In somatic approaches to therapy the body is considered a vessel of energy and information when looking at one’s psychological past. As we go through life’s ups and downs, in differing levels of contact with our bodies and energy, we may either work through, process and release the energy, or in the case of difficult experiences and emotions, avoid processing or letting go. But in the bargain, we invariably end up holding on to the energy tightly.

However, energy being energy, must go somewhere. And most often it wanders deeper, lodging itself in the body. The Devil, as ominous as it may seem, is today just a gentle reminder that we are all vessels of moving energy, sometimes chained to energies embedded in places we aren’t aware of.

We may experience it as blockages such as ailments, stuckness, difficulties, struggles with mental wellness, chronic pain, sometimes confusion, joylessness, grief or sadness. Sometimes it manifests as recurring patterns of difficulty. Or self sabotage. But have no idea where it is coming from, why, or what to do to free ourselves form it.

Most often, this is just trapped energy from unresolved emotional material, asking to be seen, or heard. Thankfully, the world is waking up to somatic therapies that go beyond just the mind. Many such practices make it possible to access these spaces, tapping into the sub-conscious through what is locked in the body, and release energy.

Allowing free-flow in this energy brings profound shifts, not just as physical changes like alleviation of pain and movement towards wellness, but also in a deeper mind-body connect that sets off a holistic healing which may be experienced mentally too. As feeling “fuller” in ones being, believing more in the self, seeding fully into ones own power and potency, feeling confident, etc.

In a Family Constellations perspective this is a reinforcement of the idea that what is in the mind, is in the body, and what is in the body is in the mind. It is limiting to try and work with one without the other.

The tarot message for today is to reflect on whether any of your current challenges that feel recurring, or insurmountable, or beyond your cognition, may be seeded in something deeper, something from your past, something from previous generations even, that you maybe carrying in your body.

If so, it is time to free yourself from it, put that burden down. And the work is to get to it through your body. Begin by establishing a connection with your body — by using your hands, exercise, walk bare feet, ground your energy. Then, explore holistic therapies that consider both mind and body equally.

One year ago: Another favourite
Two years ago: If you could change your mind
Three years ago: Pointless post
Four years ago: Make like a tree