Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2003 4:38 pm Post subject: DANCING IS NOT HARAM IN ISLAM
SOME EXTREMIST MUSLIMS THINK THAT DANCING ID HARAM BUT ITS NOT
WHEN THE DELEGATION FROM ABYSSINYA VISITED THE PROPHET [PBUH] THEY PERFORMED DANCING IN MOSQUE THE PROPHET [PBUH] WATCHED THEM AND ALSO LOWERED HIS SHOULDERS SO THAT LADY AISHA COULD WATCH.
peer naachee ne ka(n)the geenaan re maa
em samjaaveene gur kahe chhe re maa...............................1
The Peer(True Guide) dances (in happiness) and expounds
this 'geenaan'. In this manner the Guide explains and informs!
PIR SAID GARBIS WHILE DANCING.
ALSO ISMAILIS PERFORM DANDIA RASS ANS RAASRA ON 13 DEC, DEEDAR ETC WHICH IS ALSO A KIND OF DANCING.
<FONT face=Verdana color=#0000ff size=2>Little children may dance, women o­n their own may dance (such as in a wedding without the presence of men), a husband and his wife may dance in a private area, but public dancing (dancing clubs, parties, etc.) is totally prohibited. I do not agree that us ismailis should do dandiya, it is a hindu practice, originally meant to dance for their gods and goddesses.<BR></FONT>
You said dandia is not good its hindu practise. Do you use car? Car is not invented by muslims. This computer is not invented by muslims. Pakistanis or Indians like Kheer.seera.lapsi etc these dishes are not made by muslims. In sukreet you get seera [halwa] Is seera Arabic dish or an Indian food?
Dandia,rasra etc peformed at the time of Khushiali or Deedar are not wrong. If dandia was against Islam Hazir Imam would stop it.
You may know that oct 31 is halloween a festival of christians but many of its customs are not related to christanity.
Joined: 18 Dec 2003 Posts: 70 Location: Houston, Texas
Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2004 3:50 pm Post subject:
YAM
If you believe in sufism, dancing is a form of affection to their imam (sheik). Nach na be ibadat bun janda hay joh nach ne da pah ho ve (Panjabi)
A great sufi Buleshah had said this and he did dance to show his affection to his sheik Inyaat Shah. So, dancing in the thoughts of your imam is ibadat. This is my understanding about the issue on dancing.
Joined: 01 Jan 2004 Posts: 49 Location: San Antonio, TX
Posted: Fri Jul 23, 2004 7:07 am Post subject:
Hi. I totally agree- I don't think dandia is bad at all- it's a form of celebration to show our happiness for the Imam. I think a lot of people, especially extremists, have this perception that anything that's fun must somehow be bad...I once heard in a waez where Imam SMS was eating delicacies of some sort, and someone had questioned him about that- and in reply he said something to the effect of why should bad people only be able to enjoy themselves.
I do agree that our religion takes a lot of practice and hard work, but there's nothing wrong with wanting to have some fun and enjoying life while you're at it. (As long as you're not doing something the Imam says you shouldn't)
Okay, this is kind of a side note, but it relates to dancing- would clubbing be considered bad? I know most of ya'll will probably say yes, but really think about it, and in reply, give me justifications for why you think it is or is not okay to go. I just want other people's opinions about this. Thanks!!
I would even go frther, I would say when we do Dandia, as asked by Imam's Farman, we do Ibadat and the same credit goes to our account...
Just read carrefully the wording that Hazar Imam uses when he talks of Dandia, sometime he even use the word dancing! And he looks so nice in his photos of his early age when he also played Dandia....
Posted: Fri Jul 23, 2004 3:50 pm Post subject: Entertainment and faith
"Therefore, your life in the industrialized world represents hard work; time is at a premium, there is entertainment, there are comforts of everyday life. Do not for that forsake the regular practice of your faith, because answerability on the day of Judgment is for everyone, everywhere."(Silver Jubliee, London 1983)
I think that the above mentioned Farman is quite self explanatory. The way I interprete it is that so long as one's practice of faith is not compromised, I see no reason to enjoy life in very possible manner. I believe every human experience has something to teach us either through reflection or through personal experience. So long as entertainment is reasonable, not very extravagant, and does not convey sinister connotations, I think it is legitimate. Playing dandias three or four times a year is very reasonable. It fosters unity and serves to express spiritual happiness which is shared by everyone participating.
Having said the above, I believe that through Ibaadat (in its broadest sense), a person can build a strong and rich inner life and therefore is indifferent to pleasure and pain. He does not crave for material pleasures which will seem trivial and insignificant in comparison to his/her continuous spiritual bliss. There is no deprivation in this sense.
The following verse of the Ginan Kal Pat Jal Pat which is my favourite, expresses this.
Nisi jal hove to kuchh kaall na aave - meaning 'If one is as pure as water he is not affected by vagaries of time (pleasure and pain)'.
I have asked this question and I got the answer from one of my friends.
Gujarat has a unique distinction of having a
legendary origin of her folk dance forms. The most
popular and known folk dances of Gujarat are Garba,
Garbi, Rasaka, Tippani, Padhar-Nritya, Dangi-Nritya
etc. Most of these dances have a circle of Mandala as
the basic Choreographic pattern.
Rasa which is supposed to belong to Kutch and
Suarashtra is performed all over Gujarat. The rasa
traditions are as old as the Puranic period. In
various parts of the country, Rasa are danced in
different manners. The main feature of Rasa is dancing
in a circle by men and woman, to the accompaniment of
musical instruments and keeping time either by
clapping or beating of two sticks. The number of
dancers go from 8,16, 32 up to 64 couples, who also
sing the song. There are three varieties of Rasaka
described.
Danda Rasaka-Rasa dance where Danda or sticks are
used.
Mandala or Tala Rasaka-Rasa dance where clapping is
used.
Lata Rasaka-Rasa dance where dancers cling to each
other and dance like a creeper to a tree.
Most of the art traditions of Gujarat trace their
origin to the mythological times of Lord Krishna. He
is said to have been an exponent of art of dancing.
Raas Nritya is a form of dance performed by lord
Krishna with Gopikas. The Dandia variety of the Raas
Nritya of Gujarat is generally performed by a group of
youthful persons, both males and females, who move in
circles to measured steps, beating time with small
sticks (called dandia) singing to the accompaniment of
Dhol, Cymbals, Zanz, flute or Shehnai. When the time
beat is given by the clapping of palms and performed
only by males, it is called Garbi.
The Gof variety of the raas is an intricate
performance wherein the performers holding coloured
strings attached to a top, move in circles weaving
and unweaving different patterns.
The Mers of Saurashtra are known for their folk dance
called the Mer Raas. White shepherds perform what is
called the Gher Raas. The Gheria Raas is a dance
performed by the agriculturists of south Gujarat.
Hallisaka a group dance, in the Harivamsa Purana is
very significant. This is a group dance, in a circular
formation with the hands joined together forming a
chain. The time (Tala) is kept by clapping and is
accompanied by singing. A young man (Krishna) stands
in the middle of the damsels. The feet movements,
toes, heels and legs first start their journey to
explore rhythmic expression measured steps, long,
short, quick, and slow accompanied in single, double
and triple timings.
Dangi Nrita: The Gangis are unique tribals, a blend of
Gujarati and Maharashrian culture mixed harmoniously
with original Dravidians. The dance performed by
Dangis is called Dangi Nritya. Men and women join
hands forming a chain or shrinkala making serpentine
movements with one of them leading. The movements is
very fast, swift and create various choreographic
patterns in a fraction of a second. Each variety of
step is called 'Chala' and there are about 27
varieties of these chalas. One of the most amazing
sights of this dance is the creation of a human
pyramid.
Garba Dance is a popular folk Dance of Gujarat. It is
a circular form of dance performed by ladies on the
Navaratri days, Sharad Purnima, Vasant Panchami, Holi
and such other festive occasions. The word Garba is
derived from the word Garbha Deep meaning a lamp
inside a perforated earthen pot. The light inside the
perforated earthen pot symbolised the embryonic life.
In this folk dance, ladies place the pot with the lamp
on their heads and move in circles, singing in time
measure by clapping their palms or snapping their
fingers, to the accompaniment of folk instruments.
The actual performance begins at night after the women
finish their house hold work. All gather at street
corners. A photograph of the goddess or a lamp is
kept in the centre and around it the circle is
formed. The dancing begins with slow tempo and reaches
a fast tempo. The rhythm is kept by a Dholi or drummer
who sit in the centre.
Some times, women carry on their heads 'Mandavali' a
small canopy made of bamboo chips covered with a red
silk piece of cloth. They dance with it and later put
it in the centre. Mandavali symbolises the temple of
the goddess. Women wear sari in the Gujarati style.
Each community wears different clothes. In Saurashtra,
women wear embroidered petticoats (Ghaghara), a
backless choli (Kapdu) and a head cover (odhani) with
lots of silver and head ornaments. Males wear Kediyum
(shirt) Vajani (trouser) and Rumal a printed head
piece with silver ornaments on the waist, neck and
hands. The musical instruments used for Garba are
mainly the drum or dhol and Nal. But Rasa has Pavo (a
double flute) Vansali (flute) Zanza (Discs )etc. The
drummer ties his drums around the neck and moves
inside the circle beating it.
Garba songs are mostly in praise of Mother Goddess
Amba describing her form, powers, and invoking her
blessings. Also there are Garbas describing seasons
and social themes of domestic ands married life.
There are certain folk dances which typically
represent the community activities and their
functional aspect. The Tippani folk dance is a dance
of such a variety in which women labourers engaged in
construction work, strike the floor with long sticks
called Tippani. They have a rhythmic musical process
to escape the tedium of the toil involved in their
arduous task. The tribes in Gujarat have their own
virile forms of the folk dances.
The costumes and the instruments used during these
folkdances are also typical folk costumes which mostly
consist of a short coat called Kedia with tight
sleeves with embroidered borders and shoulders, tight
trousers like the Churidars and colourfully
embroidered caps or coloured turbans and a coloured
waist band.
Damru, Tabla, Nagara, and pot drum are among the
instruments; percussion, Ektaro, Ravan hattho, and
Jantar are among the string instruments and Pavo,
shehani, murli, turi, and taturi are wind instruments
used as accompaniments in the folk dances
Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 6:53 am Post subject: Dandias
Very interesting article! Just curious where did you get it from?
Dandia raas are indeed an expression of art in its truest sense because
- They give vent to waves of love and ecstasy bubbling within an enlightened soul. Hafiz and Rumi have alluded to the need to dance as a result of being overwhelmed by love and ecstasy in their poetry.
-They serve the purpose of uniting the participants as they move together in harmony with identical moves in rhythm. They ares also very pleasant to watch and listen unlike discos wherein everyone dances as he pleases and the music is just noise!
-They are an expression of collective happiness of participants to celebrate an important event or occasion.
-They are very decent with no vulgarity or sexually suggestive gestures or moves.
It is therefore not surprising that Lord Krishna at least sanctioned these dances if he did not initiate them and danced with the Gopees! Our Imams have also encouraged this form of entertainment on occasional basis.
It is in Farman of Mowlana Hazir Imam,"I say to you Idd Mubarak and I say to you enjoy the evening with lots of dancing and happiness Khanavadan." [Nairobi October 5, 1982]
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