Often, we confuse grounding and centering. Our system needs both, but there are times it needs one over the other. If you can’t identify which your system needs, no amount of grounding will put you in your center. Likewise, no amount of centering will help you feel grounded. Does your system want to feel safe, calm, rooted, supported, nourished and grounded right now? Or does your system want to feel alive, motivated, confident, empowered and connected to its own center?
For Grounding
Walk around the room you’re in and when you sense a charge or feeling that this is the spot you’re called to take a stand on, take a stance that feels good to your body.
Imagine roots going down from the bottom of your feet to the core of the earth, tethering you to this spot. Then imagine the roots fanning out from your hips, sacrum and pelvis like a skirt that also roots you solidly into the earth. Notice any sensations, feelings and thoughts this brings up as you continue to stand rooted.
Begin walking and moving with this root skirt. How do you move within it? How do you relate to the space around you from within this root skirt? Make it into a little dance with the space, the roots and your body.
Notice if there are any parts of your body that feel nourished and supported? What difference does this make?
For Centering
Stand in a comfortable and upright position, knees slightly bent. Take three deep breaths into your heart center.
Slowly bend your knees down to the ground and spread out your arms as if you’re gathering up earth energy. Bring that back up to your heart center and breathe it in.
Raise your arms straight up to the sky and pull down air energy to center around your core. Breathe that in.
Notice if there are any parts of your body that feel empowerment and vitality? If there are, see what it’s like to lead from those places today.
Check out my first article as an Executive Contributor to BRAINZ Magazine!
There’s a lot of talk about what it means to be embodied these days.
As a Somatic Movement Educator, the psychoeducation of embodied ways of knowing is a central part of my work, and I’m excited to see embodiment becoming a trend.
But I’m also noticing a confusion in my communities and with some of my clients about what embodiment actually is and what it is for. The confusion is understandable, especially in Western societies, because we are not taught how to be embodied. We are taught to use, abuse, or do things to our bodies. Trauma and violence to bodies is so common that many of us don’t even feel safe being in a body, so it is easier to escape, control, ignore, and even disconnect from our bodies.
Read the full article here!
Join the online school where ancient wisdom meets modern life!
Embodied Philosophy is a school of interdisciplinary, contemplative education that bridges the gap between historical, text-based scholarship and the embodied practices that arise from contemplative texts and traditions.
In a cultural climate exhibiting increasing levels of anxiety and depression, stress and alienation, hyper-vigilance, and divisive rhetoric, Embodied Philosophy (EP) recognizes the need for what we call “embodied philosophical living.” Highlighting yoga, dharmic and esoteric traditions, EP seeks to disseminate knowledge, practices, rituals and modes of living that actualize liberating patterns of thought and behavior. These new patterns break us out of the habits that continuously cause pain and suffering and reorient us in empowering ways.
EP aims to nourish lives at the physiological, psychological, and spiritual levels by making accessible and available the wisdom that has transformed lives for thousands of years. They have a variety of opportunities available:
Tarka Journal
Chitheads Podcast
Year-Long Certificate Programs
Wisdom School Courses
New Educational Offerings
And more!
Check out these weekly Life/Art Process offerings by Tamalpa Institute faculty to get your introduction to this beautiful practice & continue your involvement with the work!
You can also find a Tamalpa Practitioner in your area in our directory here!
What stories are you holding inside?
How can you unleash them through movement, dance, drawings and writing?
The Tamalpa Life/Art Process is an incredible and comprehensive arts healing modality developed by experimental dance and expressive arts pioneers Anna and Daria Halprin.
In doing the Tamalpa Institute Level 1 Weekend Training on Personal Embodiment of the Life/Art Process, I integrated my head, body and heart centers. In the process, I confronted my heart, encountering my own inability to really let love in, as well as came back into my body in an expression of being fully unleashed—full of vibrancy, potency and connected to my life force energy.
The work of exploring each body mythology score over 9+ months while also embodying the metaphors of my soul landscapes through drawings, movement, objects and writing allowed me to access parts of myself that weren’t possible before.
If you’re excited to uncover what stories, drawings and poetry are inside of you waiting to be unleashed, I would love to work with you in my Mirrors of the Soul Program that introduces you to the Tamalpa Life/Art Process work.
Here are some places you can find dances:
Since the Spring of 2016, I’ve been doing various modalities of Conscious Dance as the core foundation of my psychospiritual practice. It’s a great way to have fun, do a movement meditation, listen and learn more about what my body has to say, find community, and learn inner resources.
The best part for someone like me with a history of starting and quitting dance classes because of my lack of discipline is that there are no steps to learn or physical practice in between classes. It is entirely based on how your body wants to move in the moment and your own intuition, so it works for all body types and abilities! You show up when you want to, drop in as far as you want to, and tap into some profound wisdom that is just for you.
It’s also a global practice, so you can find classes in most regions. Right now, of course, there are more options than ever to dance from your own home via Zoom, and there are dances happening throughout the day every day!
I suggest going to classes that offer a teaching and a practice, rather than free-style and social dancing, if you haven’t been familiarized with the principles of a conscious dance practice, especially when dancing online. I find the classes and/or workshops translate better to an online platform than social dances because the guidance and instruction creates a stronger container, there is more space for intimacy and connection, and the instruction focuses the way you’re spending your time on Zoom.
Join the world-leading hub for embodied education, self-discovery and healing for global transformation!
The Embody Lab is a hub for embodied education, self-discovery and healing for global transformation.
The Embody Lab offers deep-dive learning experiences with world-leading teachers. Enjoy exclusive access to live master classes, summits, workshops and certificate programs in the fields of Somatic Therapy, Embodied Yoga and Movement, and Social Justice. Members receive exclusive discounts and enjoy access to the live event and on-demand recordings to learn at their own pace.
The first way we experience the world is through sensing our whole body. It’s the most primal form of inner communication that directs all thought, feeling, and action. Soma means “the living body” and somatics refers to practices of being in dialogue with the living body. We explore these practices as a means to embody.
We acknowledge that beneath the umbrella of the term “embodiment” are practices belonging to ancient lineages and traditions that have been appropriated by Western models. We are actively working to illuminate the origins of these practices as part of our commitment.
Through this platform we hope to make embodiment, somatics, and fundamental learnings in these domains accessible to a broad, global audience— making it easier to access support for everyone in their embodiment journey.
If you’d like to learn more about how embodiment and somatic based therapies and practices can support your journey of growth and healing, consider working with a coach, therapist or practitioner. The right professional can help you tap into your own inner wisdom and create lasting change in your life.
Explore The Embody Lab’s Somatic Therapist & Practitioner Directory and find someone to support you in this journey to actualizing your goals, make more intentional and empowered choices, and move closer to living a life of love, authenticity, greater fulfillment and well-being.
The International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association (ISMETA) is a collaborative of individuals and organizations dedicated to evolving the field of Somatic Movement Education and Therapy.
You can explore our directory of Practitioners in Somatic Movement Education, Therapy, Dance and Movement; find local or online events by Practitioners, read current research in the field, discover community and advocacy opportunities, and much more on the website!
