The masculine is more typically mental, cognitive, rational, or otherwise ‘resting’ awareness (as described in Hindu spiritual traditions).
The body, the material (in spiritual terms) is associated with the feminine: the ‘shakti energy’. In yogic terms this is the duality of prusa (consciousness) & prakti (form).
Today it is so clear to see that embodiment is a far more common theme in women’s work. It’s almost become synonymous. Really. Just check the hastags #masculineembodiment versus #feminineembodiment.
Now it’s clear to me that yes, feminine embodied beings are more attuned to the energy of their environments, they feel more; they are more sensual, they have the capacity to experience far greater sexual pleasure than any male body can.
They take in and thrive in delightful sensuality and pleasure. Where as masculine embodied beings thrive in pursuing purpose, finding solutions, or resting in pure awareness.
(This is is no way to say humans are limited to only one side of this spectrum. I recognize every human’s intrinsic coupling of both masc. & fem. energies within them, however most of us will have a natural core of either one or the other).
It’s no doubt due to this that embodiment is such a core element of women’s work. (Hear I talk of embodiment as the concept of cultivating and deepening body awareness; as a practice that brings one in touch with the subtle sensations of the body).
Being predominately the more ‘feeling’ pole and the one more associated with ‘pure energy’, it’s no wonder that being in touch with the subtle sensations of the body is an inherently feminine practice.
As renowned polarity luminary, David Deida mentions, a woman evokes a man’s attention by the amount of pleasure running through her body - she is attractive when it is evident she is in touch with the sensual pleasure in her body.
Here I need not go further. But, what about embodiment for men? Is it important? Does the masculine need to cultivate this awareness of subtle sensation in the body? How does the relationship to the body become an important part of embodying healthy masculinity?
Well firstly, through millennia of societal and biological conditioning, men are shut off to their emotions. However, we now live in a world where it is required that men are 1) able to feel their emotions, 2) are able to processes them in healthy ways and 3) communicate them in healthy ways. And none of that can be done when a man is not in his body. Being out of touch with his body (not having cultivated a felt sense / visceral feeling of his present moment experience) means he won’t be fully in touch with his emotions. Emotions are fundamentally a physiological phenomena that can only be felt, not thought of.
Secondly, learning embodiment is keys as it allows a man to regulate his nervous system for handling challenging situations. There are many embodiment practices out there from breath-work to ice-bathing to martial arts, which all help one not only handle greater amounts of charge in the nervous system, but also to dissipate that energy more quickly to return to a relax state. In doing so men are able to handle more challenging situations, take greater responsibility in their lives, and ultimately grow.
Next, it’s important for him to comes across as a safe person. This touches on leadership. Leadership is first and foremost an embodied skill. How one is and feels in their own body is picked up by those around him. Therefore to gain respect and trust from others, people need to feel a man’s self-assured secureness within his own body. And this only happens through embodiment practice.
Sexual pleasure. A man’s capacity for sexual pleasure is far, far greater than what is commonly known. The primary source of sex-ed for most boys is porn, leading most men to believe sexual pleasure is about hard, fast sex and getting off when ejaculation happens. However, through specific embodiment practices, a man can immensely heighten and sustain his sexual pleasure for far longer than the common 5 min genital focused, ejaculatory orgasm.
Sexual union. Not only does embodiment lead to great sexual pleasure, but it opens the gateway for incredibly deep, divine sexual union and emotional intimacy. This ultimately occurs through sustain presence, sensitivity and the depth to which a women feels you feeling her - things only experienced through deep embodiment (sustained bodily awareness).
Healing trauma. With the advances of trauma research in the past several decades, it is now becoming common knowledge that trauma (both developmental and shock) is a physiological phenomenon. Trauma essential is ‘stuck’ in the body in the form of a highly dys-regulated nervous system. Through somatic based therapies, a man has the capacity to process trauma far more effectively than any talk therapy alone offers. Process and healing from trauma is the single most liberating thing any human is able to experience.
There's so much out there on self-development for men, which is great. But as of today it's only becoming more recognized about the importance of embodiment for cementing transformation and for becoming the best partners and leaders possible.
If you found this article inspiring or helpful, please share with thsoe you believe would benefit.
Many thanks, Fred
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