Hello and welcome to the new DUPNA Website!
As you will notice, it’s still ‘under construction’ and we’re working hard to make it a fantastic resource for our Dance Family! We appreciate your patience and any constructive feedback as we polish these pages over the next few weeks. Ya Fattah!
The Dances of Universal Peace are simple, meditative, joyous, multi-cultural circle dances that use sacred phrases, chants, music, and movements to touch the spiritual essence within ourselves and recognize it in others. A transformative spiritual practice, the Dances are rooted in the celebration of all the world’s wisdom traditions to inspire harmony and peace. All are welcomed into the circle to hold hands in an embodied prayer of Unity.
There are no performers and no experience is necessary as everything is taught in the moment. Together we sing and dance in an atmosphere of authenticity, vulnerability and compassion to dissolve separation, explore our interconnectedness with Creation and all humanity. Samuel L. Lewis, the father of the Dances of Universal Peace, remarked about the potential of the Dances as a vehicle for revolutionary peace-making in our time: “Although we seem to be in a world of song and dance, we are most concerned with peace on earth.”
The Mission of DUPNA:
“Peaceworks-DUPNA promotes unity by providing support, resources and networking opportunities to communities within the North American region engaged with the Dances of Universal Peace, and by forming partnerships and collaborations with communities and organizations who share a vision of Global Peace.”
United States Dance Circles
Canada Dance Circles
Mexico Dance Circles
Worldwide Dance Circles
A Letter from our Executive Director, Jen Friedman
Our tradition has the near singular ability to foster interfaith understanding and unity at a time when it has never been more important to stand up for peace, justice and reconciliation amongst our human family.
Now is the time to feel strength in our unity.
We invite you to join in the circle, hand in hand and heart in heart, to empower our gifts toward the benefit of all humankind. A lofty ideal, yet exactly what I believe Murshid SAM envisioned with the seeding of our beloved practice to “eat, dance and pray” together.
In the coming months to years, you will see DUPNA’s offerings expand with a two-fold purpose:
- Connect, Collaborate and Empower. The Dances have always been about what we can do together when we collectively align our hearts, minds and souls with sound, vibration and intention. DUPNA is committed to fostering this ethic so that everyone’s gifts are celebrated, weaving together diverse contributions and giving our circles a firm foundation and preparing us to meet the needs of future generations.
- A strength of our tradition has always been its open, decentralized structure, one that fosters the independence and autonomy of our Dance circles and camps. However, we don’t know who we all are, where we are, how many of us there are, and how we can learn from one another. Imagine the things that are possible if we felt secure in our independence, yet came together to harness the power and strength that happens when we share the embodiment, skills, experience and knowledge of this healing medicine.
We are always seeking ways to connect with dancers, organizers, leaders, and the Next Gen throughout our region so that we can better support the Dances’ potential for contributing toward peace in our lifetime. I’d love to hear from you with your ideas. You can email me at Office@DUPNA.org.
In gratitude,
Jennifer Friedman