Encircling the Land in Sacred Dance

Throughout the Ages, people have danced sacredly and made pilgrimages, bringing peace and healing. Dance brings joy, and when offered in a spirit of prayer to God, is a celebration and honouring of the Divine.

The project, Encircling the Land with Sacred Dance, is a sequence of events around England and Wales, forming a circular pilgrimage to twelve places during the year at monthly intervals. Twelve is a number of some significance: there were twelve apostles, twelve tribes of Israel and twenty-four elders around the throne of God. King Arthur had twelve knights at his Round Table, a traditional story now embodied in the Order of the Garter. There are twelve months in the year, twelve signs of the zodiac and twelve hours on the clock.

As we wish to celebrate at regular times in the year, we travel like the hands of a clock, in a circle. Our route roughly coincides with an ancient pilgrimage route used by early Christians.

Circle dances come from traditions and cultures all over the world. Some are hundreds of years old, for example the Welcome Dance from the Greek island of Kos, made up by the Knights Templar in the 14th century. The music for the Pilgrim’s Dance is fourteenth century Spanish composed for pilgrims to the Black Madonna at Monserrat where constant vigils were held. Others are more recently choreographed.

Several come from the Taizé community in France. We choose dances that, we feel are appropriate to honour and celebrate the place and the time of year in a joyful and loving way.

In mediaeval times people
quite commonly danced in cathedrals and some churches. Dance forms part of worship in other major world religions. There is currently a revival in Christian-based liturgical dancing: it has been taking place for many years for example in York Minster, Winchester and Liverpool Cathedrals.

In tune with this idea we look for beautiful and sanctified spaces in which to dance, where the atmosphere is harmonious. We like them to be places belonging to or looked after people who are in sympathy with our ideas, ideally cathedrals and churches or else homes and centres.

We have danced in St Paul’s, Salisbury, Brecon, Saint Edmundsbury, Ely and Norwich Cathedrals, as well as York Minster. We also dance in Saint John’s Church, Chester (the original cathedral of Chester), Saint Mary’s Church, Shrewsbury and Gorton Monastery, Manchester.

The Encircling the land project began in 1998. There are some people who are committed to the project. Our ideal is a small nucleus of people travelling each month who are joined by many local people. There are others who cannot commit themselves to every event but come to specific events, together with those who want to be involved but not to dance.
All are welcome.
Generally there are between twelve and thirty-five participants, and at Salisbury Cathedral there are regularly around eighty dancers.

Musicians accompany us, whenever they are available and sometimes we accompany ourselves with singing. We would hope to make a beautiful centrepiece with flowers etc. and to decorate the dance area if appropriate and in keeping.

The dances themselves are simple and accessible to people who have never danced before. Each is fully explained.

Earlier in the day, before the dancing, we have a creative pilgrimage within the area. The purpose of this is to try to make a deep connection with the area, so that we really have a sense of where we are before we dance there.

We see pilgrimage in terms of bringing our love to a place and expressing this primarily through dance, love being the most healing thing there is. The old saying that every pilgrim leaves footprints of light (love) that others might follow and add to is no idle saying.

The project is linked to The Gatekeeper Trust, an educational charity (no. 326416) dedicated to research into the idea of pilgrimage as a way of healing and into an understanding of sacred places.

If you are interested and would like to participate or need more information, please do contact us. The project is an evolving process and your suggestions and advice are very welcome.

It is helpful but not essential to let us know that you intend to come to an event.

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