For ages I’ve been secretly transfixed by bellydancers who can do this graceful, almost Flamenco-like movement.  (Up until recently I had -NO IDEA- what it was called, so that was a big factor deterring me from figuring it out. ;))  But for some reason I just got a bug up my bum to try and eke this movement out, so I’ve been doing a bit of rsearch. :)

What is “Lotus Hands..??”  Well, it’s a gesture which makes your hands appear as if they’re entwining & getting lost in/entangled with one another, but then flawlessly emerging again; like a beautiful, binary dance full of swirls and courtly passes. :)  When done well, it’s difficult to tell where one hand ends and the other begins- or how the heck the dancer’s gotten her limbs to bend & spiral that way.  

It’s also delectably entrancing and has a certain mystical, alluring power to it.  Something about it seems very “come here, go away” to me.. like many of the best courting dances seen in many cultures around the world.  (..Which is, I’m sure, very much intended by the person or people who created this gesture- given what I’ve learnt this movement is about. :))

So this weekend during an incredible workshop w/the amazing Belladonna of DC, I finally got up the gumption to ask somebody how in the bloody heck to do it. :)  And the result?  Wellllll, despite Bella’s great explanation, I’m visually impaired n’ class was juuuust finishing; so while I got the top part, when it came to the bottom swirl, I was still lost.  (I could just NOT figure out how the upper part of the undulation turned back around, so your hands didn’t cave in on themselves as they made their journey back to the top of the motion. :P)  So today I did a little surfing, n’ found 2 videos that were not only most like the movements Belladonna taught us, but which both demonstrated & explained it in the clearest manner possible. :)

There are of course other videos out there, but for me I enjoyed these 2 specifically because one explains the spiritual & cultural origins of this gorgeous motion, and the other demonstrates it from a first AND third-person perspective, so you really get to see (and hear described) where your hands should be from YOUR point of view. :)

I hope you like, and that you find these things useful; ‘cause thanks to them and Belladonna (who made the awesome suggestion of using a hair tie to rubberband your thumbs together), I FINALLY GOT IT!! ^_^ *does a happy dance*

(Here’s the other video, which I can’t figure out how to double-up in Tumblr’s entry format- yet. ;)):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX_M36Qp4d8   

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(PLEASE NOTE:  Be careful!  While you’re not likely to put someone’s eye out while practicing this, working at Lotus Hands too long can make the wrists a little sore and/or stiff.  So if you’re prone to Carpal Tunnel or have other wrist issues, be mindful and practice in littler sessions, so you don’t hurt anything. :)  (After all, you know your body best, so if something starts to hurt- STOP!  -Or, at the very least, modify your movements.  ..’Cause casts may be fun for autographs, but they’re hardly easy- or sexy- to dance in. ;))

Love & Light,
Ylluria