The Embodiment of Knowing:The Embodiment of Knowing:An Exploration of Bodily-Kinesthetic IntelligenceAn Exploration of Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence

Patti Clawson Berry

Lesley University

October 2008

Since the dawning of time,

Earth’s indigenous cultures have viewed the planet

as the feminine expression of the Mother’s body,

an ancient womb that holds the mysteryof creativity and intelligence.

Her rivers are the veins that flow with life-giving water,

like blood informing each cell of the body.

In indigenous beliefs,

Earth’s trees stand

as wizened sentinels

of a single organism…

…uniting Earth and Sky, body and mind.

As many indigenous cultures,

the Amazonian Cashinahua

view growth in nature and

growth of the human body

as the corporeal

accumulation of knowledge.

A Body That Knows.

Cecilia McCallum, 1996.

In ancient times the body and mind were seen as one.In ancient times the body and mind were seen as one.

“The Greeks prized the art of gymnastics

as an important means of cultivating the powers of the mind.

So did the Romans, who gave us the expression

mens sana in compore sano…”

“…a sound mind in a sound body.”

Thomas Armstrong7 Kinds of Smart: Identifying and Developing Your Many Intelligences

For thousands of years, Eastern cultures have pursuedFor thousands of years, Eastern cultures have pursued

the development of the mind through bodily activitiesthe development of the mind through bodily activities

such as tai chi, yoga, and aikido.such as tai chi, yoga, and aikido.

““Memories of one's long ancestryMemories of one's long ancestry

still linger in muscle and nerve, still linger in muscle and nerve,

in brain and germ cell…in brain and germ cell…

...On moonlit nights, in the renewal of life in the springtime,before the glory of a sunset, in moments of swift insight,people feel the community of their own physical being

with the body of mother earth.”Albert Eustice Haydon

Psychologist Howard Gardner, who developed the

Theory of Multiple IntelligencesTheory of Multiple Intelligences, redefines the ancient wisdom of embodied knowledge as

another way of knowing –

Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence.Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence.

““The core components of bodily-kinesthetic intelligenceThe core components of bodily-kinesthetic intelligence

are the ability to control one’s body movements with expertise

(the intelligence of the athlete, dancer, mime, and actor) and the

capacity to handle objects skillfully (the intelligence of the sculptor,

furniture maker, plumber, and seamstress).”

Thomas Armstrong7 Kinds of Smart

This way of knowing

may be demonstrated

through the expertise of

using one’s whole body

in physical competence,

or using one’s body

in a show of strength,

coordination,

and expressiveness,

showing good reflexes

and endurance…

or skills of

dexterity,

balance,

agility,

& tactile response.

In tests of Multiple Intelligences, my scores are lowest in the categories of

Bodily/Kinesthetic and Logical/Mathematical; so, seeking to balance

my physical nature with my mental, emotional, and spiritual strengths,

in response to a class assignment I chose to explore

bodily/kinesthetic ways of knowing.

Deciding to begin a daily hiking regime, I headed for the beach – for inspiration, for visual beauty, and for the sand’s

therapeutic efficacy beneath my bare feet.

BUT MY FEET SANK

IN

THE

DEEP

WARM

SAND

and I drifted into the vast,

endless horizon

as I pondered

the existential questions

of life.

I drove to a nearby lighthouse

and considered making

a vigorous ascent up the stairs

to the observation deck;

but after my observations of

my short breaths

and my pounding heart,

I “knew” I couldn’t make it to the top,

so I decided to slowly amble to

the water’s edge

and observe the seagulls.

I was quickly filled with a sense of knowing that I shared the earth with these feathered creatures. They quickly knew I would share my crackers.

I was suddenly overcome with a sense of understanding

that we share not only the earth beneath our feet,

but also the wind that chilled my skin

and blew through my hair –

the same wind that lifted them to flight.

In his ground-breaking research in Epigenetics,

Bruce Lipton has found “it is a single cell’s ‘awareness’ of the

environment, not its genes, that sets into motion

the mechanisms of life.”

The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter & Miracles

As I returned to my home in the mountains, I realized that if all

it takes is “a single cell’s awareness of the environment”,

my bodily/kinesthetic intelligence could easily match

my musical/rhythmic knowing

and my verbal/linguistic knowing.

I wondered if kinesthetic knowledgenecessarily required speed. My form of hiking has always been more aboutfeeling harmony with the earth…an inquisitive, tactile perceptionof everything around me.

Since my childhood, I have had my hands in the dirt,staying in touch with the earth and the seasons of the soul.

My irises reward mewith color in the monthof June 2008.

As an herbalist, I listen to the teachings of the earth’s gifts.

In designing flower arrangements,my eyes see but my hands guide the way.

As a pianist mastering the technique & sensory knowledge of the keyboard,my hands accompany the singing of my soul.

“The piano appealed to my fingers…

provided touch heaven for me –

88 keys all sitting and waiting for my needy little fingers.”

An interview with Nick Van Bloss, a young musician with Tourette’s Syndrome.From Oliver Sacks’ Musicophilia: Tales of Music & the Brain.

Experiencing the kinesthetic sense of manipulating the keys, feeling the auditory vibrations in the body, and the discovery of physical sensations

a pianist feels inside the body when playing is the basic knowledge that becomes

deeply-rooted in the body.

According to Swiss child researcher Jean Piaget,“during the first two years of life, virtually all thinking

takes place through the body.

The philosopher William James wrote about using “mental fingers” to touch

the edges of the letters of the alphabet.

Thomas Armstrong,1993.

As a physically active child who was riding horses and playingthe piano at the age of five, dancing with my accordion at age 8,unable to sit still in the classroom, and continually in troublebecause of my misbehavior at school…

I quickly learned that sitting at a desk and expressing one’s

mental faculties, as well as sitting at the piano expressing one’s

deep inner knowing, earned praise from parents and teachers.

The enjoyment and thrill of being one-with-nature would be

known at a slower pace—a “lady-like pace.”

During a recent expedition into the woods – which means I droveto the highest peak in the mountains above my house – I found a renewed sense of confidence in my integrated ways of knowing:

•An embodied awareness of the universe in which I walk

•An intuitive sense of Being that fills and unites all of nature

•An innate understanding of a life that is being continuously

fabricated out of my environment

•A creative process where energy, matter, and thought

interpenetrate and interact in the earth & the individual

•A comfortable coexistence of body, mind, spirit, and emotions

The Pecos River. Sept. 2008

Aspens at Jack’s Creek.Sangre de Cristo Mountains ofNorthern New Mexico. Sept. 2008

Watching for Winter.