25/07/2020
Empty the Neck, Raise the Spirit
Functional neck alignment is not like stacking bricks one upon the other. That is compression where the vertebra are pressed tightly closed under the weight of the skull. This can be experienced in the back of the neck, when the face is thrust forward and the head left unsupported. Positioning the head over the torso and lowering the chin slightly, will allow the neck to expand upward gently, opening the 7 vertebrae of the neck.
Raising the Spirit is a physiological response to a neurological state of being emotionally uplifted, alert, and engaged, rather than being depressed, indifferent, and unaware for our surroundings and the activity we are currently participating in at the time. Gazing down, head lowered, and shoulders limp and slumped makes it easy to detect this attitude in a person.
It is definitely not the posture of a soldier at attention either; chin up, shoulders back, and chest out. This is a braced submissive position yielding to authority. "At ease" may be closer to a relaxed yet stable posture that is more useful.
