The Art of Longevity

"Anti-aging requires an understanding of longevity wisdom. Your Creator has given you built-in body wisdom to keep you forever young and healthy. Essentially, it is an innate awareness of not only your body’s basic needs but also all the signs and signals by which your body warns you of what is wrong with you. So, invoke and embrace that wisdom."
~Stephen Lau

     When Master Jiro Murai revived the ancient art of Jin Shin Jyutsu around 1920, one of the terms that he used to described Jin Shin Jyutsu was the Art of Longevity: Live fully, experience each breath fully.
      Most of us are raised to believe that growing older means a progressive decline in health, wellness, mental and physical ability.  I feel lucky to have had the most amazing Young Grandmother! She passed a few years ago at over 90 years old but throughout my life she  has been an inspiration in vitality. I have vivid memories of her smiling and living life fully. In her 80's she was encouraged to participate in the local Senor Center activities.. but she declined saying "Why would I want to hang out with those old people?"  She ran her own antique shop into her 80's, active and fun-loving. This woman had life to LIVE! She always made such an impression on me that for as long as I can remember, I would tell her that when I was as old as her, I wanted to be as young as she was! For me, she set the example that a study by researchers at North Carolina State University in 2009 concluded-that you really are only as old as you think you are. Thank you Grandma!

      "While scientists have to date largely focused on the biology of longevity, the secrets of living to an exceptional age lie more in our personalities, attitudes, support systems and life experiences than our genes." ~Leonard W. Poon

    Regular Jin Shin Jyutsu sessions and self-help provides a valuable support system as it is aids in restoring the body's energy systems to a balanced, efficient, functioning state. It's practice helps us to take charge of our negative attitudes and to change the self-defeating belief of inevitable aging. It teaches us to master the art of living and to seeing aging as an opportunity for greater peace of mind, wisdom, creativity and happiness. Jin Shin Jyutsu brings to us a new awareness of our limitless life energy and of our ability to partake of the effortless reality, which is our birthright. We can then expect the best results by learning and practicing good health habits for staying healthy and reducing stress. Jin Shin Jyutsu brings to us a new awareness of our limitless life energy and of our ability to partake of the effortless reality, which is our birthright. We can then expect the best results by learning and practicing good health habits for staying healthy and reducing stress. Ultimately, Jin Shin Jyutsu will restore you to a knowledge of yourself and of your long dormant innate ability to improve the quality of your life.

"Controlling mental and physical stress is the key to a long, healthy and happy life." ~Nicholas Perricone, M.D.

Our Energy Centers

"All Creation proceeds from unity."
~Mary Burmeister

      This week I want to introduce you to the energy centers of the body that Jin Shin Jyutsu refers to as "Safety Energy Locks". I am sure that many of you are familiar with the Chakras from Yoga and other healing traditions. A chakra is defined as a wheel, or vortex of energy. There are seven major chakras that flow through a human’s energetic system. All of these major chakras are on the Main Central Flow Pathway and make up our energetic blueprint connecting us to Source energy and our soul purpose.
      Interestingly, Safety Energy Locks have the same definition! They are  defined as vortices of spiralling energy. To my way of thinking, they can be considered "minor chakras" on our energy map. They mark the locations of intersecting energetic pathways or meridians often at skeletal junctures.
      I have many clients ask about this curious name-Safety Energy Lock. Jin Shin Jyutsu recognizes 26 pairs of these energy centers in our bodies. These areas are much more than fixed points and encompass and area approximately the size of our hand. Each one of them has a specific meaning that is expressed through its number and is closely related to its placement on the body. They act like the circuit breakers on the electrical system in our homes and lock when the flow of energy in a pathway is too much, too little or stagnant-to warn and protect us from further disharmony. When one or more of these safety energy locks become blocked, a local disruption can occur, eventually resulting in disharmony of the energetic pathway completely. Just like in your home electrical system, if an outlet is overloaded, it blows the breaker that feeds that outlet, but does not shut down the whole electrical system. If the breaker is not reset, you can just shift the plugs to another outlet. This outlet will also break as it becomes overloaded and the process will continue until the entire system shuts down. A single breaker switch shutting down is a warning that you have overloaded the circuitry and attention must be paid to what you are doing. It is just the same thing with the energy system of our bodies. These twenty-six Energy Locks serve as breaker switches. If enough are blown over a period of time, disharmonies will occur in your physical, emotional, or mental well-being.  Another picture that describes for me what happens in the body, it to imagine our highway system of roads. Where many roads intersect there are overlaps and junctions, referred to in many cities as "malfunction junction". All it takes is one accident at the junction to slow traffic from coming and going in many directions!
     Jin Shin Jyutsu teaches us to heed the warning of pain-which is our indicator that something is out of order and energy locks are shutting down. By simply holding the stuck energy center we can unlock the flow of energy and return ourselves to harmony. It really is that simple: Hold the pain and clear the stagnation!

"Smile, breathe and go slowly."
~Thich Nhat Hanh

Your Letters

Hi Beth,

Currently using main central, and finger holds but can you recommend other flows for fibromyalgia?

Thank you.
South Carolina

Fibromyalgia Tender Points

Hello SC,

What you have been doing is a good start and always a good choice...

I find it interesting that the "tender points" used to diagnose Fibromyalgia are all located on or near safety energy locks!
SO for starters I would be holding those tender points... ideally a tender point and Safety energy lock 1 (Whichever side 1 is easiest or feels best) as the 1's bring "stuff" out of the body.

More things that you can do...

~Hold 5 and 16. Good for pain and is specific to fibromyalgia. Right hand always on the 5 and left hand always on the 16 no matter which foot you are doing.

~Mediator flow - for left side R hand on Left 11, Make a ring with left thumb over left ring finger and Right foot on Left 1. Reverse for other side.

~Hold the backs of you knees. This is a powerful, simple flow that clears through the entire body.

I am attaching an image with the Safety Energy Locks and also the "tender points"...
Just keep doing your self-help as often as possible. No one can control the amount of time it takes to clear things from the body.. but know that everything that you do is helping on some level!

Let me know if you have any other questions~

Thinking about Attitudes

I honestly can't say this any better than Charles Swindoll does in the following quote. SO this week, I simply share his quote with you as food for thought. I first ran across this quote at the bank of all places! I was opening a new account at our local bank and the bank manager had this quote framed on his desk. I got him to make me a copy and it has hung over my desk ever since.

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past-we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you-WE are in charge of our Attitudes.”
~Charles R. Swindoll

Take charge of your ATTITUDES. Remember that the simple act of holding your fingers will balance all of your Attitudes and transform them into the positive emotions that we all thrive on. Refer to the image below for the finger to hold to balance each attitude. If you don't remember which finger to hold, I suggest that you take a quick inventory of your fingers... hold each finger for a second or two, as you go through each finger see which one REALLY wants to be HELD. Then go back and hold THAT one. It really is that simple. We are in charge of our attitudes and nature has given each of us an easy and accessible way to do so.

"The day always looks brighter from behind a smile."
-Unknown

 

Mediator Flow: the Birthplace of Attitudes

"Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind and spirit. When one is free from physical disabilities and mental distractions, the gates of the soul open." ~B.K.S. Iyengar

Through its direct connection to Universal Source Energy and the energetic blueprint contained in the Main Central Flow, our very essence is manifested into our total being. The Main Central sets in motion the two Major Vertical Supervisor Harmonizing Energies that supervise the development of each respective side of the body. The next flow set in motion by the Main Central is the Diagonal Mediator Flow. The Diagonal Mediator is the weaving princess and ensures that all the flows within the body will cross at the Main Central so that they may constantly receive revitalizing life energy from the Source.

I will always remember my first 5-day Jin Shin Jyutsu seminar and my teacher's explanation of this trinity of flows. She was so animated as she explained how the Main Central was the ONE and it existed in peace at the center of everything. Then the Supervisors came into being, the TWO. And when there are two, disharmony becomes a possibility. With the existence of TWO there is then a need for the THREE and with three, mediation becomes not only possible but necessary.

I have begun to think of these three flows, as they relate to our personal three-fold nature of Body, Mind and Spirit. I see that the Main Central Flow is the Spirit flow, the source of our existence, the essence of our Being, the primordial fire. The Supervisor Flows are the Body flow, the reflection of each side becoming physical, the essence of duality with the responsiblilty for converting the unmanifest potential of the Main Central into the physical form. And finally the Diagonal Mediator Flows are of the Mind, the mental/emotional component of our being. The Diagonal Mediators give us the ability to connect, to move, to create action and are the birthplace of our emotions and attitudes.

We know that the body is affected by the air, food, activities, thoughts and stresses that we experience each moment of living. Our attitudes dis-harmonize the flow of life energy in our bodies and disrupt the pathways which deliver the limitless supply of life energy to every part of our physical being. Attitude is the way you mentally look at the world around you. It is how you view your environment and your future. It is the focus you develop toward life itself. Attitudes keep us from freely being all that we have the potential to BE. Remember that divine feelings are love and disease feelings are attitudes.

The Diagonal Mediator Flows start at the left and right shoulders and travel through both sides of the body, from back to front, side to side, and top to bottom. They end at the knee on the opposite side of where they started. They harmonize the left and right Supervisor Flows with each other and with the Main Central Flow, and are important to our overall supply of energy. The Mediator Flows make sure that all the flows in the body are revitalized by the Main Central and help balance both sides of the body.

When it is out of order, the Mediator Flow is the main cause for malfunctions in the body energy circulation patterns. On the other hand, when it is in balance it mediates energy flow from one side of the body to the other and helps us to get out of our minds.  Mediator is great for frozen shoulders, finger numbness, nose bleeds, clearing arm and shoulder projects, elimination, respiratory projects, reproductive projects and reduces fatigue, tension and stress while eliminating the negative effects of our attitudes. The Mediator Flow is a great assistant to bringing our BEing into balance-body, mind and spirit. 

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes."
~William James

Diagonal Mediator Flow
The Self-help for the Mediator is simple and consists of doing the following three things together. You may find this flow is easiest to do while lying down and is very nice after doing the Supervisor Flow described here.

Right side:
1. right thumb over the right ring fingernail;
2. drape your left hand over your right shoulder-where neck and shoulder come together;
3. rest your left instep on the inside corner of the crease of the right knee or simply bring the knees together.

Left side:
1. left thumb over the left ring fingernail;
2. drape your right hand over your left shoulder-where neck and shoulder come together;
3. rest your right instep on the inside corner of the crease of the left knee or simply bring the knees together.

“Every action of our lives
touches on some chord
that will vibrate in eternity.”
~Edwin Hubbell Chapin

A Jin Shin Jyutsu Session:

    Our bodies are designed to heal themselves, we need only find ways to bring the body back to harmony and balance so that healing can happen. For a session, the fully clothed client lies face up on a very comfortable treatment table. Jin Shin Jyutsu is gentle with hands placed over the client's clothes and does not involve manipulation, massage or rubbing.
    As the energy pathways are cleared and energy flows freely, the body will heal itself from everyday stress. It boosts our own profound healing capacities and thus promotes optimal health, well-being and vitality.
    Jin Shin Jyutsu is highly recommended both before and after surgical procedures. It can minimize bleeding and swelling during the procedure, and promotes rapid healing and detoxification of medications/anesthesia.
    A Jin Shin Jyutsu session generally lasts an hour although half-hour children's sessions and mini sessions for busy adults are available. Benefits extend well beyond hands-on sessions with the practitioner, as clients are taught the application of self help geared toward their individual needs.

"At the heart of each of us, whatever our imperfections, there exists a silent pulse of perfect rhythm, which is absolutely individual and unique, and yet which connects us to everything else." ~George Leonard

Creating Balance

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Through its direct connection to Universal Source Energy and the energetic blueprint contained in the Main Central Flow, our very essence is manifested into our total being.  The Main Central is the energy flow that created and sustains us, setting our other energy flows in motion and becoming a strong regular force for our bodies when it is allowed to flow freely down the front and up the back.

The first energy flow set in motion by the Main Central Flow is the two Major Vertical Supervisor Harmonizing Energies. These two flows create and maintain our physical form and are the birthplace of the pairs of energy centers that Jin Shin Jytusu refers to as Safety Energy Locks. The Supervisor Flows monitor or supervise the development of each respective side of the body.

"Unity can only be manifested by the Binary. Unity itself and the idea of Unity are already two." ~Buddha

The Main Central Flow is where life begins - the beginning of One and serves as the bridge between unmanifested blueprint spirit energy and the manifested physical energy. The energy of the Supervisor Flow is responsible for converting that unmanifest potential into the physical form. These two Supervisor Flows, create a duality, each side a reflection of the other creating a balanced symmetry of complementary polarities.

Left and Right Supervisor Flows
The left and right Supervisor Flows are like two vertical ovals of energy, one on each side of the body.

Right side:
Left hand over right shoulder where neck & shoulder come together.
Right hand on right "sitting" bone.
Right hand on right hip crease/groin.

Left side:
Right hand over left shoulder where neck & shoulder come together.
Left hand on left "sitting" bone.
Left hand on left hip crease/groin.

Do these flows daily to create and maintain a balance between each half of the body. These flows are especially useful to clear the head, improve breathing, aid digestion, and reduce stress in the back.

"Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless."
~Jamie Paolinetti