[Marianne]

Hi Allison,

Your remarks about what areas of the body feel most affected upon viewing works of art is a fascinating topic to me. I find it interesting that some people would feel the gods of Olympus descending into their solar plexus while others like yourself say you feel that type of sensation in your gut. I am wondering if feeling things in your gut is an indication to an intuitive reaction for people who are deeply intuitive. I once heard a shaman practitioner say whenever she saw someone in physical pain such as an injury she would feel that pain strike her solar plexus. Other people have remarked that it goes straight to their gut, like being punched in the stomach. This could make a really interesting study and might go along with some studies of the chakras. I remember one time I was in an atmosphere where some people (a group of sisters) were all arguing/”fighting” with one another so vehemently and it got so angry and hateful among them that as I witnessed it I suddenly felt my “gut” sort of “leap” to tense up and then I felt it instantly freeze as if hardening and tightening into a rock. I felt like my stomach had turned to stone. It was so powerful a sensation that it utterly alarmed me in that moment as if I had almost had a shock of some sort. I had never seen people argue to terribly like that, so hatefully, and it seemed just a step or two away from becoming violent–at least in effect. From this I can relate to what you say about feeling things in your stomach/gut. Usually when something is painful or when I have a sudden “hunch” I feel it in my gut. but when taking in something more pleasant I feel it more around my solar plexus, and shoulders and neck. I don’t feel much in my feet as far as grounding usually as it seems I live mostly in my head! I usually have to get my walk out on nature paths or at the beach to feel the grounding that can enter or feel centered in my feet–or in meditation on grounding like when sitting under a tree.

Thanks so much for bringing this up!