We’re often checked out from our bodies.
It’s interesting: We are extremely focused on our bodies’ appearance but largely out of touch with what the body needs and how we physically feel.
Mindfulness in Plain English, by Bhante Gunaratana describes it like this:
“One of the most frequently ignored aspects of our existence is our body. The technicolor cartoon show inside our head is so alluring that we tend to remove all of our attention from the kinesthetic and tactile senses. That information is pouring up the nerves and into the brain every second, but we have largely sealed it off from consciousness.”
A lot can be gained by increasing awareness of our bodies. Physical sensation can give us insights into our true wants and needs. It can point us toward healthy and integral choices. Tuning into physical sensation can snap us into presence and be a gateway into richer experience.
Gunaratana explains more and offers an exercise:
“Your body goes through all kinds of contortions in the course of a single day. You sit and you stand. You walk and lie down. You bend, run, crawl, and sprawl. Meditation teachers urge you to become aware of this constantly ongoing dance.
As you go through your day, spend a few seconds every few minutes to check your posture. Don’t do it in a judgmental way. This is not an exercise to correct your posture or to improve your appearance. Sweep your attention down through the body and feel how you are holding it.
Make a silent mental note of “walking’“ or “sitting” or “lying down” or “standing.”
It all sounds absurdly simple, but don’t slight this procedure. This is a powerful exercise. If you do it thoroughly, if you really instill this mental habit deeply, it can revolutionize your experience. It taps you into a whole new dimension of sensation, and you feel like a blind man whose sight has been restored.”
This can seem like a tall order. He suggests spending “a few seconds every few minutes” checking in with your body.
But it’s also extremely simple: sweep your attention through your body, feel how you’re holding it … and make one silent note: sitting, standing, walking, etc.
Join me in playing with this.
Start it off by sharing your first mental note in the comments below right now.
Then continue to stay attuned to your body as much as you can today. None of it is judgemental. It’s all about feeling and staying connected.
This may not “revolutionize your experience” immediately.
Or maybe it will 🙂
Lying down