The Importance of the Body

I’ve been digging into Zen a bit this year, and one thing that caught my eye was the emphasis on the importance of posture. I’ve had sloppy posture for most of my life.

I’ve also struggled to connect with my body, putting a lot of emphasis on my mind. Perhaps that’s a bit obvious from the relative size of the thinking section of this site here. One of the reasons I started Wing Chun kung fu was because it seemed like a great martial art for that sense of connection with the body.

Joan Tollifson gives a really effective demonstration of the importance of posture that’s hit me in a way other words and examples haven’t.

1. Slump over, curl in on yourself. Say out loud “I’m really happy.” Notice how the words don’t fit the posture.
2. Sit up straight, thrust your arms up into the air, hands open, look up at the sky or the ceiling. Say out loud: “I’m really depressed.” Notice how the words don’t ring true in that posture.

So great!

From The Importance of the Body in Joan Tollifson’s series “Explorations of Being” on The Waking Up app

Added 2024-03-14.