Isn’t kneeling the most ridiculous body position to get yourself into? It’s a situation of extreme vulnerability which I doubt our pre-agricultural ancestors used other than to briefly pivot from lying to squatting and vice versa.
It’s a favourite strategy of those wishing to assert an authority they don’t naturally have to place their victim in a kneeling position, and those with no remaining self-respect will use it to beg. It has become common in the modern era to kneel in order to pray to a sky god and to give oral sex. (In the very recent past much effort has gone into making bed technology more comfortable for other sexual positions involving kneeling!)
The modified position of ‘sitting on one’s heals’ with or without the addition of a cushion is much favoured by mediators. Indeed tolerance of the pain involved in using it for countless hours is thought virtuous in and of itself! The most pathetic sight of all is the older (or overweight) person kneeling to do some practical task because they can no longer squat and then taking a long time to get on their feet afterwards.
My advice is to never stop squatting (many times a day) and if you have - start again. If it seems unnecessary in your daily living then throw out the vacuum cleaner in favour of the dustpan and brush. It was once a common site to see miners squat for long periods even when not at work!
If you want dramatic evidence of it’s virtues then squat to take a shit, you’ll be amazed how easy it is to empty your bowels quickly at a time and place of your own choosing.
The key to squatting for long periods is that it’s not a stationary position at all, you’re meant to be doing a task involving constant small movements, pivoting on the balls of the feet and adjusting your height. It’s a lot more flexible than kneeling.
In nature squatting not only facilitates all sorts of physical tasks it also allows you to hide to some degree, shelter better, make a more accurate assessment of odours (human or otherwise) and provokes an entirely different set of emotions from the supplication and submission of kneeling.
If a time comes when I can no longer squat, you have permission to shoot me! And when it comes to giving head, if your legs get tired or you fear for your balance, place your shield arm around the trunk of the tree she’s leaning against…
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| Author selfie! |
