{"id":112,"date":"2026-04-08T04:28:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T04:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/?p=112"},"modified":"2026-08-24T14:49:44","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T14:49:44","slug":"april-7-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/april-7-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"The Deeper Dance"},"content":{"rendered":"<body>\n<center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SSJtNqDWmWQ\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/center>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Theme: Connecting the Dances of Universal Peace to the Walk for Peace<\/strong><br>Sky opened by drawing a parallel between the recent Buddhist monks\u2019 Walk for Peace (a ~2,300-mile, 110-day walk from Fort Worth to Washington, DC, led by roughly 19 monks and a dog) and the Dances of Universal Peace. Both, she argued, share the same core teaching from founder Murshid Sam: peace begins within the individual and radiates outward into the world \u2014 echoed in the closing dance chant \u201cMay all beings be well, may all beings be happy, peace, peace, peace.\u201d She noted Murshid Sam also began sessions with focused \u201cwalks\u201d (planetary walks, elemental walks, the \u201cToward the One\u201d walk), directly paralleling the monks\u2019 walking meditation practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Discussion highlights:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Shivadam<\/strong> noted the Dances are formally called \u201cdances and walks,\u201d reflecting the same mission as the monks but expressed through many spiritual traditions rather than one.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mary Ellen<\/strong> shared a moving encounter with a visiting Tibetan monk radiating present-moment peace, reinforcing the value of being \u201cright here, right now.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shivadam<\/strong> described using body sensation (feet on the ground, breath) as an anchor to bring people into the present during opening walks \u2014 since sensation only exists in the present moment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ren<\/strong> shared how she personally reworked Hazrat Inayat Khan\u2019s peace prayer from a request (\u201csend thy peace\u201d) into a present-tense affirmation (\u201cI am that peace\u201d), drawing on Ramadan practice.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sky<\/strong> mentioned a beautiful meditation called \u201cWaiting for Your Peace\u201d by one of the walking monks (link shared in chat, only available as a Facebook reel).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ayesha<\/strong> raised a concern about circles losing their sense of presence and \u201cbeginner\u2019s mind\u201d \u2014 falling into rote routine rather than\u771f\u6b63 embodying peace.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This led to a broader, heartfelt discussion about <strong>how to handle people who disrupt or don\u2019t align with the group\u2019s values<\/strong>. Sky introduced the idea of a \u201csocial contract\u201d: phrases like \u201clive welcoming to all\u201d don\u2019t mean tolerating harmful or disruptive behavior \u2014 being a doormat isn\u2019t the same as radical welcome. When someone acts outside shared values (honesty, compassion, gentleness), they step outside the protection of that contract, and leaders can address it directly rather than passively enabling it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Menar<\/strong> shared a mentor\u2019s saying about vocal balance in the circle, and reflected on how synchronized walking (even without verbal explanation) creates felt unity \u2014 tying into a mini-debate about \u201cToward the One\u201d vs. \u201cIn the One\u201d phrasing, referencing a past talk by Wali Ali on the invocation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Eliana<\/strong> gave an emotional, vulnerable share \u2014 comparing her personal struggle (homelessness, conflict with a landlord, needing to set a boundary and take legal action) to the monks\u2019 endurance through hardship, and asking how to hold peace in the heart while still protecting herself. This drew warm, validating responses from Sky and others, emphasizing that the practice isn\u2019t about perfection but ongoing commitment, and that dance leadership is as much about the leader\u2019s own inner growth as it is about teaching others.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The group closed reflecting on gratitude for having this practice and community, noting how many people drawn to the Walk for Peace community are hungry for exactly this kind of practice and belonging, even without adopting Buddhism formally.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Closing:<\/strong> Sky named a palpable stillness in the group, comparing it to the silence at the end of a dance, and closed the session with a blessing (\u201cUntil we meet again, may your day be blessed and peaceful\u201d).<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Theme: Connecting the Dances of Universal Peace to the Walk for PeaceSky opened by drawing a parallel between the recent Buddhist monks\u2019 Walk for Peace (a ~2,300-mile, 110-day walk from&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":132,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112\/revisions\/132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}