MIND-BODY-SPIRIT
We Are the Field: Shaping Collective Coherence
ming together — can have a charged physiological effect. No training required, just rhythm. When people move or sound in time with one another, their bodies begin to align: heart rhythms synchronize, emo - tional states smooth out, and a deeper sense of connection unfolds (Ruiz-Blais et al., 2020; Gordon et al., 2020). In one striking study, participants in large-scale rituals — like coordinated marching in stadiums — were more likely to cluster together and cooperate when their movements and arousal levels were synchronized (Jackson et al., 2018). The body, it seems, knows how to harmonize, especially when we do it together. This phenomenon, often called social coherence , highlights a lasting reality: our bodies are relational by design. Under the right conditions, they respond to each other by tuning, mirroring, even harmonizing. Group coherence, it turns out, isn’t just poetic for feeling close; it’s physiological, a biological reality. And recognizing that might open
BY RUSLANA REMENNIKOVA
What really happens in the space between us? In a previous article, I looked at how something subtle yet powerful seems to emerge when two people come together with receptivity, intention, and emotional attunement ( New Dawn Magazine , July/August 2025). Using spe - cialized imaging, I observed a surprising phenomenon. The energy field around a person, the so-called human biofield , doesn’t stop at the skin. It can stretch into the relational space, forming a shared field that visibly shifts with empathy, connection, and resonance. Imagine the way a mother’s calm presence can soothe a crying baby, or how a quiet conversation with a close friend can bring comfort. I call this the interpersonal biofield , and it suggests something profound: human connection isn’t just emotional or symbolic — it may be energetic, tangible, and even measurable, like a joint pulse or rhythm that flows between us.
the door to a new kind of conversation about how we can relate, regulate, and perhaps, heal — literally together. At the same time, studies of large- scale group meditation have uncovered compelling outcomes. During moments of synchronized practice, especially during globally organized events, re- searchers observed measurable drops in crime rates, violence, and even emer- gency calls (Orme-Johnson et al., 1988). The causes are still debated, but the patterns are difficult to dismiss. Could focused collective intention have effects that ripple beyond the individuals par- ticipating? Some researchers think so. They suggest
Let’s take this one step further here with a bigger question: What if the en- ergetic connection between two people isn’t the end of the story, but just the beginning? Could groups of people, through communal meditation, ritu- al, or even compassion, create a field strong enough to ripple outward and support healing on a larger scale? Think of communities gathering for collective prayer, friends joining in a healing circle, or millions participating simultaneously in global meditation events like the International Day of Peace. Or consider a meal train orga- nized by neighbors and friends for a mom
that when thousands of people align their minds and hearts simulta- neously, a collective resonance begins to arise. One emerging theory is that synchronized nervous systems and coherent biofields might cre - ate a kind of collective energetic environment, with emergent prop- erties extending outward, like waves in a field (Bond, 2023 ; Chialvo, 2010 ; Muehsam et al., 2015). Outside the lab, collective coherence has been practiced for millen- nia, just under different names. In sacred rituals, healing circles, and communal chants, coherence isn’t measured; it’s made. It’s cultivated not for data, but for meaning. The synchrony of voices, movements, or silence helps form what many traditions call a container : a field of shared awareness strong enough to hold grief, transmute suffering, or invoke the sacred (Bourguignon, 1993 ). These practices, often dis - missed as symbolic, may in fact enact a sophisticated form of energetic alignment and regulation ( Winkelman, 2010). Science is only beginning to approach what ritual traditions have long enacted as living practices that create space for becoming. In rit - uals, healing circles, and communal chants, coherence is invited, nev- er forced, but allowed to emerge. The synchrony of movement, voice, or stillness creates what anthropologist Victor Turner called a limin- al space, a threshold where ordinary structures loosen, and break- throughs become possible. Coherence, as rituals remind us, is not something we engineer. It’s something we enter — together — when control gives way to a co-created being.
during pregnancy, each sharing a meal but also an act of care that cre- ates a tangible field of support around her. Similarly, neighborhood block parties and mutual aid networks quietly weave webs of connec- tion and intention, strengthening the social fabric. What started as a study of one-to-one resonance now opens the door to a more radical idea: human beings, when attuned together, might generate coherence across entire communities — even global networks of intention. Drawing from biofield science, systems theo - ry, and research on social entrainment, we explore a bold possibility where the space between us might not just connect, but become a cru- cible catalyzing evolution. Collective Coherence in Research and Ritual In recent years, science has begun to catch up with what many wisdom traditions have long sensed — that an energetic awaken- ing occurs when people come into sync, bridging the emotional and physiological in a unified rhythm. Studies from institutions like the HeartMath Institute show when groups meditate together or prac - tice steady, heart-focused breathing, their heart rhythms begin to align. This isn’t a metaphor — it’s measurable. Scientists track this alignment using a marker called heart rate variability (HRV), a sub - tle rhythm that reflects how well the body balances stress and calm. When HRV patterns begin to synchronize across people, it suggests a deeper process at work — something collective, rhythmic, and pro- foundly human (McCraty, 2010). And it’s not just meditation that brings us into sync. Research shows even simple group activities — like singing in unison or drum-
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PATHWAYS—Fall 25—9
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