Breathing: The Bridge to Embodiment

The word "embodied" is one of those terms, such as "grounded" or "centered" that can be discussed forever without being experienced.


Defining embodiment, though, can be quite tricky, because much of what is taught in western societies about the body devalues the felt experience.


The categories of formal learning, particularly anatomy and physiology, are taught with the fundamental source being cadavers (dead bodies), and conceptualizations that do not include our own vitality, or life force. Without the felt experience, embodiment is just another concept that can be discussed ad nauseum. The felt experience (or "phenomenology" in academic-speak) is the path away from these endless discussions and conceptual befuddlement.


This book provides a basic training on how to become aware of our physiological functioning and our sense of vitality. A part of this training comes from becoming hyper-aware of how we breathe. This awareness makes it possible to fe