The Hadra: Performing and Leading the Sacred Dance 

Ustadh Mohammad Adel

Kiflayn is launching a program for students to be trained in performing and leading the Hadra (the Sacred Dance). This program would authorise your group to conduct and lead the Hadra in your city of residence with certification from Kiflayn. The Hadra is a public dhikr that takes place amongst sufi tariqas in Muslim lands. Ustadh Mohammad Adel is authorised by Sheikh Nuh Keller in the Hadra, who writes the following in Sea Without Shore (2011):  

… circles of men are making dhikr standing and holding hands, now slightly bowing in unison, now moving up and down with their knees in unison, the rows rising and falling, breathing in unison, while certain of them alternate at pacing around their midst, conducting the tempo of the group’s motion and breathing with their arms and step. Singers near the sheikh, in solo or chorus, deliver mystical odes to the rhythm of the group… (pg. 184). 

Ustadh Mohammad Adel will work with up to 5 students in group sessions (combination of munshidin (singers) and nuqaba (pacers) to achieve the required harmony in order for the Hadra to deliver the intended goal of “…moving hearers from remembrance of Allah to gratitude, from gratitude to love, and from love to raptness in the Divine.” (Sea Without Shore, 198)

At a glance:

• This is a group course – ideally for those who live in the same locale and already meet to sing the mystical odes together
• A group of 3-5 students per section (combination of singers and pacers)
• 10 sessions of one hour each
• Learning the four parts of the Hadra, the qasidahs (odes), and movements that go with each
• Experimenting with and delivering the maqams (tunes) of the qasidahs in each part of the Hadra correctly
• Pacing the Hadra speed with the correct qasidah choice
• training of pacers and lead breathers in rhythm, form, and timing
• Ensuring overall harmony in the delivery of the Hadra
• Upon completion of the program, a member of the group is required to visit Amman, Jordan to complete the training
• Certification from Kiflayn through the Zawiya of Abu Hasan al-Shadhili in performing and leading the Hadra upon the group’s successful execution of the delivered content and completion of the requirements
• Currently, this course is only available to males aged 16 and older