The very first time ever I participated in a Yoga class, I had the surprising experience of ‘recognizing’ the postures and stretches we were shown to do.
“Maybe you were a yogi in a past life” my inner voice joked.
My rational mind however disagreed. In fact what it recognized – even though perhaps not immediately at the time – was that my body has its own lexicon of wisdom with its own tools and own ways of coaching me into my best performance . The natural mechanisms of our bodies to support us come so natural, we sometimes fail to validate them.
Before studying Yoga and later Energy Medicine it eluded me for the most part that when I put my hand on my painful stomach I am actually using the energy from the palms of my hands to sooth the fire! Or that when I stretch my body after waking up or having sat bend over my laptop for a long time, this is an automated response of my body to prepare itself to be set in motion again; much like a lioness stretching herself and having a good big yawn before going in for the kill.
Now of course Yoga and Energy Medicine, which are similar in many ways, stem from a time period in human evolution when people
were still in a close relationship with their bodies. They had to! They needed their bodies every moment of the day. Should anything happen to their main tool on earth; the whole basis of their survival would break down!
That’s why creation installed the software of body knowledge, which operates more or less independently from the rational mind. Creation made sure the body knows how to breath, behave and adjust itself to the needs and activities of its rightful owner. It makes sure that when the pace of life is increased, it knows how to meet the oxygen supply and energy flow. It also knows how to slow down, decrease its activity, give it a rest, in moments in relaxation.
The main problem in modern day time is that while the human body has more or less stayed the same; the world around us has changed dramatically. We hardly recognize anymore how supportive our bodies are on our personal journeys. For cures we often reach out for chemical relief, rather than looking within to see what our bodies have to say about our behaviors. A headache is conquered with an painkiller; clogged arteries with blood thinners; inflammations with anti inflammatories. Meanwhile our bodies are silenced, disabled even to mobilize their own best performance.
Something to think about perhaps next time your body tells you it’s time to take a break….
Click the card to read more on its explanation or draw your own card on the right of this blog and see what it triggers from your inner knowing.
Meanwhile; have a great day and don’t forget to have an understanding talk with your body,
October 2020, Ingrid Schippers
