Moshe Quote Of the Day: "Free choice is meaningless when we are compelled to adopt the one and only way we know." (from The Elusive Obvious, p. 150
Owning the Feldenkrais Method
by Adam Cole
Is there anyone out there who isn’t familliar with the standard reply to the question most often posed to mountain climbers, “Why do you do it?” For those of you that haven’t heard this cliche, the standard reply is “Because it’s there.”
What a dissatisfying answer that is! No one likes that answer. We want to know, why, Mr. or Ms. Mountain Climber, are you going somewhere extremely dangerous, where the conditions are terribly rough, and risking not being able to return? We, ourselves, are not prepared to take those risks, and, quite frankly, we can’t understand why you are.
So you expect us to believe that the only reason you’re climbing the mountain is “because it’s there?” Look over by that building. See that tree? It’s there. Why don’t you climb it? What about the flight of stairs at the Marriot Marquis, 55 stories high? It’s there. That should be reason enough for you. And those stairs and that tree aren’t nearly as dangerous. Good view from the top of both of them, too.
Obviously we have a disjunct in our communication with these mountain climbers. And I think I know, based on my experience with the Feldenkrais Method, what it is.
To those mountain climbers, the question “Why are you climbing the mountain” doesn’t make sense. It’s not the question they’re asking themselves before they decide to climb, nor is it the question they are trying to answer by climbing. They’re asking questions like “Should I go up today?” “Which mountain should I attempt?” “How do I get up the mountain,” and other questions which more directly address their concerns.
These questions, when examined together, actually answer the pressing interrogative asked by non-climbers. Each of the climbers’ questions deals with the process of getting up the mountain, not the question of the point of climbing. You see, it’s not the goal of getting to the top that these climbers crave, it’s the time spent climbing; It’s everything they have to do to get to the top; Most importantly, it’s the transformation that occurs in themselves while they undertake their climb.
For them, climbing is growing, even living. You might as well ask them why they eat or why they go to the bathroom as why climb the mountain. Are there other ways to do all of these things? Yes, you can be fed intravenously, but where’s the joy in that? Are there other ways to reap the benefits of climbing the mountain? Yes, but this is the method they have chosen for experiencing those joys. Looking at climbing this way makes clear the pointlessness of the goal for its own sake, and the necessity to these people of the process.
So you’ve been taking Feldenkrais classes and you’re wondering “What’s the point?” You feel differently when you get up, but so what? And even if your arthritis is better, if you don’t know how it got better how are you going to take care of it when it comes back?
Well, I’m here to clue you in to the secret of the mountain climbers, who may be disappointed that they didn’t reach the peak, but who never feel the time was wasted in attempting it. Feldenkrais is about what you go through on the floor or the table while you’re moving. It’s not about the movements themselves. Although the instructions in a lesson are designed to generate certain experiences, they’re more important in the way they focus your attention on what’s happening while you’re on the floor.
As a Feldenkrais teacher, I don’t want you to take my movements home with you. When I was first learning Feldenkrais I was furious that the movements didn’t work for me at home as well as they did in the sessions. I didn’t realize that the movements by themselves offer nothing. It was my ability to pay attention to myself that was changing. That’s what enabled me to improve when I started to recognize it. That’s what I want you to take home.
As I said, these movements, created by Moshe Feldenkrais and others, are very clever. They direct your attention by keeping certain parts of you immobile, requiring you to learn new ways to move. But you grow through these lessons by accepting the challenges in them and overcoming them.
Watch yourself as you overcome each challenge. Notice how at first you’re so impatient about doing little movments on the floor that don’t stretch you or require hard work. Then notice how angry you are at your inability to do some of these easy movements. Watch in wonder as you start to remember how pleasant it is just to move around without thinking too much about the future. See your attention and your expectations change. Notice and marvel that, as these aspects of you change, so does your movement.
What you’re finding out here in the Feldenkrais Method is how your attitude towards yourself can change. I show you this by instructing you in gentle, intreguing lessons about movement. By experiencing these lessons, you start to change. As you change, you may notice interesting and unexpected coorespondances between what happens in your body and what happens in your mind. The more you notice, the more you’ll be aware of your attitude towards yourself every day, and the better you can direct your attention to the things that matter the most. As this process improves, you’ll have an understanding of how to address your problems that nothing else can give you.
At that point, my friend, you will own yourself, and you will discover in yourself a mountain that you can climb every day.
See you next time.
© 2002 Adam Cole