Mirror of Mudra:
Become a Conscious Reflection of the Five Cosmic Elements
Free Introduction with Vena Ramphal
January 31st
10am Los Angeles | 1pm New York | 6pm London | 7pm Rome
WATCH VIDEO INTRODUCTION:
5ElementDance is founded on the principle of integrating spirituality with worldly life. The qualities and skills of the 5 elements can be used to benefit and improve all aspects of your life. Our mind is a mirror of the cosmos. This metaphor is often found in yogic traditions. Whether we reflect distressed impressions or harmonious splendor depends on the state of our mirror. Classical Indian dance sees mudra as a powerful tool for consciously polishing the mirror of our awareness - physically, mentally, emotionally, energetically. Our physical personality is made up of the way we move, carry, and express our body. We have gathered these unconsciously: through personal habit, genetic imprints, cultural influence, and karmic patterns.
Five Week Course with Vena Ramphal
Mondays February 7, 14, 21, 28, March 7
10 - 11am Los Angeles | 1 - 2pm New York
6 - 7pm London | 7 - 8pm Rome
Price: $100
This course is offered live on Zoom.
Recordings of all sessions will be available for viewing by registered students for three months.
The Mirror of Mudra course is designed to bring awareness and conscious choice into how we comport our bodies. We use mudra and movement to shape ourselves into mirrors of the 5 cosmic elements. With 5ElementDance we dissolve our habitual patterns of movement and bring our physical expression into alignment with qualities of the 5 cosmic elements. In this course we shall:
Loosen the grip of our habitual postures and movements through the mudras and movements of 5ElementDance
Develop our bhāva (state of body-being) to reflect the qualities of the 5 elements
Discover how to apply these qualities to improve different aspects of our lives
In 5ElementDance each of the elements is associated with a particular quality. skill, and capability. These siddhis (achievements) become available to us when we consciously develop our relationship with the elements.
Each week we shall focus on one of the 5 elements and we will:
Learn the Mudra
Develop the bhāva (feeling stale) of the element in the body-mind-awareness
Be guided through a movement meditation that expresses the element
Integrate the insights of this process
You do not need to have previous experience of dance or the 5 elements. If you have taken the ‘Matrix of Life’ course with Vena this course will deepen your experience. We are entering the practice through a different lens.
What is 5ElementDance?
5ElementDance is a movement meditation method that refreshes body, mind, heart and energy. It combines mudras (hand gestures), exquisite movements, powerful postures, and breathwork, making it a beautiful and sensual way to meditate. It was created by Dr. Vena Ramphal, a celebrated dance artist and scholar of the Indian wisdom traditions.
Methodology of 5ElementDance
5ElementDance sequences are created from the exquisite karana movements of Indian dance. The karanas contain the spiritual essence of Indian classical dance and yoga and are found across India in temple sculptures. By moving through these sequences we get to make ourselves anew in a gentle yet powerful way.
Over four decades of dance practice, Dr. Ramphal has developed a complete philosophy of dance and embodied spirituality based on developing a conscious relationship with your body. Rather than copying steps from a teacher, 5ElementDance expands your own innate capacity and confidence for expressive and joyful movement.
About your instructor
Vena Ramphal is dance artist and wellbeing coach. She trained in classical Indian dance at the Bhavan, U.K., and in Chennai, India. She gained her PhD in Philosophy and Dance at SOAS, London University (2006) where she explored the construction of the dancing body in the Nāṭya Śāstra - the oldest, extant Sanskrit text on dance and drama.
Vena has performed internationally and at leading venues including The Linbury at the Royal Opera House, The Lilian Baylis Studio, Sadlers Wells. She has created dance for screen, including a commission from Channel 4, and choreographed for opera and theatre. Her dance performances are known for their spiritual quality. Her approach to movement is informed by a practice of yoga and meditation which she started aged 10.
Vena is an accredited coach with Performance Coach Training and the Cultural Leadership Programme. Since 2008 she has coached and run workshops on personal and spiritual development. Vena brings movement and meditation into her work as a coach helping people to achieve results more quickly and easily. Clients include celebrities, Olympic athletes, and business leaders from around the world. The media quickly picked up on her work and she has been featured on Sky News, BBC radio, Elle, Cosmo, GQ and several other media outlets.