Seeing Clearly - 7 - Integrating Your Vision
Botticelli Venus source: www.italianrenaissance.org:botticelli-birth-of-venus
Seeing Clearly - Lesson 7 - Integrating Your Vision
Spiraling Back With Open Eyes and A New Perspective
The conscious mind is almost entirely housed in the muscles of the eyes - Milton Erickson
Lesson 7 - Integrating Vision - returns to the mechanics of Lesson 1. Lying on the back, eyes open this time, David Webber uses the now-familiar movements of Lesson 1, the classic “Flexors and Extensors” lesson to return to our starting point, but with a new and fresh perspective.
Here’s the moment to integrate:
Source: medicalnews.com
The general relaxation of Lesson 1, where we barely attended to eyes. Yes, we looked at the optical nerve and located the optical cortex. But the only real ‘eye’ activity was to hold focus on the ceiling, letting the head move around the eyes.
The deep massage and relaxation of Lesson 2, where rolling wrists softened bellies, shoulders, hips, and the back of the neck led to deeply relaxed hands palming the eyes, soft palms teaching the eyes and muscles around them to release.
David brilliantly repurposed one of my favorite lessons, “Prayer Hands,” into what is my favorite lesson in the series - at least this go-around. Magnetizing closed eyes to the back of the hands was, for me, telling and challenging. My astigmatic right eye did NOT want to play nice through any of the variations of head and hands moving together and in opposition. I’m still working on this one. Eyes were, in this middle lesson, actively engaged as a pair, a system.
The Buddhist breathing lesson, or square breathing (as some people call it) challenged us to be groovy, and change the rhythm and tempo of breath to induce more deep relaxation. Again, we barely, barely engaged the eyes. A few moments of palming and a little bit of horizon gazing at the very end. But how soft and receptive were your eyes by then? How deeply into space did you go with your eyes softly cupped by your palms?
Source: geekmedics.com
The “Aim” lesson explored slow versus quick eye movements. Eyes were mostly closed. And active: eyes drifting in one direction, then snapping back. Differentiation was another theme of this lesson as our focus shifted from one eye to the other and together again. Those jerks or or jitters - possible blind spots where the eye skips a part of the visual field. And multiple orientations to gravity, with parts supine, standing, and side lying. The grand finale: integrating the turn of the head, shoulders and chest with the eyes for coordinated movement.
And then another very internal detour, via the tongue. Again we barely paid attention to the eyes, but what an amazing outcome. When have you ever traced the inside of your mouth in order to place your eyes from the inside. I return to the sensation of heavy eyes resting on the roof of the mouth, contained in the skull, and marvel. What a cool trick for resting on the horizon.
Finally this week, we bring it all together - the calmed nervous system through slow movement and breath, eye differentiation and coordination, feeling the eyes’ shape, weight and location, and the sensation of deep space when the eyes/optic nerve are calm. At last, our eyes are open, and we move out into the world with a refreshed appreciation for vision and balance.
The Curriculum Includes:
Our Eyes and Ourselves
Relaxed Eyes
Breathing to See
Easy Seeing
Improving Your Aim
Seeing Deeply
Integrating your vision
Eyes in Action
David Webber overcame severe optic degeneration and shared his learning
Wednesdays | 9:30-10:15 AM and 6:30-7:15
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How you might feel after this lesson:
Relaxed, realigned, refocused, receptive.