Dancer Dictionary: Spirit

So, I actually think it's a mistake to try to define something like Spirit. Spirit has many forms, and it is intangible. You know it when you see it. You know it when you feel it. What I will do, however, is talk about ways that you see Spirit in action.

The cypher is Spirit in action. It has its basis in African diasporic traditions, and even how a cypher organically forms is rooted in Spirit. Think about a time that you've been walking down the street, and you've seen someone dancing or singing or showcasing some other artistic pursuit. You may stop briefly for a moment to bear witness and then move on about your day. Some would say that Spirit is what drew you in, made you forget about what you were doing, and forced you to pay attention to what was going on around you.

So, if we look at the cypher in that context, then we see the cypher as a manifestation of Spirit. Spirit (by way of an enrapturing via music) compels someone to dance; the Spirit then, living through the dancer, compels others to bear witness to it. And so, you have a sort of chain process: multiple people are all called to bear witness simultaneously, then a circle forms, and now the cypher is born.

Within the context of the cypher, Spirit also allows for breaking etiquette. There are roughly agreed upon rules within the cypher: one person at a time, don't take too long, don't get violent, wait your turn, etc. Sometimes you have situations, though, where, say, a child runs out into the middle of the cypher and just starts to get down. It is understood at an unspoken level in this instance that because the child was overcome with Spirit and felt compelled to dance, you must make space for that. Due to the innocence of youth, they're not aware of cypher etiquette yet, and simultaneously the youth is what keep the dance forms growing, so when Spirit makes its way through the cypher via the very young, you have to acknowledge and embrace it.

In the same vein, when a drunken person enters the cypher, discord introduces itself. While Spirit may have compelled the influenced individual to join the cypher, because they are under the influence, they are disconnected from Spirit. So, they move without respect for Spirit and thus they break etiquette: they move out of turn, they interfere with others' dancing, and they desecrate the dancing space by spilling drinks, making it less enjoyable or even dangerous for future participants. Think of it like the unbridled desire of a toddler faced with nearly attainable sweets or shiny objects, and the mishap they leave in their wake as they attempt to claim them.

Similarly, situations exist where space is not made for Spirit to be present. For example, I've been to several competitions where there is a large prize pool–say, $1k+, easily a month rent or a car payment for the struggling dancer–and the competition format is cypher style. Or, a situation where the preliminary selection for a tournament is decided via cypher style: dancers dance in cyphers and judges go around picking who will participate in the tournament based on what they see in the cyphers.

In these cases, often the need for funds/fame/acclaim is so great that the cyphers become a site of displeasure. They crowd and shrink, making it uncomfortable to dance. People jostle one another in their attempt to be next in line. Multiple people may hop out at once, and dance simultaneously in an effort to stake their claim as the cypher participant du jour. In these cases, Spirit may not be present, or if it is, it cannot flourish because the prevailing rationale for dance here is material gain. Of course, this is not to say that all competitions are Spirit-less, but rather that they exemplify situations where Spirit can be stifled.

All of this is to say: Spirit compels us to dance. It compels us to watch others dance. It compels us to want to dance, too, amidst whatever internal concerns we may have. However, we must make sure to acknowledge Spirit as it manifests and also make sure that we are making space for Spirit to thrive, too. For, ultimately, it is through Spirit that our dances stay alive.