penitential chimp Weblog

I don’t want to deal only in theory, but am looking also for transformative practice. I believe that challenging oppression is central spiritual work. This is the first of what I hope will be a series of practices for awareness, repentance, and reparations (which for the moment I am thinking of as the core of spiritual practice for privileged people).

Assumptions: 90% of communication is non-verbal and a huge part of that is precognitive, Body language is a primary key to what and who we value. (Thank you Maia)

Decide on a period of time, for example one day, that you will make a commitment to pay constant attention to what your body is communicating. During this time pay attention to:

–Who/what are you facing? Where do your feet, shoulders nose point? What about your back?

–How much space are you taking? Are you slouching down and extending your

legs in front, throwing your arm out over the back of the chair? How do you claim ownership of space and how much do you claim in relation to others?

–How and to who do you show openness and closedness? When and to who do you lean in and when do you lean back? When do you find yourself crossing your arms and legs, making or breaking eye contact etc? What gestures do you use to show interest or disinterest?

Each time you notice what your body is communicating, think about if it is what you want to say. Note who and what you are valuing. Note how this relates to systems of oppression (white supremacy, patriarchy, heterosexism, etc) or pick one form of oppression to focus on each time. If /when you notice that what/who you are privileging doesn’t fit with what you would want change your body language. At the end of the time reflect on what you have noticed about your nonverbal communication and how it feels when you consciously change postures or actions that were “natural” or un-thought. If you are a writer write, if you are a talker talk, but really process well.

Repeat until the awareness of what you are communicating and the habit of correcting if it is not what you intend become more natural.

If you try this please share experiences and critiques. Please share as well other forms of non-verbal communication to be aware of.