Palming the Brain
by Irena Castle
Palming is considered to be one of the most important techniques in the quest of bringing up relaxation in the eyes and the visual system. For some students of vision development it is a love at first sight. For others it takes time to appreciate the enormous power palming brings to the process of vision improvement.
WHILE SIMPLE, IT DOES NOT ALWAYS COME EASY
The misconception here is that they think of movement as an action during which the objeYears ago, when I first encountered natural eyesight development I fell into the second group. I am naturally driven to action and to highly active relaxation. Trimming trees, weeding the flower beds, going for a run, taking my dog for a walk, that all counts among the activities that relax my mind and refresh my body. Sitting does not. So when I was asked to warm up my hands, cup them, gently cover the eyes while supporting the elbows and enjoy the darkness, I became immediately fidgety, my mind racing to all the things I would rather do, and there was no thought anywhere in sight (pun intended) of the eyes, the eye muscles, or the neuro system behind the process of seeing.
I was instructed by my teachers over and over again (just as I believe you have been told by yours) to commit to the process, not to the end result, and so I surrendered and learned to palm. One minute at a time. I had to tell myself that I liked palming, just to get my brain to cooperate. Over time it became easier. Still, I reached for any other means of relaxation whenever I could justify it. Sunning, the long swing, you name it.
WHEN THE NEED IS THERE, THE DISLIKED PROCESSES TURN INTO THE WELCOME ONE
Those familiar with my talks and classes know that I learned to teach vision without ever encountering any eyesight difficulties myself. The very famous Margaret Corbet is perhaps the only other person known to have done the same, at least as far as I am aware. I consider myself very lucky. I also know that practicing what I teach keeps my vision sharp. Presbyopia comes knocking on my door every now and then, but I refuse to let it in. When the “no soliciting” sign doesn’t do the trick, I double down on the Study of the White Line, the Doctor Gottlieb Chart, and on Palming the Brain. Yes, you are reading it right. In addition to palming the eyes, I palm my brain.
For me the strongest symptom of even the slightest presbyopia is an intense tension, even pain, in the visual cortex at times when the eyes are focused on a very close object. The eyes themselves seem to be completely fine with my looking up close, but my brain is not.
So one day when palming the eyes brought no relief and the brain kept throbbing while converging and diverging the dots and paragraphs of the chart, I decided to palm my brain, to place my hands on the visual cortex instead of the eyes. It worked like magic, releasing the pressure and pain within seconds. And so I fell in love with palming, not for the sake of the eyes, but because my brain needs it. It delivers relief every time without exception.
BEHIND THE BENEFITS OF PALMING
In addition to my own brain palming experience, I have countlessly witnessed the power of Palming through my students’ feedback and so learned to respect it. I believe there are two main reasons behind the benefits of Palming.
MAY IT BE DARK
The first one is the creation of a completely dark environment for the visual system. The eyes have nothing to do when covered by one’s hands. There is no light, no colors, no shapes, no movement, so the eyes can simply let go of anything that could cause strain. They can just be.
MAY THE ENERGY FLOW
The second reason is the energy transfer which comes in the form of heat (how pleasant it is to feel the warmth on the face!) and in the form of movement of the universal energy harnessed in the palms of the hands. Some of you will laugh when I tell you that at one point I thought that feeling energy in the palms of the hands requires special powers. Well I was proven wrong when guided through a meditation that made me feel like Master Yoda. Not only was I harnessing the energy, but I was feeling its presence and pressure and form. I was shown that every person can do this and that even if we are not aware, this phenomenon takes place. It is simply how the world functions. When you cover your closed eyes, the invisible universal energy begins to enter your eyes and creates an environment of comfort and ease, and a space for healing.
So, whether you like or dislike palming, I urge you to embrace it. It will help your eyes accept the skills you are teaching them. And if, while going through a challenging practice, you notice strain in your temples, your forehead, your neck, or in the back of the head, warm up your hands and cover the area while you perform the technique. If it helps you release the tension and introduce calmness and ease, it may allow you to continue the practice in a relaxed state and get you your results faster.
Guided palming meditations that make it easier to learn how to relax are available to all students of Overbound full scope programs. You may explore them here.
May your eyesight be boundless.
IC
/i-see/
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