Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/68178
ENERGY WORK AND MASSAGE and focus still the nervous system as the therapist listens, through his or her hands, to cranial waves. The degrees to which the hands and fingers become deft channels of sensation determine the potency of treatment. Well-boundaried resonance and attunement are much more significant than strength. There is no emphasis on pressure, thereby freeing the practitioner's joints and ligaments. The cultivation of these skills activates the therapist's neo-cortical or higher brain and upper chakra faculties. Thus, practitioners evolve their own consciousness while treating the client. The clarity and intelligence of some of the masters of these subtle protocols is a testament to the enduring and invigorating benefits to the practitioner. Osteopath Edward Stiles, who teaches how to sequence or read the body before and throughout treatment using subtle attuned touch, is entering his 70s. He is buoyant, developing new theories, actively teaching, and attracting more and more students. Mary Iino Burmeister, master of jin shin and the inspiration for Jin Shin Tara, died last year at the age of 86. She was transmitting her wisdom up until her last breath, despite a serious accident 18 years ago. It may be a secret to longevity to include the use of interventions that fuel and refuel practitioners while they care for others. The call for inner strength in terms of vision, detachment, joyful witnessing, and educated perception uplifts the therapist while simultaneously providing the highest level of service to others. Manual skills are a blessing, but perceptual and attunement skills provide precious balance and stand on their own as irreplaceable services. At whatever your level of expertise, the introduction of energy medicine opens the door to miracles. Michael Moriarity, a student doing his internship at Lotus Blooms Massage Institute, where energy medicine studies were provided and encouraged (the school has since closed), reports this experience: "In my first student massage, I treated a woman who had been receiving massages several times a week for some time. I found a hard knot on her right gluteus maximus. This was so chronically painful that touching her there was entirely impossible. So I held Jin Shin Tara points on the areas surrounding her discomfort. After a minute or so, I gently checked and found that the knot had softened. The massage continued and concluded. An hour later, the client called on the telephone excitedly declaring that she could stand up straight for the first time in years." Awareness is freedom and freedom is the sign of health. We feel free in our minds, our bodies, and our spirits when we realize the interconnectedness that is available to everyone at every moment in our own lives. This is the true purpose of all therapies. "Perhaps of the many ills that have been tossed upon contemporary society, none has been more devastating than the feeling of disconnectedness from spiritual existence," says physician James Eden. Massage therapists and bodyworkers can, through the integration of massage and energy medicines, mend that rift. This is a priceless gift we are honored to offer. director of the TARA Approach for the Resolution of Shock and Trauma. Her design represents the new paradigm in somatic therapy that combines Eastern meridian-based therapies and Western neuropsychology to bring balance to the nervous system and enhance human potential. The TARA Approach is taught worldwide. For more information, please visit www.tara-approach.org. Stephanie Mines, PhD, is the founder and Manual skills are a blessing, but perceptual and attunement skills provide precious balance and stand on their own as irreplaceable services. Author's Note: The therapies mentioned in this article are not intended to be an exhaustive list of integrative modalities. Likewise, the list of resources on page 43 is only intended to spur further research. connect with your colleagues on massageprofessionals.com 45