The Feldenkrais Method: Teaching By Handling

This article is part of the Legacy Feldenkrais Books Archive.

Intro

The Feldenkrais Method: Teaching By Handling by Yochanan Rywerant is one of the most important technical texts on the practice of Functional Integration®, the hands-on teaching method developed by Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. In this detailed and thoughtful work, Rywerant presents a framework for understanding how touch can be used as a form of communication with the nervous system.

Rather than manipulating the body mechanically, the Feldenkrais practitioner uses gentle, precise contact to convey information to the student’s brain. Through this nonverbal dialogue, the nervous system learns new possibilities for organization, coordination, and movement.

Rywerant, a close student and collaborator of Moshe Feldenkrais, offers a clear exploration of the principles behind this subtle educational approach. The book has become a foundational resource for Feldenkrais practitioners and trainees seeking to understand the theory and practice of Functional Integration.

About the Book

In The Feldenkrais Method: Teaching By Handling, Yochanan Rywerant presents a systematic exploration of the hands-on educational technique known as Functional Integration.

Functional Integration lessons involve a practitioner guiding a student’s movements through gentle touch. These movements are not intended to stretch muscles or force joints into position. Instead, they are designed to communicate new sensory information to the brain so that the nervous system can reorganize itself.

Rywerant describes how touch can function as a form of nonverbal communication between teacher and student. Through carefully structured movement interactions, the practitioner helps the student perceive habitual patterns and discover alternative ways of organizing movement.

The book introduces concepts such as the “manipulon,” the smallest meaningful unit of communicative touch within a lesson. By examining these units and their combinations, Rywerant provides a conceptual language for describing the otherwise elusive process of Functional Integration.

Drawing on years of study with Moshe Feldenkrais in Tel Aviv, Rywerant brings both scientific clarity and practical insight to a method that operates at the intersection of neuroscience, learning, and movement.

Key Ideas in the Book

• Functional Integration is a form of nonverbal communication with the nervous system through touch.
• Movement learning occurs when the brain receives clear sensory information about possible alternatives.
• Gentle manipulation can reveal habitual neuromotor patterns and introduce more efficient organization.
• The “manipulon” describes the smallest communicative unit within a Functional Integration lesson.
• Improving coordination and awareness can lead to greater ease, efficiency, and comfort in movement.

Table of Contents

Foreword — Moshe Feldenkrais
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

Part I: Manipulation and Teaching

1. Manipulation as Nonverbal Communication between Teacher and Pupil
2. The Approach to Communicative Manipulation

Part II: The Basic Technique
3. The Unit of Communicative Manipulation (The Manipulon)
4. A Classification of Manipulons
5. The Various Modes of the Pupil’s Response: The Limbic and Optical Levels of Control

Part III: Further Technical Considerations
6. Some Physical Principles Involved in Functional Integration
7. Increasing Efficiency: Directions of Movement, Timing, and the Teacher’s Own Body Awareness

Part IV: Working Through Sessions
8. The Form of the Manipulatory Session
9. Schematic Outlines of a Few Model Sessions
10. A Few Typical and Often-Encountered Manifestations of Inefficient Neuromotor Organization
11. Additional Do’s and Don’ts for a Future Practitioner

Part V: Illustrative Case Histories
12. The Story of Hanoch’s Return to the Flute
13. Improving the Ability to Perform
14. Remarks on Pain, Function, and Structure
15. Reflections on the Creative Process

Notes
Bibliography
Index

Excerpt

From the Foreword by Moshe Feldenkrais:

“Everyone learns the Method without imitating his teacher. Yochanan is not imitating anybody.

This book in front of you should be re-read several times. That way you are likely to get most of the goodness of the book. Good luck!”

Closing Reflection

The Feldenkrais Method: Teaching By Handling remains one of the most influential texts on the practice of Functional Integration. By articulating the principles behind this subtle form of hands-on learning, Yochanan Rywerant helps practitioners understand how touch can guide the nervous system toward greater efficiency and awareness.

For students of the Feldenkrais Method®, the book offers both conceptual clarity and practical insight into the delicate art of communicating through movement and sensation.

Related Reading

About Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais
What is the Feldenkrais Method®
Research on the Feldenkrais Method®
Books by Moshe Feldenkrais