exercise · all tools
Unconditional Hugs
Two circles; the outer one closes its eyes and the inner one gives them random hugs, silently, so no one knows who hugged them — with a tap on the arm first, so no one is surprised. Anyone who does not want to be hugged stays in the circle with arms wrapped around themselves. Some Austin regulars, the manual says, call it the deepest game they have played.
- Anonymous touch with eyes closed: the self-hug signal is the only refusal available and must be explained, demonstrated and confirmed before any eyes close
- The facilitator is the one sighted person watching that the tap-then-hug rule is kept; that is the job for the whole ten minutes
Practical
- Time
- 10-15 min
- Group
- 6–∞ · large-group
- Settings
- in-person
- Mechanisms
- somatic-awareness, ritual-container
- Change scope
- state → skill · repeatable
Instructions
- Where
- authrev.org/ar-games-manual — Authentic Relating Games Manual, paid
- Availability
- In the source document — the instructions live inside the material linked, on its terms
- Licence
- CC BY-SA 4.0 (Authentic Relating Games Manual)
Source link checked 31 Aug 2026 — unchanged since we recorded it on 29 Aug 2026
This directory describes and points home; the instructions stay with the people who made them.
Origin
Daniel Johnson (Authentic Relating Philadelphia) — Authentic Relating (Authentic Relating Games Manual, 2025 edition)
In this directory via Authentic Relating Games Manual
Variation in the manual: circles reversed, with pair and then group shares.
status: checked · added 2026-08-31