Episode 08 - Cosmic Choreography

Episode Summary:

In episode eight of the Spiritual Dance Podcast, Carla shares how she has blended her training in both dance and astrology into a practice she calls Cosmic Choreography. This process teaches you how to move cosmic energy through your physical body to support healing, manifestation, and the cultivation of an embodied spiritual connection.

Episode Transcript:

INTRO: Welcome to the Spiritual Dance Podcast. A virtual space for creative souls discovering how to move in sync with the rhythm of spirit. I’m your host Carla White Crowe, also known as The Dancing Oracle. In this podcast, I share openly about my journey of weaving together my two primary passions - spirituality and dance. My intention is to encourage and inspire spiritual seekers in pursuit of a more embodied form of spirituality as well as provide insight and tools for those seeking to expand their creative edges in service to the world of spirit. 

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Spiritual Dance Podcast. Today, we are going to dive into a practice I call Cosmic Choreography. 

Cosmic Choreography is the practice of composing and collecting movement sequences designed to embody and reflect the attributes of different celestial bodies and their energetic influences. The techniques I use are derived from both dance and astrology principles and aim to help people expand their awareness of themselves, their bodies, and the cosmic forces at work around them. 

I used to refer to this practice as embodied astrology because the point is to learn how astrology is expressed through our physical bodies. But that term is becoming increasingly popular and very few people that I’ve seen are using it to describe creative and/or kinetic energy. These days I’m finding that those using the term “embodied astrology” are typically referring to a sensate understanding - meaning the experiencing of a feeling or energy in your body vs actually expressing or communicating about it through a creative medium. Is Cosmic Choreography and embodied astrological practice, absolutely. But it’s also a spiritual tool that can be used for healing and manifestation because there’s an added layer of the external expression of kinetic energy.

I want to talk about the word choreography for a little bit. That word doesn’t just belong to the dance world. It is a universal concept. So let’s break it down…

Choreograph as a verb is defined as:

• carefully planning an event or course of action
• to manage, maneuver, or direct something
• the gathering and organizing of movement into order and pattern

There is a type of choreography that is ever present in the cosmos. We have data charts that allow us to predict the locations of the celestial bodies in our solar system 5, 10, or even 100 years from now. The planets and their movements around the sun create intricate shapes and patterns that hold a specific vibration and can represent a deeper meaning for our lives individually and collectively.

Let’s look at the planet Venus for example. If you track the location of Venus every time she forms a conjunction with the sun, you can witness her performing a kind of rhythmic dance. This circular pattern observed from an earth-centered perspective will over the course of eight years create a nearly perfect star (or pentagram shape). There is a whole specialized area of astrology that studies this unique cycle, deriving meaning and insight from the 5 Venus star points, how they impact our collective values, and how we can work with this cycle on a personal level to find beauty and harmony in our own lives.

Astrologers (including myself) believe that the carefully planned out positions and motions of the planets in space have an energetic influence on what happens here on Earth - creating form and bringing our world to life. The currents that exist in space seem to animate our human experiences here in this plane.

Take the moon, for example. The position of the moon at any given moment has a direct effect on the water on our planet - a phenomenon we call the tides. The moon is a TINY celestial object compared to the planets, especially ones like Jupiter and Saturn. Also, more than half of our body’s physical makeup is water. If the moon can move the water and create a shift on our planet, then I think we can also assume that it would do the same for the water in our physical bodies. 

Fixed stars are another type of celestial body that hold steady in the sky. These stars anchor themselves in the zodiacal archetypes and have a more long-term influence on the different themes of our lives. They teach us about strength and consistency, and the value of stillness - attributes that can be powerful to work with when integrated into dance and movement practices. I happen to think that stillness is an underrated component of choreography - some of the most powerful moments I’ve seen in a dance performance involve stillness - it gives you time to visually take in the choreographer’s carefully selected shapes and forms.

As a dancer, choreography is something I’m very familiar with. It is a method of practicing and finding expansion in my craft. During my sophomore year of college, I spent two semesters studying dance composition which helped me learn to add structure, transitions, and depth to the pieces I would create. Those classes opened my eyes to so many more pathways of movement and expression. 

Choreographers are skilled at bringing together various shapes, movements, and sequences and combining them into a dance - usually for performance purposes. I’ve been working as a professional choreographer ever since graduating college with my dance degree back in 2000. That role and profession have allowed me to birth many creative works into this world. 

In 2020, I began studying astrology, alchemy, and the Elements in depth. During the course of my studies, I had several light bulb moments where I felt like I was back in my college dance composition classes. The concepts felt so similar. I realized that the same energetic signatures found in the cosmos and in our natural world could also be observed and expressed in our physical bodies. And furthermore, by doing so, we can alter our own energetic states to match the frequencies that align with our soul's highest path.

So I began playing with movement phrases and shapes that matched the energy of each of the planets. Not only did that fast-track my understanding of astrology but it helped me to move and shift the energy in and around me in a way that positively benefited my mental and emotional health, added depth to my rituals, and enhanced my manifestation practices. And then eventually I expanded my exploration of this concept to archetypes, both zodiacal and those in the tarot. 

In recent years, I’ve become fascinated by the cosmic influence on the various shapes and patterns we find in nature. I can’t help but marvel at the intricacies of things like flowers, spider webs, and snowflakes. There are certain shapes and patterns found throughout our natural world that are mathematically perfect. People who study this phenomenon call it sacred geometry. They believe these shapes and patterns hold a unique vibration that we can meditate on to help integrate the wisdom available to us in this form of cosmic art.

Sacred geometry is something we can observe and derive meaning from, but we can also reverse engineer that concept and embody that wisdom in a magickal way. Mimicking the patterns found in these shapes can help us move in sync with the rhythm of spirit to deepen our spiritual connections, understand cosmic mysteries, alter our energetic or emotional states of being, or manifest something we desire here on this plane.

I talked about this concept at the end of my last episode on Dance Divination. In case you missed that, Dance Divination is also an observational practice that helps to unveil the spiritual messages, wisdom, and medicine available to us through channeled movement transmissions or divinely inspired dance. If we utilize the methods I teach for observing spiritual dance to then compose a dance - that dance becomes a spiritual tool for creating change both in ourselves and the world we inhabit. 

In a nutshell, when I engage in Cosmic Choreography - I’m integrating, embodying, and expressing the wisdom I’ve gained from the Cosmos, whether that’s from my observation of celestial objects in the sky or the impact that those things have on our natural world. By mimicking the energy of the cosmos (through shape, form, motion, dynamics, or even stillness) we can align with the information and the medicine available to us through those archetypes.

One thing I haven’t really talked about much yet is what happened when I began the journey of searching for spiritual dance communities that existed outside of religion. At first, I found myself in several different conscious dance communities. These groups placed a strong emphasis on freedom in movement - which as someone who has a strong background in modern dance, I have a deep appreciation for improvisational movement. But then I kept finding myself in conversations with people who disliked the idea of choreography and even thought it hindered those seeking spiritual growth through movement. 

I realize I have a very different background than many people in conscious dance spaces. But I feel strongly that choreography can be incredibly beneficial to those on a spiritual dance and movement path, especially for those who don’t have a dance background. And so I want to share the different benefits of choreography with you…

• Choreography can function like training wheels. Not everybody is comfortable moving their body without some form of guidance or structure. When I used to teach worship dance, so many people would freeze when I asked them to just move freely. But if I gave them like 30 seconds of choreography to start with, they were usually able to keep moving on their own after performing the choreography.
• Choreography can be a platform for practice. It can provide structure and focus to help us grow in our technical abilities as we perfect new moves and skills. But it can also deepen our spiritual connections through the mindful execution of movement.
• Choreography supports our artistic expansion. If you’ve had any dance training, you’ve probably learned some choreography at some point. Each choreographer you work with has a different background, different perspectives and values, and their own unique flavor that they bring to their work. So each time you learn a dance from a new choreographer, you’re expanding your movement vocabulary and opening yourself up to new possibilities. In my early years of dance education, I made a point to study under as many different teachers and choreographers as I possibly could. This provided me with access to an extensive well of steps, sequences, and styles that I could then pull from in my own choreographic endeavors. But also, if you are working with a channeled movement practice then you have access to even more movement because the choreography that comes from spirit is infinite. This is why I like to say that spirit is our best dance teacher.
• Choreography amplifies and illuminates musical vibrations. Intentional synchronization of our bodies with music creates a type of synergy, allowing us a deeper glimpse into the motivation behind the composer, adding another layer of interpretation. Choreographers spend a significant amount of time getting to know their music - understanding the structure, sounds, the emotion it evokes, and the journey it takes you on. Could you interpret all that in an improvisational manner, sure. But in my opinion, choreographing is a different and more thorough approach whereas improvisation is more intuitive - which has its own benefits.
• Choreography helps us to utilize the power of repetition. Repetition teaches us the value of dedication. Every time you commit yourself to the execution of a particular movement sequence or collection of sequences, you gain a more profound understanding of the movement and an even greater opportunity to integrate that wisdom. Repetition also leads to self-mastery on a physical level which can create an incredible boost in your confidence as you learn new skills and grow in your craft. 
• Choreography is Mantra in Motion. A mantra is a powerful tool that utilizes repetition to help us shift the way we think and act. It is a type of condensed prayer where we are focusing spiritual energy with the goal of personal transformation and/or the regulation of emotions. Usually, we think of mantra as being spoken verbally, but nonverbal communication done with our whole body is just as if not more powerful, in my opinion. 
• Choreography can support and enhance our manifestation practices. Back in my episode on elemental dance magick, I talked about how embodying the energy we long to attract will help magnetize that energy to you more quickly. By carefully creating and performing a dance that is mindfully infused with our intentions, it’s like we’re using a megaphone to communicate with the universe. It brings direction and focus to our energy, anchoring our vision and supporting a single-minded, unified presence. This allows us to create a kind of kinetic inscription into the cosmic field of oneness. It’s an embodied declaration to the Universe of what you long to see or make real in the physical plane. And I believe that those kinds of declarations have ripple effects, shaping our reality in ways that our minds can’t even conceive of.
• Choreography can amplify collective energy. The difference between a solo performance and a group performance is undeniable. If you’ve ever been to a symphony or a choir performance, then I know you’ve felt that - the rise in energy is so tangible. The same can be said of dance! Have you ever watched a flash mob or maybe a performance at the halftime show? That many people filling up a space and moving in unison does something - it’s a feeling unlike anything else I’ve experienced in my life. One of my favorite things from my church days was the act of corporate worship. Coming together with a group of people to sing the same song, and in my case dance the same worshipful dance - creates a powerful swell of energy. And I believe if we engage in that kind of group movement with intention - we can move mountains. I’ve been in group rituals where we’ve done movement in unison to support a collective vision, sending our energy to someone or some place where it is needed - and that is SO POWERFUL!
• Group choreography can expand our capacity for movement and connection. To dance with others well requires a deeper level of presence. We need to bring awareness to the other beings in our space not only for everyone’s safety but also to learn the power of interaction and communion. Learning to dance with others is incredibly inspiring and lends itself to healing. There’s a give and take that happens on the dance floor and that dynamic has a lot to teach us about the world we inhabit (both seen and unseen). 

I believe this concept of group choreography for amplifying collective energy is a process that could also be applied to our planet and the communities we’re a part of. I have dreams of creating full-scale works of movement art that can shift atmospheres and bring healing to the land we inhabit as well as those precious souls in our sphere of influence. This is my vision for the launch of Synergy Dance Collective, a spiritually-focused dance company that I am slowly bringing to life. 

Cosmic Choreography is a spiritual tool that I use regularly for myself and also in my 1-1 work with clients. I use a wide variety of intuitive or divinatory processes to pinpoint areas of challenge, stagnancy, or energetic imbalance. The natal astrology chart and also transits to one’s natal chart are a great place to start when working with this practice.

Once I’ve identified an area that I (or my client) want to change, I then choreograph a series of customized movement sequences that speak the language of the cosmos in a way that helps us move into energetic alignment. Performing these movement sequences supports our ability to successfully navigate and integrate the lessons our souls are currently working through. 

Say you are feeling a bit low, unmotivated, uninspired - then I would look to the element of fire and the archetypes of Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius, perhaps even the suit of wands in the tarot, to create movement that will spark and stir your inner flame. Or maybe you’re stuck in your head, trying to understand a situation when what you really need is to just feel and express your emotions so that you can move forward. Then I would tap into the attributes of water, of Pisces, Cancer, and/or Scorpio, or the archetypes in the suit of cups as inspiration for choreography that will help you connect with your emotional body.

These are just a few examples but there are so many possibilities with this practice. We are simply learning to embody, express, and achieve a particular state of being through dancing with cosmic energy. I cherish the opportunity to help my clients move through this process. But you can also learn it for yourself by understanding my Dance Divination practice so be sure to go back and listen to the previous episode. I also go into that process and talk more about Cosmic Choreography in my book and online course on Dance Divination. Please check out my website for more information and I will also have the links in the show notes for you all.

And that’s everything I have for you today. I will catch you all next month!

EPISODE 8 RESOURCES:

• BLOG ARTICLE on Cosmic Choreography
• BLOG ARTICLE on Dance Divination
• Purchase my book on Amazon
• MY ONLINE COURSE on Dance Divination

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