| not posting here nemoreso im basically herre posting cuz i wanted to let anyone know who cares that i dont post here nemore :D i post at this blog: http://halfmoon.voxtropolis.com/ so go there and RSS me or bookmark me. cya around!
Michael/Jouba/Bem-te-vi |
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| voltandowell im finally after quite a while posting to tell about my return to the united states. its been a great rewarding trip, and amazing experience. i will miss it a lot. to commemorate my return tonight at capoeira i used a few of the more difficult moves iv been learning in the roda. i used an au sem maos (no handed cartwheel) macaco (literally monkey, its like a back walkover/backwards cartwheel) and armada-martello (540 flying kick). im gonna miss my friends a lot. :((. now i go home to paying rent and going to school! yehaw! oh well. so how are all you guys doing?
Bem-te-vi
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| Ginga Mundo Batizado 2006 and What is Mandinga?the batizado (baptism) at my capoeira school (ginga mundo) started yesterday. we had a lecture on the word mandinga in capoeira. then after we had a class and roda led by mestre nenel, a son of mestre bimba (the guy who invented capoeira regional the most widely spread type of capoeira) its really cool, im taking my camera today so i can film some of the capoeira angola. i cant wait. im very very excited.
here is an article on mandinga and some interesting concepts in capoeira (taken from http://www.capoeiramichigan.com/Mandinga.html ):
“Different than the literal translation given by the Brazilian Portuguese dictionary, the word Mandinga has its own meaning in the capoeira world. The Aurelio dictionary translates the word mandinga as a “magic†or “spell.†In some sense that meaning applies to capoeira, but in a different context.
Mandinga in the capoeira environment means, amongst many things, the hidden power that one has to disguise their real intention and to trick the opponent. It is a way to invoke some forces to blur the opponent’s vision of reality almost like hypnotizing him/her into a trance-like state so that they can’t see what is coming. It can also be magic, like a trick that confuses and distracts the opponent. However, much more than any of the above meanings.
The word mandinga has a very special meaning as a way of referring to capoeiristas that are very expressive in their game and know how to embellish their jogo* with beautiful and impressive gestures. These gestures are sometimes very theatrical, sometimes like a primitive dance, and sometimes imitate all kinds of animals (e.g. monkey, jaguar, snake, eagle, bull, and many others).
When a capoeirista is reffered to as being a “mandingueiro†it can be considered as one of the highest complements that could be given. It implies that one is experienced and mature with a good sense of humor and yet dangerous and not to be fooled by appearances. Sometimes the word mandinga is also used to imply that someone put a spell on a player and for that he/she can’t play well or is not doing well in some sense. For example, a person might make a comment after realizing that he/she is not having a good day by saying “Jogaram mandinga em mim†meaning “someone put a spell on me†(that’s why I am not succeeding with my endeavors). This meaning is metaphorical but used frequently in a positive way as when we say “ele tem mandinga no jogo†meaning that he has mandinga in his game. In other words, his game is rich and expressive, difficult to figure out, but easy and great to appreciate.
I would risk saying that besides the word capoeira and ginga, the word mandinga must be the next most used word in capoeira songs and literature. This word is intimately related to malÃcia** and axé*** which are also words of exquisite and intriguing meanings. However, malÃcia and axé are qualities that can be separated from mandinga, but mandinga can not be separated from them. For in order to have mandinga, you have to have malÃcia and axé. On the other hand you could have axé or malÃcia but lack having mandinga. To have mandinga incorporates having axé and malÃcia as well.
Mandinga is a powerful, meaningful word that helps to rescue the essence of the spirit of capoeira and for that reason, after doing extensive research to find out if there was any group using this name, I decided to use it for our group because to my surprise there were no other Capoeira Mandinga groups in the world. Since in the capoeira world we try not to copy anyone else and instead choose to be creative and unique, the name Mandinga gave us the honor to be associated with the biggest interest I have always had in capoeira, which was to rescue the expression and the spirit of the art.
Axé, MalÃcia, and muita Mandinga!
Mestre Marcelo
*jogo is the capoeira game
**malÃcia means among other things having the street smart experience that gives the capoeiristas the cleverness to realize tricky situations that are not very evident yet. It also implies that someone having malÃcia could be a difficult person to figure out and a potential dangerous opponent.
***axé signifies the life force. It also symbolizes the force we can give or pass on to someone and for that reason we often say axé to people as they are leaving as if we would be saying go with the life force or be with the life force that surrounds you.â€
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