A Life Of Knowledge | Khaita Joyful Dances: Origins and Practice | A conversation with Adriana Dal Borgo and Eva Leick | Lecture 4

KHAITA JOYFUL DANCES: PRESENCE IN MOVEMENT

Adriana Dal Borgo and Eva Leick on the development and applications of Khaita Joyful Dances

Khaita Joyful Dances is a teaching transmitted by the Dzogchen Master Chögyal Namkhai Norbu (1938–2018). Through the communal practice of singing and dancing, Khaita demonstrates how presence and awareness can be brought into movement and every moment of life. In this lecture, Adriana Dal Borgo and Eva Leick reflect on the development of these dances, drawing on their long personal experience and close connection with the practice.

Through personal anecdotes and visual material, the speakers trace the origins of Khaita and explore the Master's intentions behind integrating song and dance as a contemplative practice. The dialogue also highlights Khaita’s modern applications, including its recent introduction into academic contexts, as a living practice that engages the body, energy, and mind.

About the Speakers:

Adriana Dal Borgo has been teaching contemplative dance for over thirty years. A student of Chögyal Namkhai Norbu since 1986, she was appointed in 1992 as a principal instructor of the Vajra Dance. Since 2011, she has coordinated the Khaita Joyful Dances and overseen instructor training worldwide, collaborating with MACO (Museum of Oriental Art and Culture) and supervising numerous publications on these disciplines.

Eva Leick is a researcher, dancer, and educator based in Austria. She holds a PhD from the University of Salzburg, focusing her research on Khaita Joyful Dances. A founding member of the contemporary dance company subsTanz, she has followed the Dzogchen teachings from an early age and became an authorized Khaita teacher in 2024.

Saturday, February 21st | 2:00 PM London Time | Online via Zoom

Please register at the bottom of this page to receive the Zoom link via email.