Now who would put the words gym and soul together? I know I certainly never would… that was until last week.
Last week was the first time I have been to a gym to do weight training in over 20 years. I have been exercising regularly over the past couple of years; cardio, walking, hand weights, stretching, connective tissue exercises, but I hadn’t yet ventured to the gym. The idea of a trip to the gym always seemed ‘a bit too hard’. Not being sure of where to go or what to do, going to the gym went on the ‘some day’ list.
I have been staying with some friends who offered to assist me to get friendly once again with the ins and outs of the gym. I eagerly took up the offer – my ‘some day’ had finally arrived.
I trained regularly at the gym when I was a student at University, doing weights and classes 4 – 5 times a week. At the time I wasn’t aware, but the main focus of going to the gym was to improve my body image and to offer myself relief from feeling the depths of disregard I was living in. Working hard at the gym offered me an opportunity to numb out even more so as not to feel the underlying stress and sadness that was really there in my body that I was choosing to ignore. The gym gave me a momentary high and a relief from feeling where I really was at.
I was a heavy drinker and my diet, well, that was something to be sneezed at. It consisted of fatty foods from the University cafeteria with minimal vegetables apart from lots of potatoes. So to keep me in shape I would spend hours pumping iron, increasing my cardio levels striving for the perfect figure, to feel good about myself, to bury my lack of self-worth and to not feel the pain of how I was living at the time, which included late nights of partying with copious amounts of alcohol, long hours working in pubs and restaurants as well as studying full-time.
I didn’t like myself very much although I would never have admitted it at the time. Going to the gym was a way of pushing my body hard so I wouldn’t have to feel the hurt of the un-dealt with issues that I was still carrying from my childhood.
Fast forward twenty years, I am now, thanks to Universal Medicine and The Way of The Livingness, living my life where I take good care of myself. I go to bed early, I rest when I need to, I eat in a way that supports my body and I no longer drink alcohol, eat sugar or have caffeine. I work on dealing with my issues when they arise rather than burying them and I am open in my relationships. Generally I feel pretty awesome, a far cry from how I felt back in those University days.
I have recently had an inclination that there was more I could be doing to support my body. I had been feeling that I had developed a certain level of connection of my mind being with my body (conscious presence) in my exercise and daily activities, however, at times there was still a sense of this sometimes being a bit soft in my body. I had a sense that weight training may support me in this next stage of development but what I didn’t realise is just HOW supportive this was going to be.
So last week, as I sat on the weights machine for the first time in 20 years, the thought dropped in, “the body is the vehicle to house the soul” and in every ounce of my being I felt that my purpose for being there at the gym was to strengthen my body, knowing full well that my body is not the end result but is a means to access the soul.
There are certain qualities that I have been focusing on over several years such as being gentle and tender, but what I feel has been missing is the power and the strength. My first session at the gym revealed to me the opportunity to deeply connect with feeling the physicality of my body with the machine weights. I connected with my body through feeling every muscle that I worked, choosing to lift them in a way that honored the whole of my body, all the while being aware of breathing gently.
I enjoyed working my muscles, feeling their strength, feeling which muscles lengthened and which ones contracted.
It felt super joyful and powerful to claim my body, not because I wanted to look better but because my purpose was to build a body that has the strength to hold the light of the soul and the light that I innately am. If the soul is love, truth, harmony, stillness and joy – which it is – it cannot reside in a body that does not reflect these qualities.
So it became apparent to me on that day last week at the gym, that we can use the body in two different ways.
We can use the body as a means to give us temporary relief, to make us feel better for a short time to relieve the pain and hurt of what may be undercurrent in our lives most of the time OR we can work with the body to build a body of love, a body that is strong, gentle, tender, precious and powerful, with no holding back so that we can express fully who we are.
My trip to the gym confirmed the latter.
I am now planning to incorporate the gym as part of my weekly routine as a way to deepen my connection with my body in a way that I have been missing, which is building strength so that I can express more fully the inner strength that innately resides within me and equally within us all.
The body is the vehicle to house the soul.
This article is inspired by Serge Benhayon and the work of Universal Medicine.
By Donna Gianniotis, Yoga/Meditation, Esoteric Therapies Practitioner, Sydney, Australia
Further Reading:
Can We Access The Divine Through the Body?
Vitality versus Fitness
Exercise and My Body
713 Comments
I am often inspired when I notice someone who really cares for their body and feel the quality that they hold and how it supports them in their day and with all others.
Thank you Donna, for the powerful reminder that our body is the vessel through our Soul is enhoused, without it we cannot be here. And it is through our body that we live who we are hence it is wise to be aware of the quality of relationship it is that we hold with our body and as such our being.
I love working out… In my own way that is, very constant, and always reminding myself not to go into automatic, to be as conscious as possible… It is such a different way of doing things.
Great inspiration here that the quality we bring to exercise matters – there’s a way of exercising which doesn’t exhaust and harden the body, but isn’t soft and ineffective either. There’s a purpose to building strength in our bodies that goes way beyond being just healthy: to me a body that can enhouse the soul is a body that is able to express more of who we are, and also means that we’re fit for life, equipped and ready for anything that comes our way.
An article on exercise that brings a deep contemplation to one. The gym and working out has for many been wholly about improvement of the physicality. To introduce the possibility that it can be used to “support the body to house the soul” brings a whole new dimension to exercise and working out at the gym.
HUGE science that I can prove cause I feel it in my body – no other clever mind could argue that. The difference between weight lifting for outer strength compared to for the inner strength is connection to The Soul and the all – the outer is fed whatever is out there. Out there has not worked… Building the outer strength requires continuous work and stimulation mostly from the mind which comes from the body images to how you look compared to how you feel. Looking good requires outside recognition. Feeling good is a confirmation of feeling the connection to your Soul – The All.
The effects of looking after ourselves and going to the gym (or doing exercise such as walking and swimming) can be felt throughout our entire day and week even if it’s just 20 minutes in the morning!
It doesn’t have to be hours long, if 20 minutes is what we feel to stop at then so be it. I found myself clock watching today in the pool rather than asking myself if I felt to continue or not. I got out when I felt to and that feels lighter than pushing past that point to get in a set time.
I agree Leigh, we’re so governed by external markers when it comes to things like exercise and eating. So often we go by the clock when it comes to when to eat, rather than feeling if we’re even hungry or not and with exercise we tend to set ourselves goals, be that distance that we aim to walk or number of repetitions that we aim to do on a weights machine but these are external markers. The awful thing is we consider ourselves to have ‘failed’ if we don’t at least maintain our current regime and /or we get plagued by guilt. But our bodies aren’t machines, they’re incredibly intelligent and sensitive structures and it would support us immensely if we listened to and honoured their needs. If my body is feeling fatigued then rather than push it to do what I normally do I may still go to the gym but not do hardly any weights at all but rather focus on gentle stretching and connection.
I agree, I do a small amount of exercise and walking daily, and it has really supported my body to be stronger in my everyday activities.
To lift the fitness equipement with love and care felt in my handpalms as if I touch a baby it is a very different imprint in which we can do our fitness. By lifting the equipement we then can be aware how the flow of energy through our body is naturally flowing which can feel beautiful in the body. A deep nurtering and relaxing feeling even if you make your lifting heavy.
It is to stay connected with what you do from the inside out. To be in the body is what makes a huge difference.
“The body is the vehicle to house the soul.” And as we are the vehicles we must learn to appreciate, nourish and nurture these valuable vehicles with love, honesty and responsibility to continue to learn and explore its wisdom housed within.
““the body is the vehicle to house the soul”” A realisation that is a powerful way to reimprint your visits to the gym.
I have been pondering this recently. a deeper relationship with my body so that I support the expression of soul. Profound yet simple, it is our vehicle of expression, honour the body and the soul will express.
‘The body is the vehicle to house the soul.’ Thank you for this beautiful inspiration to support me in my newly committed to exercise programme which is also needed to support me with some current health issues and yet I had still been struggling to make it an immovable part of my daily routine – no more excuses I am off to support my Soul.
When put like this, ‘The body is the vehicle to house the soul’, it does bring inspiration to how we are with our bodies.
We indeed live in a body, and if that body is not well treated it cannot house the Soul.
I hadn’t truly understood how people can use the gym, working out, and exercising to bury how they feel and provide temporary relief, it makes sense though. This is a very powerful line “If the soul is love, truth, harmony, stillness and joy – which it is – it cannot reside in a body that does not reflect these qualities.” Taking care of our body, including its strength, has a very real and different purpose when we understand the body is a vehicle for the soul, and what expressing our soul through our body means for everyone we come into contact with.
It’s interesting how we build muscle that compresses and restricts our bodies when actually we can do the complete opposite and exercise in a way that expands our bodies. Gym has been a relationship that has changed drastically for me simply because I have shifted the purpose.
Until we connect deeply with our bodies and listen to the profound intelligence that lies within , we will always push ourselves, and head in the wrong direction
Such a powerful sharing. the gym is certainly used primarily to look good or enhance our body image, but what we miss here is the huge opportunity there is to truly connect with the body.
” If the soul is love, truth, harmony, stillness and joy – which it is – it cannot reside in a body that does not reflect these qualities. ” This is so true and a great understanding of what is needed for evolution of all of us . Doing physical exercise to support the structure of the body is of great importance .
It’s crazy that we abuse our bodies by eating either a poor quality diet, or eating to excess, and then in reaction punish ourselves at the gym to try and correct our choices.
Humans seem to be able to use anything to numb and bury the hurts they do not want to feel – be it food, exercise, mediation, work etc… all of which, when done out of truth and in the right timing, are an integral part of life and can actually be very healing.
I have begun to go to the gym regularly. It took me a little while before I committed as the impulse simply didn’t go away but got stronger within me. I could sense how beneficial doing weight bearing exercises would help me in more ways than one provided I listened and responded to my body and what it needed; a very different approach to the pushing and driving in complete ignorance of the body to achieve something whether that was weight loss, a toned body or a flat stomach!
Thank you Donna. There is such so much more for us to explore about who we truly are and the true power we can live. What our focus is at any time, in any moment is what we magnify through our bodies. As you have so wisely shared – ‘The body is the vehicle to house the soul’, and through our connection to our bodies we are guided by an intelligence that knows exactly what is needed in order for our Soul to freely express through.
Thank you for the exercise reminder. I recently brought a big ball which I was told was good for my core strength if I sit on it at times whilst at the computer but I forgot – just went and got it and am sitting on it whilst reading and writing this. No better time to start than now
Once we clock that our body is the housing of the soul, we have the opportunity to totally reconfigure a very old and dysfunctional relationship into something vibrant and alive
Listening to and honouring our body is so important. I used to push myself at the gym. Nowadays i am much more gentle with exercising and my body is benefiting.
I went from one extreme to the other, full on exercise to no exercise and I am now finding what really works for my body – from my body!
Wow! These two different ways of exercising could not be further apart Donna. One in connection, to build a body of love or one in disconnection to gain relief. A great question to ask ourselves as we go to the gym is – what quality are we choosing today?
It is so beautiful to read about the body being a vehicle for the soul. So often the perfect human body is portrayed as being the ideal end result, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. This creates a huge investment in the physical form and in physical life all with a need for image perfect perfection – that realistically can never truly be achieved and most of the time if not always leaves us feeling less. This is because essentially everyone does know and has real life experience of the soul in their body, at one point in life we have all experienced this, and so when the images come for perfection and we strive to achieve them, there is a sense of loss because in that strive we are in effect leaving something behind, a very dear and sacred part of ourselves. But the truth is that we can never actually leave it behind, the soul is with us always.
Thanks Donna…. Just reflecting for a bit on the comments you made on your university ‘diet’ and the compensatory exercise… how many untold millions of people are replicating this, upon reflection, outrageously imbalanced life everyday without seeing the terrible irony of it all.
Exercising to improve body image is very enticing, as it can give the promise of no longer having those self-abating thoughts that seek to crush us down as they pick on every imperfection we have in our bodies. Self-love however brings a whole new dimension to exercise, because when you are loved deeply, the exercise you need is so that you can be strong throughout life as you live and learn and express. It in affect becomes a part of your self-care because you are worth caring for and not because there is anything wrong with you.
‘So it became apparent to me on that day last week at the gym, that we can use the body in two different ways’ – Donna, I love what you have shared here and the way you have claimed the love you are and have brought that into the Gym work. The breath and choosing to be present in every movement is a powerful way of deeply loving ourselves and available to us in the many choices we make everyday.
I love re reading this Donna, it makes so much sense and a great motivator for me to get back to the gym for no other reason then strengthening my connection with my soul.
If the body is the vehicle to house the soul then it makes perfect sense to support the body physically to be strong so that the vehicle can handle the stresses and strains of daily life so we can bring even more of ourselves wherever we go.
We all have a responsibility to look after the body we have got and that means getting regular exercise and doing what we can to support the body.
Donna it was lovely to read this blog, a real support with my recent revisits to the gym since 10 years ago. Like yourself I was working out to undo the things I had done in the day but can’t help feel the addiction to adrenaline was also there!
Deanne had mentioned in an earlier comment about ‘closing the eyes’ and this is what my body asked me to do the other day at the gym to bring me back to my body instead of the background distractions attempting to sway me to my past hard rhythms.
Reading this blog shows there is another way to being with your body and the gym and if it means making it a home for the soul, then I am willing to go with this pathway.
What we can access through our bodies is incredible, what if our relationship to our bodies is the key to everything? It makes every day things like walking, exercise, eating and the way we look after our bodies so important. The more I am in tune with what my body needs the more clarity I have across my whole life.
It is very important to look after our bodies which in my case involves gentle weights, walking, being aware of my emotions, what I eat, think, how I move, when I need to rest and when I need to be doing more – really it is a 24/7 awareness . The benefits are so immense I wonder why I have not always lived this way.
“The body is the vehicle to house the soul” – Definitely second that, and the more we take care of the body and treat it with the love and respect that it deserves the more access we have to the wisdom of the universe, it is our vessel through which we access and communicate with the stars.
This is a whole new way of thinking about our bodies but is the most logical – a vehicle to house our soul – well worth looking after.
I’ve recently taken a new approach to going to the gym and it’s really brought up a lot for me, particularly about how I used to work out and ultimately feel about myself. Rather than the supportive workouts I do now, I used to be more interested in bulking up and looking strong. But I must say that today I feel great about the way my body looks – I’ve accepted the way I am/look and can now support myself with a workout as opposed to abuse myself with one.
The gym is a great support for the soul in providing a way to hold the body in all contexts of the day. I have found that the levels of exercise can vary from day to day and week to week, when I stop to feel how much is needed each time I go. It is when we make it about an end product whether that be the perfect abs, weight loss or toning to gain confidence our purpose becomes different and the way we exercise becomes different. My experience is that I leave the gym feeling exhausted rather than supported.