Description
The Sufi whirling dance is part of a formal Sufi (Islamic) ceremony and practiced as a type of physically active meditation. The whirling dervishes seek to abandon the ego and personal desires by listening to music, spinning their body in repetitive circles and reach a trance state to be one with God. Another term sometimes used for this type of skirt is the Egyptian version “tanoura”, and whirling has developed into a performance dance seen also outside the Islamic world.
Our dervish skirt is made of strong, black cotton canvas which is soaked with fire retardant liquid. It is made to wear on the waist with a length to the floor. When the dancer spins, the skirt unfolds into a full horizontal disc. A 13 mm wide, 6 m long kevlar rope is attached with strings to the bottom of the skirt. The waist part is designed so the velcro can be opened with a single move.
The main differences between regular fire skirts and the dervish skirt are the following:
Fire skirt: Budget friendly, especially if you already have a fire hoop. Allows for stopping, posing and slow dance. Acts as a costume together with fire fans and our fire crown.
Dervish skirt: You need to spin, you cannot stop. Much more fire, more spectacular, more risk, even more suited for a final act. And you can be one with God 😉 $895.00
Important:
– Do practice A LOT before lighting up. It might seem easy to spin 2-3 minutes in one spot, but it’s not easy. Just like other fire juggling equipment, dervish skirts require much practice!
– Make the bottom part of the skirt wet with a spray.
– It goes without saying but: Do NOT wear anything synthetic under the skirt.
– If despite the precautions you get into trouble, the waist part of the dervish skirt is designed so you can open it with a single move. You need to practice this move so much you can do it without thinking!
- Coating the kevlar: Unfold the skirt fully into disc form and lay it on the ground. Coat the kevlar using a bottle with a small hole on the top just like you would a sword. Take extra care that absolutely no fuel gets on the skirt! If any fuel at all gets on the skirt, do NOT under any circumstances use the skirt! In this case, put the skirt in the sun for a full day – the fuel will evaporate in this time. We do not recommend that you wash the skirt, because you would wash out the fire retardant liquid (also you cannot seperate it from the kevlar).
– Storage: When storing the dervish skirt, you need to cover the top (skirt) and the bottom (kevlar) part in two different bags. This is necessary to prevent the skirt from getting oily.
WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE for the possible consequences from using our skirts!
We do not cover any material damage if you have allergies to this material, if you damaged the skirt, were injured during the performance or brought damage to the surrounding property.
It requires a high level of preparation.
Using our skirts, you need to remember that the cord has to burn itself down during the dance.
It is impossible to stop spinning until the cord completely burns out and cools.
MORE Safety guidelines:
– Do not try fire-whirling unless you are confident and experienced performer. You must be able to keep the skirt fully open while the fire is on (up to 4 minutes).
– There should be no obstacles nor flammable objects in the whirling area.Ways of lighting up your fire skirt.
– There are several options for firing up a skirt during a spine. Use fire palm candles (hand candles) though this requires some experience. Using a hand torch is another option. If you have an assistant you can use his/her help with lighting up your skirt with a lighter or a candle.
-YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO WHIRL DURING 4 MINUTES!
-Please, do not try fire-whirling unless you are confident whirling performer.
-You must be able to keep the skirt fully open while the fire is on (up to 4 minutes).
– It is convenient to soak the cord in a wide bucket. First pour combustible liquid in the bucket and slowly soak the rim step by step.
– The fire can be ignited at the start of your performance by using a palm candle, torch or similar.
– YOU MUST START WHIRLING IMMEDIATELY AFTER IGNITION!
– YOU SHOULD NOT STOP WHILE SKIRT BURNS! Otherwise your skirt may start burning that may cause skin burns.
– The fire skirt burns around 3-4 minutes. You should keep whirling 1 minute more after the fire is completely off. This is because the fire cord can be very hot during some time after the fire stops.
– There should be no obstacles nor flammable objects around the whirling area. Please have someone nearby with fire-extinguisher and first aid just in case.
– Safety guidelines must be observed at all times!
-Please be careful. A fire extinguisher is a MUST. Do not do this alone. Please carefully choose a place for the whirling.
