Turning the Corner from Epistemic Myopia to Gnostic Rasa: Dances From South Asia and Postsecondary Dance Programs

• Published in: Journal of dance education Vol. 24; no. 2; pp. 104 - 116
• Main Author: Mandala, Sumana Sen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 02.04.2024
• Subjects: collaboration; higher education; Pedagogy; rasa; South Asian
• ISSN: 1529-0824; 2158-074X
• DOI: 10.1080/15290824.2022.2037611

The need for a shift in approach to dance education and non-Eurocentric dance forms in postsecondary dance programs is apparent. This paper begins with a fundamental why and then offers the frameworks of gnosis (knowledge by perception) and episteme (knowledge by systematic study) and process-based teaching-learning as viable approaches to inclusion. Embracing values such as inquiry, plurality, and reflection is essential to postsecondary dance programs including South Asian dances, whether in formal academic structures or informal spaces of partnership. Simultaneously, South Asian dancer-collaborators take on response and responsibility in this work and reflect deeply on what we know, as we share our knowledge. This paper enumerates possible manifestations of including South Asian dances in postsecondary education, which depend on dance programs fully embracing new approaches in education. Together with South Asian collaborators, programs can perform their work so that all participants relish the rasa (profound engagement) of the experience.