06/05/2022
Today is Moshe Feldenkrais' birthday! An amazing life led to his phenomenal Method 🥳🤼♂️👨🔬
Today is Moshe Feldenkrais’s birthday.
He was born in the Tsarist Russian Empire, on 6 May 1904.
When just 14, he left home, embarked and led a 6 month ‘childrens’ crusade’ that took him to Palestine, following the Balfour Declaration of 1917.
Here he initially worked as a labourer in the constructIon of Tel Aviv. At age 16 he joined a self-defence organisation where he learnt jiu-jitsu. Believing this was not enough to be able to defend one’s self, he devised his own self-defence method which he taught to others. He later wrote and self-published a self-defence, manual, Jiu-Jitsu and Self Defense.
Feldenkrais moved to France in 1930 where he studied at the École Spéciale des Travaux Publics. He also worked as a research assistant in the Joliot-Curie laboratories at the Radium Institute in Paris, becoming a major player, whilst working for his doctorate in engineering at the Sorbonne.
His earlier interest in jiu-jitsu brought him into contact with Jigaro Kano, the founder of judo. This seminal meeting led him to start his judo training and eventually receive his black belt. Kano was so impressed with Feldenkrais’ skill and knowledge that he wanted him to be the conduit for introducing judo to France. The introduction to Kano and judo embarked Feldenkrais on his lifelong development of what became the Feldenkrais Method.
He and his wife fled Paris, at its fall, for the UK, where he was based in Scotland conducting anti-submarine research. It was here that he reinflamed an old knee injury. With no viable prospects for surgery, he became bedridden and began working in earnest to heal himself. He carefully observed the functioning of his knee and the relationship to the rest of his body. The gentle movement and awareness he brought to the rest of himself, began the development of a non-invasive system of movement and re-education that helped him overcome his injury. He wrote and gave lectures about his new ideas to his scientist colleagues and also taught them judo.
His involvement in judo continued in London, where he deepened his own knowledge and ability, sat on the international judo committee and analysed the principles of judo scientifically.
But it was around 1954 when he returned to Tel Aviv that he focused on solely teaching his method.
Feldenkrais began presenting his work in Europe and the States in the mid-1960’s. His first teacher training course began in 1969 in Tel Aviv. His last was in Amherst Massachusetts to 239 students. Sadly, he died two years into this training aged 80, on 1 July 1984. But this affable, fun -loving, curious brilliant man will not be forgotten, and his Feldenkrais Method and writings live on.
Thanks go to the work of Mark Reese, Steffan Elgelid and Chrish Kresge whose writings have been used in this brief bi-op.
