".

Part one of Ms. Al-Rawi's book is a collection of charming annecdotes from her childhood. Upon completing that section, I was looking forward to the rest of the book. Sadly, Parts 2 and 3 were a dismal rehash new age philosphy and cultural misinformation. Most disturbing was the impression this material might create on individuals wanting to learn more about Middle-Eastern dance and culture.

As a veteran Middle-Eastern dancer/instructor, and an American of Arabic descent, I am appalled Ms. Al-Rawi used her author's forum to spread backward, Neolithic philosophy concerning feminism and it's "connection" with Middle-Eastern dance. Unfortunately, she is not alone in this ridiculous view of our culture's dance. Many well meaning, but ignorant dancers believe our art's dance came from the Stone Age and stayed there! The facts are, like all dance disciplines, Raks Sharqui (Middle-Eastern dance) evolved throughout the centuries. Raks Sharqui is a personally empowering dance medium which conforms to both contemporay social conventions as well to modern theatrical protocols.

If people are truly interested in facts about Middle-Eastern dance, I suggest reading "A Trade Like Any Other" by Karin Van Nieuwkerk or if you like sugar-coated facts, read "Serpent of the Nile" by Wendy Bonaventura.

As for Ms. Al-Rawi: She needs to chat with her grandmother and aunties again. Something suggests she didn't listen the first time.

I enjoyed this book immensely. The first part is a brief, anecdotal account of the author's childhood in Baghdad, with emphasis on the women who raised her and the importance of dance (and bodily awareness in general) in their lives. The second part is a history of dance, from the feminist/revisionist perspective that's been presented more thoroughly in many other books, but she summarizes it succinctly and her conclusions are generally levelheaded. The best part of the book for me (as a student of belly dance) was the third part, where she presents exercises -- mental and physical -- to put the dancer in touch with the meaning of the various dance moves and techniques. Of course you can't learn to dance out of a book, but anyone who has a basic belly dance "vocabulary" will find these exercises extremely valuable in giving depth to your dance and helping you to integrate your mind and body more fully. For most Westerners, raised in religious traditions that divorce mind and body, this is the part of dancing (and physical movement in general) that's most difficult to grasp. Other writers have touched on the same subject (e.g., Gabrielle Roth from a more general dance perspective, and Moshe Feldenkrais and others from the world of "exercise"), but this is the best exposition of the subject I've seen that relates specifically to belly dance. I recommend the book highly, not only to aspiring dancers but to anyone who wants practical guidance for getting your mind and body back in sync. The illustrations are more decorative than useful -- aside from a few touching portraits, and the photo of the author's grandmother (who looks much gentler than her formidable reputation implies!), they could have been omitted without detracting from the book. The translation is admirable: the book is easy to read, and the author's poetic language comes across gracefully.

This book is a joy to read. It's not so much about belly dancing as it is a celebration of being female. This is a very suitable book for any women's group library. Instead of angst and raving against men, her attitude is, "We are blessed to be female and we carry the future generations in our bellies." Very strong message, with an eastern twist.

If you are looking for a book about the finer points about actual belly dancing, you may want look elsewhere. This is a book about feminism, the joy of a female body and how we dance to celebrate. Fawzia talks about how women protect each other, feel proud and survive. She explains why eastern women belly dance and how they encourage women of all ages to dance. This dance is not a "jiggle show to entertain men" as westerners may think.

Now I'm wondering why in the west women dance so stiffly? Who is really suppressed here? Fawzia talks about the ancient history of belly dancing, life in an Arab culture, etc. If you are a dancer, interested in women's issues or interested in the middle east, this book is a must.

This to me is not a book to read if you want to learn how to belly dance. It is fond recollection of the author's childhood and how dance is passed down through the generations from one woman to another and not "taught" in the text book sense. I enjoyed the book very much and would recommend it to beginning belly dancers as a spiritual or philisophical look at the impact dance can have on your life. A very interesting read!

With an interesting view of spiritual bellydance that has all-too-often been masked by performance (or erotic) bellydance - this author draws the reader with history, culture, family bonds, womens' interests, health, intimacy, and, of course, the art of bellydance. As a dancer, I have heard many descriptions of basic and advanced moves. Not until I read this author's descriptions, did I feel empowered and spurred to creativity by the spiritual connection between these moves and the body's natural rhythm. This is a must have for the woman who is in study of the dance and wishes to connect with purpose to its origins, meaning, and freedom.

This is a story of one woman, and how dance was used as a metaphor for life. Great, insightful, and a valuable lesson to others. It also brings to light the inaccurate way most Westerners view traditional Muslim women. I think we typically believe that Muslim women are background decoration and repressed, but this book showed that even in the 1950's, the women held their own ground. I loved the book!

This is a wonderful book beginning with personal experiences by the author who is from a Middle Eastern culture that is followed by historical information and then a more practical guide for belly dancing. It gives insight into what belly dancing is really meant to mean and how it glorifies the woman's body without shame. I don't think many people (maybe Americans) realize this because it came to our country after the wars and was done strictly for entertainment of men who looked upon women as objects for their enjoyment. On a less serious note, it is indeed an enlightening book and I thoroughly enjoyed it...you will too---man or woman!