Clear manifestation of my research in Three particular movement languages categories :
Movement language called; “Gaga”
Internal Martial arts concepts; Taiji 太極; , Baguazhang 八卦掌 , Xing Yi Quan; 形意拳
Daoyin, Qigong
I was mesmerized the very first time I witnessed the choreography of Ohad Naharin and the quality of his dancers’ moves. At that very first moment I knew I found what would satisfy my level of pleasure of movement.
It did not take me more than a month that I was in the studio susi in Tel Aviv where I was taught by his dancers every day twice and sometimes by Ohad Naharin himself. I kept going to Tel aviv for 4 years every year and every year I stayed longer until the last time that I stayed over a year researching and practicing on a daily basis 5 to 6 hours per day the Gaga movement lanaguge.
Along this commitment I had to make a decision which had a consequence for the rest of my life.
As a Persian and German citizen, I knew that by entering Israel, I would close all the doors behind me for entering Iran. As these two countries have a long history of hate toward each other. Leaving that history aside, the most inhabitant of persia before islamic revolution were jewish persian people.
I made that decision not based on my passion for dancing, but on my fundamental approach to the purpose of me being alive with the talent and potential that I am aware of and having the responsibility to fulfill them in this life.
I discovered more than only movement in this language and started my research in Trauma healing based on Peter Levine , somatic experiencing and Gaga language. For this reason I went for 6 month in Tel Aviv and completed my research which was supported in the form of a scholarship from the cultural institute of the city Nürnberg.
I had two more moving experiences in terms of movement during these 4 years.
I went to Wudang school in Berlin for a couple of months as I have been interested in the philosophy of Martial arts since I was 16 years old by reading Dao De Jing, written by Lau Tzu.
My stay in the Wudang school and living the life inside the school which was very similar with my own lifestyle, fired my love to martial arts freshly. I integrated the Qigong practice into my daily Routine in a fairly short time and I was sure that after my commitment to my research in Israel; i would be back there for the other side of my research.
In one of my travels to India for a dance Residency, I came across the Indian martial art called; kalaripayattu.I went back to India and studied for 4 month intensive kalaripayattu only. In kalari gram Asharm, under the teaching of Akshay sekhar and his guru Ramesan Lakshman.
Akshay Sekhar , Kalarigram , Auroville . India
After finalizing my research in Gaga by writing in an academic research manner my comparison of somatic experiences in Trauma healing of peter levin and the Gaga language and making a 2 hours long video, interviewing the dancers and the teachers from Batsheva company, I was ready to pursued my other side of love to movement in Practicing internal martial arts.
As I was practicing at the tel aviv beach my own routine of qigong, I was told from one of the long term student of very well established Israeili Martial arts teacher Abi Moriya, that I should try to practice with him as long as I am in Israel because apparently between my practice and his way of movements, in his student’s eyes common point was visible.
I was happy to already start my Martial arts practice in Israel before getting to Berlin
I was lucky to meet Abi Moriya and by that time I could learn some Baguazhang and at the end of my stay in Tel aviv some Xing Yi Quan. Even though the time was not long, the spirit of internal Martial arts started to have a big impact on how I started to fill the gaps in my research.
This is the way my interest in these Three approaches to the body find each other and here I am working on all of them with structures and openness of integration of these into language that I am creating.
Abi Moriya : https://www.emptybeads.com/profile/abimoriya/blog-likes
Akshay Sekhar: https://www.facebook.com/akshay.akzz.52
Wudang school Berlin : https://www.xuan-gongfu.de/
Batsheva company: https://batsheva.co.il/en/about?open=the_company
