En el marco de las conmemoraciones del 151 aniversario del municipio de Jarabacoa, el Ayunta- miento Municipal y el Comité Organizador de los eventos presentarán los libros  “Datos biográ- ficos de Educadores y Educa- doras de la Ciudad de Jarabacoa” y “La Maestra: Nieves Maria Valerio” de la autoría de la licenciada Yris Mieses.

La actividad se realizará el miércoles 23 de septiembre a las 6:30 p. m. en el Salón de Actos del Colegio Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia de esa ciudad.

“La Maestra: Nieves Maria Valerio” trata sobre la vida y obra de la profesora Nieves María Valerio de Silvestre, maestra de maestras, quien por más de 40 años fuera parte del grupo de educadores que forjaron los profesionales, intelectuales y políticos que hoy inciden en el quehacer cotidiano jarabacoeño, muchos de los cuales han trascendido las fronteras de las montañas y de la isla.

“Datos biográficos de Educadores y Educadoras de la Ciudad de Jarabacoa” como su nombre lo indica recoge 217 biografías que detallan informaciones de la vida de los hombres y mujeres que trazaron el pensamiento de los habitantes de Jarabacoa.

La licenciada Yris Mieses fundó, en 1993, el Colegio San José con la intención de mejorar la calidad de la enseñanza del sistema educativo de Jarabacoa. Actualmente, este colegio,  es uno de los centros educativos privados de mayor prestigio en el municipio montañés. En 2008 fue reconocida como una de las 75 personalidades vivas más importantes de su ciudad natal.

Los libros estarán a disposición del público en el Pabellón de Autores del Norte de la V Feria Regional del Libro La Vega 2009, dedicada al Profesor Juan Bosch.

Cândida Pinto, jornalista de elite com reconhecido mérito em reportagens de guerra e pela SIC, “não vai tanto à rua” em trabalho de terreno e mal encontra oportunidades, vai!

coordena presentemente as grandes  reportagens do mesmo canal televisivo: abrir janelas para os jornalistas, dar outras pistas, ajudar a construir coisas, debater ideias.

repórter sem medo, mestra com dedo.

perfil a seguir.

 “acho que é muito importante ajudar as pessoas a pensarem, a construir coisas novas”

Outro meio de aprender novas habilidades é achar um mestre ou mestra e tornar-se um ou uma aprendiz. De fato, algumas habilidades raras e secretas só poderão serem aprendidas deste modo, pois não há livros da matéria no mercado

Para se tornar um aprendiz, encontre alguém que queira ser seu mestre ou mestra. Daí vire um grande amigo desta pessoa. Quando atingir um nível de relação suficiente, uma opção “Procurar aprendizado” ficará disponível para você.

Então é com o Mestre/a aceitar o pedido, usando a interação “Aceitar como aprendiz”. Se o fizer, a relação é formalmente reconhecida e você poderá começar a aprender deles. A relação irá deteriorar-se com o tempo como relações normais, se nem você ou seu mestre/a não interagirem ou ensinarem/aprenderem entre si.

Então, você e seu mestre(a) deverão começar a dedicar o seu tempo para o processo de aprendizagem. TODOS os requerimentos listados devem ser preenchidos!

* O mestre precisa ter a habilidade Didática básica
* Você (aprendiz) deve escolher a Missão de Carreira “Aprender do Mestre(a)”.
* O mestre(a) deverá escolher a missão de carreira “Ensinar uma habilidade”.
* O mestre(a) deverá escolher qual habilidade ensinar.
* Você deve estar no mesmo lugar que seu mestre quando a atualização dele(a) ocorrer. Usar a opção “Seguir” é uma boa idéia para o aprendiz.
* Algumas habilidades requerem que você tenha conhecimento suficiente de outras habilidades antes de aprendê-las. Tenha a certeza de possuí-las – senão você não aprenderá nada

Levará algum tempo para aprender a habilidade. Às vezes levará um longo tempo, às vezes pouco – depende de quantos aprendizes o meste tem, e de um pouco de sorte também. É de grande utilidade pra os Mestres ter QI elevado, além de altos níveis nas habilidades a serem ensinadas (pelo menos cinco estrelas). Ter inteligência alta também ajuda bastante. Interromper o processo de aprendizagem – por exemplo movendo para longe de seu mestre por alguns dias, ou escolhendo uma missão de carreira diferente – não afetam suas chances de aprender, uma vez que você retome o aprendizado. Mas se o mestre mudar para outra habilidade antes de você aprender aquela que estava tentando em primeiro lugar, seu progresso será zerado.

Um mestre pode ter vários aprendizes (mas não é recomendado já que isso reduz o progresso dos aprendizes) e todos eles podem, potencialmente, aprender a habilidade ao mesmo tempo. Não é possível ter vários mestres diferentes.

Quando você estiver ensinando uma habilidade e os requisitos acima forem preenchidos, como recompensa você poderá aumentar seus próprios conhecimentos sobre aquela habilidade. Mas só depois que pelo menos um aprendiz tiver conseguido aprender a habilidade. De fato, ensinar uma habilidade pode até mesmo trazer um conhecimento além do limite de 5 estrelas que você pode alcançar estudando por conta própria. Mas isto é um processo muito lento.

Preste atenção: a relação entre mestre e aprendiz serve só para ganhar habilidades que você não tem. Você não consegue aprimorar uma habilidade que você já sabe sendo aprendiz. Quando você tiver aprendido a habilidade que o mestre está ensinando, sua prioridade será automaticamente alterada para aprimorar a habilidade nova.

El Reiki és una de les pràctiques terapèutiques reconegudes oficialment per la OMS (Organització Mundial de la Salut).Es tracta d’una tècnica de transferència d’energia guaridora per imposició de mans.

En el Reiki es treballa directament el camp energètic, incidint sobre els bloquejos que impedeixen la lliure circulació de l’energia; restaurant i harmonitzant el sistema energètic.

L’energia del Reiki pot ser rebuda i transmesa per qualsevol persona que ho necessiti o ho desitgi, sense importar la seva edat ni estat físic ja que es treballa en els nivell més profunds de la persona, allà on s’originen moltes malalties.

S’elimina rapidament l’estrés, les tensions, l’angoixa i el cansament propis dels nostres temps; ens ajuda a avançar en el nostre camí d’evolució, eliminant dubtes i pors, connectant-nos amb la nostra essència.

Obrir-nos al Reiki ens connecta a la vida i ens ajuda a descubrir qui som i el nostre lloc en el món.

ELS PRINCIPIS DEL REIKI

Aquests són els principis que has de conèixer i fer part de la teva vida. No cal ser un Reikista per aprofitar les benediccions d’aquests cinc principis, només has de tenir la teva ment, cor i esperit oberts al canvi, a la Llum. Només per avui, significa l’aquí i ara. 1. Només per avui no t’enfadis
La ira, enuig, agressivitat i altres emocions destructives ens confronten diàriament, creant situacions on, pel que sembla, la única sortida és la violència. Hem de prendre’ns uns minuts per respirar, tranquil•litzar-nos i buscar la millor solució al problema plantejat, sabent que la violència només i únicament genera més violència, dolor i destrucció. “Controla les teves emocions”. 

2. Només per avui, no et preocupis
La font de tota preocupació és la por d’alguna cosa que mai sabem si va a succeir. En realitat és una evasió de l’avui, doncs ens projectem cap a un futur incert. Posem fe en el mal imaginari en lloc d’usar tota aquesta energia a crear avui les condicions per a un futur positiu “Viu el present” 

3. Només per avui, sigues agraït
Treballant l’agraïment profund i verdader estem reduint l’ego negatiu, aquest que ens fa creure que som persones superiors. “Tots som part”. 

4. Només per avui, treballa dur amb tu mateix
Guanyar l’aliment de manera honrada significa que hem de brindar el que té de millor nosaltres, com a professionals, com a persones, a la fi, com a éssers humans, tenint molt clar que hem de posar un just valor pel que fem, el que brindem com a servei o producte a la comunitat. “Sigues fidel a tu mateix”. 

5. Només per avui honora als teus Pares, Mestres i Majors
Hem d’aprendre a respectar a tots en la nostra vida, doncs cada ésser viu és un mestre; alguna cosa ens ensenya, alguna cosa ens deixa com aprenentatge, de la mateixa manera que nosaltres a ells “Practica l’altruisme” .

  

TERAPIES:

Pot rebre un tractament de Reiki, ja sigui de sanació física, com a nivell psíquic, mental-emocional, o a distància, posant-se en contacte amb mi, al 699.961.483, o bé via e-mail jessicaamp@gmail.com

FORMACIÓ:

Es fan cursos de Reiki 1- Sanació Física, Reiki 2 – Sanació mental-emocional, Reiki – 3 Sanació Espiritual, i Maestria.

Em desplaço per tota Catalunya i pel País Valencià per grups de 4 persones o més.

 

Photo Виктория Алалыкина

A Ernesto Cibrão

Está naquela idade inquieta e duvidosa,
Que não é dia claro e é já o alvorecer;
Entreaberto botão, entrefechada rosa,
Um pouco de menina e um pouco de mulher.

Às vezes recatada, outras estouvadinha,
Casa no mesmo gesto a loucura e o pudor;
Tem cousas de criança e modos de mocinha,
Estuda o catecismo e lê versos de amor.

Outras vezes valsando, o seio lhe palpita,
De cansaço talvez, talvez de comoção.
Quando a boca vermelha os lábios abre e agita,
Não sei se pede um beijo ou faz uma oração.

Outras vezes beijando a boneca enfeitada,
Olha furtivamente o primo que sorri;
E se corre parece, à brisa enamorada,
Abrir as asas de um anjo e tranças de uma huri.

Quando a sala atravessa, é raro que não lance
Os olhos para o espelho; e raro que ao deitar
Não leia, um quarto de hora, as folhas de um romance
Em que a dama conjugue o eterno verbo amar.

Tem na alcova em que dorme, e descansa de dia,
A cama da boneca ao pé do toucador;
Quando sonha, repete, em santa companhia,
Os livros do colégio e o nome de um doutor.

Alegra-se em ouvindo os compassos da orquestra;
E quando entra num baile, é já dama do tom;
Compensa-lhe a modista os enfados da mestra;
Tem respeito a Geslin, mas adora a Dazon.

Dos cuidados da vida o mais tristonho e acerbo
Para ela é o estudo, excetuando-se talvez
A lição de sintaxe em que combina o verbo
To love, mas sorrindo ao professor de inglês.

Quantas vezes, porém, fitando o olhar no espaço,
Parece acompanhar uma etérea visão;
Quantas cruzando ao seio o delicado braço
Comprime as pulsações do inquieto coração!

Ah! Se nesse momento, alucinado, fores
Cair-lhe aos pés, confiar-lhe uma esperança vã,
Hás de vê-la zombar de teus tristes amores,
Rir da tua aventura e contá-la à mamã.

É que esta criatura, adorável, divina,
Nem se pode explicar, nem se pode entender:
Procura-se a mulher e encontra-se a menina,
Quer-se ver a menina e encontra-se a mulher!

(Machado de Assis)

Now that I’ve caught up with all your responses:

Nearly 4000 words’ worth of comments, and I’m still not sure we’re any closer to the answer.

However, no one can accuse us of not trying!  Wow.

Something interesting I noticed while researching Mestra Paulinha and Mestra Janja is that it was a lot easier to find information about recent or current things they had done/were doing, than it was to find things in the past that they had done (like a plain old biography!).  I found this really intriguing because normally, for capoeira mestres/mestras, all you can find is their stock biography, plastered word-for-word all over the capoerista’s World Wide Web.  Furthermore, most of the information I did find was about projects or events they had done or were part of, rather than accounts of their capoeirista journeys leading up to them becoming mestras and having their own group. 

I suspect this is connected to my last post about how capoeira (angola), at least for Mestras Paulinha and Janja, is inherently about bringing about change, and to say the least, they do more than just talk about how it is and actually show how it is.  I really admire how they have found a way to seamlessly merge career, academics, capoeira, and working for change all into one!

Mestra Paulinha, like Mestra Janja, is a veritable force to be reckoned with in the fields of social issues, academia, and (of course) capoeira. Last year marked her 25th in capoeira angola, and in that time she: earned a master’s and doctorate degree in Sociology (from the University of Bahia and University of São Paulo, respectively); became a distinguished professor at the University of Bahia; gave lectures on various topics in various settings; published scholarly articles; and worked with Mestra Janja to focus attention on (anti-)racism, youth, higher education, identity, black culture, and women in capoeira.

Mestra Paulinha began training capoeira near the start of the 1980s, in GCAP (Grupo Capoeira Angola de Pelourinho), also with Mestres Moraes, João Grande, and Cobra Mansa. She became a contra-mestra in 1990 and moved to São Paulo in 1998, where she became a coordinator of INCAB (Instituto Nzinga de Estudos da Capoeira Angola) along with Mestra Janja and Mestre Poloca. In 2002, Mestra Paulinha moved to Salvador, and leads a core group of Grupo Nzinga Capoeira there. She is the grupo’s designated sociologist, and has maintained constant dialogue with other capoeira angola groups in order to further INCAB’s goals.

Editor’s note: INCAB is not, as was implied in Mestra Janja’s write-up, the same as Grupo Nzinga Capoeira. INCAB is a larger, umbrella organization that encompasses several smaller associations, such as Grupo Nzinga Capoeira and the Nzinga Berimbau Orchestra.

Sources:
http://ficadc.blogspot.com/2007/08/beyond-roda-both-ms-paulinha-and-janja.html
http://buscatextual.cnpq.br/buscatextual/visualizacv.jsp?id=K4785350J1 (with Google translation)
http://www.chamadademandinga.de/04frauentreffen/04_info/bio_pt.htm (with Google translation)

Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra

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It has been all along, right under our noses—just not our regional ones!

From FICA Archives: Celebrating 25 Years of M. Paulinha:

M Paulinha writes about the growth of Capoeira Angola as an ever-widening vehicle for marginalized social expressions following efforts by the Brazilian state to turn capoeira into a “national sport”. She traces Capoeira Angola’s growth as part of the black movement, as a growing space for women (in large part due to the work of Paulinha and Janja themselves), and most recently, as a zone of international and cultural understanding. Here is a bit:

In the beginning of the 1980s, the creation of the Grupo de Capoeira Angola Pelourinho (GCAP) in Rio de Janeiro and later in Bahia marked a significant change in the situation. Founded by Mestre Pedro Moraes Trinidade (Mestre Moraes), GCAP implemented a series of actions promoting the re-valorization of Capoeira Angola and the recognition of the importance of old and famous mestres, such as Mestre Pastinha himself. With an ideology that affirmed capoeira’s African roots and denounced the injustices suffered by so many capoeiristas and Afro-descendents, this group was the precursor of a movement that became wide and diverse.

Through the realization of events in homage to Mestre Pastinha, GCAP managed to reunite old practitioners of Capoeira Angola and attract new admirers and people interested in learning the traditional game. The format of these events was innovative because it created bridges between the practitioners of Capoeira Angola and other segments of society such as: religious leaders, especially those linked to the Candomblés of Angola; anti-racist organizations of the “black movement”; organizations involved with other forms of black culture; intellectuals and scholars; and governmental organizations, especially in the cultural area. In some years, these events gained larger proportions, assuming a national and international character, and began to be held by other nascent groups of Capoeira Angola, mainly during the 1990s. Such events were established as an important part of a regular calendar activities that helped to construct the new community of “angoleiros”.

One important aspect of the ideology and actions implemented by the Capoeira Angola groups created in this period involves the denunciation of racism in Brazil. The events promoted in memory of Mestre Pastinha, carried out on the date of his death (November 13th), soon became part of the agenda of commemorations and reflections of the National Day of Black Consciousness (November 20th). More than a coincidence of dates, this approximation reveals a process of growing politicization in the universe of Capoeira Angola, synchronized with the general trend in the black cultural scene in Bahia…

… This community became very heterogeneous – including people of various ethnic and racial origins, social classes, nationalities, genders, ages, and sexual orientations- and this has been the backdrop for the construction of the angoleiro’s identity. Therefore, affirming oneself as an “angoleiro(a)” today implies dealing with diversity, rejecting any ideal of purity and homogeneity.

I think I joined the wrong style…!  (Kidding, but it’s food for thought.)

Follow-up to come—eventually.  I was doing research for a write-up on Mestra Paulinha and couldn’t just sit on this!

Click here to read “Can Capoeira Change the World?” (Part 1)

Following yesterday’s post, this is a great video from Grupo Nzinga, and for me it was a fascinating glimpse into the world of capoeira angola, which I’d never really fully realized before was so apart and different from the world of capoeira regional.  It was really interesting doing the research on Mestra Janja yesterday as well, and I definitely hope to learn more about capoeira angola as this goes on.  Make sure you don’t miss the footage of Mestra Janja conducting the Nzinga Berimbau Orchestra in the last part!

Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra

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I almost made a huge oversight in this series–so far all of the mestras or contra-mestras featured have been players of capoeira regional, but of course there are angoleira mestras as well, and they are amazing!  Apologies to any angola capoeiristas who read this blog, and much thanks to Shayna McHugh of Capoeira Connection and Bahia-Capoeira Blog for bringing several angola mestras to my attention! 

Today I want to tell you about Mestra Janja, who has done/is doing so much inside and outside of capoeira that I hardly knew what to talk about first.  And she’s not the only one, so please look out for following posts in this ongoing series!


Mestra Janja, or Rosangêla de Araújo Costa, is a well-known and much esteemed mestra in the world of capoeira angola. A former student of renowned Mestres João Grande, Moraes, and Cobra Mansa, she began training in Salvador during the early 80s. In 1995, Mestra Janja founded the Instituto Nzinga de Estudos da Capoeira Angola e Tradições Educativas Banto (Grupo Nzinga de Capoeira Angola), along with Mestra Paulinha and Mestre Poloca. Instituto Nzinga, an NGO based in São Paulo and named after a 16th century African queen, works towards an anti-racism and anti-sexism mission statement beyond the preservation of capoeira angola and its traditions.

Mestra Janja plays a major role in social issues related to capoeira. She has coordinated projects such as affirmative action for black students’ entrance into university, and leads the Network of Women Angoleira (RAM). In addition, Mestra Janja has helped to organize events such as last year’s VI Congresso Badauê of Women Capoeiristas, for which she also taught workshops and organized an international conference in Atlanta, USA. Last year, celebrations were held in Salvador to commemorate Mestra Janja’s 25th year in capoeira angola.

Beyond her superlative capoeira skills and extensive social work, Mestra Janja is known for being a top scholar in the field. She completed a master’s and doctorate’s degree in Capoeira Angola at the Federal University of São Paulo, and graduated from the Federal University of Bahia with a degree in History. A university professor and published scholar, Mestra Janja is Grupo Nzinga’s historian and co-publisher of Real D’Angola magazine. She also conducts the Nzinga Berimbau Orchestra, which performs pieces that create links between capoeira and other types of Afro-Brazilian music, such as jongo, tambo-de-crioula, and bumba-meu-boi.


Sources:
http://www.capoeira4all.org/mestres/index.php?id=1604
http://ficadc.blogspot.com/search/label/Mestre%20Janja
http://ficadc.blogspot.com/2007/08/beyond-roda-both-ms-paulinha-and-janja.html
http://www.chamadademandinga.de/04frauentreffen/04_info/bio_pt.htm (with Google translation)
http://www.dicadeteatro.com.br/feafro2.htm (with Google translation)
http://www.auniao.pb.gov.br/v2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5798&Itemid=35 (with Google translation)
http://www.joaopessoa.pb.gov.br/noticias/?n=5660 (with Google translation)


Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra


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I can’t believe I almost forgot about Contra-Mestra (or Mestranda) Marisa Cordeiro, considering she was the other woman interviewed in the documentary I saw, and so part of the inspiration for this post series. I know it’s been a while, but better late than never, right? Thanks again to Mike for reminding me about her!

Marisa Cordeiro was born in Curvelo, Brazil, and began training with Capoeira Cordão de Ouro in 1985. She was a lucky pupil of renowned Mestre Suassuna, as well as of his students Mestres Cangaru Domingo, Flavino Tucano, and Urubu Malandro.

The talented Marisa soon joined Oba Oba, a Brazilian performance group that held shows around Latin America and the United States. Two years after performing in the U.S. for the first time, Marisa returned to Chicago and founded the city’s first capoeira school, Gingarte Capoeira, in 1991.

Eight years later, she received her Contra-Mestra’s corda from Cordão de Ouro. Today, Gingarte Capoeira has grown since its fledgling days at the University of Chicago, and Contra-Mestra Marisa Cordeiro is known as one of the highest ranking female capoeiristas in the United States.

Sources:
http://www.zoominfo.com/Search/PersonDetail.aspx?PersonID=158079898
http://www.gingartecapoeira.org/about/contra-mestre-marisa

P.S. I could only find one video of Marisa Cordeiro playing, but I had to agree with one of the commentators that she didn’t really seem to play like someone at her given rank. She also seemed to split off from her teachers’ school a lot sooner than any of the other mestras/contra-mestras I’ve featured, and I can’t help wondering if this might have been detrimental to her in the long run?

To follow up on her biography, this is an awesome video I found while looking for more information on Mestranda Marcia. It’s for a documentary about her and Abada Capoeira San Francisco, called Cigarra Capoeirista. My favourite parts are the maculele performance about half-way in (I love, love, love, love, love maculele), where they use real machetes (sweeeet), and the jogo with razors about two thirds in. Enjoy!

Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra

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I got a little worried at one point trying to ascertain whether it was Mestra Edna Lima or Mestranda Marcia who became the first Mestranda in Abada Capoeira. I think it was Mestra Edna, according to a list of graduation years I found, but modified that one line in her profile just in case. And I know both Edna Lima and Marcia were awarded their Mestranda cordas by Mestre Camisa, but I believe Marcia is considered Mestre Camisa’s “first female student” to become Mestranda because Edna Lima had trained with several others before joining Abada Capoeira.

For sixteen-year old Marcia Treidler, it was love at first sight. Fast-forward 25 years, and the capoeira-enthralled teenager has become Mestranda Marcia “Cigarra” of Abada Capoeira, founder and artistic director of Abada Capoeira San Francisco, and one of the most esteemed capoeiristas in the field.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Mestranda Marcia started training capoeira in 1982, under Mestre Camisa. She rose through the ranks and taught and performed capoeira throughout Brazil, Europe, and North America, until moving to San Francisco in 1991. There, Mestranda Marcia founded Abada Capoeira San Francisco, which aims to preserve and expand capoeira beyond Brazil, use capoeira to improve and enrich people’s lives, and improve “cultural and social equity” through initiatives such as outreach programs.

In 1997, Mestranda Marcia received permanent residency in the United States, through a National Interest Waiver that declared her an “Alien with Extraordinary Abilities”. She then founded the Abada-Capoeira Brazilian Arts Centre, dedicated to preserving and promoting Afro-Brazilian cultural arts.

Finally, in 1998, Mestranda Marcia received her corda vermelha, becoming Mestre Camisa’s first female student to do so, as well as one of the world’s first. Today, she is internationally recognized for what she has done, and known by students and fellow capoeiristas for her deep commitment to capoeira and to her students, whether it is bringing out their best every class, or improving their very lives.

For more information, please visit: http://www.abada.org/

Sources:
http://www.abada.org/mestranda.html
http://www.kqed.org/topics/history/heritage/latino/heroes2007.jsp

Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra


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It dawned on me that my previous posts on Mestras Edna and Suelly were kind of like trying to teach someone about an artist without showing them a single one of the artist’s paintings. Thus without further ado, I’d like to present to you the following videos!


This first one shows Mestra Edna Lima playing (now-) Mestranda Marcia, which is perfect as she’s whom I’ll be writing about next! It’s an old 90’s video from a roda in California. Mestra Edna is the one in the sports top, and their game lasts for about the first 50 seconds. This video is cool also because it shows Mestre Marcelo playing after, capoeira’s own real-life video game character =D:

Second, we have Mestra Suelly in a batizado roda from earlier this year. I like the double kick she does towards the end!

Click here to see other posts in Ie viva meu Mestra


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Unfortunately, there is way less information out there that I could find on Mestra Suelly than there is on Mestra Edna Lima. However, I will make up for it at the end by directing you to a beautiful article on her final troca de corda, written by Mestre Acordeon himself!

Suellen Einarsen, or Mestra Suelly, is the first North American woman to become a capoeira mestre. She currently runs a United Capoeira Association academy in Berkeley, California, along with Mestres Acordeon and Ra. Mestra Suelly was also one of Mestre Acordeon’s first students in the United States, when she joined his class in San Francisco, 1983.

A professional dancer by the time she started capoeira, Mestra Suelly took naturally to the fluid, expressive art. She continued developing her dance career as her capoeira experience accumlated, eventually helping to found the widely successful Joe Goode Performance Group.

Since then, Mestra Suelly has toured, performed with, and left the group (1997), and of course–earned her mestra’s cord, which ocurred in 2000. For an incredibly compelling description of the occasion, please read Mestre Acordeon’s article, “Mestra Suelly: The Making of a Mestra“.

Sources:
http://www.capoeira.bz/school/mestresbio/suelly.html
http://www.capoeira.bz/mestreacordeon/articles/mestrasuelly.html

Postscript: The one (slightly disappointing) issue I have with Mestre Acordeon’s article is (as you’ve probably guessed), his reference to Mestra Suelly as “being my woman”. I honestly have no idea what that means! Does he consider her “his woman” patronizingly, since Mestre Acordeon “brought up” Suelly capoeira-wise, and helped her be the first American woman to reach the rank of mestre? Or does he mean that they are in a relationship (which, however, still doesn’t make it sound better)? If anyone could clarify, I’d greatly appreciate it!

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The more I read about this woman, the more I can’t believe I’ve never heard of her before! She has done so much, and in such a seemingly short time that I can’t help wondering just how slanted all the glossy write-ups on her might be…
However, spotlight first, shadow-chasing later!

Edna Lima loved sports as a child and first encountered capoeira at the age of twelve, in her hometown of Brasilia, Brazil. She trained with Instrutor Dentinho for eight months, first secretly (using money she told her parents was for books) and then openly, with her mother’s wholehearted support. As the only girl in the class, Edna thought early on that capoeira might be “only for boys”, but her mother quickly relieved her of that thought, and fended off admonition from friends and relatives for allegedly risking her daughter’s “femininity”.

Lucky for Instrutor Dentinho, as he left Brasilia only after requesting that Edna take over teaching the class! However, two months later Edna herself left, in order to further her training with Mestre Tabosa of Capoeira Senzala. In 1981, it was he who gave Edna her corda vermelha (red), making her the first female capoeira mestre in the world, as well as the first mestra in Capoeira Senzala. Edna, barely 20 years old at the time, played hard for her belt that day. Capoeiristas came to her ceremony from all over Brazil, in order to test or just to see her: “‘Who is this girl getting a Mestre in capoeira?!’ The guys freaked out!” Happily, they got over it soon enough: “When people came to check me out, they got checked. Then, afterward, they would support me.”

It probably didn’t hurt that Mestra Edna was a black belt in karate as well as a master capoeirista. Edna started karate just eight months after starting capoeira, alternating her three weekly training days with four days of training capoeira. As she travelled throughout Brazil to increase her experience in capoeira and in the roda, she won five national karate championships along the way. That was when she decided it was time to move north: “With an extended visa, a burning desire to learn English, and no friends in North America, she travelled north to experience ‘the city that never sleeps’.”

Upon arriving in New York, Mestra Edna met Mestre Jelon and toured for some time with his performance group, Dance Brazil. (For capoeiristas who happen to be movie buffs as well, she also appeared in Rooftops.) Several years after, she joined Abada Capoeira, Mestre Camisa’s group branched off from Capoeira Senzala (Edna had also trained extensively under Mestres Camisa and Joao Grande). In 1997, she became one of the world’s first Mestrandas, or Contra-Mestras, and one of the first in Abada. Mestra, or Mestranda, Edna then went on to found an Abada Capoeira group in New York City, in addition to developing several other programs using her capoeira knowledge and experience, combined with her Master’s degree in sports science and physical education.

Today, Edna teaches capoeira at her academy in New York–where students of other Mestres occasionally drop in for a class or game or two–and leads workshops and batizados in countries around the world, including Spain, Israel, Japan, and Canada. She is an Adjunct Professor in the Dance Department at Long Island University, and has been inducted into Black Belt Magazine’s Hall of Fame. She has seventeen international karate championships under her belt, including three Pan-American gold medals, and in 2000 the City of New York recognized her accomplishments with a Proclamation, during Black History Month.

For more information, please visit: www.abadacapoeira.com

Update: The following paragraphs were originally written for the post after this one, but for purposes of clarity I’ve decided to merge them into this post and take them out of the other one.

There are just a few things I wanted to mention about the write-up I did on Mestra Edna Lima.  First of all, I know that my list of sources are not going to be winning any research awards!  If you are very concerned, you can check out this additional list of articles, but they all say basically the same things.  Second, one part I slightly glossed over was the other “programs” Mestra Edna developed with her knowledge of capoeira and degree in phys ed.  To be specific, they include: a capoeira program for school children instilled in at least ten public schools in Brazil, which she had the schools hire capoeiristas to teach; a capoeira program for youth; and…a trademarked capoeira aerobics workout program, of purported scientifically proven effectiveness. 

I have to admit I’m not crazy about that last one, and I can’t think of any capoeirista I know who would be, especially when such a program spawns articles like this one.  However, I suppose that having done that one thing does not diminish any of her other accomplishments.  Speaking of which…I have always been under the impression that it takes thirty or forty years to become a mestre; maybe twenty at the absolutely minimum.  So it seems very surprising that Mestra Edna received her corda vermelha at age twenty–eight years after her first capoeira class.  Needless to say, I’m not meaning to cast aspersions, but it’s interesting.  Thoughts?

Also, as I finished writing the profile/biography, I realized that my lead-in to it wasn’t quite true, on two counts.  First of all, I had heard of her before, briefly: she was interviewed in a documentary that I’d seen recently.  (The documentary, by the way, was great!  If you ever get a chance, definitely check out Mandinga em Manhattan.)  Second, I realized that it’s actually somewhat reasonable that I’ve never heard of her, considering the generation of mestres she belongs to.  After all, most of the names common to capoeirista knowledge, aside from the mestre(s) of one’s own and affiliated groups, are historical figures, whose experience in capoeira can be traced back to the days of Mestres Bimba and Pastinha themselves: Jelon, Joao Grande, Joao Pequeno, Camisa, Camisa Roxo, Gato, Sorriso, Waldemar, Leopoldinha, and Accordeon, for example.  Their students, however, and their students’ students, are the ones actively teaching and leading us today, and I know for a fact that there are plenty of capoeiristas out there who have not heard of my grupo’s mestre, and I haven’t heard of theirs. 

Sources:
http://www.abadacapoeira.com/html/edn.html#biography
http://www.abadacapoeira.com/html/edn-art2.html
http://www.abadacapoeira.com/html/edn-art3.html
http://www.abadacapoeira.com/html/20Y.html

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Remember that pop quiz in this blog’s introduction post?  Never be caught unwares again, after we’re through with Ie viva meu Mestra, Mandingueira’s very first post series!  Focusing on the lives and accomplishments of female mestres, or mestras, around the world, this series seeks to redress the balance of prominent figures offered to capoeira students as hero(in)es to revere or look up to.  From Mestra Suelly, the first and possibly only (please correct me if I’m wrong) North American mestra, to Mestra Edna Lima, the first mestra ever, these women should have wider recognition for what they have done, as inspirations to women and meninas everywhere who do capoeira today.  Please come back soon to read our first profile and biography, on Mestra Edna Lima!

Update: Just so there’s no confusion, mestranda and contra-mestra are terms used for the same rank in different grupos, indicating the level right below mestra. 

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Ie Viva Meu Mestra: Archives

Why Write about Female Mestres? The Feminist Catch-22

Part 1: Mestra Edna Lima
Part 2: Mestra Suelly
Part 3: Mestranda Marcia/Cigarra
Part 4: Contra-Mestra Marisa Cordeiro
Part 5: Mestra Janja
Part 6: Mestra Paulinha
Part 7: Contra-Mestra Susy
Part 8: Mestra Jararaca
Part 9: Contra-Mestra Cristina 

Videos:

Mestra Edna Lima, Mestra Suelly, and Mestranda Marcia
Mestra Marcia/Cigarra
Mestra Janja and Grupo Nzinga
Mestra Paulinha
Contra-Mestra Susy (Grupo Vadiacão, Capoeira Angola)
Mestra Jararaca