For decades there has been controversy, misunderstanding, misinterpretations, revolts, blame, and lots of emotion centered around the word “feminine.” So what does the word actually mean?
Some people want to bring the word “feminine” to the foreground and have more focus on embodying it, while others want it to go away saying it’s irrelevant, and that it just puts us in a box that no one belongs in.
Given Art of Feminine Presence® has been my life’s work, the main program that I teach, and a profound path of spiritual realization and authentic confidence for me, I wanted to explain what I mean by “feminine” and why I think many are quick to tear this concept down these days.
We live in an era of marginalized groups. Whether you align with the transgendered group, the women of color group, the Latino group, the Asian group, the gay group, the bi-sexual group, a religious or spiritual group, a feminist group, a 12-step group, a political group, or so on, I believe this conversation relates to us all. Over the last 9 years of teaching this work we have welcomed people representing all of these groups to this work. From what I can tell, even though I don’t understand all the ins and outs of the challenges faced by specific groups I have compassion and love for all of them.
We work on 3 aspects of awareness in Art of Feminine Presence® and all levels are important for every human to consider if we are to live a happy functional life in a human body. Within each of these levels we work with the mind, body, and energy (spirit) because an integrated approach always accelerates awareness rather than just working on one aspect of a human being. The reason we only allow women or those who identify with being a woman (transgendered) is because we are working to help cure women of the self-consciousness, competition, and fear that comes up more strongly when men are present. We want to create the safest and easiest environment to work with these complex topics at first, then introduce men into the equation at other trainings we do throughout the year.
The 3 aspects of awareness.
Pure Consciousness (Presence)
The “all that is” consciousness is everywhere, including within each of us. It does not go away. It’s not damageable. It’s always present. It is a spiritual essence that permeates and animates everything.
Within the body it often feels very vertical in nature and you can connect with it strongly through the subtle vertical core of your body. It radiates out to join with the “all that is” field. I call it at times “The Undeniable Matrix.” This is not masculine, feminine, or human. It is pure energy. During Art of Feminine Presence® we help women get in touch with this unshakeable present part of themselves.
Yin and Yang Balance (Non-resistance)
I believe we are spiritual beings having a human experience. It’s critical that we work with issues of our humanness and the limitations of our mind, body, and energy for us to be free of the mental habits, emotional habits, and defense mechanisms of the mind that keep our ego running the show. In the process of awakening it’s important to realize that we are all parts of nature. We are patient and impatient, we are cold and warm, we are receptive and directive, we are leaders and followers, we are fluid and rigid. Every aspect of us and of humanity serves a specific purpose. If we decide we want to be less reactive, we need to be non-resistant to every part within us, which means we fall in love with and integrate all the parts of us; both dark and light. If the present moment calls for particular energies like anger and protest, we could bring them up and use them. If another moment called for energies like stillness and patience we could bring those forward and use them.
During Art of Feminine Presence® we help women accept all parts of themselves so they don’t resist any one part. This lessens the hold of past memories and habitual ways of being and supports them to realize themselves as pure consciousness in more moments.
Primary Sexual Essence (Life Force)
Our life force is intricately tied to our awakening process. Our sexuality is part of that life force. If we disconnect from our sexuality we can easily create kinks in the hose of our life force, which can block us from feeling the “pure consciousness” that resides in our core. Many women in the pursuit of equality with men, productivity in the workplace, or as a way to feel safer in the world, have shut down or misuse their sexuality.
We all can access the “masculine essence” and “feminine essence” within us, but one is primary. When we fully access our primary sexual essence and let it flow, we feel happier, more magnetic, healthier, sexier, more connected to the present moment, and much more. In my work with thousands of women from different cultures and backgrounds I believe that 90 – 95% of women have a primary “sexual essence” as what I and other teachers call the “feminine essence.” Many women don’t even realize that it is shut down. This is not the spiritual part of us; this is the human sexuality part of us. If it gets denied, challenges can occur in a woman’s life, if it is her primary essence. For example, if a woman’s body runs a lot of masculine essence energy for a long time her body will burn out because most feminine bodies were not meant to run on masculine energy long-term. She may start to feel anger and resentment towards the world when this energy shuts down, and may often become unwell physically and emotionally.
During Art of Feminine Presence® we help women access this life force, and subsequently the healing, insight, and joy that arises when they allow more of their primary sexual essence to not be repressed or misused.
We humans are never going to agree on everything. We are all at different stages of growth and perceive things differently given our history, culture, and the groups we identify with. The only way to stop so much fighting as humans and tearing down others because of their beliefs and the way they communicate is for more of us to realize our true nature as a conscious being who is connected to everyone and everything.
I personally love the dance between these three aspects, because when intertwined I believe awakening is accelerated.
If you are interested in learning more about Art of Feminine Presence® or joining us at an event this year you can go to http://ArtofFemininePresence.com or email us at Support@GrooverSeminars.com if you have any questions.
Thanks for being part of our community.
Much love,
Rachael Jayne
RJ, I always appreciate your unique perspective. Much appreciation to you for the amazing work you continue to do!.
Thanks so much, Laurel!
This is a wonderful letter. As one who has taken the Teacher I training and have taught this work to other women, this letter solidifies what the teachings are all about. I am a prime example of a woman who, in the pursuit of equality with men, disconnected from my primary sexual essence. I totally got burned out and desperately wanted to find happiness and peace. It was the Art of Feminine Presence® that brought me back to life and started my path to awakening. Thank you Rachael Jayne.
Thanks so much for your beautiful testimonial to the power of AFP, and for sharing your example!
Rachel Jayne,
Your courage to address the feminine is why I am in your program. I have found it easy to adapt to the people around me, especially the men in my life. And having grown up with four brothers there was very little room for feminine. I look back now and see all the adapting I’ve done through out my life.
AFP, with your guidance, is giving me the courage and insight to now address my feminine, understand it, claim it, and find goodness and strength in it.
How wonderful, Suzanne – thanks so much for sharing this!
Rachel, I don’t understand the controversy. For those of us who are already on a Spiritual/Growth Journey, we need no explanation. For those who are in a holding pattern or even stuck at this place in their lives, they will not accept any explanation and see your words only as excuses.
Please give it no attention, put ALL your attention towards to light, the positive. If you do not feed the negative, it will fade and go away . . . . .
Feminine and Masculine has no gender ~ there is no discrimination.
Putting your focus on Women right now has no negative connotations nor hidden agendas, we need to rally around each other right now with love, support and inspiration.
If this is bothering others, including some from our own gender and some from our own gender with alternative life styles ~ it’s too bad!
The saying is, you can’t win the ALL!
But for those of US you have WON ~ YOU ARE DOING EXCELELLENT WORK ~ KEEP TRANSFORMING WOMEN’S LIVES!!!
Thank you, Rachael Jayne ❤️
Thanks for sharing your perspective, Michelle, as well as your acknowledgement of this transformational work!
Beautiful. Thank you. I love you.
Catalina
Thanks so much, Catalina!
Thank You Rachael!
Thanks, Jackie!
I appreciate that you are taking the time to articulate and define the words and concepts we use in this work. I’ve been doing this as well and it’s an on-going process for me.
I want to share that I found the following paragraph problematic:
“We live in an era of marginalized groups. Whether you align with the transgendered group, the women of color group, the Latino group, the Asian group, the gay group, the bi-sexual group, a religious or spiritual group, a feminist group, a 12-step group, a political group, or so on, I believe this conversation relates to us all. Over the last 9 years of teaching this work we have welcomed people representing all of these groups to this work. From what I can tell, even though I don’t understand all the ins and outs of the challenges faced by specific groups I have compassion and love for all of them.”
The first sentence points to your privilege. There have always been marginalized people. What is different is that we are at a point in time where (some) white, cis, het people are becoming aware of the privilege they hold and becoming aware that this white/cis/het experience, the one that has been centred is the one experience. I also question why that sentence was even included. What are you trying to say with it exactly?
Let’s skip forward to the last line – if we take out the clause where you acknowledge you don’t understand the challenges faced by the groups – what you have said is this: From what I can tell I have compassion and love for all of them. Kinda weird.
With the statements in the middle, I’m struggling to articulate what exactly is off about it. For one, there is something about the list of the different groups you have made (and your use of ‘the’ in some cases and ‘a’ in the others) that lands off. There is an ‘othering’ that has happened here. And what it lands like to me is that when you say ‘the Latino group’ for instance, everyone has been lumped together regardless of any other differences and individualities they have going on. Which has been acknowledged when you use ‘a’ in the other groups. I mean, do you put yourself in The white group? In the straight group? You haven’t said as much but you’ve implied that this is the default, standard. I think the use of the word community would have been warmer and more welcoming. For example, whether you are part of the transgender community, etc. . ’Group’ feels divisive.
This particular paragraph doesn’t feel well articulated. It felt gross to me. I appreciate all that I’ve learned from you and who I know you to be which is why I’ve taken the time to share all of this. It may be helpful to you to hire someone from the different communities to help articulate policy and wording around inclusion with regards to POC, LBGTQ people, etc. This is what I’ve begun to do. Because scrutiny is going to grow with regards to how we form policy and use language. And I know we don’t want to be causing harm and discord.
Thanks for reading.
Hi Lana, I appreciate the time and thought and love that you’ve put into this message. I think this is such an important conversation to continue, and there are so many viewpoints and ideas to explore and integrate. Thank you for bringing even more depth and awareness to the table, as we are all learning as we go. I agree “community” is a great word to use in this context than “group.” What I mean by this comment: “From what I can tell I have compassion and love for all of them,” is meant to mean that I have so much love for so many friends and clients that fall into all of these communities, but I’m always open to a bias I might not be seeing in myself. I have felt such affinity to people in all of these groups and plan to continue to show and share my love with everyone that wants to learn more about Art of Feminine Presence.
I think this response to whatever protests have been, show the depth of insight you bring to the work and the depth available to women who enter the path of awakening that is possible through AFP. Feminine or masculine, truth is truth. And I think you’ve spoken it. Thank you Rachael Jayne. See you soon in Australia!
Thanks, Janet – look forward to seeing you soon in person!
I feel really refreshed by the discourse here. Discourse and moving with the lifeforce of conflict (with safety and respect) has always felt like a necessity for a community based on belonging vs. fitting in.
I feel a growing connection to my own spirit in this work. I honor how your life story and larger mission, Rachael Jayne, has synthesized these teachings for the AFP community and your own passion and integrity in being and sharing this work.
I also personally resonate with several of Lena’s remarks. I wonder, how could this work be enhanced by bringing in more conscious dialogue about the intersections of our own beings (race, culture, languages, ability, body size, …) and the fullness of our stories? As students of AFT, could we hear more of stories of others doing this work and the specifics of their life circumstances through your social media posts, blog, …? Might these stories help this community be able to articulate and better feel how this work can be adapted to serve womxn with very different life stories and identities?
I’ve lived in rural communities much of my life and now live in an urban city where the complexity around all forms of diversity is visible. As a white/cis/bi woman, I’m doing my best to step into my vulnerability more and more, to ask hard questions, to hear others stories, and to own that my generational privileges have masked so much of the grief of my lineage (definitely feel this in my womb space). This work of grieving and finding a fuller sense of worth & belonging to my ancestral identity is a part I can contribute to the justice movements that really comes from/through my emotional body. This is also quite an overwhelming question and I honestly don’t know where to begin much of the time. So I hold the question and notice what comes.
Rachael Jayne, I am curious what new stories we might hear if you shared how your family and ancestral lines shape why and how you do this work.
Here in the questions with all of you. Thank you for this space, Rachael Jayne.
Thank you for raising these great questions for my team and I to consider, Leah!
Thank you Rachael Jayne for this beautiful explanation of the AFP work. The integration of my feminine essence as well as the healing of the heart yoni split was in the first place the reason why I followed the teacher trainings. Up to this day I am grateful for taking this path.
With love,
Emmy
How beautiful – thanks so much, Emmy!