Ryokyu Endo answers about Tao Shiatsu
1. Master Endo, what do you think is the meaning of Shiatsu for our time ?
Manual Therapy is the Original Form of Medicine
Mum mum mum, what a big subject! If the question is in regards to “Shiatsu” in general, first let’s make clear that manual therapy has existed since beginning of mankind. When there is any physical or mental discomfort people naturally touch and sometimes press with their hands on themselves or others. We still put our palm on our forehead when we have some trouble happening in our life, saying “Oh, no!”, don’t we?
As the spirit of mankind grew, religion and other culture developed. In the beginning the healer was the priest in primitive religion, now we call them a medium or a shaman. That’s why the word “medicine” is in “medicine man”, they were the healers. Therefore, it could be said that manual hand therapy is the original form of medicine.
Principle of Science is not Useful to Heal a Living Body
In our age, medicine has developed out of two necessities. One is military necessity, to treat soldiers on the battle field. The other is to treat infectious disease. Since the discovery of viruses in the 17th century, western medicine seems to have succeeded in fighting infectious disease. Actually infectious disease reduced its potency at the same time that public hygiene was developed in the west. Before that time there were no toilets in the west. Surprisingly, even in Versailles Palace there were no toilets. In Japan, public baths and toilets were developed in Edo period, which was about 400 years ago. Some say that public hygiene was the cause of reduced infectious disease, not medical treatment.
In our age, wise people started to realize that the idea “development of medicine will cure all diseases some day in the future” is an illusion. As a matter of fact we are facing the reality that the number of the patients hasn’t reduced at all. In fact we are building more and more hospitals. The number of patients is increasing. Therefore medical expenses are increasing year by year, and now in the USA, are becoming greater than military expenses. Western medicine is very useful for acute disease and surgery but we still have thousands of chronically ill patients who have not been cured by western medicine. Some medical specialists have started to point out that one day antibiotics will no longer be effective. This could signal the end and the beginning.
Beginning to realize that a living body cannot be healed like fixing a machine, mechanically ? One’s health and healing processes are very much controlled, or influenced, by one’s subconscious. Western medicine does not have any way to heal a patient’s subconsciousness.
Western medicine is based on natural science (western medical doctors are scientists). The basic principle of natural science is separation of object and subject. In natural science, the heart (mind) is not supposed to influence matter. For example, if the result of a scientific experiment is controlled or influenced by the mind of the observer, it can never actually be called science. The result of a scientific experiment has to be completely objective, and has to achieve the same result in the same physical conditions no matter what the heart (mental) state of the experimenter is. Western doctors are not supposed to think about the heart (mind) state of the both doctor and patient. The heart is not supposed to change the effectiveness of the treatment. And that’s what we call ‘proven by the data’, and what people in this modern age believe, as followers of this religion called “science”.
This faith, in the religion of science, is based on what has been gained by the grace of science and technology. Just as when somebody gives us comfort, we believe what this person says. All of material civilization has been developed by the science and technology. This human psychological tendency means we cannot refuse what science says. We accept the world view of natural science, for example the duality in subject and object, of heart (mind) and matter etc.
The world view of science is very useful when developing technology. But it is not so convenient for understanding how the living body can be healed, because the living body is controlled by the heart (subconscious). Therefore, I say that in the modern age treating the living body for chronic disease is like treating shoes but not the foot. Some people feel that the foot is cured when the shoes are repaired. Because of this, the imagination of the patient is affected by western medicine. Western medicine is very much depending on “follower’s faith”. An important part of health and healing is controlled by the subconscious. In this regard, western medical thinking is missing a significant part.
Alfred or somebody: But it’s not a common idea now ?
Everybody knows about the placebo effect. That an image could take way your pain means your heart (mind) affected your physiology to produce endorphins. It means heart (image) affected matter (brain). If you are hypnotized and somebody puts a pen on your arm and says, “this is burning hot iron tongs!”. Your arm will be burned physically; it is not different from real burn. Isn’t this also proof of how the heart affects body? The principle of science that “heart (mind) has no influence on matter” isn’t working in these examples. Of course to move matter with an image only happens in very special cases, almost never happens. We must realize that to use the principles of science has little meaning for the healing of the patient.
To understand the meaning of manual therapy in our age means to understand that it is an illusion that “disease can be cured with physical way”. This illusion has been with us since the 17th century. We must start to research “how we can heal a patient’s subconscious?”
We must remember that the skin is connected to mid-brain (and automatic nervous system) and that we can affect the subconscious through touching the skin. In this age we will realize that manual therapy, Shiatsu, can be the most effective to way to treat human subconscious.
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I believe that it is clear to everybody that Eastern medicine is Meridian medicine and meridian is stream of Ki. Which means eastern healer has to treat Ki (meridian).
If western medicine knows how to recognize meridian and how to treat Ki, to study western medical approach is meaningful. Does Western medicine knows about Ki and meridian?
To study Western medicine means , analyzing body as gathered parts ,and see body as duality of heart and body. Of course we need those two aspects as common sense to live in a modern age.
But please have this common sense too.
All words of Eastern medicine , such as Kyo Jitsu , etc , are all from the words of Eastern philosophy, is because Eastern medicine is based on Eastern philosophy. By the way, in the West, philosophy is the way to understand truth (or world) by thought.
But Eastern philosophy, is to ,actually feel the true reality of the world with the experience of heart and body. (therefore Tao philosopher is also practitioner)
And, one of the basic concepts of eastern philosophy( and also medicine) is oneness of Subject and Object.
I want to know, how can you ignore the main concept of eastern medicine, such as oneness of subject of object?
To follow the way of Western medicine is to accept the duality. As gestalt psychology shows you when you see the back ground you don’t recognize the main form.
When you see world based on duality, you will not recognize the world of oneness of subject and object , which we call Ki in another name. And the truth is that meridian can only be recognized in the world of Ki , the world of oneness of subject and object.
To study western medicine seems like studying how to measure the size of apple, when we need to know the taste.
3. In your books you speak of Shiatsu to be the direct expression of the heart.
How would you explain the terms Ki and Heart and its relationship in Shiatsu?
Principle of Eastern Medicine is not just words
I think I made it clear that oneness of the subject and object is the basic principle of Eastern Medicine. This principle is practical, not something to be just understood with words. It is not like an affirmation often uttered by politicians, such as, “Let’s make peace,” or “I guarantee a better society.” This principle is a reality of Ki and meridians. If I explain this in a clinical Tao Shiatsu aspect, the Subject is the practitioner’s heart and the Object is the patient’s body.
Let’s say a Tao Shiatsu practitioner is in some specific state of heart, for example fully and purely wishing the best life for the receiver, and/or is 100% faithful to Tao Shiatsu. In this state of the heart, even if the practitioner isn’t touching the receiver’s body at all, the meridians of the receiver are reflected into the Tao Shiatsu practitioner’s heart. In Tao Shiatsu class, receivers (all students) can feel that meridians respond to the giver’s heart. It is a fact, and this is the way to learn meridians in Tao Shiatsu studies.
Meridian responds to the practitioner’s heart
A Tao Shiatsu practitioner will see the meridian in his/her own heart as an image. And if the practitioner won’t cut this meridian image at any moment, (i.e. focus on a different image such as the time, or weather, etc), the practitioner can touch the receiver’s meridian and be able to treat exactly where the meridian exists.
In this work there is no room for guessing, such as “maybe the liver meridian is here” or “in the chart, the lung meridian is here, so it should be here”. This is simply because the practitioner is recognizing the meridian exactly and at the same time, the receiver is feeling where the meridian is responding. If the practitioner works on the patient’s meridian with this state of heart, the practitioner can give truly effective meridian treatment.
If Shiatsu is a medical method of meridian treatment….
I repeat again, what is “subject” and “object” in the clinical work of Tao Shiatsu or Eastern Medicine? The state of the heart and the image is the “subject” and the patient’s meridian is the “object”. The meridian (object) exists where the practitioner has imagined (subject). But please don’t think what the practitioner has imagined is created by him/herself.
As I said, the meridian image in clinical practice is a reflection from the receiver’s Ki. I think I need to make this clear. Actually the Ki of the Meridian will not respond spontaneously. A meridian is living Ki. A meridian won’t respond to the practitioner’s daily life state and/or heart while in a state of dualism (separation of practitioner and patient). A meridian only responds to the practitioner’s Tao Heart (such as wishing the best life for others, faith to Tao, etc.)
*Note: Tao Shiatsu students study and practice the Ten Tao Hearts, which allow meridians to respond to the practitioner’s image at the same moment. Why the same moment? Because both are one. Therefore, if Shiatsu is the medical method of the meridian treatment, it is impossible not to speak about the heart. A meridian is a flow of Ki, and actually, the practitioner is able to treat the meridian only through the same state of heart.
Let’s look at an example. Imagine you are shooting a video. There is a video camera and a monitor. Your heart can represent the video camera, and the monitor the receiver’s body. Also, let’s say you are treating a meridian, but not clearly recognizing what state of heart you are in every moment. This is the same as trying to move the location of the monitor, unsure of what your video camera is focusing on.
Ki belongs to the world of heart
If you agree that a meridian is not physical matter and that it is a flow of Ki as written in classics, you understand that a meridian belongs to the world of heart, and not the physical world, right? Also nobody agrees that Ki belongs to any part of the body, right? That’s why it is hard for me to understand why so many people are trying to recognize a meridian as a fixed location on the body.
Does one think that their knowledge of the meridians, as shown in meridian charts is true? Some believe it is possible to recognize meridians based on knowledge and dualism, but I must say that it is an illusion.
Meridian treatment is not physical work because meridians are Ki. Meridian treatment is the heart work of the practitioner. The meridian method is not more than, and not less than, the expression of the practitioner’s heart and spirit.
4. We are living in material culture
Difference between Tao Shiatsu and other Shiatsu? …..There is big difference in view as medical treatment. Actually this difference is not just between Tao Shiatsu and other Shiatsu. Tao Shiatsu and all treatment method in modern age.
In primitive age , view of medical treatment is how to take away bad spirit from the patient. Because cause of disease is bad spirit, and Medicine man or Shaman were working as a doctor for this purpose.
Well, but generally , in modern age, people see everything as only physical aspect of existence. We humans are all materialist now . And that’s why when we have disease, we think something wrong happened in part of the body. And hospitals diagnose us with very expensive machines, and tell us what’s wrong in a body physically.
As I said, the cause of all internal diseases are from the wounds of patient’s subconscious. Therefore purpose of treatment has to be “how to heal wounds of subconscious of the patient”.
In fact, Eastern medicine has view and philosophy that “heart and body are one”. In ancient times, they knew that the cause of disease is Ki, and that’s why disease in Japanese is Byo ki.(Sickness in Ki)
I dare to say this because ,this is not well know in general but actually, subconscious and Ki is the same thing described in different word. When Eastern medicine talks about oneness of the heart and body, heart means subconscious.
I would like to ask you , if heart and body are one, why does Eastern medical practitioner not think about “how to heal the heart of patient” instead of pushing this point or stick needle to the point number XX, taking this herb?
Why do modern age Eastern doctors only talk about physical method and don’t care about patient’s heart? even though heart is one with body?
Master Masunaga said “If the purpose of treatment is to treat physical body, even when they are using materials of Eastern medicine , such as needles, or hands or herbs, and working those methods, we cannot call it Eastern medicine” If practitioner is working on a patient’s body without trying to affect the patient’s subconscious, it is not different than the attitude of Western doctors.
Then, I think now you can understand why many of Eastern medicine schools demand Western way of Shiatsu ,can’t you ?
Anyway , back to the subject , purpose of Tao Shiatsu treatment is to heal patient’s subconscious , because Ki is subconscious. This is the specific difference between Tao Shiatsu and not only other Shiatsu but any medical treatment method of the modern age.
Doin Anma as Yin and Yang
The Anma which was origin of Shiatsu, was the center of Eastern medicine and was called Doin/Anma. Doin is self discipline to develop one’s own Ki and Anma is give others treatment with Ki. And because Doin /Anma was one set as Yin and Yang, in ancient China. Therefore basically all manual therapist was martial art players as well. Traditionally they practiced martial arts in the mountain and gave treatment down in the city.
About art, for example, students of Chinese philosopher Confucius , had to study four subjects in order to learn Tao. calligraphy , music, painting , and Chinese chess. Also in ancient Greece, music was one of main methods to heal disease. Are these enough to explain about relationship, martial arts and art and Shiatsu?
Ki belongs to world of oneness
About spirituality, if people are asking me such a question, I understand that people in general think that it is not common to practice both spiritual way and Eastern medicine, isn’t it?
As I said , to recognize or diagnose and treat meridian , the heart state of practitioner has to go beyond the duality, such as Subject & Object, heart & body, heart & matter ,nature & me ,you and me, etc.
Why we have to go beyond duality ? One ( reason) is that Ki itself belongs to the world of oneness. (that’s why science can never prove existence of Ki)
And the meridian, which is the flow of Ki can only be recognized in the heart, when practitioner’s is in a state of beyond duality.
Beyond duality is state of emptiness
The word “beyond duality” sounds very philosophical. So you might think that you must sit and meditate and be in emptiness state in order to gain beyond duality state. Also you might think that emptiness is sitting as rock . Isn’t it?
But if so, I must say that there is big missing aspect in your understanding. Heart of beyond duality is the heart of compassion.
Actually setsu-shin is touch diagnose in Eastern medicine, and the word setsu means cut. Why cut? It symbolically expressed that feeling of the practitioner’s heart is just as feeling one’s heart is cut, when you see somebody in pain. And that’s why the word compassion is called JI-HI in Buddhism (in Japanese). Ji is compassion and Hi is sadness. Why sadness? Because feeling pain when see others suffering. Beyond duality means feeling others pain as your own pain . That’s what it means , oneness of subject and object. Of course we cannot have same sensation in physical body as what patient has. But in the meridian treatment, we feel that everything that’s happening in patients in Ki field and meridian is completely synchronizing to what’s happening in practitioner’s heart. Yes if there is some amount of ego conscious, we don’t realize it. But if there is emptiness state in our heart, you will see in your heart that everything what happening in patient’s meridian is 100% reflecting to own heart as in an image. In addition, in clinical practice there are some piece of ego conscious in the state of emptiness. Otherwise we cannot diagnose and judge where to work .
Feeling other problem as your own problem, this is the feeling of practitioner who are living beyond duality. Therefore beyond duality doesn’t mean just sit and meditate and feel nothing about others. It is very warm heart. It is feeling full of care of others. Being responsible to others happiness and about future of the world.
Therefore also the word “emptiness” doesn’t mean you recognize outside world as “nothing exists”. Emptiness is state of the heart to be full compassion to whole world or universe , and in the Nembutsu practice (Mahayana Buddhist Chanting meditation) if you are fully focused your heart to Buddha and all being in the universe, you will receive the state that you don’t exist. I believe that this is same state when Paul wrote “Now I don’t live any more , Jesus is living in me” Therefore basic concept of Mahayana Buddhism is pray for all beings, and reach state of emptiness.
Dream or reality of the future?
And you know that “ be responsible to each others life” is most missing part of people living in modern age.? You know this is the reason why so many people are spending unhappy life?. Why so many people are lonely? Why so many people worry about the future with the words “If something happens---”?. Because there is no guarantee to be cared by others. Who is responsible to your happiness for now and future? If no body , then bank account will be the only thing you can depend on. Therefore insurance company has so as many customers as population. The heart of duality is not taking responsibility to each others happiness. This is not normal , or may I say people don’t think this way of living is abnormal itself is sickness of this time and age.
Therefore let’s imagine the opposite. Imagine if people are taking responsibility to other people’s happiness each other. They are all carrying other’s problem as their own problem. This is the heart state beyond duality. They no longer live and work only for their future concern.
Then how will this society be? There will be no lonely people. There will be no people who worry about their future. There will be no unhappy people.
Do you think it’s a dream? Or it will be reality someday in the future?
There is only clear fact with this subject. If this is just a dream, human being will never be able to create happy society, no matter how much civilization is improved, no matter how much life becomes comfortable by technology, human beings life is just miserable
because no one can escape from the principle of the nature, as Shakamuni Buddha cleared. The principle is “we all get old and die some day in the future”
Why many young people find it difficult to live?
In modern age, human beings have created a highly developed civilization. If you are born in developed countries , there is no starvation. You don ‘t have to fight for survive as we were fighting with mammoths. But at the same time ,difference between rich and poor is increasing and
many young people have no hope in the future. They know either consciously or unconsciously ,that happiness won’t come with the way we have been developing to build modern society…. For example we human beings still haven’t found the economic system to make people happy. And there is one ironic thing. The convenience of living by the high technology increases people’s mental suffering. Do you know why?
One is because if life is not so convenient who needs the help of others ? And that make people nice to each other and to care about each other. But we are living in the society where we can live without having any contact with other people . For example we can order pizza by internet and they will deliver it to you. As long as we have money , we don’t need to depend on others. We can use others by paying money to them.
The other reason is that if we are busy with how to survive, we don’t have no time to think about “what is the meaning of life!?” “what is true in life!?” But now, especially young people , they have a lot of time, without necessity to spend time to survive.
And that’s why many young people in developed countries are feeling that it is difficult to live. They are unconsciously confronting those problems of the life as representative of mankind ‘s spirit. (in ancient time only few people had to confront to solve these problem in the life and they became famous philosophers, spiritual sages, etc)
Next spiritual development of mankind
It’s because , now is the time and age that the spirt of mankind is progressing to next development. Simultaneously, we are facing the reality that word view of duality which created separation among people itself was the cause of unhappy life. Of course ,duality , the Science and technology , was useful for material happiness. But it was not useful for spiritual happiness of mankind and this is effecting people’s mental life.
We human beings are created as to feel happiness only when we work together and share good result from it . Sharing goodness is only way to make ourself happy. And this principle our DNA hasn’t disappeared or changed since we fought together with mammoths and shared food. As every cell of our body is created to help each other , we human beings are created in that same way .
Therefore, in a next spiritual development, of human beings ,the view of the world will be based on beyond duality. In the next development people will be no longer not be responsible to other’s happiness. This should be post modern next step after highly developed civilization age.
Then what about in medical field in the next development? As we all know, the medicine based on view of duality was useful for the battle field and of course it is still useful for the emergency treatment . But in the next development of human being’s spirit, we will realize that it is not useful for disease in general. Human beings will be awaken to this reality , that true clinical effectiveness will happen by the method which is based on view of oneness of heart and body.
And those are the reasons why Tao Shiastu is so much involved with spiritual practice such as Buddhist chanting meditation called Nembutsu.