When I first discovered Charles Ridley’s book “Stillness: Biodynamic Cranial Sacral Practice and the Evolution of Consciousness, 
there was an amazing flash of insight awakened after reading just a few pages. Here was an articulate presentation of a very subtle and yet highly embodied wisdom that I knew in the depths of my sixth chakra to be true, but had not quite been able perceive or experience. These were cosmic clues on the great treasure hunt of embodied awakening waiting to be explored.
This was six years ago and now some of Charles’s insights are finally emerging in my own living matrix as sensations, perceptions and clarity. I am not a cranial sacral practitioner but I do swim through the inner waters of my being and find Charles’ maps incredibly relevant for us yoga/somanauts. This brings us to a fascinating place in the body, the sinoatrial node. This natural pacemaker, a bundle of neurons surrounded by connective tissue in the form of collagen fibers and fibroblasts, sits at the upper back portion of the right atrium near the superior vena cava.
Those of you who have been following along in the Tuesday class know we have been exploring the the inferior vena cava and the connective tissue structures surrounding it, 
as it comes up from behind the liver and enters the heart, while also tracking the pressure gradient from the lower dantian (belly) up into the chest cavity. By following the blood vessels, we can bypass the diaphragm, which tends to divide our sense of the torso into upper and lower. As the lower dantian energy, in the form of pressure, is trained to rise up, it lifts, stretches and opens the diaphragm and expands the chest cavity from the inside. This creates more space for the heart.
The superior vena cava, bringing de-oxygenated blood down from the head neck and arms empties, along with the inferior vena cava, into the right atrium. Here the descending and ascending energies of the venous system meet right at the SA node. How delightful. According the Charles, (and this is a lot to take in, but give it a go);
“…embryogenesis is the power for transmutation….Biodyamically speaking, this act infuses the life-giving radiance from the heart field into the inertial patterns and transmutes it into a healthy state. … Non dual awareness is the stage upon which transmutation acts out its mysterious drama in full consciousness. The fulcrum or center of this stage is your hearts pacemaker, or sinoatrial node, where infinite stillness and finite form unite.”
The sinoatrial node, surrounded by collagen and fibroblasts, is the center of the connective tissue intelligence. Living here in sensitivity is a major goal of awakening in the world of form. As we trace perception and the energy fields and charges along the connective tissue pathways, we are also returning to our embryological origins and reawakening a primal intelligence that permeates all life forms. Resting in the silence of the heart is a beautiful thing. Feeling the origins of integration in the embryological pathways allows a deep settling of all unnecessary fear and anxiety into the vast ocean of stillness. This is ‘sthira sukham asanam’, the drashtuh sva’rupe , spoken of by Patanjali. This is the non-dual integration of form and formless in direct experience. We need patience and persistence to awaken the intelligence of these tissues as these sensitivities tend to be subtle or hidden in the beginning. But they are the ‘core’ of the body and, as such, carry information to every cell in the body, integrating nervous system, circulatory system and the gut tube.
Feel the heart as the center of all action and perception. Open the main channel through the chakras, through crown and root, connecting heaven and earth. Trace to centers of hands and feet. From feet follow Tom Myer’s “deep front line” to liver and heart activating with a charge of energy like you are charging a smart phone. Feel the link to the sa node. Drop into stillness. repeat… forever…