The Elusive Obvious: The Convergence of Movement, Neuroplasticity, and Health

by Moshé Feldenkrais, Norman Doidge (Foreword)

The classic text on the relationship between movement, learning, and health—from the scientist and martial artist whose revolutionary exercise therapy techniques promote health, vitality, and lasting pain relief. The two main strands of the Feldenkrais Method—Awareness Through Movement and Functional Integration—are now known by many around the world for reducing pain and anxiety, cultivating vitality, and improving performance. The Elusive Obvious presents a thorough explanation of the Moshe Feldenkrais’ revolutionary exercise therapy system, revealing how the solutions to many of our problems are hidden in plain sight. Hailed as one Moshe Feldenkrais’ most accessible texts on the body and healthy functioning, this beautiful new edition is ready to be treasured by an emerging generation of somatic practitioners, movement teachers, performing artists, and anyone interested in self-improvement and healing.

Genres: Health, Science, Nonfiction, Psychology

177 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2019

Reviews

[Dominik Jurko · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can one say, if you are a person that seeks mind & body connection, you are not going to find it in books. Although this one comes dangerously close...
Feldenkreis was opinionated but his insights are backed today by advances in neuroscience, which puts him in a warm spot right next to Qi Gong

[Ayeesha Kanji (Water Chestnut) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book connects how mindset, life and your body all heal together and are integrated. The Feldenkrais Method, created by Moshe Feldenkrais focuses on physical movements that are based on healing through awareness and functional integration. This book explains the basics of the method and as someone who is healing physically, emotionally, and physiologically, this resonates with adult learning processes, growth mindset and genuine positive energy. If you read this book, just remember who he is to understand why he writes the way he does and what he talks about. Movement, stretching and exercise are all separate and this book focuses on movement. If it was me, this book would be used for Wellness Strategies in the Workplace to integrate Feldenkrais Method for all employees.

[Mrs. Claus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating read to open one’s mind to the possibility within each person and the ability to unlock it through movement. I was amazed by the things he presents that I had never even thought about.

One that I could read again immediately and likely find a hundred new ideas I missed the first time. This ought to be required reading for everyone.

[Pedro Chaves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard book to read!

This is a very interesting book, with interesting learning, although with a "condensed" English. And a lot of food for thought! To be revisited in a bit so distant future!

[Victoria · Rating 1 out of 5]

My first exposure to Feldenkrais' method was in university, when my back started acting up. I took a few classes/sessions with a practitioner, it didn't help much, end of story.

Fast forward nearly 20 years, and with the time and curiosity engendered by pandemic lockdown, I decided to look into it again for neck pain related to a car accident.

And here we are. And, really, it's hard to know where to begin with this book.

Maybe I'll start at the end, with the baffling, off-topic, and absolutely wrongheaded endorsement of slavery-as-economic-necessity in the final chapter. WHAT the unholy fuck.

Or we could start at the beginning, with the Medical Disclaimer, Foreword, Foreword to the Original Edition, Preface, and Introduction, which in total make up nearly 65 pages or 19% of the book.

The one aspect of this book that was sort of delightful, in a mind-boggling way, was the habit of hilariously arrogant little tangents. I can't deny that I enjoyed them, but it might only have been by comparison with the... stultifying nonsense... of the rest:

"My editor tells me that I should free readers from having to think and look inward. I believe she knows what the average reader likes." 12%

"Being reasonable is also not a very good thing. I have tried to follow a reasoning that would raise no objection. However, on rereading the last few sentences I cannot help seeing through my thinking and finding in it as much reasonable nonsense as is in everyone else's reasonable nonsense." 47%

"I say again (I believe this to be true but I do not really know that it is so; even so, I shall be surprised if it turns out to be just a nice speculation), I have during forty years or so observed..." 51%

There are bits of this book that are a bit woo-woo and nonsensical ("All animals have embryonic life before they are separated physically from the witness who is always there to usher them into the outside world." 20%) but there are also parts where it's sort of profound. He's got a good head on his shoulders about how non-abusive learning should work, and some appealing thoughts on real learning requiring ease and enjoyment and interest, rather than brute-force teaching.

However, a lot of the good stuff gets lost in a litany of really horrifically ableist, racist, and misogynist language and paradigms. (One of the very mildest of such statements: "They must be learned in that order; if not, you will not develop as a normal human being. You will be a cripple or an autistic child, something not normal." 67%)

I also have... concerns... about the extent to which Feldenkrais appears to be making up scientific-sounding justifications for his beliefs, which seems to me to undermine the foundations of everything he's doing ("So far as our body is concerned, the tips of our fingers are generously inervated, but the lower back has a nerve ending only every four to five centimeters." 52%).

Look, I believe this stuff works for some people. But it seems to me that the entire system is founded on some really dubious mental leaps and an insanely ableist understanding of how the body works, and I just can't get behind that or recommend it.

Also this book, as a reading experience, is bananas.

I leave you with a final, baffling gem, which somehow manages to make even less sense in context:

"In other words, there is a Reality which has given birth to the subjective mother reality--nine months--and the objective father reality--a few minutes." 53%

[Frederik · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book Moshe Feldenkrais goes into the scientific insights that led to his own healing and improving performance and mobility of others. He takes the reader on a journey of discovery and plays with words and even criticizes himself within the same chapter as an example of how to keep an open approach.
The fundamentals of his methods are visited in a philosophical narrative style, backed up by examples of case studies and practical exercises you can try out.
The content of the book is 5 stars, but the style and quite esoteric approach will leave an interested but unfamiliar audience hanging in the air of question marks and maybes, hence my rating it 4 stars. However, I would recommend this book to the serious student of mobility, learning and mastering & befriending the body.

[David Ferreira Alves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um livro importante sobre o desenvolvimento e crescimento do ser humano. Retomar a aprendizagem de movimentos básicos e tentá-los de outra forma criam liberdade, potenciam alternativas e desenvolvem uma perspetiva diferente. É o cerne da nossa liberdade de escolha.
O método parece muito interessante e o pensar no corpo como inteiro e não partes é o novo paradigma.
A aprendizagem fazendo e não apenas escutando, é mais duradoura e completa.
Recomendo.

[rapairu]

interesante movida