Balance

1 BALANCE
1.1 What is balance? It is maintaining the relationships we are in despite the forces acting on us. With respect to the earth that means aligning ourselves with gravity so that we can continue to stand (or sit, or do what it is that we are doing.)
1.2 Feeling where our center is by using our connection with the earth, we can tell if we are aligned with gravity. If we feel our center directly over our feet we know that we are aligned with gravity, and if not then we can use our legs to move our center so that it is. Aligning ourselves with gravity we balance. We maintain our relationship with the earth.
1.3 How do we know where our center is? By feeling the way our feet press into the ground. If we are standing on both feet and if we feel that one foot is pressing down more because of gravity, then our center is more over that foot. Feeling where our center is we can then we can use our legs to move it so that it is where we want it to be.
1.4 We can do the same whether we are standing on our hands or on our feet or sitting on our sitting bones. Feeling where our center is, we can shift it so that our weight is more centered or so that it is moving in the direction we want to move.
1.5 Riding a motorbike we can feel if we are balanced by feeling the way our sitting bones press down into the seat. When both our sitting bones press into the seat evenly we are aligned with the bike and together we are aligned with the forces acting on us. If we go around a corner then that action creates additional forces, but it we feel the way our sitting bones press down we can then align ourself and the bike with the combined force of gravity and turning. We maintain our relationship with the bike, the earth and the corner we are going around.
1.6 If we want to create more room for the bike to the inside of the corner (so we have room to lean more and turn more if we need to), we can push the bike outwards and lean ourselves inwards. As we do so we’ll feel the sitting bone to the inside press down while the sitting bone to the outside of the turn will lift up. Even though we then are out of balance with the bike, because we share a center with the bike, the bike and ourselves as a whole stay balanced. Out shared center of gravity lines up with our connection with the earth and the forces acting on us. Then as we come out of the turn we can align ourselves with the bike again, simply by repositioning ourselves so that both sitting bones are pressing down again.
1.7 Feeling the forces that act on a relationship we can maintain the relationship or change it the way we want to.