Sekhem Touch: Intuitive Support Through Wave and Stillness

Sharing: Touch, the Wave and Stillness

Sekhem teachings with Patrick Zeigler.

Question: There are times to touch or connect with somebody, and times to back off. How do we know when?

Response: The timing depends on what is happening in the person's process. At first, someone may need space. As energy begins to move and vibration becomes visible, touch may become more comfortable. The beginning of the vibration can be a sign that support through touch is welcome, especially as someone enters the wave. This is not true for everyone. Care is always needed because the person may not want to be touched.

A light touch at the heart can also be used before the vibration begins. Its purpose at that stage is to help bring attention to the heart.

As the vibration develops, observe the body. Where is the wave coming in, and where is it getting stuck? Within this practice, wherever touch is placed is where the energy goes. Touch is used to help the flow reach an area that is not yet participating in the movement.

Patrick Zeigler's example: “A participant initially needed space. Then we could see the energy beginning to come and the vibration starting. That was the moment to offer support. Even before the vibration, I had used a light touch at her heart to help bring her attention there.

“As the vibration developed, I could see that she was moving, but the energy was not coming down. That was why I asked a woman to place her hand in the area where the movement seemed to stop. It was her first time helping in this way, and there was that uncertainty: ‘What do I do?’ So I showed her where to touch.

“I wanted her to offer the touch because I am a man. Sometimes a man's touch in that area can stop the process. In a group setting, women often feel more comfortable receiving that support from another woman, so I usually let women offer it.

“As soon as she touched, the energy began to come down. The participant went into a big wave, with really huge waves of movement. At that point, you do not want to restrict her. She wants to feel free. Do not try to hold her down. Let her flow.”

There will be a point when the wave comes into stillness. After the movement ends, do not go up and touch the person. In particular, avoid touching the head, because that will usually pull them out of the stillness. This quiet period immediately after the process needs room of its own.

Allowing the Body to Find Its Flow

After the wave, allow some time alone. This gives space for the recognition, “I can do this.” The purpose of the work is to be able to return home and enter the energy independently, rather than needing someone else to activate the process.

Notice whether it is possible to come into the energy and activate it on your own. Movement and vibration are understood here as expressions of a heightened flow of energy. Sometimes the body does not know what to do with that increase, and the muscles contract.

In this account of the process, the shaking is connected with the parasympathetic nervous system and the body's attempt to balance itself. The comparison is with being cold: the body begins to shake, and that shaking resembles what can happen when the energy comes. This is the explanation offered within the teaching for the movement and its balancing function.

If the flow encounters a blockage, it seeks to work through it. The more expression is possible, and the more feeling is allowed, the more the flow can increase.

The body sometimes moves in this way, but not everybody has that response. Everyone is a little different. Shaking in response to cold offers a particularly visible comparison.

Energy in the Water

Patrick Zeigler's story: “On some journeys, we have a little place beside a river where we do a water initiation. The water is a little cool. Even though the surrounding climate is warm, the water is cool enough that you feel it and naturally begin to shake a little.

“Combined with the energy, it is amazing. We are in the water, and people are moving and shaking in the same way that can happen during the practice. People nearby look at us as if to say, ‘What is going on here?’ It is rather interesting.

“Sometimes another tour group is nearby. They may come over and join us, which is pretty cool because they have never experienced anything like it. They are curious about what is happening. The invitation is, ‘Come on in, join the party.’”