The 'Cash Value' of Mind-Body Integration, Part 2

[dan_edge]

By Dan Edge from The Edge of Reason,cross-posted by MetaBlog

In my last blog entry, I presented an example of the ‘cash value’ of mind-body integration. I showed how an understanding of one’s own psycho-epistemology could help him train his emotional responses to values. Also in that entry, I promised another example of the benefits of mind-body integration -- this time related to sexuality. I will fulfill that promise here.

Let us consider another example: A young man discovers Objectivism as a freshman in high school. He dives into Rand’s philosophical works with gusto. On the weekends, while many of his peers are competing in sporting events, or going to dance clubs, or going out on dates -- he is cloistered in a local coffee shop with Atlas Shrugged.

Intellectually, he is light years ahead of his classmates. But (in part) as a consequence of his self-imposed isolation, he becomes socially awkward. He has very little experience talking to women, especially in a romantic context. This awkwardness continues into young adulthood, even after he graduates college and develops a healthy self-esteem. He continues to have difficulty attracting the kind of woman he desires. His romantic life is suffering. What can he do to improve this situation?

Obviously, he must continue to broaden his mind and practice a rational philosophy. This will ensure that he has all the tools he needs to live productively and foster a healthy self-esteem. Additionally, if he is a student of mind-body integration, then he can focus his productive efforts on developing his sexuality – to become more desirable to his ideal woman. He can learn to become more masculine.

How is this possible?

As I argued in my essay The Psycho-Epistemology of Sexuality (from part 6), “Men can develop masculinity, and women femininity, by automatizing physical motions that are consonant with one’s distinctive physiology.” A man can become more masculine by learning to act, physically, like a man. He can train his body to automatize expressions of masculine power.

As a responsible and avid reader of The Edge of Reason, the young man in our example begins to think of ways to develop his masculinity. He joins a gym and takes the free lessons that teach him how to use the equipment. He goes 3 times a week to make his body strong. Every now and then, he changes up his workout and experiments with different physical activities (swimming, climbing, kettle bells, etc.). He takes a martial arts class and practices the movements at home. He takes dance lessons and learns how to lead a woman gracefully across the floor.

Each of these activities involves a repetition of physical motions, which are then automatized by the subconscious. Whether one is aware of it or not, this automatized physicality travels with him wherever he goes. It effects the way he walks down the street, the way he stands in the subway, the way he holds his body while he’s reading, everything. If one has learned to lead a woman around a dance floor, those instincts are with him as he leads her into his arms for their first kiss.

There are psychological benefits to this kind of self-training, as well. If one is training his body with the conscious effort to improve his sexual physicality, then it can enhance his self-esteem and give him more confidence in romantic situations. As any man will tell you, it can take large kettle bells to kiss a woman for the first time. It takes courage, and being comfortable with one’s own body is crucial.

To conclude our example: It should come as no surprise that our young man, having developing his body along with his mind, has become more attractive to women. Not only does he look more desirable, he moves and feels more desirable. He begins to meet women at the gym, at the swing dance club, and at NYU Objectivist Club events who notice and appreciate his new physicality. His confidence soars, and he emails Dan Edge to thank him for his advice.

I hasten to add that physical training alone will not “cure” a socially awkward personality. I offer here only one method in what must be a life-long series of conscious, continual self-improvement. That said, I hope you would agree that working towards mind-body integration most certainly has ‘cash value.’

--Dan Edge

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[softwareNerd]

Dan, It just struck me that Zimbardo's "Stanford Prison Experiment" might actually be an example of your thesis at work, albeit in a negative way. The subjects who were asked to act as guards, started by acting out their role a bit, but that got them "into the act", with them actually becoming increasingly abusive.