How is spiritual embodiment related to social justice?
And what do I do about it?
When we are doing embodiment work we bring ourselves into the landscape of the body. When we enter the landscape of the body we come into contact with emotions and body postures related to thoughts & emotions, physical pain, etc. And specifically spiritual embodiment is bringing our spirit, energy, awareness, heart into the physical body.
As we live into this landscape with our spirit, we start to notice how the outside world affects our embodiment. We notice how our personal relationships relate to our embodiment. How the organizations we work within or communities we are a part of impact our embodiment. How our government, nation and the world impact our embodiment.
It is a natural process of embodiment. A natural consequence of being awake to the body and the things in the environment that affect it.
It’s not wrong to notice all of these things and their interrelatedness. It’s quite beautiful actually.
As this process unfolds we notice that the systems in our environment (both close in like where we work or zoomed out like the Department of Homeland Security) impact us and the people around us. Then we may begin to notice that certain groups of people are pushed to the margins.
Marginalized- “relegated to an unimportant or powerless position within a society or group” from the online Merriam Webster dictionary
What do you imagine happens to bodies when they are relegated as unimportant or powerless?
And right here, when this starts to happen we are faced with some choices. What do I do with the discomfort that this likely brings up for me? What do I do if I’m a white person that benefits from the system of supremacy that was set up at the founding of this particular iteration of this country? What do I do with the fear that would inevitably arise at the thought of challenging a system of oppression that I benefit from? What do I do with the knowledge, body sensations, nervous system responses and emotions about the marginalization of other people?
One choice we can make is to be with it. Allow it to rise up and to feel it. To join a group where we can explore this process with others and with a knowledgable facilitator. We can take the time to metabolize emotions; release tension and stress from the nervous system. And to reflect.
This feeling and being with the impact of being fully awake within our body and heart to systems of oppression is an important process of healing, both individually and collectively. It is a practice that, no matter what actions we choose to take, we will need to come back to again and again.
You may want have an embodiment practice with the questions in this post. Read through the questions, feel what comes up in the body. Maybe you want to move with what comes up. Maybe you want to be still and just notice-then move to discharge. If you allow a metabolization or a discharge. You don’t have to completely forget or disregard the experience. Perhaps let it lead you to action.
Interested in resources for getting this process started? Here’s a few below.
The Embodiment Institute; https://www.theembodimentinstitute.org/about#mission
Dr. Resmaa Menakem;
https://resmaa.com/
Robin DiAngelo;
https://www.robindiangelo.com/
For Therapists, Coaches, anyone in the mental health field:
Decolonizing Therapy;
https://www.decolonizingtherapy.com/