When it comes to movement, the pelvis is the hub of the body. If you have ever sustained a major injury to any part of the pelvic region, you are acutely aware that it is the center of your physicality. Whether the injury was to the hip, the lower back, or the result of surgery on a pelvic organ, pain told you that any large movement such as reaching out, standing up, or climbing stairs requires movement through and support from the pelvis. That there is an integral connection between the mind and body is a central tenet of yoga philosophy. In fact, these two aspects of our being are not seen as linked in tandem, but as layers of various density that encapsulate our essential being.
An imbalance at one level has repercussions on every other, and thus a physical imbalance in the pelvic region is reflected in other areas of our lives. The way we organize ourselves around our physical hub indicates how well we succeed in traversing the distance between center and periphery, self and other, inner world and outer world. A period of illness will draw us into our center, curling our spines and keeping us in minimal contact with external matters. A brisk walk in cool air and bright sunlight will draw us out of our center to our periphery and beyond, making it easy to extend a warm hello and a smile to passersby. Developmentally, our first sense of bodily orientation—the dim awareness of where and what we are—centers around our umbilical connection to our mother.
Floating in the womb we move away from and back to this vital center, learning on a primitive level that this is our physical “home base.” Throughout infancy we explore myriad ways to extend away from and return to ourselves. We test different organizations of core and limbs as we begin the long journey of investigating our external environment, relating to others, and satisfying our needs. And as we learn, we make our choices based on how we feel about what we discovered from our interactions with the world around us and the people and things in it.
This early decision-making takes place on a nonverbal level and becomes a basic part of our habitual way of behaving. When at last we learn to crawl, creep, stand, and eventually walk, we must learn to support our center of weight, the pelvis, on our limbs. At this point we expand our initial sense of center from the point of the navel to encompass the entire pelvic region from the pelvic floor to the waist, including its organs, glands, and musculature. And it is this expansion of our sense of center that allows us to use our limbs to push, pull, and carry the body’s weight in a multitude of ways, according to our intention. A conscious awareness of this expanded sense of center is a useful diagnostic tool because the way we organize ourselves around the pelvic center is reflected in how we organize ourselves in the world. Whether we are aware of it or not, how we move from the core of our body influences how we maneuver in the world.
All creatures, from the simplest to the most complex, rely on basic patterns of organization involving their center. For example, when a jellyfish swims it uses a pattern of motion that involves a sensory knowledge of its center and a movement of its peripheral body around this center. The starfish has a slightly more advanced level of organization. It has neither head nor tail, nor side dominance, just equivalent appendages that radiate uniformly around a center. This pattern of movement is called navel radiation in human development. It appears naturally in the first year of life and can be observed when a baby balances on its navel center and lifts its head, arms, and legs (the Landau Righting Reaction), or when startled, jerks all its limbs away from center, then relaxes back into the core (the Morrow Reflex). Experiencing the Navel Radiation Pattern For many of us, adulthood has blunted our awareness of how we move from our center. Revisiting the navel radiation pattern is a useful tool for discovering where we are less conscious or where we hold tension in our body.
Exploring this natural pattern will also help us to become more conscious of how we use the pelvic region in relation to the rest of the body. Consciously and deliberately experiencing the pattern of navel radiation engenders a sense of underlying strength and unity throughout the body and evokes a sense of openness, confidence, evenness of emotions, and steadiness of mind. If you are injured, you can use this exploration to re-establish your sense of wholeness and to practice connecting your center to all of your limbs. The following experience of navel radiation has four distinct stages.
Before you begin, here are a few questions that may help you to integrate your experience. Do I have a clear or unclear sense of my physical center? Is there any area of my body I have difficulty extending into? If so, do I know why? Does my sense of center support or limit my interactions? Is this limitation a help or a hindrance? When I reach away from myself, do I maintain my sense of center, or do I lose this connection in the face of others in the world? You may discover your own questions once you begin working with the pelvic region. The answers will come through practice, patience, acceptance, and self-study. If you find yourself overwhelmed by either emotional feelings or pain, do the navel radiation exercise in short intervals or with minimal movement.
This kind of inquiry can be rich with information, so take heed and give yourself time to process whatever comes up.
1. Lying prone, with the arms and legs extended away from your torso, explore the different ways you can move your pelvis. These will most likely be small movements. You might try making circles in different dimensions or just focus on loosening up areas where you notice tension. See what interests you. At some point, allow the movement to involve your spine. See in what ways it is possible to move the spine by initiating the movement from the pelvis. Can you find ways to let the movement radiate to your head? To your coccyx? Now rest.
2. Focus on your breathing. When you are ready, imagine (or feel) the breath radiate up your spine to the top of your head as you inhale, then return to your center as you exhale. After you get the feeling of this, try breathing to your tail. Then breathe into each limb, one at a time—the right arm, the left arm, the left leg, the right leg. Next breathe in and radiate the image (or feeling) of the inhalation throughout all six limbs at once. Exhale and feel the breath return to your navel center. Stay with this exercise until you feel that your whole body is involved and enlivened.
3. The next step could take you into movement. Follow this breathing pattern and see if the body would feel comfortable moving in coordination with your breathing—out and in, away and back, expanding and contracting. Allow yourself to explore this sort of coordinated movement and see where it takes you.
4. In order to lift your pelvic center away from the floor, expand your sense of center to the entire pelvic region. Feel the shape of your pelvis and the space it occupies. Feel its weight. Focus again on the breath and allow the place of return to be the entire pelvic region. Investigate ways in which you can move its weight. Play until you are no longer interested in what you discover.
Then rest, breathe, and allow yourself some time to integrate your experience. The Boat Pose (Naukasana) Lie prone with your arms extended overhead, palms down, and legs extended hip-width apart. Feel the breath and allow it to radiate out through both ends of the spine as well as both arms and legs. When you are ready, exhale and feel this radiation as a preparation. Then inhale and lift all six limbs at once (your head, tail, both arms, and both legs), balancing on your navel region. Allow the body to lengthen into a soft curve like that of a canoe. Breathe evenly. After 5 to 15 seconds, lower your limbs on an exhalation.
The Triangle Pose (Trikonasana) Begin by standing with your feet well apart. Turn the right foot out 90 degrees and the left in 45 degrees. Inhale as you lift the arms to shoulder height, extending from your center through all your limbs. Exhale and reach away from your center with your right arm. Let this reach bend your body downward toward the floor, placing your right hand on the thigh, shin, foot, or floor, whichever is within your comfortable capacity. Breathe and visualize the extension beginning from the pelvic center and extending out through all the limbs. When you are ready, inhale to return to starting position. Repeat on the left side.
The Downward-Facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Shavasana) Lie prone with your hands next to your chest. Inhale and visualize the energy of your pelvic center radiating out through all your limbs, especially the arms and legs. Exhale and push with your hands to extend your center upward and slightly backward, leading with your sit bones (ischial tuberosities). To more fully accomplish this pose, stretch the heels to the floor, lengthen and open the armpits, straightening the arms, and allow the head to move back toward the legs. Breathe deeply and sense your navel region and its relation to the work your entire body is doing to maintain this pose. When you are ready to come out of the posture, shift your weight over your hands to bring the head up. Then, being mindful of your center, curl your tail under to bring the knees to the floor. Sit back on your heels and rest a moment before getting up.
The Standing Scale Pose (Variation of Virabhadrasana) Begin by standing with your legs spread wide and your arms extended to the sides at shoulder height. Turn the right foot out 90 degrees and pivot on the left foot so that the pelvis and chest are also facing right. Bring the palms together overhead. Bend the right knee to a 90-degree angle or less. Exhale as you bend at the hips, folding the torso over the right thigh with the spine extended. Inhale and feel the connection between your navel center and all your limbs. Now exhale and press your supporting leg into the floor to straighten it as you lift your left leg straight out behind you, parallel to the floor. See if you can maintain your arms and the extended leg parallel to the floor and your chest and pelvis facing the floor. As you breathe deeply in this balance pose, feel all your limbs (including your head and tail) radiating outward from your center. To come out of the pose, reverse this entire process, exhaling as you lower your left foot to the floor. Repeat on the other side.
Exploring these four postures will deepen your awareness of the pelvic center’s central role in movement. As your practice deepens and you begin to explore the subtle nuances inherent in these asanas, you may notice that your habitual way of interacting with your environment and the people around you becomes more integrated and more positive.
Jaime Stover Schmitt has a doctorate in Dance/Movement Studies and is a certified Laban Movement Analyst. Jaime has been teaching hatha yoga for over 20 years and has a private yoga movement therapy practice in which she uses developmental movement repatterning.