One can never underestimate the power of human touch. We’re all born with this inherent power to heal ourselves and others via this awesome gift. Many choose not to use it, but for those who do use it or are planning to use it, perhaps knowing the power of Jin Shin Do can be a great place to start. This is because once you learn the pressure points and movements sequences of this ancient healing art, the rest is fairly easy. After that, you can focus on using your own power and energy to influence other people in a positive way.
A type of acupressure technique that’s quite simple to learn and perform, Jin Shin Do is a Japanese therapeutic discipline that helps focuses your energies from an emotional place of compassion. By administering and receiving healing, you can increasingly be consciously aware of your body’s life force (called chi) and the conditions of your own energy system. In the balance of your own life, you can become more clearly aware of what feels “off,” which then gives you the intuition to take action and make changes that will develop your personal growth even further.
Jin Shin Do nurtures and rejuvenates your life force or “chi” energies to strengthen and balance your physical body and spirit. Its philosophy is revealed by its very name. Jin, translates to compassion, and is referred to as “the mystical key that unlocks the real strength of our internal spirit”. If you don’t carry this compassion for yourself and others, the effects of this practice cannot be positively applied. The truest and purest effect of Jin Shin Do is to completely and wholeheartedly accept the strengths and weakness of the human race without judgment.
The second word, Shin, corresponds to the spirit. Energy flows from one person to another via this spirit. But this spirit is not distinctly “ours”, it moves through the whole universe as well as within us and through us. Shin is not a reality that is “ego-centered” but is a path of humility and self realization, in harmony with the oneness of all things and with nature.
In the Nei Jing, Ch’i Po wrote, “What is the spirit? Your eye must be attentive and open and it couldn’t be heard with your ear. The spirit can only be revealed through your own consciousness. You cannot express it with your mouth; only your heart can enunciate all that can be looked upon. If you pay close attention, you suddenly may lose this knowledge. But as the wind blows away the cloud, so too the spirit, the Shen, becomes clear to man. Hence people speak of it as the spirit.” Jin Shin Do is basically the path of the “kind-hearted spirit”. The capacity to convey universal energy via touch boosts the harmony and emotional balance between the receiver and yourself.
“Do,” the third word in Jin Shin Do means the Tao or “the way.” This means to follow all that is and the way of nature. Tao’s vision is to prod us to start flowing with the changes that comprise the journey of life and to harmonize our lives.