Masculine and Feminine Actions

Last week I was talking about balance versus harmony and this sparked some interest in the community.  Thanks to those who reached out to share their thoughts with me, and to those who read the email and pondered on its contents. 

This week I want to talk about the difference between masculine and feminine actions.  This is something close to my heart because I have a very natural tendency to throw myself into things and to take lots of action, but this isn’t always beneficial!

If we think of farming a field, masculine actions would be the sowing of the seeds.  The action that you see, the tasks and activities that we think of as ‘actions’.  Feminine action would be nurturing the plants as they grow, the tending to the field.  To tend is to apply one’s attention or to take care of something.  

I sometimes feel the messages we receive in society, in personal development, and sometimes in our own minds, is to do more, to give more, to take more action.  If you don’t like your circumstances then change them.  If you want something, you have to work for it.  There’s no such thing as a free lunch.  We don’t think of stillness as action.  In the same way we don’t think not taking a decision is still a decision.  It’s like our inputs are only measured or valued by their directly relatable and obvious outputs.  

But if we relate back to the farming analogy, both actions are needed.  For plants to grow the seeds need to be planted and they also need to be taken care of.  Sometimes we don’t need to take more action, what we need to do is to nurture and take care of ourselves.  Less doing and more being.  Less physical action and more attention and reflection.  Less energy outwards and more energy inwards.  

Even when we know this we can still forget it sometimes.  I invite my musing to encourage you to reflect on what actions are you taking right now and what else could you do to get a mix of masculine and feminine actions?  Let me know what you think!