Feldenkrais taught me how to learn from myself

“What is Feldenkrais?” is a question I have been asked endless times. I guess this should make me a pro in giving the ultimate answer.

Truth is, it took me years to find an answer I would be satisfied with. And I cannot say whether it is correct, cool or right; it is just my answer, it is the meaning I found in years of practice… and that might still change in time. 

For so long, I tried hard to find an academic and socially understandable answer to the question. I researched far and wide to give Feldenkrais a clear and understandable definition. And this was not just to answer random questions from friends or students; I also needed something to write on my website, something to present to my clients. Over the years, I did find several useful ways to talk about some parts of the method and aspects of the practice; but none of these definitions would feel true to me.  

It was in the last years that I realised the problem was not in the answer but in the question itself; more precisely, in the fact I was asking myself the question. Moshe Feldenkrais once said that no matter how clearly you can describe it, you will never be able to explain someone the taste of mango. In order to know the taste, you have to try the fruit. And, once you tried the fruit, it is very likely that the taste I feel in my mouth is not the same another person will feel in his/hers. 

So, why struggling so much to find answers to a question that has no purpose? If you ask the question “What is Feldenkrais” to 10 different people practicing it, you will get 10 different answers. Because Feldenkrais is not a set thing, it is not an equation, a technique or a discipline, made up of a set of movements. It is not possible to find one true and only definition for it. 

I therefore switched my intention to another question: “What is Feldenkrais, for me?”. Finding my answer to this question was far easier.

Feldenkrais and life periods

Looking back to my Feldenkrais experience, I realise the practice acquired several different meanings according to the life period I was in: 

• there was the time in which Feldenkrais helped me to be away from home and gave me purpose when I was not sure what to do with my teenage life
• there were times in which it helped me overcome physical pain and problems 
• there was a time in which it was the reason why my mother was never home with me 
• there were times in which it was a practice to calm down and regain contact with myself