About Alexander Lowen: Quotes From His Autobiography

Here are quotes from throughout Dr. Lowen's autobiography, Honoring the Body, that capture some of the major events in his life:

Early Life and Education

“I was born in New York City on December 23, 1910, to Jewish parents from Russia who had immigrated around the turn of the century.”

“When I was four and a half, my mother delivered twin girls at home. I did not know that my mother was pregnant or that one of the babies died, it was a tragedy.”

“My father had a hand laundry business in Harlem. After my sister’s birth, we moved from a small apartment behind the store to an apartment above the store. In the early days, my mother worked in the store with my father… except for books, my sister and I did not have many toys, but we did visit the homes of school friends.”

“From about 1915 to 1925, the street was the center of my life. Playing with the kids on the block was the activity that best nourished my spirit.”

“After six, I was enrolled in the local grade school…[which] posed no problem, for me. I was a good student and received high marks for my work, especially in arithmetic, without any special efforts to achieve this. I knew my family expected this of me.”

“Starting when I was seven or eight, my family fell apart – whatever relationship my parents had deteriorated badly…..I wondered how two such different people came together. Their personalities were diametrically opposed. My mother, with no feeling for pleasure, was an ambitious person. My pleasure loving father was unaggressive and a failure in the business life. With feelings for both parents, I was split in the middle.”

“At 13, I went through a Bar Mitzvah that had little or no feeling for me. Afterward, I was allowed to dress in a way that signified I was no longer a boy.”

“I graduated from high school at age 16 and enrolled in City College with a major in science. My best subject was mathematics, but I was also good in science. My worst subject was English composition, which I almost failed in my first year of college, getting by with a D.”

“I got my B.S. degree in June, 1930…At the end of 1930, I was 20 years old, no longer a student but not yet a man either. I was living at home with no job or vision of a career. However, I had been out in the world, and I felt that I could hold my own there. However, throughout high school and college, I was never invited to a party, did not have a girl friend and did not even go out on a date with a girl.”

“Then I had a lucky break…the City of New York was opening examinations for the position of actuarial clerk…I did very well on the examination, and soon I became an actuarial clerk in the Teacher’s Retirement System earning $28 a week, a livable wage at the time.”

“Brooklyn Law School in downtown Brooklyn held classes from 6:00-8:00 p.m. about 30-40 minutes from the Teacher’s Retirement System office in lower Manhattan. Law was a challenging study and proved to be easy for me.”

“In the fall of 1933, I was given a position as a temporary teacher of accounting and commercial law at the Julia Richman High School in Manhattan…was a high school teacher from 1933 to 1946 at three high schools preparing girls for positions in business.”

“In January of 1934, I graduated from law school with an L.L.B. degree. To my surprise, I achieved the highest honors and the degree was awarded Suma Cum Laude (with highest praise).”

“Brooklyn Law School offered courses leading to a doctorate in law, specifically, Doctor of the Science of Law (J.S.D.). I continued this two-year evening program to move into a higher rank and a more challenging teaching position.”

“I had my first regular girlfriend when I was 25, a relationship lasting three years. We lived in the same neighborhood and met while returning home from work.”

“During this period of romance, I completed the J.S.D. degree…I had not been active enough as a scholar to merit consideration for a professorship. My efforts to become a law professor were unsuccessful”.

Developing Bioenergetic Analysis

“[While teaching high school] I was free during July and August. I began working at adult summer camps and hotels (as athletic director).”

“In 1938, I became aware that my life suddenly felt empty and I felt depressed….I realized that my feeling of depression was related to a lack of excitement in my body due to a lack of physical activity…I started doing 30 minutes of exercise when I got home after work…..Performing these exercises had the desired result and also made me realize that this is where I wanted to be – in my body, not my mind.”

“Throughout the fall of 1939, I would drive to a park after work, sit in the sun and write more about the exercises…When school started in 1940, I was not depressed….I was still excited about finding the connection between the body and the mind. I sensed that this connection was vital to me, even though I was unaware of the deep split in my personality between my mind and my body.”

“The New School for Social Research catalog described a course on Character Analysis…the description went on to propose a fundamental identity between the mind and the body. I was anxious to meet the professor – Dr. Wilhelm Reich.”

“In 1941, before I started my therapy with Reich, I met a young woman who interested me. Her name was Rowfreta Walker, but she was called “Freddie” …When I met Freddie [who I later called Leslie], I felt that I had no choice but to marry her – I had to have her.”

“In the spring of 1942, I began therapy with Reich, three sessions a week…He had a clear picture of the connection between the mind and the body: the mind and body are really one, and, at the same time, act on and influence each other.”

“The subject of marriage (to Freddie) did not come up until the spring of 1943…The marriage ceremony was performed by a justice of the Peace in Lake George. Witnesses were his wife and their employee.”

“In the fall of 1945, after I had completed my therapy, Reich referred my first patient to me…I was charging him only $2.00 a session…but, I question whether I was worth the $2.00.”

“In June (1945), I applied to the University of Geneva for admission to their medical school program…On September 25, 1947, Freddie and I set sail for Europe on the U.S.S.United States…Shortly after we arrived in Geneva, I registered at the University as a medical student.”

“We returned to the U.S. on August 27, 1951. It was exactly one month before our baby was born…12:33 a.m. on September 27, 1951…I experienced overwhelming joy when I left the hospital the night of his birth.”

“Soon after I finished my internship at Yonkers General Hospital, I applied to the New York State Board of Medical Examiners for permission to take the state examination for medicine…On Saturday in New York City in the Spring of 1953, I appeared before the board of Medical Examiners at their request. The secretary of the board at the head of the table asked me if I knew why I was there. I asked if the reason had any connection with Wilhelm Reich. They acknowledged that it did and asked if I would like to explain my connection with Reich. I stated that I had practiced Reichian therapy for two years before I went to Geneva and that I would continue to practice this form of therapy focusing on psychosomatic medicine…Continuing to associate with the Reichians would put me in a situation of double jeopardy if the group got into trouble, and I knew that I had to go my own way.”

“I met [Dr. John] Pierrakos in 1953…who had an office in the Village that he used part-time and might want to share…Pierrakos and I had much to offer each other, and we both gained from our association.”

Building the Institute

“By the Spring of 1954, …I knew that I needed to build an institute on Reich’s fundamental concepts of the body and mind. During the next 20 years, the office of the Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis was in the apartment where John and I had our offices.”

“My first book, Language of the Body, published in 1958, drew some attention to the mind-body problem … [and] did open avenues for the spread of Bioenergetic ideas. I accepted an invitation from a psychiatrist at the National Institute for Mental Health to make a presentation to their staff….I was asked to do a workshop on Bioenergetics at Esalen… [and continued] yearly visits to Esalen in March for five or six years. The Bioenergetic workshops were popular and always filled up.”

“Interest in Bioenergetics took me on journeys around the world and gave Leslie and me many cherished experiences. We met interesting and wonderful people as we presented Bioenergetic workshops and lectures in beautiful and special places [Isla Mujeres in Mexico, Tokyo, Hawaii, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Italy, Greece, Spain, Brazil].”

“In 1976, we held an international congress in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, to transform the Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis into an international organization. The organization would be run by a Board of Trustees from the body of international trainers. I would become the executive director.”

“By 1976, there were a number of bioenergetic societies teaching the principles of Bioenergetic Analysis in Europe. Similar societies had developed in the U.S. under different trainers. I put together a training manual for the trainers so that the curriculum would be the same in the different societies.”

“Power is, in my opinion, the destroyer of life. In 1980, I presented my ideas about this in Fear of Life, my most important book.”

Growing Older and Wiser

“In 1990, I published Spirituality of the Body: Bioenergetics for Grace and Harmony. In 1995, I published Joy: The Surrender to the Body. The 1990’s were a period of transformation in my feelings, in my understanding of life and in my work as a therapist. I describe this period as growing older and growing wiser.”

“This decade ended for me with a sailing trip across the Atlantic…..crossing from the Bahamas to Florida, the gale knocked us down and plunged the 70-foot high mast into the sea. Water poured into the cockpit…Fred [my son] maneuvered to minimize danger…..the boat righted itself but we were… in the midst of a sudden squall…Fred was able to keep the boat safely oriented and we were able to make Fort Lauderdale …. Steven was very impressed with Fred - his coolness in the situation and his ability to gain control of the boat.”

“My intellectual ability had camouflaged an immaturity in my personality. Because I had written a number of popular books and had created a widely respected international organization, I was regarded by many people as a success. To come down to earth, I had to give up the trappings of success. This meant that I finally resigned as Executive Director of the IIBA in May, 1996. Although this action did not change anything in my daily life, as I look back, I realized that I felt like a free person. I was no longer responsible for the Institute or for what people did in the name of Bioenergetics. I was not transformed by this action, and my life went on as before the resignation.”

“In December of 2001, Leslie was diagnosed with ovarian cancer…..When she died, she let out a deep sigh, let go and stopped breathing…..She was a beauty, and she loved beautiful things. I loved her and am grateful for the years we had together.”

“The body has always saved me…..after Leslie passed away…..it brought me back to life. Doing Bioenergetics with my clients and myself has returned my spirit and feeling for life. The body has its own wisdom. Accepting the realities of life and listening to the body leads to fulfillment.” (2004)

Quotations from Honoring the Body: The Autobiography of Alexander Lowen by Alexander Lowen, 2005. Bioenergetics Press, Alachua, Florida.