Reconnecting with the Body: A Journey into the Wilderness
- patrikharbusch
- 18. Apr. 2024
- 3 Min. Lesezeit
"Entering the body is entering the wilderness. It is a realm that is changing, raw, intense, out of control, sometimes unpleasant and pleasant. This is where the mystery lives."
Tara Brach
In today's fast-paced world of constant connectivity and digital interaction, the practice of mindfulness invites us to make a radical departure: to return to the physical self. Mindfulness of the body emphasizes the profound need to reconnect with our bodily sensations in order to fully experience our precious lives.
The Significance of Body Awareness
As the Buddha emphasized, mindfulness of the body is the primary domain for practice. It offers a direct path to feeling alive and free from the reactive cycles that often dominate our existence. By becoming aware of our bodies, we anchor ourselves in the here and now, rather than dwelling on the past and future.
However, it is a common experience for many, including myself, to drift away from our bodies and allow our minds to wander unchecked. This habitual escape from the physical into the realm of thought is what we seek to counteract through mindfulness training.
Grounding in the Now
A simple exercise is to focus on the sensations in your hands - take a moment and feel them without any preconceived notions or labels. Just experience what it feels like to be in your hands in this moment. Feel them from the inside out. Being aware of direct sensations in this way brings you back to the present and demonstrates how mindfulness roots us in the now.
Despite their constant presence, how often do we actually pay attention to our hands or any other part of our body, except when prompted by discomfort or specific tasks? Thai meditation master Ajahn Mun advised that the mind should never leave the body, underscoring the importance of constant bodily awareness.
The Challenge of Staying in the Body
Our modern lifestyle encourages a disconnection from the physical self. Many find themselves, like Mr. Duffy in James Joyce's Dubliners, living "at a short distance from his body". This disconnection is often a defense mechanism against discomfort, where the mind retreats into a virtual reality of thoughts to avoid the unpleasant reality of physical sensations.
Contrary to common misconceptions, meditation is not about transcending the body to achieve blissful states, but rather about being fully present in and through our bodily experiences. This practice allows us to acknowledge and remain with both pleasant and unpleasant sensations, facilitating a deeper understanding of how these sensations influence our habitual reactions and behaviors in life.
The Role of Bodily Sensations in Behavior
Our actions and life choices are often driven by physical sensations. Attraction prompts closeness, tension can provoke anger. Recognizing these underlying sensations can transform our interactions and decisions, leading to more mindful and wise outcomes.
For example, while preparing this blog post during my daughter's nap time, feelings of frustration arose when she woke up unexpectedly, interrupting my writing flow. By pausing and tuning into the tension in my body that was behind the emotion, which was connected to a sense of loss of control, I was able to relax those areas and let go of the frustration and attend to her needs instead.
Why Stay with Uncomfortable Sensations?
Avoiding uncomfortable feelings is a natural tendency, but what if we choose to stay with them? Resisting discomfort only perpetuates and intensifies those feelings, as spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle puts it, "What you resist persists, and what you fight, you strengthen." Learning to stay with discomfort, giving it space and acceptance, can radically transform our experience.
Mindfulness practice offers a relearning of body connection. It teaches us to be present with whatever is there, be it discomfort, numbness, or neutrality. As we practice, we find ourselves more grounded in our bodies, and it becomes easier to return to that presence when we drift away.
Living Fully Through Deep Presence
Viewing the world solely through our thoughts limits us to a two-dimensional perspective. Mindfulness enriches our experience of life by offering a three-dimensional presence that connects us deeply to our surroundings and allows us to see life more fully.
Practicing mindfulness doesn't mean that unpleasant sensations disappear; rather, they are held within the vast field of awareness without forcing us into reactive states. Like waves on the surface of the ocean, bodily sensations come and go, but the ocean of our awareness is able to hold them all, no matter how stormy it gets.
