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As I was reading through the chapter the types of religious dances really stood out to
me as a reason why humans dance. The first dances on the list are the dances for imitation. This
is where humans use their creativity choreography and movement to capture a different thing
in their world. The most common of these were animals and events. One specific example is the
native American tribes. They have many dances that vary from tribe to tribe imitating different
animals and weather. The Hopi a pueblo people who raise corn in Arizona fall into this category.
They have special dances and hold elaborate rituals performed from January through July.
These dances feature the kachina or dancers portraying the spirit representing healing
There are several other tribes who also dance in imitation of spirits of animals as well.
There are people of the tribes in Alaska that have wolf ceremonies and other ceremonies to
protect them and guide them safely through the harsh weather, and agricultural tribes dancing
The next types of religious dances performed were medicine dances. This is where
Shamans of Priests/priestesses perform dances to restore health and give life by wither
bringing in influence of positive and healing spirits or to drive of negative and harmful ones.
These dances can be done for a single person, family or for the entire population of the
community.
A few specific examples of this types of dancing come from many different groups of
people. There is a group in India who follow elaborate serpent rituals that prevent skin diseases
bad fortune and blindness. The priest or priestess usually arrange these dances for specific
families and they sometimes last up to a couple of weeks. Other times shaman will go on a
spiritual journey where their own spirit leaves their body to journey to upper and lower worlds
seeking the causes of their patients troubles and will often fight or reason to get what they
want from the spirits by entering a trance state. It has been found that these journeys seem to
The next type of religious dance are the commemorative dances. These dances are often
celebrations of things like birth marriage and coming of age rituals. They can also include
dances of certain milestones reached and death. There are several examples of dances that are
said to prepare one’s spirit for the afterlife and help them find their way home after this life’s
long journey. These may also include lavish and intricate costumes designed to help on the
journey.
The final category is dance for spiritual connection. These dances are created to help the
individual or group reach a pace of enlightenment or altered state of consciousness. This can be
done in spontaneous thanks for a successful event or after a crisis is resolved. One of the best
examples of this is the Sufi Muslim whirling dervish dances. They spin in rhythm for an
After examining all four of the types of religious dances I found the common link
religious rituals at play dance is about connecting to our world and our place in it.