Looking at cells for decades I continue to learn their secrets and what they can teach us. AND ASK ABOUT WHAT MAKES THEM INTELLIGENT?

And what IS cellular Intelligence?

One of the most important features of our cells is its fabric or underlying matrix.

Within the transparent gel-like substance called the cytoplasm, cells are  managed by thousands of strings, strands and tubes which connect all parts of the cell inside and out. These strings help choose and maneuver what each cell can do; they hold the cell’s true intelligence!  Some say they even carry consciousness.

At the core of life, whether the cells are rigid or soft influences their choices.

It is not only molecules that convey information, it is the tension and tone of a cell that instructs how the cell is to behave.  So how to make that practical?  A bit of information …

Anatomy tales
72 fibroblasts cyto10016The tone of the cell, whether it is held taut or soft, influences its genetic expression. This also influences the molecular and energetic events of nearby cells. The mechanical tension on our cells affects what it does.  To me, that’s a good reminder to make sure to stay or get relaxed during the day.  Meditate, move, stretch and bend are all benefits to our cells as well as our mind.

The science– TENSEGrITY
Under experimental conditions breast cells grown on rigid structures are more likely to express breast cancer genes while softening the growth structure prevents the breast cancer genes from expressing themselves. Letting go…

The body practice
If rigidity and tightness influence how our cells behave, how can becoming less rigid affect us?  When we are tight and tense, in every sense of the word tense, we are stressed and using up energy wastefully and can’t replenish easily.  What will ease the body’s tension?  Exercise, walking, massage, caressing, working out, meditating, laughing.  Will that ease our cell’s tension?  It has to, for isn’t our anatomy constructed from trillions of cells?

There is a theory about strings of the universe, that everything is connected.  And so it goes all the way down into our cells.

Body as cell – who or what is pulling your strings?

When we soften we create more opportunitiesSoftening our attitudes and our cells gives them new options, cooperative genes to express.

That the yielding is more powerful than the rigid, is a fact known  by all and practiced by none.
~Lao Tze

What we think, how we move, where we let go impacts the decision-making of our cells.  Learning how to access the amazing wisdom of our cells gives us more connection with them and each other.

Above image is from Dr. Donald Ingber’s article “The Architecture of Life” 1998 Scientific American.

Illustration by Slim Films.