Dancing connects body and mind as an indestructible unit within specific space and time. Traditional folk dances and modern performances share sensorial and cognitive tools for bodily exploration. In an interview, a contemporary dancer and choreographer and an ethnologist discuss self-perception and connection with other dancers; fixed structures, creativity, and improvisation; movement, exertion, breathing, and altered states of consciousness, including ecstatic ritual dances; and objectification of one's own body.
Initiation rituals in Tamang shamanism in Nepal help individuals with biopsychological disorders transform their cognitive and embodied self-narratives. Mental and physical suffering causes fragmentation, instability, and inconsistency, creating disconnection from the world and one's own body, with the self as the central locus. By internalizing the preconfigured structure embedded in the ritual, individuals reshape their sense of self to align with the role and expectations of a shaman in their society. This demonstrates how cultural tools reconfigure the self, addressing the psychological and neural basis of ritual beyond its social functions.