Deba

Present on the whole island, Islam is the beating heart of the culture Mahoran. Deba and moulidi belong to the spiritual exercise dhikr (remembrance "or" souvenir "), along the lines of Sufism. These practices of Arab-Muslim tradition, often from the East (Yemen, Iraq, etc.). Perpetuated through the brotherhoods chadouli, rifai and kadiryia.
The songs and dances deba, practiced exclusively by women and girls, evoke great Sufi ceremonies celebrating the birth of the Prophet. Dressed in white holding traditional, trimmed their finery, they perform their choreography swinging, sometimes sitting, sometimes standing, to remember in a long ripple the sinuous curves, the movement of waves of the ocean.

The deba is a cultural practice and worship exclusively female, mixing music and dances. Drawn sacred books, songs are taught in Arabic. This art takes place in different contexts. Where is praise, the dancers come to greet pilgrims returning from Mecca, the deba is then given between the airport and the village. It may equally well be a rite of expiation during the period of Ramadan or gratification to God on the occasion of a holiday village. Increasingly, the deba is practiced at various solemnities, in this case, the dance takes place in the bandra bandra, richly decorated venue.
In a logic of transmission, girls take the time to practise the deba. Most often, these sessions learning takes place in the madrassi, in other words, the Koranic school. Sometimes they repeat courses in schools or simply where there is room under the gaze of deacons.
The dance is based on a very minimalist gestures of arms, hands and head. The harmony at all reflects the delicate balance between movements and movements of all individual and this effect resonance and grace is amplified by the jewelry adorning the bodies of these women and their dresses in shimmering colours.