Respecting Others Begins With Respecting Your Body and Your Breath

Photo credit: Erica Li

When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.

Winston S. Churchill

Maybe I should have known better, but recently I reposted something on Facebook about respect. Or at least that was the message that spoke to me. But because it also included the phrase ‘medical freedom’ it elicited heated responses, including an array of conspiracy theories about the COVID19 vaccine. Basically, it turned into a warzone!

The post made the point that the only wrong decision about the vaccine is one made purely out of fear, social pressure, or emotional reactivity. Clearly, those factors are influencing many people and that is unfortunate. I agree that it can be difficult to respect that stance when it seems so influenced by external forces rather than internal guidance. 

At the same time, as a healer, my work is to foster each individual’s ability to listen to, know, and act on their intuition. My first priority when I work with clients is to meet them where they are and help them tune into their inner voice. It’s not my job to “heal” anyone, but to respect their ability to choose their own healing path. 

And, of course, to expect them to do their research (and not on Facebook!).

The level of reactivity to my post made me take a step back and ask what’s really going on here? I sat with the word respect. 

One of the definitions of respect is: avoid harming or interfering with.

The opposite of that is to disdain, which means to have open dislike for someone or something considered unworthy of concern.

Why would I consider anyone unworthy of my concern? What energetic forces are at play that might cause me to fight and want to control someone else?

I realized that this is the energy of the wounded masculine. Anger, greed, detachment, overachieving, addictions—these are all aspects of the wounded masculine. I’ve talked often about the divine feminine. I’ve been drawn to the rise of this energy in our consciousness for some time. But lately, in my meditation and in my work, I’m getting messages that the wounded masculine is just as important as the divine feminine. 

But how do we honor the wounded masculine? How do we step out of this energy of willfulness and control back into love and respect? How can we surrender to the breath when we all have that divisive energy in our bodies?

Do we even know what a healthy masculine looks like? It’s not about control and bullying and greed. Look at the animal world. The male whale is called the “escort.” He lays on the bottom of the ocean and hangs out, making sure the female is safe. He surfaces only when there is a real threat. Male gray whales actually work together to lift and hold the breeding male. It’s a team effort and is all about unity. 

In a time of a pandemic, we naturally want to protect and propagate our species as well, but how do we do so from a place of unity?

How do we integrate a new paradigm into our nation to achieve harmony?

I believe that we each have to take a step back and look at our beliefs. As I found out, I couldn’t even ask people to respect each other without being clobbered with conspiracy theories, which are based on belief. 

How often do you question your beliefs? 

The division that we see in the world is happening within each of us. So, in what way are you divided? Let yourself deeply breathe for one hour each day as you pose this question and sit with whatever comes up.

You may feel a tightness, or restriction, somewhere in your body.

Restricted breath can be due to an imbalance in masculine/feminine energies. The breath, which is the masculine energy, can’t get into the body if it’s contracted, so the feminine energy must open the heart and clear the pathway.

Restricted breath equals wounded masculine. It’s that simple. 

And a wounded masculine, either individually or collectively, leads to disdain over respect.