In an existential way, it is sometimes said that our reality is a constant dance between the forces of order and chaos. These forces have various representations, kind of tucked here and there throughout our experiences. It is the masculine and feminine energies that exist in each one of us, that must dance together to make things work.
Make no mistake; like yin and yang, these things do not, and in fact, cannot exist or function in isolation from one another. Not without creating imbalance, and, in some form, illness. For some people, the contemporary world is one in which being polarized to one side of an issue or the other seems to make some convoluted sense, which is unfortunate for all of us.
However, the truth that remains constant is that our reality is generally made up of oppositional forces that sometimes seem paradoxical, yet they coexist by intention. In fact, the tension that is created by oppositional forces is the energy that drives the whole thing forward, you might say. It is how we learn, and how we grow. Not just individually, but as a collective, unified oneness. (If you’re into that sort of thing).
Great. And what does that have to do with massage?
Well, I’m glad you asked.
See, this intentional pairing of oppositional forces is everywhere. It can be seen in the main forces of our consciousness; intellect and intuition (the latter of which includes the emotional self). Both of these exist within us to provide us with insight and information of different, but complimentary types. They perceive the world very differently. When they work together in balance, they produce something that is ‘greater than the sum of its parts’.
In massage, this is the relationship between technique and flow.
Technique is, well, technical. It must be learned through traditional forms of teaching, practice, and perfection. If you don’t know what your technique is meant to do, in terms of engaging the body’s natural processes, your massage won’t be very effective. You need to practice pressure, manipulation, and developing a conscious connection between your knowledge of technique, and what your hand is doing. This is a very intellectual process.
Once you know these things, like, really know them to the point that they are second nature, your intuition can take over, and thus begins the process of flow. A musician that has practices their scales for hour after monotonous hour, suddenly finds that the location of the notes, and the gestures needed to produce good tone, well these things happen so automatically that some other creative force within just takes over, and raises the level of performance to something almost transcendent. That is flow, and it is an intuitive process.
Knowledge so strong you don’t have to think about it…
Sometimes the intuitive process is thought of as simply not over-thinking things, but this can’t really happen until your technique is so deeply engrained that you don’t have to think about it. Makes sense, right?
And you could say that what I really want to teach you is how to reach the level of flow. The base building blocks are technique, and the things you need to think about with precision and clarity, then practice until it is automatic. However, once it becomes automatic, you are in the place where your own intuition can guide you, and flow can begin.
Now, one could write a whole thesis on where these forces meet in our reality, in ourselves, etc, because this core concept is applicable all over reality! However, there are just a few things, in terms of learning massage, that I want to impress upon you, if I may.
Beware of the tired old tropes that make us polarized. Feminine is good, masculine is bad…. things like that. Everything that exists has a purpose, and it exists in all of us. Being out of balance leads to problems. That’s it. The rest is about embracing all that we are without judgment, and aiming for balance. Only then will the process lead us through technique to flow.
To think of it another way, you can’t get to flow without technique unless you want to just flop around without much in the way of goals or intentions, nor the methods of reaching them.
Be diligent, accepting, but also determined with your intentions to learn, practice, and perfect technique. The better you get, the more you will be able to adapt, and go beyond what you have learned. But it makes no sense to try to go beyond when you don’t know what you’re “going beyond” in the first place. Learning good technique with discipline is a touchstone. Once you have found it, know what it is, and can get there anytime, then you can successfully go beyond it.
And you will properly find your flow. I wish you good luck.