The Body I Forgot to Thank

"We have become disconnected from our bodies, our feelings and our inner wisdom, and the way back to ourselves is through embodiment rather than more thinking." – Master Mingtong Wu

There were moments while reading Master Mingtong Wu's book when literal tears filled my eyes. The simplicity of it all, the way it read me and my current actions, the profoundity of it all.

One description shared by people who had worked with the Master stayed with me. They spoke about treating their bodies like rental cars. Something to use, push, criticize, neglect and return without much thought.

I thought about all the ways I have treated my own body over the years. Eating poorly. Ignoring rest. Pushing through exhaustion. Speaking unkindly about it. Wanting it to be different. Constantly focusing on what it lacked instead of appreciating all that it has faithfully carried.

And then a sobering realization arrived.

This body is the only one I have.

The only one.

The only body that will carry me through every joy, every heartbreak, every lesson, every beginning and every ending that make up this experience called life.

Even the matters of the heart that we speak so often about cannot exist without this body. Without this body, there would be no racing heartbeat when we fall in love, no ache when we lose someone, no tears when we grieve, no warmth when we feel safe. There would be no "matters of the heart" at all.

Yet how often do we care for our bodies as lovingly as we care for our dreams?

Master Wu's words have caused me to pay closer attention. To notice how I treat my body. How I talk to it. How I think about it. How often I demand from it without thanking it.

And for that wake-up call, I am deeply grateful.

Another lesson that struck me just as powerfully was his observation that many of us live almost entirely in our heads.

Thinking.

Analysing.

Planning.

Worrying.

Replaying.

Explaining.

We have become experts at thinking our way through life while becoming strangers to feeling our way through it.

But healing does not happen through thinking alone.

There can be no complete healing without feeling.

Many of us approach transformation as an intellectual exercise. We read the books, listen to the podcasts, attend the workshops and gather more knowledge. We search for answers with our minds while neglecting the wisdom that lives within our bodies.

The body carries memories.

The body carries stress.

The body carries grief.

The body carries joy.

The body often knows what the mind has not yet figured out.

Real healing asks for more than understanding. It asks for presence. It asks us to listen. It asks us to feel.

To notice where tension lives.

To notice where sadness rests.

To notice where peace wants to emerge.

Healing is not a mind project.

It is a whole-person journey.

Mind.

Body.

Soul.

Not one above the other, but all working together in alignment.

Perhaps that is the invitation before us.

To spend a little less time trying to think our way back to ourselves and a little more time learning how to inhabit ourselves.

To stop treating our bodies like rental cars.

And instead, treat them like trusted companions.

Because they have been carrying us all along.

Reflection Question:
How would your life change if you treated your body with the same kindness, patience and compassion that you offer to the people you love most?