The Common Language of the Body

When we give ourselves a moment to sit in silence, to take a deep breath in, we touch our own sacred ground. It is a spacious and timeless feeling, a place within us that holds endless possibility. We can feel that there is common ground between us. There is a sense of connection without words.

Let us begin with the heart, located in the center of our chest. Place your hand on your own heart. Our heart is this incredible life – sustaining muscle and source from which a unique power springs forth, that of love and compassion, the power of healing. Lately, I have been hearing people speak of loving those that we might deem unlovable or undeserving of our love. I believe that love is an incredibly powerful force that can bring transformation and healing into the world. Who is to say that if a certain crucial number of people send their loving energy to someone or to a situation, that it wouldn’t help in opening that heart, in healing that suffering? When do you let your heart lead? What are the dreams that are hidden there? In the hidden place within your own heart, lie the answers to all of the questions you might ever have.

I believe that we are made up of several bodies in addition to the physical one that we inhabit. Our individual bodies are actually four realms – the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual. I want to examine this idea of unity or oneness within our own bodies. How do we integrate these separate bodies into one? And do we even realize that we are doing this at every moment of our lives. We can be walking down the sidewalk and hear a siren. Immediately, all four of our bodies suddenly become engaged. We have an emotional response, our physical body perhaps tightens, we may have thoughts and our spirit is engaged, perhaps in sending a prayer to the destination of the ambulance, those who are riding in it. It is as if we are in a continual process of integration all the time.

I worked with an incredible person named Liz Lerman. She is a dance choreographer and community leader in the most transformative sense of the word. She is someone who has the visionary capability to access her own heart and create positive change in any environment she is in. She has been a great inspiration to me, and has truly proven that Everyone Can Dance. She is a person who thrives on bringing together groups of people who feel that they are opposing each other – people of very different faith beliefs, ages or backgrounds. And these people would come together reluctantly and through movement and stories, common ground would be created in that moment. There would be an understanding of our common humanity. She is the reason that I know creating movement can be transformative, and it is a sacred act.

My work with Liz reinforced my belief that all living beings on the earth make up a collective body, a system that we all belong to, and help to grow, help to sustain. What would it mean to see all of us as one body, a body of beings undergoing a collective journey. As the words of Mary Ann Williamson state: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.” I believe this is true at a core level – there is power in numbers of people, and in one person’s commitment to truth and justice. We can make a difference, and I believe it can start by acknowledging that we are a collective body. We are connected not only to every living being on the planet, but to the earth itself, and the cosmos that surrounds the earth. Being able to embrace the idea that we are all connected can lead to liberation both for ourselves as individuals in realizing that we are never alone; and also the realization of our own power as a “body” of people. The Unitarian Universalist faith is a body in itself that is waking up to its own power. We hold beliefs in common and share a commitment to creating a world of equality and justice. This is power. This is what makes up the continually changing fabric of our collective body. When we surrender to our own hearts, to the opening of our minds, to the true spaciousness of our bodies, we strengthen the collective body that we belong to. We can speak a common language together.

May we feel our bodies as we each enter our own journeys of awakening. May we allow our minds to be like open doors where learning can come flowing in and wisdom can flow out in all that we do. Our thoughts do matter; our actions do make a difference. May we allow ourselves to do the radical act of letting our hearts lead in our lives. Through our own compassion, we will be speaking and acting in communal ways. If our common language can be one of love and unconditional acceptance for ourselves and all those we come in contact with, we will be helping to create beloved community.
I want to end with this prayer by Wayne Muller:
“Remember who you are. Remember what you love.
Remember what is sacred. Remember what is true.
Remember that you will die and that today is a gift.
Remember how you wish to live.”
Amen