Paneurhythmy

Paneurhythmy is a method/dance offered by Peter Deunov (the Master Beinsa Douno) who established a Christian Esoteric School of the Universal White Brotherhood in Bulgaria. It is an organic part of his teaching and can be practiced to its full extent only on the basis of this understanding. According to this teaching, Paneurhythmy is a science of the harmonious, conscious movements, based upon the laws of the Living Nature. The purpose of the Paneurhythmy is to establish harmony with God, the angelic hierarchies and the universe. The term PanEuRhythmy is translated as “Supreme Cosmic Rhythm”.

Paneurhythmy consists of a sequence of exercises danced under music with a poetical text. The movements, the music and some of the texts were given by the Master Beinsa Douno; the rest of the text was written by pupils selected by him. It has three parts: a paneurhythmic cycle of 28 exercises, a cycle “Rays of the Sun”, and a cycle “Pentagram”. All of them take about an hour to complete. It is practiced in the early mornings in open air from the day after the Spring equinox until the Autumnal equinox (i.e. for the Northern Hemisphere from 22 March until 22 September). The number of participants is not restricted. Paneurhythmy is danced in pairs forming a circle – there may be more than one concentric circle if necessary. One person of the pair represents the masculine principle; the other one represents the feminine principle. The musicians (and if there is a choir) are in the center of the circle. The participants move in a counter-clockwise direction while performing the dance.

The following quotes provide insight into the background of Paneurhythmy:

“"The main idea, which should focus our attention when we dance Paneurhythmy, is the idea of God, the Great One, the Eternal, the Supreme Intelligence. The fundamental themes of the Paneurhythmy are nature, the rising sun, awakening of the soul. We perform the exercises in the way they are performed in the Invisible world. They have not been conceived here, they have been brought down from above. In these exercises the physical, spiritual and divine worlds are interrelated. There is an interchange of energy from one world to the other. Your thought should be in your arm and legs, in all your cells. Thought and feelings should participate in every movement and penetrate every cell."”

“"Now, you should begin to work from below, that is to say, from the Physical world and move upwards. You need to perform these exercises in order to be healthy. The Paneurhythmy brings harmony and knowledge. With the Paneurhythmy man gradually attains softness and gentleness."”

“"Paneurhythmy is a vast science, which will be taught and applied in its fullness in the future. Ordinary exercises may give good results, but negative as well. Systematic, well-grounded exercises like Paneurhythmy always attain their goal because they are based on the profound knowledge of the human being. Man is a very complicated being who incorporates the energies of the plants and the animal worlds. Today, even more sublime energies are beginning to influence him. All of these energies are harmonized through the Paneurhythmic exercises. Man is at one and the same time both the receiver and transformer of the solar and earthly energies and so exercises based both on the profound knowledge of the human being and the universe and their relationship are also a method for transformation of energies. From this point of view they are not merely an entertainment or mechanically performed physical training. They are a necessity of life as much as taking meals and breathing. Each movement has its own intrinsic meaning. All of the exercises when performed as a whole are a continuous process of the conciseness, a path to perfection."”

elected bibliography

Most of the books/manuals/guides on Paneurhythmy are in Bulgarian. There are a few books published during Peter Deunov’s lifetime, but efforts have been undertaken in the last years to create detailed and “definitive” guidelines on the Paneurhythmy. The Master refers to the Paneurhythmy background in some of his lectures or conversation with his pupils. The following sources can be referred to:

* "Paneurhythmy – step by step description, Music, Ideas, Movements, Byalo Bratstvo (1999) (In English)"
* "In the Circle of Paneurhythmy’’, (1998) - a videocassette with detailed demonstration and explanation of the Paneurhythmy exercises (in English)
* "Paneurhithmy Commetee, Manual for studying Paneurhythmy, Byalo Bratstvo (1999) (In Bulgarian)"

External links

* http://www.BeinsaDouno.org/in_en_pan.htm - official and original version and lessons of Paneurhythmy, supported by tradition of brotherhood, created from Master Beinsa Douno in Bulgaria. The link is part from the official site: http://www.BeinsaDouno.org
* http://www.paneurhythmy.org/ - Paneurhythmy: Circle of Joy in USA
* http://paneurhythmy.us/ - PanEuRhythmy - videos, photos, music and a lot more about PanEuRhythmy related material
* http://www.beinsa-douno.net/ - The English Master Peter Deunov (Beinsa Douno) Home Page
* http://www.paneurhythmy-beinsaduno.com - Original sources and study book for paneurhythmy