Seifukujutsu - the Healing Hands of Jujutsu

[Makalakumu]

I've been training in Dan Zan Ryu jujutsu and part of that system is an art called Seifukujutsu. This is turning out to be some of the most useful training I've ever experienced in the martial arts...beyond learning how to fall. I use the massage techniques on my family, I use the breathing exercises and stretches to work on my own training bumps, bruises, and strains. I know at one time, most of the martial arts had healing components incorporated into the curriculum. Do you practice a martial art with a healing component? If so, what is it like? What is your experience with it?

 

[jks9199]

Over the last decade or so, Dr. Gyi has moved heavily into balancing the "Three Hs": Hurting, Healing, and Harmonizing. He's shared a partner yoga system (letha yoga) which is intended or purposed for healing the damage of work, life, and martial arts training. (Harmonizing is about developing a balance and peace within yourself and with the world -- though there's a lot more than that one sentence to it.)

It's been pretty amazing how much it's helped some people.

 

[shesulsa]

The laying-on-of-hands finds many forms in the history of mankind as a modality of healing. In our modern alternative medicines, it is found in applied kinesiology, massage, touch for health, reiki, and various other igaku.

I invite you to research Jin Shin Jyutsu - I have some of the out-of-print books on this almost lost art.

Many believe the energy flow (biomagnetic energy, ki/chi, universal life force, Holy Spirit, whatever) itself courses into, through, and out from the body, that areas can become stagnant, others can be wide open to lose this. Laying on of hands, even to oneself, can help direct and correct even the non-spiritual energies the body itself produces to enhance health, longevity, healing and wellness.

I am curious where this will take you, John. Please keep us posted on your experiences with this.

 

[Makalakumu]

I find the art fascinating. In this particular jujutsu dojo, the healing aspects are stressed equally with the self defense aspects. I've never come across such a thing...but then again, that is the differences that attracted me to this dojo in the first place.

Sensei is a doctor of TCM as well as many other things. We learn the Okazaki method of massage right along side our jujutsu techniques and we learn other principles of accupressure and accupuncture, shiatsu, and lomi lomi.

What I like the most about this is that I usually have to keep all of my martial arts training hidden. Be like a fish in the ocean, never show your power to anyone. This is something that can be readily shared. My family, other students, friends who are suffering form headaches, various aches and pains, and/or nausea, I've got techniques that really help with those things.

And I have to tell you, the feeling is amazing when you work on someone and they feel better afterward.

 

[Makalakumu]

The laying-on-of-hands finds many forms in the history of mankind as a modality of healing. In our modern alternative medicines, it is found in applied kinesiology, massage, touch for health, reiki, and various other igaku.

I invite you to research Jin Shin Jyutsu - I have some of the out-of-print books on this almost lost art.

Many believe the energy flow (biomagnetic energy, ki/chi, universal life force, Holy Spirit, whatever) itself courses into, through, and out from the body, that areas can become stagnant, others can be wide open to lose this. Laying on of hands, even to oneself, can help direct and correct even the non-spiritual energies the body itself produces to enhance health, longevity, healing and wellness.

I am curious where this will take you, John. Please keep us posted on your experiences with this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jin_Shin_Do

Is that the art or is that an offshoot? Thanks for the recommendation, it sounds interesting.

 

[shesulsa]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jin_Shin_Do

Is that the art or is that an offshoot? Thanks for the recommendation, it sounds interesting.

I haven't looked through the book referenced, so I really can't say, but I noticed the website for Jin Shin Do calls what they do "bodymind accupressure" and I can assure you, Jin Shin Jyutsu involves no pressure whatsoever and I have no reason to believe the two arts are linked - what I see from the webpage I looked at appears to be more of a touch-for-health theme. You can still find the book "Touch For Health" through bn.com and amazon, I believe.

I'll do some more digging. The energy-balancing found here is designed to be performed on oneself, but you can put your hands over the hands of another who is too infirm to complete this task (especially useful on the pubic bone placement). Try this every morning and evening and see what it does for you. *A note on this; it is not required to use the very middle finger for touch here, in fact the middle finger is known to channel anger - rather use the pads of the first three fingers together.

I *highly* recommend you keep a healing journal for yourself and take notes on what you do and how you feel. When you're feeling pretty good, I have a new exercise for you which is based in Reiki but crosses all lines of touch therapy and you may find it produces a rather euphoric phenomenon.

I'd like to know more about this that you're learning, though. Can you be more specific about the massage involved?

 

[Makalakumu]

Henry (Seishiro) Okazaki emigrated to Hawaii around the turn of the century and was daignosed with TB...which was a death sentence back then. Instead of laying down and dying, he began to study martial arts with a master of Yoshin Ryu on the Big Island. From there, he was able to study several other martial arts including Hawaiian Lua from which Lomi Lomi massage is derived.

In 1928, he synthesized what he learned and formulated a new school of Jujutus called Dan Zan Ryu, or Hawaiian Jujutsu. Okazaki drew from the various healing traditions involved in the traditional martial arts he was learning and formed his own method of massage, called the Okazaki Method.

The way that DZR is taught in my dojo is that students learn how to perform the martial applications of the kata techniques as well as the healing applications. From Ukemi, yawara, nage and shime, we learn the basics of the healing system and the body manipulations therein. A student can practice the healing applications when going through kata list or they an practice the SD applications. It's just a different focus.

It's the closest thing that I can find where a modern martial art passed on the healing components that used to belong to it. Eventually, I'd like to learn how this applies to karate...and since Okazaki studied with some the first Okinawans to come to Hawaii, I'm sure there is a direct connection in the healing method. This especially becomes apparent after one reads the Bubishi. A lot of our kata techniques are described verbatim and in pictures in that book.

It's fascinating stuff!

 

[dancingalone]

Do you practice a martial art with a healing component? If so, what is it like? What is your experience with it?

My karate teacher also practices acupuncture. He also knew a few point tricks to relieve headaches and muscle sprains. He was willing to teach it to me, but he insisted that I learn it all rather than piecemeal. Alas, at the time I was more interested in fighting applications and so that is what I learned from him.

I still glean a bit with each visit to him now that I have moved away from him, but the opportunity realistically has probably passed for me to learn this given the distance and his advancing age. I really regret my mistake now - he undoubtedly knew a lot more about healing and ki and ki cultivation than I ever suspected when I was with him daily.

 

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

One of the many things I admire about Danzan Ryu is the healing compnent.

We were very friendly with a DZR school years back ( We shared 2 Black belts). They told me in their school, you had to become a message therapist befor you could gety your Shodan. Back then I found the idea a bit insulting but as I got older (and more crunchy) I think that's a great idea.

I wish our system had a traditional healing element.

What I have done is introduce Yoga to our students and we have found that everyone warms up quicker, gets injured less and alot of nagging issues have lessend or gone away.

You got to remeber, Yoga did not start out as a Neo Hipie, peace and love fitness system, it was used as Physical training and restoration for Warriors.