Heads are universally revered in part because they enclose and shield the brain – and we, as a society, are very brain oriented! Similarly, we protect our heads with toques, scarves and shawls, from the cold, from injury, from prying eyes. We also adorn ourselves with headdresses, hair pieces, fascinators, and crowns. The intellect resides in the brain and we think the mind lives there, too (although in the ancient past, the heart was the mind’s dwelling place). Many cultural groups believe the innermost essence of a person is in the head. Certainly, the senses are there, perception is there, orientation, balance, sound and speech, breathing, and survival skills all make their home in the head.
The skull is made up of 8 bones, and there are another 14 bones in the face. Astonishing! The skull is substantial, heavy, and solid, yet there’s minuscule potential for pliability, adaptation, sensitivity, and expansion. It was Dr John Upledger, an osteopathic physician in Florida early in the 20thC who discovered that the bones of the skull move independently. The slender, wiggly lines called sutures where each bone attaches to its neighbour can release a tiny, little bit, thus enhancing the circulation of cerebral-spinal fluid, the wash that refreshes the brain and spinal cord, from head to sacrum. This special fluid has its own pump and moves with a pulse, like the heartbeat.
The head balances on the top of the spine, like a helmet on a head, and because humans are upright creatures, the top of the cranium points to the heavens. It’s through the crown, the 7th chakra – originally the fontanelle or soft spot in babies – that we communicate with the gods and the atmosphere above, receive divine energy and inspiration, and express spinal vitality and all creative impulses for personal well being and the benefit of all. Yoga is a radical, uplifting, and optimistic practice. Please join us as we earth the feet and elongate skyward!