John’s Sunday Blog

Embodiment

What does it mean to embody something? To bring form to, or become a constituent part. Embodiment, then, would mean to fully bring your attention towards yourself; your body and your mind. Now “body mind” has become a buzz word, and may be helpful, yet from a yogic view, I will take a different stance.

Where does your body and mind make any division at all? According to new scientific findings, our facia (connective tissues) has more than ten times the amount of nerve tissue than our muscles and it exists everywhere. Your brain is nervous tissue and all you know from experience is mental and emotional. So it’s all mind; from the tip of your toe to your fingers and head. Modern medical science admits it may only know 15% about the body, yet look at the industry built up around “medicine”. Yes, much has been done to understand the “parts” and a great deal more to understand chemical interactions building an industry around this limited understanding. But, is it working? In some areas yes, and some no. I think what has been left out is what makes us human for the most part - the day to day state of our nervous system which is directly affected by our emotional state. And remember, that nervous system is just an extension of the brain, not a body “part”.

We have a handful or more of emotions that we assign words to in order to make sense of the human condition. What are these things we call emotions? Even though they are colorfully thought of, hated or enjoyed, let’s look at them as simple survival tools and the way in which they affect the body. Simply looked at, these are energetic states (emotions) and we were meant, yes meant, to feel them and express them completely. But humans have this curious power to act or not act even when emotions are roiling within. When we do this, our system loses its balance. And either burns out, or stagnates. Look again at the emotions. They come with the package and we have taught ourselves which ones are safe to feel and express and which ones are not by the environment we grew up in. Processing this by talking to therapists might help, but it is the mechanism that one formed to cope with emotions that may be the problem. The mechanism of stuffing or projecting thoughts and emotions.

How does one embrace and embody oneself? Well a big step in the right direction is mindful movement. You see, we are a head society giving a huge portion of our lives to what we think of things while being bombarded with entertainment and food; aka bread and circuses.

Feel.

A simple embodied action is to take a moment and focus on your breath. Breath deep and make the exhale long. Let the muscles relax (shoulders) and feel into your body. Look at your surroundings. Now pause and listen to sounds. When our focus comes to the present, which is usually benign, it sends a message of safety to our autonomic nervous system. When it feels safe it calms down.

Now the goal here is not to force calm or take the stance of Om Shanti (peace). The goal is to learn how our daily habits of thought and emotions are affecting our state. And then pay attention to what we are actually feeling. It’s the actual state you are in that may be the problem, not the stories about it. Feel the state. Know that negativity activates survival mechanisms we know little about. Find joy. How much time have we spent in what brings us joy and going for that?

Neuroplasticity is a real thing and thousands have benefited and healed chronic conditions by becoming more aware internally. Yoga is a great way to embody oneself. Nearly eighty percent of the vagus nerve (heart, lungs, digestive tract) are on the RETURN route to the brain.

What is it telling you?