TRAGER APPROACH

Trager is an approach to bodywork developed in the 1920s by American medical practitioner Dr. Milton Trager. It makes extensive use of touch-contact and encourages the client to experience the freeing-up of different parts of the body.

The approach consists of simple exercises called Mentastics and deep, nonintrusive hands-on work, including fluid, gentle, rocking movements. The idea is to use motion in the muscles and joints to produce positive sensory feelings that are then fed back into the central nervous system. The result is a feeling of lightness, freedom, and flexibility.

A Trager session takes from 1 to 11?2 hours. No oils or lotions are used. The client wears a swimsuit or underwear and lies on a well-padded table in a warm, comfortable environment. No long, broad strokes are used over the surface of the body and, unlike various techniques of deep tissue manipulation, it does not utilize extreme pressure or rapid thrusts to create structural change and does not produce pain as a necessary adjunct to its effectiveness.

During the session, the practitioner makes touch-contact with the client in such a gentle and rhythmic way that the person lying passively on the table actually experiences the possibility of being able to move each part of the body freely, effortlessly, and gracefully on their own.

The practitioner works in a relaxed, meditative state of consciousness. This allows the practitioner to connect deeply with the recipient in an unforced way, to remain continually aware of the slightest responses, and to work efficiently without fatigue. After getting up from the table, the client is given instruction in the use of Mentastics, a system of simple, effortless movement sequences to maintain and enhance the sense of lightness, freedom, and flexibility instilled by the table work.

Mentastics is Dr. Trager’s coinage for “mental gymnastics” - a mindfulness in motion - designed to help clients re-create for themselves the sensory feelings produced by the motion of their tissue in the practitioner’s hands. It is a powerful means of teaching the client to recall the pleasurable sensory state that produced positive tissue change. Because it is this feeling state that triggered positive tissue response in the first place, every time the feeling is clearly recalled the changes deepen, become more permanent, and are more receptive to further positive change.

Changes described have included the disappearance of specific symptoms, discomforts, or pains, heightened levels of energy and vitality, more effortless posture and carriage, greater joint mobility, deeper states of relaxation than were previously possible, and a new ease in daily activities.

(See also: TRAGER APPROACH , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

Thera (Pali) A Buddhist priest, especially a bhikkhu of Gautama Buddha's community; specifically a senior member. Three grades were distinguished: thera bhikkhu (a senior); majjhima bhikkhu (middle or secondary disciple); and nava bhikkhu (novice). Four characteristics are mentioned, however, making a man a thera: high character, knowing the essential doctrines by heart, practicing the four jhanas (stages of meditation), and being conscious of having attained at least relative freedom through the destruction of the mental intoxications. A senior woman was termed theri or therika.

(See also: Thera , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

DEATH –

1. life’s other side, afterlife, discarnate realm of existence.

2. end of this life, cessation of the vital functions.

3. Tarot #13; transformation.

4. sleep; field of service and learning; entrance into fuller life; freedom from the handicaps of the fleshly vehicle; continuance of the living process in consciousness and carrying forward of the interests and tendencies of the life (Bailey)

5. that which is fixed, petrified, attached (Joseph Campbell)

6. process of dissolving ourselves to become more harmonious on another level (Michio Kushi) (NAD)

(See also: DEATH , Wiccan Pagan, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

Buddhahood

(Jpn.: bukkai)

The state of awakening that a Buddha has attained. The ultimate goal of Buddhist practice and the highest of the Ten Worlds. The word enlightenment is often used synonymously with Buddhahood. Buddhahood is regarded as a state of perfect freedom, in which one is awakened to the eternal and ultimate truth that is the reality of all things. This supreme state of life is characterized by boundless wisdom and infinite compassion. The Lotus Sutra reveals that Buddhahood is a potential in the lives of all beings.

See: attainment of Buddhahood

(See also: Buddhahood , Enlightenment, Buddhism Enlightenment, Buddhism Enlightenment Dictionary)

vimutti (vimutti): Release; freedom from the fabrications and conventions of the mind. The suttas distinguish between two kinds of release. Discernment-release (panna-vimutti) describes the mind of the arahant, which is free of the asavas. Awareness-release (ceto-vimutti) is used to describe either the mundane suppression of the kilesas during the practice of jhana and the four brahma-viharas, or the supramundane state of concentration in the asava-free mind of the arahant.

 (See also: Vimutti , Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

TAROT CARDS -

1. Set of 78 cards which have pictures and symbols which is used to connect the diviner, with the collective unconscious. (TRASB)

2. used to determine the past, present and future of an event or person and can become powerful tools in magickal working and rituals. (NAD)

3. deck of 78 cards with archetypal symbols 15th C. (From Italian tarocchi)

0. The Fool-choice; folly/wisdom 1. Magician-creative power

2. High Priestess-hidden influence 3. Empress-material wealth

4. Emperor-leadership  5. Hierophant-organized rule

6. Lovers-choice between opposites 7. Chariot - conquest

8. Strength - courage  9. Hermit-opening of the path

10. Wheel of Fortune-destiny 11. Justice-harmony

12. Hanged Man-reversal, wisdom 13. Death-transformation

14. Temperance-growth  15. Devil-bondage to material

16 Tower-end of selfishness 17. Stars-hope

18. Moon-deception  19. Sun-success

20. Judgment-spirtual renewal 21. World-freedom, success

(See also: TAROT CARDS , Wiccan Pagan, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

Allergen:

: a foreign substance (such as pollen, house dust, and various foods) that can produce a hypersensitive reaction in the body but is not necessarily intrinsically harmful.

(See also: Allergen , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Biofeedback:

the process of furnishing an individual with information, usually in an auditory or visual mode, on the state of one or more physiological variables such as heart rate, blood pressure, or skin temperature; it often enables the individual to gain some voluntary control over the physiological variable being sampled. Biofeedback is used especially for stress-related conditions such as asthma, migraine headaches, insomnia, and high blood pressure.

(See also: Biofeedback , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Chiropractic practice:

a discipline that views the spine as the backbone of human health. Misalignments of vertebrae caused by poor posture or trauma cause pressure on the spinal nerve roots, leading to diminished function and illness. Through manipulation or adjustment of the spine, treatment seeks to analyze and correct misalignments.

(See also: Chiropractic practice , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Massage therapy:

systematic, therapeutic stroking, rubbing, or kneading of the skin and underlying muscle and other soft tissue of the recipient for the purpose of physical and psychological relaxation, improvement of circulation, relief of sore muscles, and other therapeutic effects.

(See also: Massage therapy , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

passionflower: said to possess sedative, hypnotic, antispasmodic, and calming effects. Used to treat neuralgia, seizures, hysteria, nervous tachycardia, spasmodic asthma, and insomnia.

(See also: passionflower , Herbal Therapy, Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

A dictionary Of Commonly Used Sanskrit terms. From Dadhicha to Kutichaka.

Please note that all words in grey, like "yoga", "enlightenment" or "kundalini" are hyperlinked to archives further explaining the term. At the corresponding archive you will also find articles related to the term.

Iridology:

a diagnostic technique which uses the markings and patterns of the irises of the eyes to determine the condition of various systems or organs of the body.

(See also: Iridology , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Darkness In theosophical philosophy light is not regarded as self-existent, but as primordially the spiritual effect of a spiritual cause, the emanation from something grander and more radical beyond it.

This unknown divine substratum, the original superspiritual intelligence-substance of the universe, is sometimes called darkness; likewise, it is spoken of as absolute light. Thus absolute light and absolute darkness are the same, so that manifested light sprang from unmanifested light or darkness.

Philosophically, non-ego -- which is freedom from the limitations of egoity and manifested particularities -- voidness, and darkness are a three-in-one, darkness being Father-Mother and light, their Son. Night or darkness preceded day and light in cosmogony, as is recognized in Genesis, where darkness broods over the face of the deep. The creation of light, or the emanation of light from darkness, is the first step in cosmic manifestation. Light thus is truly called original substance or spiritual matter; darkness, purest spirit. Synonymous with this darkness are 'eyn soph, the Boundless, the bridgeless abyss, the unmanifest, the ever-invisible robes of the eternal parent.

Light and darkness on manifested planes constitute a duality, correlative and interdependent, neither conceivable without the other. But what is darkness to our physical senses may be light to our inner senses.

Darkness is also used to denote the shadow side of things, and hence in popular speech evil as opposed to good, ignorance to knowledge.

See also DAWN; LIGHT; USHAS

(See also: Darkness , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Dream Interpretation Animal, animals

Animals represent the parts of our personality and the depths of our unconscious, our instincts. Animals in dreams are always symbols of our subdued desires, this way our subconscious communicates to us about forbidden.##Bear: a symbol of power, vitality, strength and endurance.##Fish: a fear of loosing love.##Dog: extremely subdued sexual urges; a true friend.##Insects: repressed anger, emotional stress, family problems.##Cat: a symbol of female eroticism and sometimes repressed desire for freedom.##Cow: female sexual urges combined with patience and calm.##Lion: glorified and powerful physical contact between men and women.##Mouse: a symbol of femininity; a fear of mice - a fear to acknowledge your femininity.##Horse: aroused, but unrealised physical energies or controlled vitality.##Serpent: a phallic symbol; woman dreaming of serpents usually suffer from unfulfilled sexuality.##Small animals usually represent a small sibling; large animals stand for your character features and repressed cravings. Animals talking to us with human voices are a warning that people can hurt you or take advantage of you. Dead animals are the sign of a change in your personal situation. Animals are a symbol of primitive character traits like passion, greed, anger.##39

Source: Dream-Land, http://www.dream-land.info

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Animal, animals , Meaning of Dreams about Animal, animals , Dream Interpretation Animal, animals )

SYMBOL

A symbol, whose meaning is unconscious or indirect, must not be confused with a sign, which is obviously a resemblance or conscious pointer. A symbol represents something that can't be defined or expressed. Otherwise it is an allegory or a sign. A phallic symbol, for instance, is not a symbol because we know what it stands for. Nor is a skull a "symbol" of death. Nor are the cross (standing for Christ), a heart (standing for love) or a bird (standing for freedom) anything more than signs, i.e., equivalents. Examples of true symbols might be the Holy Grail, the Philosopher's Stone, or even a personalized mandala, since we have no (conscious) idea what these things represent. Most certainly of all, Christ and Buddha are symbols of human perfection. A.B. says their purpose is pedagogical, preserving encapsulizations of truth and developing intuition. Moreover, every symbol can be read in many different ways. And there are four kinds of symbols (physical, astral, numerical, geometrical). There are also symbolic "books" of the "Masters," the words of which are interpreted by color, their position above or below the line, their connection to one another and by their "key," that is, right to left (greater cycles), left to right (lesser cycles), from above down (involution), from below up (evolution).

Postmodern man tends to believe that symbols generate meanings in infinite concentric waves from their centers. Indeed, symbols come to have different meanings in different times and places. For example, the triskelion, tripes, or "three-legs of man," originally meant the 3 ages riddled by the Sphinx or three faces of the Hindu Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva). But in Europe, according to Goblet d'Aviella (The Migration of Symbols) it eventually came to acquire purely political meanings, standing, amongst other things, for the "Land of the Three Capes," i.e., Sicily, for Norwegian royalty and for The Isle of Man. In our time many once very fertile and numinous symbols are all but dead.

Says Carlyle: "In a symbol lies concealment or revelation." And further, "It is in and through symbols that man consciously or unconsciously lives, works, and has his being."

(See also: SYMBOL , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

love

1.    The essence of God, the universe, nature.

2.    Divine expression of compassion, mercy, affection and tenderness.

3.    Selfless or egoless state of consciousness.

4.    State of unconditional acceptance where only endless happiness and infinite freedom are experienced

(See also: Love , Body Mind and Soul)

Acupressure:

 type of Chinese medicine that uses direct stimulation by a therapist's fingertips, knuckles, or hands or from blunt-tipped instruments to stimulate specific points on energetic meridians and points on a patient's body.

(See also: Acupressure , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Dream Interpretation Chain

The chain represents a burden you are chained to. Also a chain represents a connection between two people, different extremes, you and your past. If you dream of seeing a person with a chain , it means that unconsciously you are connected to somebody and you want to have a break and feel free. If you see yourself being tied up with chains, it signifies that it will be difficult for you to acquire freedom. Seeing a chain also could mean that you need to let go of the past. If you are trying to break the chain, you will succeed in freeing yourself from something which confines you. Hearing a chain sound: you will receive some news which will negatively affect your future.

Source: Dream-Land, http://www.dream-land.info

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Chain , Meaning of Dreams about Chain , Dream Interpretation Chain )

Car

1. Motion, movement away from one thing and towards another.

2. Speed, acceleration.

3. Freedom.

Astrological parallel: Sagittarius.

Tarot parallel: The Chariot.

Source: Astrocenter, http://astrocenter.astrology.msn.com/msn/DreamDictionary.aspx

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Car , Meaning of Dreams about Car , Dream Interpretation Car )

Buddha: The Awakened One - The honorary title of Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism who lived in the sixth century B.C. The name is also given to those who achieve true enlightenment and as a result, inner freedom.

(See also: Buddha ,Yoga, Yoga Dictionary)

ELEMENTS

The four principles of reality. They derive their nature from the phases of the Moon (Waxing, Full, Waning, Disappearing) and can be associated with the four points of the compass (see TETRAMORPH), but we should be wary of trying to assign a logical progression to them. For instance, science tends to see them merely as matter, energy, space and time. But contemporary scientific rationalism does not apply to ancient intuitional philosophy.

The ancients were correct to advise us not to try to separate the elements from one another (the "unified field" theory, however, doesn't apply to this aspect either). They take their being from the context of one another acting in unison. Thus Earth is the materialized, magnetic form which seeks contraction (coagula) and Air is the medium of space, freedom and dispersion (solve). Water is the dual flow of involution and evolution, the End and the Beginning, quicksilver-like Creation and Dissolution, Surface and Depth. The waters are divided into the upper waters of the potential and the lower waters of the actual. Water is the element of transition between the other elements. Fire, the plasmic state of transmutation, is the energy behind all things.

Each element is unique in its relationship to the others and in fully exercising that uniqueness, disappears. Water confluences the elements into a duality, Earth contains them all and is their united totality. Air is the separation in which they individuate themselves and vanish, while Fire is the uniqueness itself that extracts anything from its context, particularly the separation of "something" from Nothing, or vice-versa.

The quartering of the elements takes innumerable forms. Eliphas Levi, for instance, even gives a tetramorphic quaternity to Alchemy (Salt, Sulphur, Mercury and Azoth) and to the Qabalah (Macroposopus, Microposopus and the 2 "Mothers").

In Facing the Sphinx, Marie Farrington gives the number of elements as seven: earth, water, fire, air, ether or vapor, blossom (the seminal principle) and the Wind of Purpose (or Ghost). Amongst the Hindus the sixth was Bala-Rama, "the representation of masculine virility, the semen virile. The 7th was the summit and soul of the rest." In Ancient China, we observe earth, water, fire, wind and space (wood is only a physical element). The seven Latin verbs are Velle, Audere, Scire, Tacere, Revelare, Resurgere, Renunciare.

(See also: ELEMENTS , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)