A dictionary of parapsychology. Please note that words in grey are hyperlinked to a corresponding archive with articles related to that particular topic.

Chi

(Chinese, "ether," "matter-energy," "vital energy," "material force")

An important and multifaceted term in Chinese religion, philosophy, and science, the root meaning of which is "moist vapor" or "breath. "

• Early Chinese teachers spoke of chi as a vital spirit or energy that animated living beings. As such, it had to be properly nourished.
• For Confucians, that required moral cultivation so that one's chi, undistracted by external things, would conform to the dictates of will.
• For Taoists, it required mastery of the self through meditation, breath control, diet, yoga, and other techniques so as to harmonize one's chi with the material force of the universe ordered by the Tao (undifferentiated unity).

Traditional Chinese medicine attributed illnesses primarily to imbalances in the chi that pulsed through the body. Acupuncture, moxibustion (placing burning cones made of the dried leaves of the Artemisia moxa plant on the patient's skin), and other techniques helped to restore its balanced circulation.

Chi was also an important concept in the correlative philosophy that blossomed in the early Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 8) systematizing the correspondences between like things that explained their mutual interactions.

In the Neo-Confucian metaphysics of the Northern and Southern Sung dynasties (960-1279), all phenomena were said to be manifest through the intrinsic relation of principle (li) and material force (chi). Li constituted the essential, unchanging, perfect nature of all things, while chi represented their corporeal, transitory, and potentially flawed aspect. Individuals were instructed to perfect their humanity, to purify and harmonize their chi with their true Heavenendowed nature through the external investigation of things and mental introspection. Also Ki.

(See also: Chi , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

Hypno-Meditation: Component of FITONICS originated by Dr. Donald Burton Schnell. Hypno-Meditation is a synthesis of Eastern and Western spiritual teachings and techniques. Its theory posits Cosmic Consciousness, a higher state of awareness from which the best human emotions flow.

(See also: Hypno-Meditation , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Which is the "right" meditation technique right for me?

There is no "right" meditation technique for everybody. Some techniques work better for certain people while other techniques work better for other people. The important thing is to find what works for you.

Read more here: » Meditation: Which is the right meditation technique right for me?

A dictionary of parapsychology. Please note that words in grey are hyperlinked to a corresponding archive with articles related to that particular topic.

It is theoretically possible to learn meditation from a book. However most people who teach and practice meditation agree that a teacher can be an invaluable aid in learning a meditation technique and making sure it is practiced correctly.

Read more here: » Meditation: Do I need a teacher to learn meditation?

Healthy Happy, and Holy

An instructional group founded by the Indian Sikh Dharma Yogi Bhajan in Los Angeles, California, in 1968 to promote holistic well-being through kundalini yoga.

Flourishing during the period of most intense international interest in Asian meditation techniques, the 3HO taught a simplified or neo-Hindu practice for awakening the psychic energy believed to lay dormant within the human body. (See 3HO)

(See also: Healthy Happy, and Holy , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

Meditation and Breath

Meditation is the practice of turning the attention from outer awareness to inner concentration. In the practice of Kundalini Maha Yoga, meditation is much more than a relaxation technique. It is a way of easing resistance to the ascent of the Kundalini energy by quieting the fluctuations of the mind. Of all the forms of meditation, meditation through attention on the breath is the simplest and most direct way to Self-realization.

Read more here: » Kundalini Maha Yoga: Meditation and Breath

Kobayashi Technique (Applied Kobayashi Techniques, Kobayashi Techniques): rejuvenescent system promoted by Master Healer Ken Kobayashi. It encompasses acupuncture, Do-In, shiatsu massage, special diets, and the use of herbal tea preparations and the Shintsu-Riki (Healing Ki energy).

(See also: Kobayashi Technique , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Zen.

A major school of Mahayana Buddhism, with several branches.

One of its most popular techniques is meditation on koans, which leads to the generation of the Great Doubt. According to this method: The master gives the student a koan to think about, resolve, and then report back on to the master. Concentration intensifies as the student first tries to solve the koan intellectually. This initial effort proves impossible, however, for a koan cannot be solved rationally. Indeed, it is a kind of spoof on the human intellect.

Concentration and irrationality -- these two elements constitute the characteristic psychic situation that engulfs the student wrestling with a koan. As this persistent effort to concentrate intellectually becomes unbearable, anxiety sets in. The entirety of one's consciousness and psychic life is now filled with one thought. The exertion of the search is like wrestling with a deadly enemy or trying to make one's way through a ring of flames. Such assaults on the fortress of human reason inevitably give rise to a distrust of all rational perception.

This gnawing doubt (Great Doubt), combined with a futile search for a way out, creates a state of extreme and intense yearning for deliverance. The state may persist for days, weeks or even years; eventually the tension has to break. (Dumoulin, Zen Buddhism, Vol. I, p.253.)

An interesting koan is the koan of Buddha Recitation. Unlike other koans, it works in two ways. First of all, if a cultivator succeeds in his meditation through this koan, he can achieve awakening as with other koans. However, if he does not succeed, and experience shows that many cultivators do not, then the meditation on the Buddha's narne helps him to achieve rebirth in the Pure Land.

This is so provided he believes (as most practitioners in Asia do) in Amitabha and the expedient Pure Land. Thus, the Buddha Recitation koan provides a safety net, and demonstrates the underlying unity of Zen and Pure Land.

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

BOWEN TECHNIQUE

Developed by Thomas Ambrose Bowen of Australia in the 1960s and 1970s, this hands-on, light-touch body therapy consists of gentle rolling movements over muscle bellies and tendons to stimulate the body’s own healing mechanisms.

Originally intended to help people suffering from muscular-skeletal problems, Bowen Technique has also been successful with many other conditions, including asthma and respiratory ailments in children and pre-teens.

(See also: BOWEN TECHNIQUE , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

ACTIVE MUSCULAR RELAXATION TECHNIQUES: Active muscular relaxation techniques are a powerful new approach to bodywork used for relaxing overactive muscles and managing soft tissue pain. Over-activity in local musculature is a typical response to pain from trauma or poor posture.

Active muscular relaxation techniques utilize resisted isometric contractions of the overactive muscle or its antagonist (the one opposing its action). The objective of this procedure is to relax and/or lengthen (stretch) the overactive muscle.

(See also: Active muscular relaxation techniques , Body Mind and Soul)

ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE

The Alexander Technique is movement education in which the student is taught to sit, stand, and move in ways that reduce physical stress on the body.

Alexander Technique teachers use gentle manual guidance and verbal cues to improve students’ posture and movement patterns. A lesson or group class typically involves basic movements such as sitting, standing, walking, bending, reaching, carrying, and lying down. It may also involve more specialized activities such as playing a musical instrument, working at a computer, etc. T

he teacher’s manual guidance stresses the adjustment of the head, neck, and torso relationship. In beginning lessons, the teacher closely monitors the student. Later, the student learns to monitor herself, ultimately learning a unique self-management process - an understanding of balance and dynamic postural control. F. M. Alexander, an Australian actor, developed the technique in the late 1800s as a result of attempting to solve his own physical problem of losing his voice on stage.

He discovered that misuse of the neuromuscular activity of the head, neck, and spine caused maladaptive functioning and that this movement could be corrected. As he began to teach his technique, he found that his students’ overall health improved and that the technique could be used to address a wide array of problems.

(See also: ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

THERAPEUTIC TOUCH

Developed through the collaboration of a nursing professor and a spiritual healer, Therapeutic Touch is based on ancient energy healing methods.

Practitioners, primarily nurses, are trained to feel or sense energy imbalances in the client and to use “laying on” of hands to disperse blocks and channel healing forces to the client’s body.

The therapist uses a light touch or holds the hand above the body, with the client generally seated. Meditation is used by the therapist to center herself and strengthen her connection to the client’s energy system.

Therapeutic Touch has been applied in an assortment of medical situations, including the care of premature infants and emergency room patients. It is known to induce a state of relaxation within minutes.

Therapeutic Touch is considered safe because of its gentle, noninvasive approach. Developers of this technique affirm that everyone has the potential to heal with Therapeutic Touch and may be taught the methodology in one day.

(See also: THERAPEUTIC TOUCH , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

RAINDROP TECHNIQUE

Originated by D. Gary Young, raindrop technique is a noninvasive tool for helping to correct defects in the curvature of the spine caused by viruses and bacteria that lie dormant there. Antimicrobial essential oils are used to reduce inflammation by killing the viral agents, thus bringing the body into structural and electrical alignment.

The oils (primarily thyme, oregano, birch, cypress, peppermint, and basil) are dispensed like little drops of rain from a height of about six inches above the back and massaged along the vertebrae. The oils used in this 45-minute treatment continue to work for the next five to seven days.

(See also: RAINDROP TECHNIQUE , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

Awareness Techniques

A method to visualize past reincarnations while fully conscious. Originally developed by William Swygard in the 1960s.

(See also: Awareness Techniques , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

RADIANCE TECHNIQUE

This technique is a science of universal energy, taught in seminars by authorized instructors throughout the world. It is a seven-level technique people learn to use for themselves and for others.

People from all walks of life learn this technique to use for stress release and energy balancing. Students learn a variety of ways to apply and use unconditional, transcendental energy in their work, play, and everyday lives. These students are taught a basic 12-position, hands-on session that is to be practiced on the self for at least an hour when possible.

Authorized instructors of the Radiance Technique do not license or certify students as practitioners. Such licensing and certification is up to the individual student or practitioner according to the requirements of the community in which they live and work.

(See also: RADIANCE TECHNIQUE , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

M TECHNIQUE

The ‘M’ Technique is a series of stroking movements performed in a set sequence. Each movement, identified with a mnemonic name, is repeated three times. Because the technique is structured in terms of order and number, the technique is completely reproducible and therefore useful in research.

The technique was created by Jane Buckle, a critical care nurse, for the very fragile or critically ill patient and produces a measurable parasympathetic response. The ‘M’ stands for manual.

(See also: M TECHNIQUE , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique (N.A.E.T.): An offshoot of applied kinesiology that was the subject of an article in a 1998 issue of Natural Health. Developed by Dr. Devi S. Nambudripad, N.A.E.T. is an energy modality that includes acupressure and chiropractic techniques. Its principle is that contact with adverse energy of exogenous substances causes energy blockages from which allergies result.

(See also: Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

ACUPRESSURE: Based on the principles of acupuncture, this ancient Chinese technique involves the use of finger pressure, rather than needles, on specific points along the body to treat ailments such as tension and stress, aches and pains, and arthritis.  Although the older of the techniques, acupressure tends to be overlooked as the Chinese developed more "technological" methods for stimulating points with needles and electricity. However, acupressure is a gentle yet powerful healing technique which relies on senitivity of touch to locate and release imbalances within the body. Acupressure continues to be more effective in relieving tension-related ailments.

Theory of accupressure

Acupressure focuses on the natural bioenergy or Qi (pronounced Chi) flowing through the body. The theory was developed that if a stimulus in the form of heat, pressure, or a needle was applied to specific points on the body, it would relieve the symptoms of many conditions. It was determined that these points were not random but followed energetic pathways along the body, and each one was linked to a particular internal organ.

Technique of accupressure

The practice of acupressure has developed primarily through a combination of instinct and hands-on experience. Its principles and healing techniques have also been influenced by individuals who could feel or see trigger points and meridian pathways. Some healers integrated breathing meditations and mudras (hand positions) while others added herbal remedies and massage. A series of gentle stretches, joint manipulations, and noninvasive pressure to different pressure points will stimulate the corresponding glands of the body to balance the flow of vital energy through the body, thus stimulating the body's natural healing ability. A combination of pressures applied by the palms, thumbs, elbows, and sometimes the knees and feet are used.

Although acupressure is a holistic treatment encompassing the mind, body, and spirit, on a physical level it can have the effect of improving the circulation and the flow of lymph. Acupressure also works directly on the central nervous system promoting relaxation, calmness, and a sense of well-being. This technique is also used for general preventive health care.

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

Energy: Reiki

Reiki (pronounounced RAY-kee) is a Japanese word meaning "Universal Life-Force-Energy". The "Ki" (pronounced CHEE) part is the same word as Chi or Qi, the Chinese word for the energy which underlies everything. Reiki is a system for channeling that energy to someone for the purpose of healing. It was discovered by Dr. Usui, said to be a teacher or perhaps dean of a Christian school in Japan, in the late 1800's. 

The Reiki practices of today are said to have originated in Japan in a clinic headed by Dr. Chujiro Hayashi, a Naval Commander in the Naval Reserve. Today there is little or no hard evidence of Reiki from before World War II. All of the histories of Reiki come from the verbal stories passed on from Mrs. Takata. With roots in Japan prior to World War II, much of the documentation was lost. Apparently the survivors of the war lost the resources allowing them to continue the Reiki clinic and perhaps stopped practicing Reiki. If it were not for Mrs. Takata learning Reiki before the war and bringing it to America, this healing technique could well have been lost to the world.

(Some sources say that Dr. Usui was Buddhist and that the claim he was dean of a Christian school was made by Mrs. Takata to make Reiki more acceptable to Christians in America.)

In its simplest form using Reiki is simply the practitioner placing his/her hands on the recipient with the intent of bringing healing, and willing for Reiki energy to flow. There is a set of traditionally taught hand positions which give good coverage over the recipients entire body. It is not necessary to follow those positions, they are merely taught as a starting position from which the practitioner can learn. If there is a specific area of concern, the practitioner can keep his/her hands right there for as long as necessary.

According to Reiki healers there are four unique qualities that identify energy healing techniques as Reiki:

1. The ability to do Reiki comes from receiving an attunement, rather than developing the ability over time though the use of meditation or other exercises. 

2. All Reiki techniques are part of a lineage. This means that the technique has been passed on from teacher to student through an attunement process starting with the one who first channeled the technique. 

3. Reiki does not require that one guide the energy with the mind, as it is guided by the higher power and knows where to go and how to act all on its own. 

4. Because of this, Reiki can do no harm.

(See also: Reiki , Alternative Health, Holistic Health, Body Mind and Soul)