Attuning to ‘Radical Wholeness’
Book Review
Philip Shepherd’s book Radical Wholeness is an interesting mix. He anchors his perspective in the roots of self-awareness while casting a broad net including culture, learning and habits of being. Importantly for our work, he offers a keen analysis of how Western/European culture builds upon a false idea of the mind-body split. An alternate way of being, he writes, is radical wholeness. Radical because at our deepest being we are now (and have ever been, can only be) whole. Radical because it’s a significant departure from the many societal structures that rely on our willingness to live a divided life.
If critiquing dominant culture is a new conversation for you, this is a very good primer. If you’ve covered the ground before — take a skim and drop into the areas that call to you. The second half of the book orients to simple, embodied methods for attuning to wholeness. These are gems and a great resource for us and our clients.
From Shepherd:
The fullest expression of human intelligence is its ability to attune to the Present: to feel What Is and respond to it creatively and with the whole of one’s being. Such an expression is inclusive of abstract reasoning as one aspect of an integrated whole.
I really like this. It feels true to what I have learned through CST, bodywork in general, and my own healing. Wholeness allows for a gentle flow among various specific places or topics. Like a great conversation or night out dancing or hike in the woods, there’s an interplay among the full richness of body, heart, mind. As well as curiosity, inquiry, learning, knowing and mystery.
To me, this sounds an awful lot like the dance of CST!
Enjoy!