Eurythmy Student Life
Eurythmy Student Life in General
What is it like to be a eurythmy student? It must be very different depending on where we are, how our group is, and how we individually work on ourselves. There are a lot of other aspects in life that reflect on and influence our eurythmy training, but if we put it in one big general picture, what does it mean to be a eurythmy student, and be involved in eurythmy training? Probably the answer is very different depending on each of us, but here are several aspects:Eurythmy came out of Anthroposophy
Therefore in any phase of our eurythmy training, we meet Anthroposophy face to face and are asked, what are we going to do about that? What we do in eurythmy (our daily activity) starts to meet its philosophy consciously or unconsciously, but we need our inner decision to act upon it and the will to pursue what we understand. How much can we strive to be? This is the inner voice in every eurythmy student.Eurythmy: how do you study?
In general we don't start studying books on eurythmy at the beginning of our eurythmy training, but we move, move, move. Anything that pin things down (including this site!) can become an obstacle, and thereby a great challenge to eurythmy. The modern consciousness we all live in now, creates a tendency to feel most at ease in statis, and we find comfort in something staying still so that we can grasp what it is. But in the eurythmy training we are always challenged to be very flexible, mobile and fluent, not only in our body but also in our feeling and thinking. The wisdom of eurythmy then reveals itself in the in-between-moments of these ever changing processes - changing relationships in space time and consciousness. When we gain freedom out of what's around us and also within ourselves, nothing need to be pinned down anymore and this is where we are going. Move move move . . . .
Who am I? How am I? Where am I?
One more aspect about the eurythmy training is meeting oneself very strongly. How to be not too little, not too big, but one's honest self? How do we let go what we have gained as a habit throughout our life including cultural background and family traditions? Our attempts to penetrate more deeply into the sounds of speech helps to overcome the obstacles to communication caused by our different languages. More and more we try to penetrate consciously into what we are, and we strive to become as neutral as possible in all aspects of our existence! Sounds like a big task, and yes it is, if you have to do it all yourself! But don't be afraid. We have our fellow students striving toward the same goal. That's why eurythmy is the social art. This is how we work on ourselves in the eurythmy training - as a group, and this is how we as human beings, develop ourselves with our own good will within the community of man. We need each other, and this is the way to get close to the archetypes in the eurythmy training!
So you still haven't told me about the student life . . . . ?
If our task is to develop ourselves in all aspects (body, soul spirit, or anything you want to call it) it is very difficult to describe a eurythmy student's life in general terms. This will be so different for each of us in our different schools, countries and languages. We strive, we move and we work on ourselves amongst our fellow students. But for someone who is thinking about starting a eurythmy training, and really wants to know what is it like, we will tell you about life in our eurythmy school.
Starting eurythmy; first step to the class
When we were accepted into the eurythmy school, we were asked to bring a eurythmy dress and shoes. But these are not the most essential, it is more important to bring with us our open heart enabling us to learn and change, and have enough hope and faith in our new path to last for at least for 4 years . . . . maybe the rest of our life . . . this is just the beginning . . . .Working Life: student's practical life
When we first come to champhill eurythmy school, first thing we experience strongly is to experience the community life and its dynamic of working life. This enable us to balance with the nature of the artistic training. First year and second year of the training, we work with those with special needs in the workshop or houses three mornings. Eurythmy student are everywhere in the village, Garden, Bakery, Doll workshop, Wood workshop, Coffee bar or making lunches for the houses! We have our attached house, where we go and eat lunches everyday. Lunch time is lovely, usually big house member of 9~15 people (young and old sometimes very little one from school) surrounds huge table and say grace together or sing together with lit candles. Eating together gives us such joy and wash up together too! Lovely vegetables are made in our garden, milk is milked by the farmers, in the creamery our friends makes Botton butter and yogurt. Strong sense of life exists here and that is the great help for us so that we can relate to eurythmy in the real life situation. We are very grateful that we are surrounded by the people who works for life, who works because of their love for other man. It enables us to ground us and stand on our feet firmly on the earth.
Special outing to coffee bar from doll workshop for the tea break
Foundation Course: inspiration, striving for our ideals
To have our ideals and striving as a human being alongside with the skill of eurythmy is very essential. This is our one of the example of meeting with an inspiration and striving for goodness in us.
In this village, eurythmy students have the chance to meet a lot of young people working as a volunteer from all over the world. For us it is very inspiring to meet them and see how they work and commit themselves, with our beloved special needs friends. For those people there is a foundation course held once a week, to share supper and one morning of artistic activity, and lectures learning about camphill, anthroposophy, curative education, special needs, first aid and fire training so on. Eurythmy student are also take part in foundation course first term and it is great to make friends, realize how the power of people's ideals reach the goal to create such unique and unusual community like this village full of good will.
"For me, it was the foundation course that came so strong to me at the beginning of my euruthmy training. I was full of wonder with all the story of founder of camphill and their missions, commitment and effort. Before I came here, my purpose of life was eurythmy. After living here, I have changed. The fundamental HUMAN LIFE lives here so strongly and that is the base of everything. And my question has changed from 'how can I be a great eurythmist?' into 'what can I do to this world by doing eurythmy?' It makes so sense that eurythmy came out of anthroposophy therefore students also cultivate the ideal and mission in us by living in Steiner's ideal world, threefold social order. Here, I can experience what Steiner strived for. My great turning point was when I realized I am not really looking after special needs people but actually THEY were looking after me. And it is really true." (by eurythmy student / Shino)
Botton Friend: eurythmy student's path need a lot of support!
"When I arrived at first, I was told I will have someone phone me up next week. I didn't know what it meant, but next day a lady phone up to me and said 'I am your Botton friend, would you like to come to me on Sunday lunch and we have a chat?' "
This is how it goes. We become very good friends with our supporters. They check upon us every now and then if everything going alright. This is great for the eurythmy students. We go through such a transformation ourselves, together our relationship with the world around, the guidance and warm support are greatly appreciated here.
Eurythmy Students and Festivals: sense of seasons, rhythms, and community
It is wonderful to witness eurythmy being active in our festivals and truly live in the hearts of people. Eurythmy in practice are at hand. We are also involved in lots of festivals and celebrations happens in the village, through eurythmy, sometimes without. This creates in us the sense of season (which is quite numb in some of us because of all the city life) and the sense of rhythms starts to grow. We also cultivate strong sense of community, our common strives in the spirit of festivals and responsibility and joy to share our life.
Also in each end of school term we read Steiner's imaginations together at the eurythmy studio and it is very important for us. This enable us to unite in us what we do in eurythmy, practical live as human beings and the great law and eternal wisdom of nature around throughout the seasons.
Eurythmy students run the coffee bar in Autumn Fair this year. Even we were madly busy, we had a great help from Rita (our teacher!) and people from the village.
Thank you!
Our savior, great dry-uppers.
Talented eurythmy students are the busy making music in the village. Students also sings at the village choir for all kind of occasions.
And.....End of Term Eurythmy Performances!
This is the eurythmy student's milestones whether we like it or not. We go through such traumatic moments (stage flight, nervousness, despair, regret, or courage, confidence? and joy!).
In our school we have two nights of performance at the end of term to show all our work in the Joan of Ark Hall in the village. And we have really lovely audience, possibly one of the best in the world! People with special needs are most open hearted people we ever met. And they are a great fan of eurythmy! They are so torrance with our performance (?!) and receive joy from us. We also have our attached house members come, sometimes the workshop colleagues, and friends in the village. How lovely it is to receive so much encouragement next day absolutely everywhere in the village. It is very touching when we receive cards to say they enjoyed the performance. We are embraced totally in this place, enable us to be open and honest to ourself in the performance.
With our lovely pianists Jackie and Pritiva,
our teacher Jonathan (of course he is lovely too) and us
Eurythmy? Well, please come and visit us!