Somatic Wisdom

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1. Somatic Wisdom

In our recent survey quite a few people said they would attend Seishindo workshops if they lived closer to where the workshops are held. People also asked me to write about the workshop experience in the newsletter, so they could get a better sense of the "flavor" of Seishindo. So this is exactly what I am going to do now!
Please let us know how this format suits you.

The latest Seishindo workshop in Belgium was entitled, "Think with your Body as well as with your Brain". This newsletter is based upon the somatic wisdom that showed up on the whiteboard and flip chart notes during our time together.

Each workshop tends to develop a "thread" that depends on who attends and the concerns and questions that people voice. What we do in Seishindo workshops is clarify a theme and then hold a positive intention of supporting and nurturing each participant. With a clear theme and a positive intention as our starting point, we encourage the participants to show us the specific path they would like their workshop to take.

In reading today's newsletter, I suggest you set an intention of discovering the thread that runs through all of what is written here. My hope in sharing what transpired in the Belgian workshop, is that you the readers of the newsletter can have a mini workshop experience of your own.

Please be sure to read this newsletter at a leisurely pace, while maintaining a soothing breathing pattern and a relaxed physiology. This is the same basic instruction we give over and over again during our workshops.

Start out by taking several deep breaths... Adjusting your posture... And tightening and then releasing various muscles throughout your head, neck, and body... When you tighten your muscles hold your breath... When you release your muscles breathe freely and deeply... When you feel "ready", breathe consciously and begin reading.
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Your body plays an important role in maintaining your health and emotional well being.
The language of your body is
- sophisticated
- systematic
- complete

In a literal sense, the grammar of your body language determines the grammar of your spoken language.
_____________

Use your body in a more graceful, efficient manner, and you will find you become more emotionally balanced and solution oriented.

You will find that you slip in and out of understanding the meaning of your life. This is just the way things are meant to be.

Sometimes you will feel clear, and at other times you will feel uncertain. Uncertainly is an important part of your learning process. Please embrace "not knowing".

Change the way you use your body and you will become more aware of your self, others, and your surroundings, which will lead you to experience your life from a more positive perspective,

Using your body gracefully and efficiently involves becoming aware of and adjusting:
Posture (The weight and balance of your posture needs to drop down into your center);
Breath (Your breathing becomes free and easy and emanates from your "hara" or belly);
Movements (You move with greater ease);
Awareness (You spread your awareness and simultaneously notice your self, others, and your surroundings.)

As you concurrently learn how to slow down and change the quality and content of the verbal conversations you engage in with yourself (internal dialogue) and others, you will find yourself understanding more while thinking less.
_____________

Your somatic-emotional system needs to "idle" smoothly when at rest, just like a finely tuned car engine idles when the vehicle is in neutral.

In order to idle smoothly your system needs the "proper" mixture of: Oxygen, Fuel, and Spark.
Oxygen = Breath
Fuel = Proper nutrition, which leads to free flowing blood, lymph, and nerve supply.
Spark = "The spark of life" = One's spirit or "ki".
Your spark is greatly enabled or disabled depending on how you use your body. In an ever recursive loop, the "just right" intake of oxygen and fuel is crucial to the creation of a "just right" amount of spark.

In Seishindo, we look to come in contact with our "Primary Respiration," "The breath of life," in order to bring about the natural ebb and flow of life power, both within us and around us. We cultivate our ability to think with our breath and synchronize ourselves with the flow of all life.

A system that idles smoothly is best able to maintain/contain and translate/transmute the power of the body's combustion into calm thinking and graceful movement.

We need to be mindful of stepping lightly on the gas when proceeding forward. Over accelerating leads to an overheating of the system and an emotional response that is overwrought and out of tune with present circumstances.
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Rather than attempting to do something to fix yourself or the circumstances you are in, we suggest that you be with what is, by bringing greater compassion and awareness to yourself, others, and your surroundings. When you use your entire self gracefully and efficiently, you find that doing less gets you more.

When seeking to implement change, focus on the quality of your thoughts and actions, by doing as little as necessary. No more and no less.

The idea of Seishindo is not to fix your problems. The idea is to become
- fully alive and aware
- compassionate
- solution oriented
- adaptable

Our life will never be without problems. We need to embrace our problems as signals that lead us to understand the need for change.
_____________

In our work together and in our personal practice, we are searching for "a seam in consciousness" that allows us to enter into an extraordinary reality.

Change your awareness and you change the world.

Often, the world changes and yet our awareness of the world stays the same. Unresponsive awareness leads to breakdowns in the system.

All living beings are designed to notice and react to change. This is what we do when we are fully alive.

What are you doing with your body to stop yourself from being more aware and alive?
What can you do differently with your body, so as to stay fully aware and alive?
_____________

The magic of life is already living and moving within you.
You do not own this magic.
The only way you get to keep it is by sharing it with others!

2. Commentary

That's it! What is written above are the nuggets that were sifted out of all that we did and experienced together in Belgium.

If you find what is written to be of interest, I suggest you slowly reread the notes, while once again maintaining a relaxed physiology and breathing pattern. If you experience yourself developing a "smooth idle", you might just find that you slip into an alternate seam of reality, and the words you read will take on greater meaning.

You can experience yourself feeling more relaxed and at ease in the world and with yourself. You are learning through trial and error, how to generate a life affirming presence. This is really what the Seishindo workshops are all about!

Please write and tell us about your experience!