Music and Dance of the Soul
Music and Dance of the Soul
A Sound and Movement Workshop in Bad Bevensen, Germany
Week 2, August 3 – August 9, 2025
Thy music causeth my soul to dance
This week we will immerse ourselves in the sound and dance of the soul, connect with the one sound that permeates and animates everything, with life itself.
Ophiel will sing and intone with us: We will immerse ourselves in vocal improvisations and in the alternation of silence and sound; with mantric monophonic and multipart chants we will become a “choir” together, a unity in sound, a “sing-phony” that can inspire and strengthen us.
Fatimabi and Alaudin share the attunement and dance of the dervishes. We dance and pray with our bodies, hearts and souls. We feel safe in the arms of the divine mother/father. We let ourselves be carried by the one rhythm, by the one being – we forget ourselves in order to experience what the Sufis call disembodiment in God – Fana fi Allah.
Sinan will share Ilahis – traditional songs from the Sufi tradition: we will explore what it means to become a single note within the music and connect to the universal harmony. Starting with fundamental rhythms, we will journey through different makams with guided zikr practices. This is an invitation to experience the dance of the soul, guided by music, and discover the depths of unity and inner peace.
Tarana will lead us in music practices related to the musical legacy of Hazrat Inayat Khan, including the Prayer of Invocation, sung zikr, sound healing practices, and compositions from the Minqar-i Musiqar. Singing will be interspersed with contemplation of his writings on the mysticism of sound and music. Participants will be encouraged to compose their own music based on his prayers and sayings.
This week we will weave a carpet of sound, movement and silence.
There is no need to have any special musical knowledge or physical skills. We sing and move from the heart.
Thy music causeth my soul to dance;
in the murmur of the wind I hear Thy flute;
the waves of the sea keep the rhythm of my dancing steps.
Through the whole of nature I hear Thy music played, my Beloved;
my soul while dancing speaketh of its joy in song.
Schedule, Central European Time:
6:30 – 7:30: Morning meditation with Aziz Dikeulias
7:45 – 8:45: Breakfast
9:00 – 10:15: Morning session 1
10:45 – 12:00: Morning session 2
12:30 – 13:30: Lunch
13:45 – 14:45: Midday Session: Yoga with Parvati
15:00 – 16:15: Afternoon session 1
16:45 – 18:00: Afternoon session 2
18:30 – 19:45: Dinner
~ 20:00 – 21:30: Evening program
This seminar is held in English and German.
Ophiel Maarten van Leer is a conductor, singer and music teacher with many years of experience in the fields of music and meditation. He comes from a musical family; His mother introduced him to the Sufi message. At 17, Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan became his inspiring teacher. He studied conducting and school music-teaching in Utrecht. For many years he has led seminars in ensemble singing, musical improvisation and meditation. He teaches music at a Rudolf Steiner School and directs various choirs in the Rhine-Main area around Frankfurt, Germany.
As a Sulūk Gulzar graduate, S. Tarana Jobin has served in various musical roles within the Inayatiyya since 2018, dedicated to reviving the musical legacy of Hazrat Inayat Khan and sharing it with those resonating with his teachings. Professionally, most recently she served as Chief Conductor for the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York for a decade, simultaneously Resident Conductor of the Toledo Symphony and Associate Conductor of the Toledo Opera for three years.
Monika Fatimabi Grieger is the founder and leader of the Sufi Centre Omega in Zürich. As senior teacher in the Inayati Sufi Tradition and Semazen (whirling derwish) in the Mevlevi Tradition she has a special relation to the dance of the whirling dervishes, which she teaches as the prayer of the heart. For almost forty years she has been guiding people on their spiritual path. Her aim is to inspire them for life and to awaken the sacred within them. Fatimabi combines meditation with movement and song. The path she teaches is rooted in tradition and open to the future. It leads to a spirituality that includes body, heart and soul and deeply affirms life. Joy, happiness, ecstasy, as well as silence, devotion, contemplation and highest meditation belong to this path of spiritual freedom.
Alaudin Grieger is a psychologist and psychotherapist, a disciple and teacher in the tradition of Chisti-Inayati, and Semazen in the tradition of Mevlevi. He practices meditation, movement, and whirling as prayer in motion.
Sinan Arat is a ney (reedflute) player, composer and singer. He was born in Erzincan (Turkey) and studied the Ney by Kaşif Demiröz at the Classical Ottoman music conservatory in Izmir. He obtained his masters degree at Codarts Rotterdam lead by the legendary Bansuri master Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and Ney master üstad Kudsi Ergüner. Since his meeting with the mystical ancient flute Ney, he has been reflecting his sound through various approaches that are coming from his regional Anatolian folk music, Ottoman and Indian Classical Music as well as Fusion and experimental forms. Besides his music performances he also plays for film & theatre productions.
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