Body Awareness
Eckhart Tolle
Feeling your body from within. An ancient way to return to the here and now.
This is one of my favorite awareness techniques. The Inner-Body Awareness Technique is an ancient Shiva method, used for a very long time. It’s also one of the main techniques Eckhart Tolle offers to return to the present moment.
The technique helps you get more in touch with your inner body. For me, this practice has had a real impact: it gives a light, happy feeling to connect with your body this way. Once practiced, you’ll notice you can apply it anytime, anywhere, even while talking to someone or waiting for something.
What people often notice
- A calmer feeling. When you focus on sensing your inner body, ruminating thoughts get less room.
- More lightness. You live briefly from your body rather than your head, and mental noise eases.
- Practiced before sleep, some people notice they fall asleep more easily.
- A sense of stillness in the present moment.
The Inner-Body Awareness Method
- You may find it helpful to close your eyes. After some practice, once “being in the body” becomes natural and easy, closing your eyes is no longer necessary.
- Direct your attention into the body. Feel it from within.
- Feel your hands: every finger, every fingertip, the palm. Feel the energy in your hands, for a minute or longer.
- Do the same with your feet, again for a minute or longer.
- Once you’ve connected with your inner hands and feet, slowly let this awareness spread to the rest of your body. Don’t push it, just let it come.
- Feel your body. Is there life in your hands, arms, legs, belly, chest?
- Can you feel the subtle energy field that runs through your entire body? At some point you may notice your whole body gently pulsing or vibrating. The more attention you give it, the clearer this feeling becomes.
- Let yourself rest in this feeling for as long as feels comfortable.
Using it in daily life
Feel the inner body even during everyday activities, especially in relationships, when you’re talking to someone, or when you’re in nature. The idea is to develop an increasingly permanent state of connectedness with your inner body, so you can feel it more and more of the time.
The practice of inner-body awareness will develop into a completely new way to live your life, a state of permanent connectedness with Being, and will add a depth to your life that you have never known before.
— Eckhart Tolle
Once you feel energy moving and are connected to your inner body, you can bring your attention to a specific area that could use some extra care. This is not a substitute for medical or therapeutic guidance.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Inner-Body Awareness Technique?
An ancient awareness practice from the Shiva tradition, also popularized by Eckhart Tolle, in which you direct your attention into your body from within to return to the present moment.
What effects do people often notice?
A calmer feeling, less ruminating, more lightness, and sometimes better sleep when the practice is done before bed.
How long does the practice take?
There’s no fixed duration. Start with a minute per body part (hands, feet) and extend it for as long as it feels good.
Can you use this technique anywhere?
Yes, once practiced you can apply attention to your inner body during everyday moments too, for example during a conversation or while waiting.
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Ilse-Marie Sobering is the founder of House of InnerPower and the creator of the InnerPower Method: LAND • ADEM • VOEL (Land, Breathe, Feel), a cyclical practice of returning to yourself again and again. She has studied yoga philosophy and Eastern philosophy for more than 25 years, and has worked professionally since 2015 as an E-RYT 500 yoga and Yoga Nidra teacher, mindfulness and breathwork coach, Ayurveda practitioner and EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) practitioner. In Spain, where she lived for seven years, she taught trainings, teacher trainings and retreats at various locations in the Málaga region, including near Periana, Nerja and Frigiliana. She now works from the Netherlands, teaching trainings and speaking in the Netherlands, in Spain and online. Within the method she works with Yin Yoga, Yoga Nidra, breathwork, meditation, Qigong and somatic work, complemented with elements from her hypnotherapy training. She teaches teacher trainings, continuing education and company training, for people living with long-term stress and for professionals who want to deepen the way they guide others.
