What’s on the mind of XIPs who are expressing themselves? One can see whether there are results coming up, and sometimes even that it is, or has been, hard work. Some people in some situations seem to achieve results without making any visible efforts. Other people in other situations just don’t seem to be able to achieve anything ever.
Mind and body mirror each other
I am quite happy to perceive that recent theories and various experiments about embodied cognition and the functioning of our brain strongly support the notion that our mind and body mutually influence each other constantly. Being someone with strong intrapersonal intelligence it has become very natural for me to be aware of the state of my body and my mind under various circumstances, and notice the interaction between the two.
For instance Lakoff and Johnson explain in their book how our moving and our thinking interfere strongly with each other. People with different types of motor experiences will think in different ways.
That implies that by choosing specific motor activities, one can try to influence the current state of mind.
Labyrinth
At another webpage of this site, I have described the (classical) labyrinth. I share the well established perception that the seven circuits of this labyrinth mirror the seven main energy nodes (aka chakra’s) of our body. The energy states of these seven chakra’s reflect our physical, emotional and mental processes in a domain or theme that is specific for each chakra.
For example:
The first chakra, located at the base of our spine, has security, stability and physical health as its theme;
The fifth chakra, located at the throat, has communication, creativity and expression as its theme.
While walking a labyrinth, the respective chakra’s resonate with the energy of the circuit you are in. And it is noticeable that the physical experience of walking a specific circuit and the energy state of the corresponding chakra influence each other. Simply put, an emotional or mental stagnation in a specific domain is experienced as reluctance or negative associations while walking the circuit that corresponds to that domain.
Patterns of stagnation
In this labyrinth all circuits are stagnated. Fortunately, that is not normally the case, or rather, one stagnation is more dominant than another, and it is wise and practical not to try changing everything at the same time.
Examples of stagnating convictions are:
“I must/should make a start with something…” (circuit 3, yellow)
“It/I will never be good enough…” (circuit 1, red)
“It is all utterly meaningless…” (circuit 7, violet)
“I’d better keep quiet… (circuit 5, turquoise)
Walking the labyrinth
Of course and unfortunately, stagnation does not evaporate the moment you walk the corresponding circuit with a focused mind and body. But it has been my experience with the labyrinth sessions that I undertake with clients, that they became more aware physically and mentally of their stagnations and conceived on the spot specific rituals to try to deal with it.
In my book Enjoying the Gift of Being Uncommon I have extensively described the labyrinth of stagnation and its counterpart, the labyrinth of flowing expression. Although this offers a good theoretical perspective, the real thing is experiencing it yourself. It is the map, but not the territory. Enjoy your walk!