Fire in the Belly- Emotional Anatomy

Fire in the Belly

Emotional Anatomy of the Lower Abdomen

A truly inspiring person is often perceived as possessing passion with a purpose. Their energy comes from a place deep within. That place is an area above or around the navel.

This energy center in the body actually operates as though it has 3 channels. I haven’t figured out a cool name for this energy center, but what I have seen is a person who has a sense of freedom—there’s no “binding”, there is circulation, and there is energetic movement occurring around them. What you have is a person who is in their right livelihood making a contribution, feeling connected with the spirit, and also fully engaged in a cooperative life work, with other like-minded individuals.

The 3 channels seem to have one energy source, which will flow through one channel or the other. In an ideal and perfect world, you would have all these channels fully awake and fully energized and you’d be able to apply the energy in all directions at the same time. You can do that if your pelvis is flexible and free (different lecture).

The movement of your body and flexibility of your ribcage are what keep this energy grounded and circulating, ultimately manifesting themselves in some meaningful, tangible way.

The first channel, in no particular order of importance, is the spiritual channel. This is the part of a person that longs to have a deep connection with the divine. Yes, we say our heart yearns to be with our deity. We want to feel that connection. That desire to connect comes from right below the navel. It’s different from prana energy, which comes from the pelvis. It’s more like what the ayurvedic healers call kundalini energy. This energy taps you into your connection with Spirit. When a person feels most connected with Spirit, it’s almost as though they feel that God walks through their lives, in their bodies. It’s almost as though that person can feel the divine working through them as they go about their daily lives. When this channel is open and free, there is some spiritual energy that seems to perhaps guide and direct that person toward the places they can be most useful and make the greatest contribution. That’s the spiritual channel of this energy center.

You can awaken this center in yourself with a few exercises, one of which is the Step-Up Lunge.

Instructions:
1. Using a chair and starting off close enough as if you were going to sit, measure your stretch distance by standing with the back of your calves against the front of a chair.
2. Take one comfortable stride forward. Turn around in that spot to face the chair. Now, check to see that your back foot and toe are pointing straight ahead—not to the side.
3. Step one foot fully onto the lap of the chair. With your front foot flat in the chair, lean forward until the knee and the ankle are straight up and down.
4. Look down at your back foot. The heel should be at least one inch off the floor, with your weight balanced on the front arch of the foot. The heel should not be flat at this point. You should feel this stretch in front of your hip and perhaps the top middle of the “down” leg. You should not feel this in your calf at all. If you do feel it in the calf, bend your knee so that the focus point of this stretch shifts to the front of this hip.
Special Note: Check to make sure your torso is upright, not forward. When you have your arms hanging at your sides, do your best to be so upright that they hang behind your body’s midline or even behind where your hips are.

5. So you’re in position now. Breathe five times in your nose, out your open mouth—feeling the stretch on the front of your hip going down to the front middle of your leg.
6. After five breaths, pivot or wiggle your back foot a few inches farther back, to open the front of your hip joint even more. Keep the back foot straight, headed forward, and correct your front leg and body position if you need to.

7. Breathe five times. Again, in your nose—big—out your open mouth wide open first, then breathe out.
When you are done, use your front foot to push yourself out of the chair, and catch your balance. Then, walk around to recalibrate your body’s tension balance.

Living your life infused with Spirit flowing through you carries with it the responsibility of keeping your body healthy and whole, fluid and flexible.

In doing so, you will tap into a natural resource within yourself that will leave you with a sense of accomplishment, peace of mind, and connectedness with the divine.

We will continue this discussion by going into the 2^nd channel of energy in our next blog.