September 2, 2017. The Rolf Movement training reached its sixth day.
Over these three days, centering on Rolfing’s sessions 4–6, I have practiced sessions through Embodiment and bodily movement — how to incorporate Rolfing’s “bodily movement” = Rolf Movement into a session.
Following session 4 on August 31 (see “What Comes into View Through Movement?: Words and Direction“) and session 5 (see “Where to Pay Attention in Movement? — Phoric Function and Fixed Point“), session 6 too is a deep session, so the movement becomes finer and more carefulness comes to be required.
To briefly introduce the content of Rolfing’s sessions 4–6: session 4 is mainly the adductors, from the sole of the foot to the pelvic floor; session 5, centering on the relationship between the rib cage and the pelvis, approaches the fascia and organizes the body with respect to the pelvic girdle and the shoulder girdle, the vicinity of the viscera within the abdominal and thoracic cavities, and the iliopsoas.
By contrast, session 6 is a session centering mainly on the area around the spine on the back side of the body — organizing the relationship between the sole of the foot and the leg that support the pelvis, and between the sacrum and the ilium; freeing the spine from the ribs; and letting breath enter the spine, including the sacrum.
This time, based on the guidance of the assistant Harve Baunard, the Embodiment of session 6 was carried out. It spanned nearly 40 minutes, and, as with session 5, the postures were wide-ranging. For example, from various postures including sitting, walking, and all-fours — how to free the body, the spine, from the viscera within the abdominal cavity and from the rib cage? And how to ease the breath? — movements directing awareness to such things were done.
How to direct awareness so that the sacrum can move freely from the pelvis? The awareness of the hanging of the viscera on the front side of the spine (the small intestine, the large intestine, the liver, the heart, and so on) is brought to awareness in the all-fours posture — but how to heighten that awareness using imagery? How to release the force of the sacrum using the sole of the foot? — it was wide-ranging.
What I came to understand more fully this time was “how to strengthen, through words, the awareness of the coccyx and sacrum at the end of the spine?” Not stretching the spine from the coccyx to the cranium, but an awareness of lengthening. In the difference between actively exerting force and the awareness of lengthening, I felt the possibility brought about not only by approaching the fascia but by bringing awareness to the body’s movement.
And the muscle groups that are central to session 6 are located on the back side of the body, where the Tonic Muscles necessary for Tonic Function are concentrated.
From this, I think the three movements in session 6 learned this time taught a way of being aware of “how to keep force from entering the superficial muscles, in order to activate the deep muscles of the body.”
In fact, when approaching the back side of the leg — including the sole of the foot, the heel, the shin, and the hamstrings — and the spine, rather than applying pressure to the body, in order to activate what is called in Rolfing the gamma motor system, the side offering the session to the client too, without putting in force (mainly the superficial muscles), can activate the deep muscles within the body and move toward “how to create the open space?” For that as well, imagining the body like a container (Container), slow movement is a help.
How to move the spine while skillfully releasing the force of the thoracic cavity (including the muscles around the sternum) and the abdominal cavity (including the muscles, including the abdominal muscles)? I practiced while struggling myself, but since it becomes a very important way of seeing when offering Rolfing treatment, I’d like to incorporate this kind of approach into sessions for a while after returning home.
One day of the workshop remains. The final day is session 7, so I plan to learn centering on the arms and the neck.