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The Witness Essential to the Authentic Movement process is the presence of the witness (17). The witness creates the safe container within which the mover can surrender to her unconscious process; her presence helps the mover to return to ordinary reality at the end of the movement session, and to bring the fruits of her journey of descent back into consciousness. The witness sits at the edge of the space whilst the mover, usually with her eyes closed, enters the empty space and attends to the stirrings of her inner sensory and imaginal world. The witness does not generally intervene, unless she feels the mover's safety is at risk; her presence is non-intrusive, non-judgemental, and compassionate towards both the mover and herself. Whitehouse realised that it was the depths to which she had travelled in her own analysis which enabled her clients to work in depth. The witness embodies her own process of encounter with the unconscious and the depth of experience she has accessed, and this facilitates the in-depth movement work of the other. To enter into the unconscious through an exploration of the body, whether through dance movement or bodywork, can be difficult and for some quite frightening, especially at the beginning, or when traumatic material is surfacing. The body interior can feel like a dark and threatening world in which it is easy to lose one's way. Resistance to the encounter may express in an inability to work with the eyes closed, a tendency to dissociate from body sensation or from feelings when moving, or to lose touch with the sensory and imaginal process and become lost in thoughts and disembodied day-dreaming. Resistance is respected in this practice, but an important function of the witness is to support the mover, in her own time, to be able to enter her inner world in a way that is safe and creative. The encounter is made easier in the presence of another who provides structure and containment, and is willing to enter into the unconscious world together with the mover, and to meet the mover there. The witness's containing presence gradually detoxifies the mover's unbearable anxiety and fear, rage and grief, so that she is enabled more and more to contain her negative feelings herself. Non-judgemental, empathic, and compassionate witnessing by another is crucial to the process of fully integrating depth material into relationships and everyday life. Over a period of time, the experience of being witnessed by another, with empathy, compassion, and clarity, enables the mover to internalise the presence of the external witness. She begins to develop her own internal witness, free of the concepts, judgements, and self-criticisms that so often cloud our clear perception of ourselves. Adler has explored in depth, and finely articulated, the important function of the witness. She writes: 'The ground of the discipline of Authentic Movement is the relationship between a mover and a witness. The heart of the practice is about the longing, as well as the fear, to see ourselves clearly. We repeatedly discover that such an experience of clarity is deeply and inextricably related to the gift of being seen clearly by another and, just as importantly, related to the gift of seeing another clearly.' (18) I look upon the art of witnessing as a form of meditation; indeed Adler has beautifully articulated the relationship between the discipline of Authentic Movement and mystical practice(19). The witness pays attention to the feelings, images, sensations, memories, and movement impulses that arise in her, evoked by the presence of the person moving. She owns these as her own experience, rather than projecting them onto the mover; she does not attempt to interpret or analyse the mover's experience in terms of her own judgements and fantasies, but owns these for what they are - her own direct experience, evoked by the presence and activity of the mover. In a similar way, in meditation practice the internal witness notices the impulses that arise as thoughts, feelings, images, sensations, and so on; but rather than interpret or judge or project them onto others, the meditator seeks to experience them directly, without attachment or aversion, thus allowing them to transform. In such a way, the witness enters into the mover's experience, whilst simultaneously maintaining awareness of her own; in this special moment of relatedness, both can see and be seen, and both may experience healing and transformation of consciousness. Adler writes: 'The witness practices the art of seeing. Seeing clearly is not about knowing what the mover needs or must do. The witness does not ''look at'' the mover, but instead, as she internalizes the mover, she attends to her own experience of judgement, interpretation, and projection, in response to the mover as catalyst. As she acknowledges ownership of her experiences, the density of her personal history empties, enabling the witness at times to feel that she can see the mover clearly, and more importantly, that she can see herself clearly. Sometimes ... it is grace ... the witness embodies a clear presence.' (20) After moving and witnessing, both people speak of their own experiences; the mover speaks first, and the witness responds by sharing some of her own experience, choosing what it is appropriate to say, and what must be contained for the moment. In this way she provides the container which holds the mover's unconscious process, as well as her internal witness. The mover may feel clearly seen and accepted by the other, and her own experience can be enriched and deepened by sensitive and compassionate witnessing. She sees and accepts herself more fully, and can begin to own back that which she has projected onto the witness. Gradually, the mover is enabled to consciously integrate her unconscious material and her own internal witness. Through the presence of the external witness she learns to 'internalise the reflective function of the witness, ie. to yield to the unconscious stream of bodily felt sensations and images, while at the same time bringing the experience into conscious awareness.' (21) The art of witnessing has a wide range of applications, both in professional and personal relationships. In my own teaching and practice I use it in a number of ways. At times I use the form of moving and witnessing as a practice in itself, as described; or I may use it to explore, deepen, and integrate material arising form somatic work. When working with touch at the cellular level, I also focus on the art of witnessing the body through touch, applying the principles of non-judgemental and compassionate witnessing, and owning what I experience as I touch another; this gives the client space to accept or reject my perceptions, and thus helps her to connect to her own reality more clearly, as well as allowing her to feel met exactly where she is. I also endeavour to use the principles of clear witnessing in responding to a client's or student's verbal sharing, or artwork, and encourage group members to respond to each other in this way. This can have a powerful effect on the bonding process of a group, as each member is given space to express herself, in her own way, and is supported and accepted in this. The practice of witnessing can be viewed as an embracing attitude, a meta-skill (Mindell) underlying all technique and practice, which both guides and contains the work. Although Authentic Movement as a discipline is not psychotherapy, it most certainly can effect therapeutic changes at the psychological level. A number of dance movement therapists and psychotherapists use it within a therapeutic practice, but Adler makes it clear that to do so one must also have appropriate therapy training. For some, it may then be used as a psychotherapeutic method, but it is not defined within or limited by such categorisation; many use it as a resource for creative work, a tool for mindful living, or a contemplative discipline to support their spiritual growth. However, there are many parallels between the psychotherapeutic process and the discipline of Authentic Movement. In her paper 'Who is The Witness?', Adler discusses the relationship between psychoanalysis and Authentic Movement (22). In both instances the client/mover does not see the analyst/witness, and surrenders to the process of free association, through words in the first instance, and movement in the second. As both approaches evoke regression, long-term work is usually required, and the witness, like the analyst, may take on a nurturing, empathic, protective, and parental function. The verbal sharing after moving enables the psychodynamic and transference/counter-transference issues to be clarified and integrated. This form is particularly suited to the in-depth exploration of experiences related to pre-verbal life, the unconscious memories of which are held in the body. Through movement we re-member our past as it is revealed through the body, piece by piece, gesture by gesture, in order to cultivate a sense of integration, wholeness, and authentic self-hood. Dance movement therapist and Authentic Movement teacher, Tina Stromsted, in an article entitled 'Re-Inhabiting the Female Body', discusses the ways in which a woman may dissociate from her body as a result of traumatic and abusive experiences in early life; she describes how the practice of Authentic Movement can provide a safe space in which to reclaim the sensation, expressiveness, and power of the body that has been lost (23). Her description is of course applicable to anyone who has lost touch with the full feeling and expressiveness of the bodymind and authentic self, because of hurt, violation, deprivation, or abandonment, which can cause numbing of feeling, and dissociation from the body. The importance of being witnessed in our moments of deep encounter with ourselves, our moments of transformation as we return home to the body and reclaim our full aliveness and expressiveness, is understood and honoured in this practice. Without the meeting which occurs in this personal relationship, depth and transpersonal experiences may not be fully integrated into everyday life. Click here to return to beginning of article |
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continued …The Practice and Discipline of Authentic Movement |
