Introduction
I was born in 1967, a year before Dr Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated. For a long time, I thought I was much older than I was when the assassination took place. I remember being a little girl, in our front room, watching a black and white TV program about Dr Martin Luther King Jr and his assassination.
Did I dream this? Was it a documentary with a recording of the assassination? I don’t know. All I know is that I grew up knowing about Dr Martin Luther King Jr. I grew up knowing his speech “I Have A Dream.”
His legacy spoke to me about what was possible. It spoke to me about power, courage, dignity. It infused me with a sense of black people being worthy, important, equal, however unequal society may be. It gave me hope.
Another great man whose legacy had a huge impact on me, is Dr Moshe Feldenkrais. His development of the Feldenkrais Method® has transformed my life and continues to assist me in learning and in actualising my dreams.
Dr Feldenkrais was 25 years older than Dr King. I am sure he would have known of him and his work. Moshe used his deep understanding, scientific knowledge and compassion about the human experience to devise thousands of movement lessons. Moshe’s Awareness Through Movement® lessons enable people to find ease, comfort and optimised functioning so that they can have a happier fulfilled life.
He celebrated differences and made it clear that it is our differences that connects us to the human family.
Dr Feldenkrais was a Jewish man. As I am a black woman, who is not Jewish. I do not feel qualified to speak about the horrors of the Jewish holocaust or anti-Semitism.
I feel it was important to bring it into this fictitious piece, because had Martin and Moshe met, I think they would speak about this. It would be another moment of deep connection.
Could Dr Feldenkrais have missed the impact of systemic racism on black people and on humanity in some way? I think that it is entirely possible. It is my view that no one is unaffected by the influence of systemic racism. However, I also believe that the man who said that we are genetically human[1], who believed in the latent genius[2] in all people and who said that what other humans can do, even if it is only one, all the others can[3] - that this man, Dr Moshe Feldenkrais, was speaking as much to the black man and woman, to people of colour everywhere and to all people.
“It is, however, true that we are genetically human, and that what other humans can do, even if it is only one, all the others can.” -Moshe Feldenkrais, Elusive Obvious, p. 106.
I believe that if Moshe Feldenkrais were alive today, he would be actively engaged in using the Feldenkrais Method as a means of social change more explicitly as I believe he intended the Feldenkrais Method to be a means to both individual and societal change.
I think Moshe would have realised that enough of a shift hasn’t taken place - that it was time to do something different to help as many people as possible and create a more humane world. It is in this vein, that I have come up with an imaginary meeting between Dr Martin Luther King and Dr Moshe Feldenkrais, to celebrate Dr Martin Luther King Day, imbued with all the possibilities that the Feldenkrais Method has to offer people today.
Imagination
Story telling is a huge part of my cultural heritage, and I would say, that of the human family, in a wonderful variety of ways.
In my particular, African Caribbean, Jamaican, heritage, storytelling was passed down to me, principally, by my mother, who was a fantastic story teller. She used her whole self in the telling of stories. She would move not only her face and hands, but also her chest, pelvis and legs as the story required. She had great tonal range and would include songs in the telling of stories. These were traditionally Jamaican, as well as stories about her experiences. I was mesmerised – in the story. And she was funny too.
As a little girl, I loved both listening to and writing stories.
“I tell them stories because I believe that learning is the most important thing for a human being. Learning should be a pleasant, marvelous experience.” - Moshe Feldenkrais, The Elusive Obvious
Feldenkrais and Imagination
Many Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement lessons take us back to early developmental stages as a way of reminding our nervous systems that we know how to organically learn in easy, light, pleasurable and playful ways. This also enables us to learn new things more easily and integrate this learning.
Moshe also knew, that using imagination was an invaluable aspect of learning. Therefore, many lessons involve doing parts of lessons in our imagination.
The piece that I have created here comes entirely from my imagination. It has no basis in facts other than the fact that both men existed and their age.
“The essence of creativity is to look at the world around us, see how it is and imagine other possibilities. Creativity is seeing the possibilities and trying to make those imaginings into material reality.” - Agustin Fuentes
Invitation to Imagine, Play and have Different ways of engaging with this piece
I invite you to use your imagination as you read this. You can create your own story of Martin and Moshe’s fictitious meeting or maybe there’s a part in my story that makes you think - Martin or Moshe would have said this or done that. Use these thoughts or feelings as a springboard for creating your own story. Or write / draw / compose a different story involving people that have influenced your life.
Or you might want to use this story as a means to have a somatic experience.
Orienting
Before you begin reading spend a few minutes looking around your environment, allowing your eyes to rest on whatever is interesting to you. Get up and move around if you have the impulse to do so or you can do this as you this or sit or lie down.
Use this practice of orienting yourself in your environment throughout the reading of this piece, pausing throughout and looking around with light curiosity.
Sensing Yourself
Notice how you are sitting, your sitting bones, how your back rests on the chair, if it does.
Notice your feet – how the they contact the floor.
If you are lying down – how are you lying – on back? Legs long or feet standing? Lying on one side – which side?
You could pay attention to your breathing – where do feel move as you breathe? Are you breathing? Do you stop breathing at any point?
Which hand or fingers do you use to scroll the page up?
Where is your gaze – straight ahead, a little to one side or the other, a little upwards or downwards.
Does one eye feel more engaged in reading than the other?
Do you spend the entire time reading, or do you look away – if so – do you look in a particular direction? Is this familiar / unfamiliar?
Do you close your eyes at any point?
Do you pause? If yes, what made you choose to pause or take a rest?
Do you pay attention to impulses that arise – like, for example, to go and make a drink or alter your position or do you ignore these?
What else do you notice? This could be feelings, thoughts or other sensations – Can you be curious about these?
“What I’m after isn’t flexible bodies, but flexible minds and to restore each person to their human dignity.” -Moshe Feldenkrais
Butterfly on the Wall
As a little girl, I loved both listening to and writing stories. I write in the tradition of oral story telling as if someone is narrating this story of the meeting to me. In this story, the narrator is the butterfly on the wall. Deeply empathic, this butterfly is part Martin and part Moshe.
The Invitation
Dr Moshe Feldenkrais wrote to Dr Martin Luther King after being moved by his stature - his way of expressing his authentic, potent self in the service of his work.
Moshe was touched by the presence of this man and wanted to meet him particularly to see if he was open to exploring how his work could assist him further. Also, ever curious, Moshe wanted to learn from Martin, whatever he could, to assist his own evolution and work.
Martin agreed to meet with Moshe. He was doing everything he could to bring about justice, peace, and freedom for African Americans.
As far as Martin was concerned, ending the cruel and inhumane ways of treating African American people was freedom for all people. He was open to hearing about anything that could assist him to this end.
His advisor’s and bodyguards were more cautious. They knew there were people keen to infiltrate the movement and that Dr King’s life was in danger.
With this in mind, they insisted on meeting in an abandoned warehouse with rotting window frames holding cracked planes of glass that let the scorching sun into the barren room. There was a table and two chairs in the centre of this vast space.
Martin’s warriors, as he called them, formed the wall of the room looking both outwards and inwards, taking care to protect Martin, at a distance, that Dr King insisted on.
The Meeting
After a seemingly casual conversation with one of Martin’s warriors, where Moshe was looked square in the eye, for any trace of potential threat and then thoroughly searched, Moshe was allowed in. Moshe had great respect for the warriors. He would have liked to talk with them, well, let’s be honest, to engage them in a judo contest, but he sensed this was not the time.
Martin gets up to greet Moshe and holds out his hand. They shake hands, both meeting with a firm, yet, soft, and warm handshake. Martin signals for Moshe to sit down. He asks about his journey, giving Moshe time to settle. Moshe, senses Martin’s thoughtfulness and ease as he welcomes this older, white stranger into his midst.
Moshe notices Martin’s acture and the cadence and tonality in his voice that speaks to the very soul of humankind. Martin notices the ease with which Moshe inhabits himself with the qualities of both lightness and strength, an alert agility and an engaged presence of mind.
Empathy
Moshe shares his observations after a suitable pause in the conversation. He talks of his concept of acture that he is sure, both he and his warriors, possess. He explains this as the ability to be ready to move from any point in any direction and equally important, the readiness to reverse the movement. Martin is engaged and curious about these terms. He talks about vigilance and how as a Black man in America you need to have the ability to sense what is around you and move swiftly. It is a matter of life or death.
He said, it is faith that makes this a grounded experience rather than one of constant fear. It is faith - a sense of service to something higher and bigger.
He pauses. Then Martin says that having seen the dignity in the way his father, uncles, grandparents, mother, sisters and aunties, carried themselves, in the face of de-humanising treatment, by white people, enabled him to locate that place of strength in himself.
Moshe listens knowing that the most important thing that he can do in this moment is to hear Martin. Being present in himself and enraptured by the conversation, this is easy for him to do.
Martin looks pensive. He looks at Moshe and asks if his experience as a Jewish man was similar. Both men are filled with a deep sense of empathy for each other as Martin knew he was asking a rhetorical question.
Moshe spoke in a deep, open way about his experiences of antisemitism. Martin listened, grateful for Moshe’s openness and generosity in sharing his own painful experiences.
Vision
Listening to Dr King, as Moshe likes to refer to him as, despite being told to call him Martin, Moshe was curious about his voice – about how the sound moved through and out of him. And yes, despite Dr King trying to reciprocate by calling, Moshe, Dr Feldenkrais, Moshe wouldn’t allow it. He said come on, indulge this older white man the privilege of calling you Doctor. Of course, Martin being raised to respect his elders conceded. He knew it was an important point and that on a deeper level Moshe was speaking about their vision of a world where it was commonplace for a white man to easily call a black man doctor.
Vowed and Unavowed Dreams
Moshe notices the poise and certainty of this man living his vowed and unavowed dreams in a country that would deny him life. I knew it was possible, even in the most impossible situations, Moshe confides in Dr King.
I knew it was possible to be your potent self no matter what the conditions or circumstances of your life. You, Dr King are living proof of this fact, Moshe said. Dr King had a whole host of conflicting feelings on hearing this. He felt proud. He felt humble and a desire to say he stands on the shoulders of his ancestors.
That, but for the support of his wife and family and these warriors, his wider community and God, he may not be able to be who he is and do what he does.
And on another level, he knew that Dr Moshe Feldenkrais, for he was allowed to say his full name in his mind, at least, that, Dr Moshe Feldenkrais, was speaking to that thing that only a man can, and if he desires to live a full life, must, find for himself.
He said none of these things. He remained silent with all his feelings and thoughts. He then turned to Dr Feldenkrais and said, so what can you teach me?
The Lesson
Moshe was waiting for Dr King to invite him to be of service as he felt it really important for him to choose to learn something from himself. Moshe asks Dr King whether he brought the quilt he had asked him to bring to their meeting in his letter. Dr King, looking bemused said that he had it. Moshe explained why lessons take place on the floor or a table as it is important to give the nervous system a rest from all it has to do to keep us upright. It allows for the nervous system to settle and be available for really deep learning and integration of the learning. He went on to say that he wanted to make sure that his very fine suits maintained their pristine condition by lying on top of a fine quilt. They both laughed. Dr King took out a beautiful patchwork quilt made for him by his grandmother who had since passed. Moshe said that he wondered if there were any more tables that he could put together so that Martin could lay down. Dr King said he would ask the warriors. He thought this would be possible.
Moshe had wondered whether to teach an Awareness Through Movement lesson or whether to give a Functional Integration lesson and he wasn’t sure what he was going to do until the moment Martin enquired about the lesson. All he knew was that whatever he chose to teach, he would give the lesson with engaged and lively curiosity, with every part of himself fully involved, grateful for the opportunity to learn with Dr King.
References
[1] The Elusive Obvious, Moshe Feldenkrais, 1981, p106 / Feldenkrais Illustrated: The Art of Learning, Tiffany Sankary, 2014
[2] The Elusive Obvious, Moshe Feldenkrais, 1981, p98 / Feldenkrais Illustrated: The Art of Learning, Tiffany Sankary, 2014
[3] The Elusive Obvious, Moshe Feldenkrais, 1981, p106 / Feldenkrais Illustrated: The Art of Learning, Tiffany Sankary, 2014
Acknowledgements:
Thank you to Tiffany Sankary for her enthusiasm, encouragement and support, for her invaluable work: Feldenkrais Illustrated: The Art of Learning which provided inspiration and the source of some quotes, for her invaluable input which added significantly to this piece and for the artwork and everything she does behind the scenes to make this publication possible
Thank you, Suzy Merriam for valuable editorial input
Thank you, to my friend, Carol Williams for being a constant source of support, always open, courageous and truthful
Thank you, Dianne Hancock, Feldenkrais Practitioner, Writer, Editor, teacher of Creative Writing, who in her Feldenkrais UK Guild workshop, Finding Your Flow, for encouraged participants to write creatively about the Feldenkrais Method
Thank you, Dr Martin Luther King Jr, and Dr Moshe Feldenkrais
Thank you, mom
About Neruma Ankti
Neruma Ankti is a Student Teacher, currently in the fourth year of her Feldenkrais Practitioner Training in Sussex, UK. She is a self-taught writer and artist – a creative person is more how she would describe herself, with a passion for art, learning and teaching. Prior to spending the last decade working at the National Portrait Gallery, London, she spent the best part of 20 years working for various National and local organisations working with children, young people, adults, volunteers and community groups. She facilitated groups and provided training, amongst other things, in these various, enriching roles. She is excited about merging her passion for art and Feldenkrais by joining the Movement and Creativity team. Her contributions will be in the form of blogs, podcast collaborations and community practice sessions in Movement and Creativity Library with the intention of joining the vision to create a world of equity and inclusivity.