practice not doing
And everything will fall into place
(Tao Te Ching, by Stephan Mitchell, p. 3)
By Galit Shaviv
In addition to "Qi of a Therapist".
We would like to expand what cannot be expressed easily with words or action – the intervals.
It's already clear that a developed therapist need silence, meditation, tuning to the space of healing, in order to observe the mind, the thoughts and patterns that rises up, to connect the spirit.Unlike meditation or similar practices, interval is non-doing. Without a purpose, direction or cause.In the discourse of Permaculture it is called "hammock time": Gazing into space, on a swaying hammock, under a tree, wrapped the unique energy of the tree.
How can we take to ourselves full, planned intervals without quilt – if our culture appreciates only doing and achieving? Putting us in status, defines worthiness by a row of numbers in the bank? For, as we told by our big American brother, time is money.
Last week we visited old Nazareth, passing by a traditional hand embroidered dresses shop. On the wall behind the cashier a big painting of an elegant sheikh, his feet lying on a golden stool.
His 70 year's old grandson's wise eyes are observing me as I quietly admire the rich colorful hand craft, artists made dresses, outcome of months of diligent work.
In the old times every village had its own colors so you could tell where the girl you've just seen is from, and whether she's engaged or free, he explains.It was easier living back then, he sighs.
Today nobody has time. Everyone is in stress. Once there was leisure. You could do things easily, like making these dresses. You could have a pause, and still manage to live and provide.
Today everyone wants more and more. Another car, another golden watch, another house. And that's why everybody is running all day long. In the old days there was time for embroidery.
The exclamation "no time" reflects distress, sense of lacking, ongoing pursuit – mainly after the capitalist representative of time in our era: money. We live in a "digital slave consciousness":
0 = sleep, 1= working. Most people, most of their time, are in a state of "fight or flight". Plenty of adrenalin that ultimately causes exhaustion of body systems, mostly immune system.
Ancient Maya people, as preceded developed cultures, had a totally different attitude towards time. The Maya set on their calendar "day out of time", which invites humans to connect the big universal computer and disconnect from linear, artificial time, out of the hectic day life, from its "to do lists" and its continues demand to achieve.
In babies the growth hormone is secreted while sleeping. In the same way, the intervals we take – within things and between them – allow us to rest and nourish ourselves. wei wu wei means doing without doing. Work without effort, with total consciousness to our movement and actions.
The absolute intervals allow us a deeper value: while daydreaming, gazing, walking in nature, or hanging from a hammock - we rejuvenate our sources and to get deep meaningful insights, that are not accessible while we are on the run.
The moment we are in the bottom of tsubo (pressing point in Shiatsu) is a moment out of time. In this gap, healing is occurring.
a wide connection to the primal deepest healing energy and to cosmic healing spaces, are available to us. And in this non-space, non-time – Qi can awaken, move and transform. Bottom is void, And therefore exists outside yin-yang constant movement. Out of time. The vast attraction of tsubo-bottom that make us follow speed of gravity when we go in, allow us to share this moment out of time, moment of healing.
wei wu wei means doing without doing. Work without effort, with total consciousness to our movement and actions.
We treat other people with our positive reservoirs; With living knowledge; With intuition; With vivid connection to the spirit – not with adrenalin. Not from survival. Not out of the motivation "to achieve".
In our lessons we often observe the influence of our minds on Qi. what happens to Qi when "we think survival", or when we are connected and aware.
It is well felt that in our times time id speeding. Nevertheless, we should teach ourselves the interval. Not only at work, for our patients, or for success of healing.
Some of us born with this "interval knowledge" and often suffer, in our societies, from images of lazy. Others born energetic and raised to be work-oriented. In both cases, our nerve system in in stress: once from being expected for more, guilt, outside pressure. Or from not having one quiet moment. Obviously many people smoke only for having a legitimate peaceful moment for oneself.
Interval supports our health. We should create in in day-life, within doing – while working, eating, drinking tea, practicing, meditating. And in between, doing no-thing. Minding the gap.
We can start now.
We join spokes together in a wheel,
But it the center hole
That makes the wagon move.
We shape clay into a pot
But it is the emptiness inside
That holds whatever we want.
We hammer wood for a house,
But it is the inner space
That makes it livable.
We work with being,
But non-being is what we use.
(Tao Te Ching, by Stephan Mitchell, p. 11)