How do you explain to someone who appears healthy and strong that they carry fragility inside?
If you dare, I can reveal the hidden territories of your body that hold the key to unlocking its full potential.
I’ve asked Francisco why this method hasn’t taken off in popularity yet. Why wasn’t he named King of Pandemic Yoga like Adrienne? I’m laughing inside just writing that. Those of us who have been working with Francisco closely know that he would think it was funny. I really don’t think Francisco wants to be known as a King, guru or anything that comes close to someone being worshiped. Francisco wants to be viewed in the world as a teacher.
This word has been watered down so much; so you have to understand how his students see him and how he sees himself as a teacher. A teacher sees his or her students as they are in a very objective way. And, in whatever subject they are teaching they can be very precise about where a student is in their learning. They get to know the student in the realm of the subject matter in an intimate way. This teacher ensures his student has a relational bond with the teacher and the subject matter. Rarely will you find a teacher with the bandwidth, passion and dedication to form this type of relationship with their students. It does happen, but you will need to pay good money for that level of education.
Having practiced this method for a significant period, I've realized that other yoga practices, while valuable, often lack the depth of healing that Francisco’s method offers. If you're truly seeking a structurally robust body and mind, there’s truly no comparison. This is why it’s hard for me to understand why the worldwide student body of the Kaiut Yoga method is so small compared to the mainstream yoga modalities.
When I asked Francisco why this method hadn’t taken off worldwide, he laughed and told me it was mine to reflect upon. I think he was letting me know that if I could see and understand why this method matters, it could help me form the words, language and communication needed to explain what we’re doing.
Our egos are involved
A few months ago, I realized it concerns our egos. Of course, our ego gives us a sense of self-esteem and self-worth, and we need this part of us to operate in the world, interact with people, and get things done. There’s another part of the ego I’d like to mention. It refers to the part of our mind that mediates between conscious and unconscious reality testing and personal identity. As you can see, combining personal identity and self-worth can get complicated quickly. This part of our egos keeps us spinning with indecision, questioning our worth, and making firm, rigid decisions controlling how people, children and even our bodies should behave.
So, when Francisco, during our weekly teacher training lecture, assigned us this question, “How do you explain to someone who appears healthy and strong that they carry fragility inside?” I realized this is why so many people aren’t YET ready for this method. We avoid our realities, whether they are physical, mental or emotional. We work hard to protect our identities this way and it can be quite complex.
It’s from this reality that we can begin to work with our students. This question is complex mainly because no one would ever seriously consider asking it. So, first of all, you have to have someone willing to explore this question. And you have to have a way into the conversation. Can you imagine what would happen if this question were asked directly? Hey, you appear to be healthy and strong. Would you be interested in discussing where you’re vulnerable physically, mentally and emotionally? Great! Let’s have coffee!
At first glance, and for a long time, viewing Kaiut Yoga from a physical practice is more accessible. It’s easier for people to discuss their bad knee or shoulder, and they are pretty comfortable explaining why they THINK they got into pain in the first place. The person feels good about being able to explain their issue intellectually. It feels good for the ego to do this.
What does ‘bad knee’ mean?
Everyone has an ego, and not everyone will label their knee BAD. This is why it’s so important that the answer be customized to the student's unique qualities. Some people will stay stuck complaining about the knee, getting X-rays, going to doctors, PT, etc. They will consistently rely on someone else to feed their ego with what they need to continue feeling good — and rarely come to class, unconsciously knowing that it will give them a clearer view of the knee. Still, for them, it’s safer to consider it from an intellectual perspective.
Knowing that the ego loves intellect, we must educate people based on their intellect. This is the only way to break through and stroke the ego. It’s the only way for us to break through and open others up to more discovery. In many cases, this is where fragility thrives — FEAR. This emotion will stop at nothing to protect the ego.
For this person to label his knee as bad, he must first be willing to drop the label, accept the knee for what it is, and perceive the health of the knee from a non-emotional perspective. From my experience, this is a BIG ask, and there are emotional and mental layers to get through before the student can be willing to authentically see this knee in a neutral way. This is where the potential of yoga begins, and the end of the ego begins. Willingness.
So, how do we close that gap between the ego and yoga? Yoga requires a willingness to detach from our chatty and emotional selves. Initially, we may not even know how closely our busy minds are tied to our emotions. Or how strongly we identify with our intellect. So, how can we close this gap and help others understand why it’s beneficial? I think once people begin to understand that there are parts of themselves they are completely blind to, the argument becomes a bit more compelling. Who wouldn’t want to learn more about themselves? Plus! The brain likes weird, new and exciting material for consideration.
What if the answer is helping the person understand more about his brain, body and nervous system? It sounds boring at first, but what if you applied that to all these areas of their body? They don’t yet have a perceptual understanding. As much as I love looking at X-rays, I find it far more compelling to perceive my knees — and work from really knowing and understanding the health of my knee.
What do I mean by knowing? Knowing is one of our sixth senses. Knowing comes from perceiving the body and letting the body communicate to you. Developing the skill of knowing the health of the knee rather than depending on someone else to tell you about your knee can be quite liberating.
All day long, you can say, “I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to bend my knee.” And, you know what? MOST people would agree with you. They would validate this statement and reinforce repeatedly reasons why you should never bend that knee. And then you walk around feeling good about never bending that knee. But, how does this knee really feel about that. Have you asked this knee? I mean, have you really taken the time to get to know this knee of yours or are you just walking around feeling good about ignoring it? Wouldn’t it be worth the time and effort to get to know this knee by using a different part of your brain? Something other than intellect?
Trust me, I know how important intellect is. You can’t get into a good college without it and you can’t move up the career ladder without the reputation of being really smart. Operating from perception is just not that trendy right now. But, this is the only thing that will help you operate from allowing the system to speak to you more clearly. Otherwise, you intellectualize your bad knee literally to death because you never let your brain connect to it, and that brain-body connection will eventually die.
Do we have the maturity to explore the truth through knowing? Are you willing to touch those areas? Do you have the courage to let someone guide you toward a different state, which I describe as a blank slate or tabula rasa? Tabula rasa was coined by John Locke, a philosopher in the 17th century. He didn’t use the exact phrase tabula rasa, but this wording has become well-known. He described the mind of a newborn child as a white paper or a blank slate. He suggests infants are born without any innate mental content or preconceived ideas. What if you could, even for a few moments, get to know that bad knee from this perspective? Would you be willing to try?
In other words, to answer this question, “How do you explain to someone who appears to be healthy and strong that they carry fragility inside?” First, it will depend on the person and a combination of what is presented and communicated. Then, I can think of several ways to say the same thing and there are probably many more!
• “If you're up for it, I can help you discover untapped potential.”
• “If you dare, I can reveal the hidden areas of your body that hold the key to unlocking its full potential.”
• “If you are willing, I can help you identify the areas of your body that could be improved.”
• “If you're ready, I can guide you in uncovering the untapped potential within your body, helping you understand and enhance its capabilities.”
• “With your permission, I can assist you in discovering the areas of your body primed for improvement.”