The Body is a Gift with Gil Hedley: A Reverential Journey into the Human Body
/01:16:56/E1
CONTENT HEADS UP: This episode contains (among other things) a deep, frank conversation about life, death, Catholicism, the cosmos, reverential dissection, body phenomena, including orgasm, service, enlightenment, circumcision, some swear words, a lot of humor, and of course, some challenges and gifts of being bodies.
And in case it’s not clear, Gil dissects, with dedication, “donor forms” - no longer inhabited bodies gladly donated by their prior inhabitants - to illuminate the wonders of the human body so that we might all live ours more fully.
SYNOPSIS: In this episode, Ali talks with Gil Hedley, educator and the producer of the Integral Anatomy series, who offers a expert perspective on the human body from the inside out. With a background in Theological Ethics and decades of dedication dissecting donated human bodies, Gil views the body as an archaeological site, exploring the layers of the human form and what they reflect about the near-infinite complexity of human existence. This episode delves into, as Gil calls it, a “re-branding of the human body” - giving us life-enhancing “re-conceptions” of the heart and body phenomena (fat, the foreskin, blood, orgasm) we have taken for granted and/or completely misunderstood. This conversation also explores the harmful effects of body fragmentation, and the interconnectedness of spirit and matter. Viewing the body through Gil’s extraordinary professional, and personal, perspective gives us a window into our inner-universe and beyond to our cosmic identity. After listening, your experience of being a body will never be the same! A warning: the episode includes frank and loving discussions of death and human dissection.
EXPLORATION POINTS:
-Ali and Gil dive into intricate topics related to the human body and consciousness, challenging conventional views of the body and exploring the existential complexity of human anatomy.
-Gil shares his unique journey from considering priesthood to becoming a different kind of "priest" on a mission to rebrand the human body as a gift. This conversation critiques dualism, discusses integral anatomy, and emphasizes the need to shift away from body as a problem.
-Gil reconceptualizes anatomy, challenging mechanistic views of the body specifically by exploring: 1) how the heart is not a pump, 2) how fat is intelligent, and 3) how the foreskin is precious.
-Gil and Ali challenge cultural aesthetics, explore what “somanaut” means, and share personal stories and challenges related to embodiment with a lot of humor.
BIO: Gil has been teaching integral anatomy in the dissection laboratory, via keynotes and speaking tours, and online via his extensive website and subscription portal, www.gilhedley.com, and YouTube channel, "Somanaut," since 1995. He is the producer of The Integral Anatomy Series, the Anatomy from A to Z Project, and The Nerve Project, as well as being the author of several books and anatomy models. He is based at the Institute for Anatomical Research in Colorado Springs, CO, where he teaches, films, and serves as Board President.
The Nerve Project/The Nerve Tour - Find Gil in a town or city near you LIVE! Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to rock your world and the way you see and experience bodies!
The Heart-Brain (just a gorgeous 5-minute video that will transform your understanding of your heart and brain)
BY GIL HEDLEY: The Sacred Stuff
No thing
is made sacred
by being set apart, separated, hallowed.
No one
becomes holy.
From adulation,
pomp, or prayer,
what clump of this,
or lump of that, what bits of flesh,
or outcast,
does not hail directly from the same precious source of holy waters and holy men.
Flesh, too, aches.
from the divine stirring within
and the scraps flung to dogs
turn to light
and scat alike
all beyond comprehension
perfect
the sacred stuff is all
every yearning
star and burr
the exalted and the lowly
songs cries
and moans
the fleeting and the lasting
everyone
a turning wisp of smoke
rising from the altar
burned sweet
holy
and acceptable.
GONE IN THE EPISODE ALONG WITH A LOT OF LAUGHTER, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN:
ALI: “Is it on Amazon or on your website or where can you get it?”
GIL: “It's on my website. I don't want to give Jeff Bezos anything more to do. He's got a lot covered, you know, so I'm thinking: Oh my god, Jeff, God bless you. You came up with a big idea there.”
HENRY GRAY: Author of Gray’s Anatomy (yes, Shonda Rhymes TV series’ title, Grey’s Anatomy, is riffing on this guy who wrote the seminal, Gray’s Anatomy
1966 film “The Fantastic Voyage” trailer (some of us remember being traumatized as a kid by the white corpuscles!)
The World Used to Love Fat Women full article by FleurineTideman… “...Titian’s laid out nudes, bearing their full figures in all their glory. Fuller figured women were believed to display key signs of fertility through their larger breasts and bigger hips, making them highly popular…
…In the late 19th century, the love of fat women begins to deteriorate, as an idealised woman became synonymous with a small waist, sloped shoulders, tapered fingers, slender limbs and delicate feet. It was known as the “steel engraving lady”, associated most commonly with frailty, weakness and subservience, and with that high social status and moral values. This is precisely where the problem begins, as a woman being frail is considered preferred. Then she’ll take up less room and hold fewer opinions, or so they would hope.
But by the end of the century, there was another idealised character known as the “Gibson Girl”. She combined the features of the steel engraving lady with the voluptuous woman of centuries prior, resulting in a slender waist and legs, but curves through her hips and breasts. You could consider this preferable as they’re not fetishising an appearance of illness. Still, this character is just as concerning in reality as men are beginning to believe that a woman’s body is a pick n mix. That you can choose the features of fatness that you like and combine them with the rest. This is a belief that has followed us into the 21st century, where it has been cemented with the aid of plastic surgery, the Kardashians and photo editing.”
