The word SHIATSU is japanese and means pressure ("ATSU") with fingers ("SHI")

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Shiatsu utilizes a combination of pressure and assisted-stretching techniques, some of which are common to other therapies, such as Massage, Physiotherapy, Acupressure, Osteopathy, Lymphatic Drainage, Do-in and others. The treatment stimulates the circulation and the flow of lymphatic fluid, releases toxins and deep seated tensions from the muscles, stimulates the hormonal system and the immune system, and acts on the autonomic nervous system, allowing the recipient to relax deeply and to get in touch with own healing power. 

Some Benefits of Shiatsu include 

Reduced stress & fatigue (tsubo) accumulated in the body 

Increased circulation of blood and lymph

Reduced blood pressure and muscle stiffness 

Increased vitality, stamina and energy (Qi) 


Introduction

Shiatsu is a contemporary therapy with its roots in Oriental traditional medicine. It is sometimes described as Japanese physiotherapy. The actual treatment approach and philosophy is similar to acupuncture in its usage of the meridians (energy channels) and tsubo (pressure points) as well as diagnostic methods, but without the use of needles. Unlike most other forms of bodywork, in shiatsu the receiver remains clothed for the treatment and no oil is used for the massage.

Shiatsu is a Japanese word made up of two written characters meaning finger (shi) and pressure (atsu). The application of pressure is the underlying principle of shiatsu. Shiatsu is often called accupressure, although technically it is not correct. We can say Shiatsu is a variant of accupressure, as it involves the stimulation of the acupoints with pressure. However, this is not the only thing nor the principal technique used in Shiatsu. In Shiatsu, the pressure is sometimes applied over a wider area, not just over the acupoints; sometimes, the pressure is applied precisely over the acupoints. The practitioners use fingers and thumb for applying pressure precisely at localized points. For applying pressure over a larger area, they use palms, elbows, knees, and feet.

In addition to the pressure itself, shiatsu involves gentle stretch and manipulation techniques. These may have been borrowed from modern physiotherapy rather than from the ancient oriental massage. But shiatsu differs from Western massage in technique as well as in theory. While Swedish massage therapists use long, flowing hand movements to knead muscles, shiatsu practitioners apply rhythmic and gradual pressure to the meridians and tsubos. Sometimes, very light 'holding' techniques may be used, usually with the palm, almost like the laying on of hands as in spiritual healing. Stretching exercises and other corrective techniques creates flexibility and balance in the body, both physically and energetically.

Shiatsu works on the flow of energy or qi that circulates through our bodies in specific energy channels or meridians. Traditional Oriental Medicine suggests that we all have a "life force" or "life energy" which created our physical structure and regulates physical, emotional, mental and spiritual stability. This life force, called qi or chi in Chinese and ki in Japanese, maintains a homeostatic balance in your body.

The flow of qi can be disturbed either through external trauma, such as an injury, or internal trauma such as depression or stress. This is when symptoms like aches and pain start to occur and we start to experience a state of "disease". In shiatsu the physical touch is used to assess the distribution of qi throughout the body and to try to correct any imbalances accordingly.

Touch is the essence of shiatsu. Touch is a wonderful means of communicating our love and compassion for others in a very direct way. Touch can be of very different quality, ranging from aggressive, abusive and mechanical to more nurturing, caring and intuitive. All living things responds to touch and shiatsu helps to fulfill this need. The caring touch used in shiatsu will help to trigger the self-healing process within.

Thus, modern shiatsu incorporates a mixture of different approaches - ancient and modern. It includes pressing, hooking, sweeping, shaking, rotating, grasping, vibrating, patting, plucking, lifting, pinching, rolling, brushing, and in one variation called barefoot shiatsu, it involves walking on the person's back. Legs, and feet. These all share a common theme, namely touch. Shiatsu is thus a 'hands-on' therapy. 

Shiatsu has become a respected alternative therapy in the western countries and is offered in many hospital settings as a complementary therapy for the treatment and prevention of many common ailments. It is a very safe and effective treatment.

Origins of Shiatsu

Shiatsu originated in China at least 2000 years ago, when the earliest accounts gave the causes of ailments and the remedies that could be effected through a change of diet and way of life. The use of massage and acupuncture was also recommended. Thus acupuncture, massage and herbal medicine evolved side by side to treat the range of diseases encountered. The traditional massage of ancient China was known as 'anma' and found its way to Japan to be adopted and adapted by the Japanese, who also called it 'anma'. The therapy that is known today as shiatsu has gradually evolved with time from anma under influences from both East and West. 

Amma (anma in Japanese) has been used for centuries to deal with many common ailments, aches and pains as well as treating more serious "diseases". New influences from traditional Eastern medicine and Western science have gradually shaped it into what is today called shiatsu. There are several main styles of shiatsu found in the West: barefoot shiatsu, macrobiotic shiatsu, Namikoshi style, Ohashiatsu, Shiatsu-Do and Zen shiatsu. These are all valid and effective therapies using the basic shiatsu principles but with differing emphasis placed on techniques or philosophy. In Japan there are more than 87,000 registered shiatsu practitioners. This fact alone goes some way towards demonstrating its effectiveness in the prevention and treatment of disease.

It is only very recently that it has gained recognition and popularity, with people becoming aware of its existence and benefits.

Although East and West have different viewpoints on health and life, these can complement one another. The Eastern belief is of a primary flow of energy throughout the body, which runs along certain channels known as meridians. It is also believed that this energy exists throughout the universe and that all living creatures are dependent upon it as much as on physical nourishment. The energy is known by three similar names, ki, chi and prana in Japan, China and India respectively. As in acupuncture, there are certain pressure points on the meridians that relate to certain organs, and these points are known as tsubos.


Concept of Qi, Chi or Ki

Shiatsu acts on the subtle anatomy of the body described as qi in Chinese or ki in Japanese. Qi is a fundamental concept of the traditional oriental medicine and is considered as our "life essence" which maintains and nurtures our physical body , mind and spirit. In traditional Indian medicine it is described as prana. Qi is everywhere. It moves and changes quickly from moment to moment and can easily be replenished on a day-to-day basis. The human body is a field of continually moving energy, circulating through cells, tissues, muscles and internal organs.

The Chinese word qi translates as "breaths". A Japanese dictionary defines qi as mind, spirit, or heart. Japanese vocabulary has hundreds of expressions which use the word qi, most of them ordinary ways of talking about human moods, attitudes, or character. Qi is often characterized as energy.

Within the organ and meridian systems, energy is constantly being exchanged. The energy circulates to fill areas where it is lacking (Kyo) and drain off areas where it is excessive (jitsu). The entire system is designed to be self regulating. Most energy imbalances correct themselves without effort. Treatment is only required for stubborn and persistent blockage or lack of energy in a certain area, which is where Shiatsu and related disciplines come in.

There are a variety of exercises you can do to experience qi and feel its effect on your body. Qi is a real force, made up of electric, magnetic, infrasonic and infra-red vibrations, which can be intuitively perceived and mentally directed. It can be photographed using Kirilian photography. Like air that we depend on for our life, qi is the very source of our vitality. It is the force within us which gives us initiative, which drives and inspires us to move forward in life. When the qi leaves us, we die. According to the ancient philosophers, life and death is nothing but an aggravation and dispersal of qi. "Qi produces the human body just as water becomes ice. As water freezes into ice, so qi coagulates to form the human body. When ice melts, it becomes water. When a person dies, he or she becomes spirit (shen) again. It is called spirit, just as melted ice changes its name to water."



The Meridians

The Orientals believed that energy circulated and nourished the whole person through specific pathways, or meridians as they are usually called. In Indian medicine, this is called a nadi or river. Meridians form a crisscross network of interconnected pathways that link the organs, skin, flesh, muscle and bones in a unified body. (This may be compared to the Interstate highway network in the United States.) The qi that circulates within them may be more Yang in nature, defending the body on the outside, or more Yin in nature, nourishing the body on the inside. These channels run from deep in the organs out through major meridian branches to smaller and smaller ones, ending up at the outside of the body in the skin; then they go back again, just like the pattern of other major body systems such as the nervous and blood systems.


Location of the meridians and acupoints in the body. 

Each of the twelve organs is linked with a meridian or channel of energy, named according to the internal organ it affects. The meridians, like rivers of energy, ensure proper nurturing of qi or life force throughout your whole being. When you are healthy, the flow of qi proceeds unimpeded, like the water in a free-running river, and energy is well distributed throughout the meridian pathways. When the river, or meridian, is blocked for some reason, the qi is prevented from reaching the specific area it is supposed to nurture. The result is that the cells, tissue or organs in the affected area will suffer.

Identifying Meridians 
Meridians are numbered from 1-12 according to the flow of energy through them.
All meridians start or finish in the head, chest, hands or feet.

Lung - Starts on chest in front of shoulder, finishes in thumb 
Large Intestine - Starts in index finger, finishes at side of nostril 
Stomach - Starts under eye, finishes in second toe 
Spleen - Starts in big toe, finishes at side of chest 
Heart - Starts under armpit, finishes in little finger 
Small Intestine - Starts in little finger, finishes in front of ear 
Urinary Bladder - Starts at inside corner of eye, finishes in little toe 
Kidney - Starts on sole of foot, finishes at top of chest 
Heart Constrictor - Starts beside nipple, finishes in middle finger 
Triple Heater - Starts in fourth finger, finishes by outside corner of eyebrow 
Gall Bladder - Starts at outside corner of eye, finishes in fourth toe 
Liver - Starts in big toe, finishes on front of chest or below nipple. 

Common Abbreviations Used in Designating Meridians
Very often the meridians are abbreviated with the letter indicating the organ it corresponds to. The common such abbreviations are given below:

ABBREVIATION MERIDIAN 
B Bladder 
Lu Lung 
CV Conception Vessel (channel) 
Lv Liver 
P Pericardium 
GB Gallbladder 
Si Small Intestine 
GV Governing Vessel (channel) 
Sp Spleen 
H Heart 
St Stomach 
K Kidney 
TW Triple warmer 
LI Large intestine 


Because the meridians serve the whole body from outside in and inside out, they have a dual role. They prevent harmful energies from entering (in the form of bacteria and viruses) the body. They also indicate the presence of harmful energy already inside the body in the form of symptoms on the outside. (See the description of aura later.) These may be felt as aches, pains, heat or cold, and in Shiatsu may be located as areas of particular sensitivity or tenderness. 

Any type of "disease" is a sign that the energy within the meridian system is out of balance. When a meridian is blocked, one part of the body is getting too much qi and enters a state of excess, while another part is getting too little and becomes deficient in qi. This will result in one organ becoming overactive while another organ will become underactive and may be fatigued. If you do not correct this problem problem when initially manifested, it can lead to the symptoms getting progressively worse and your disease gets more serious.

Finding these areas is one of the aims of Shiatsu diagnosis and treatment, since their quality and location can tell us a great deal about the origin, location and depth of an imbalance in the entire energy system, which will result in a given disease. The unique nature of the meridians is to reflect this kind of imbalance and then to act as the channel by which the imbalance can be corrected. 

Along the meridians you will find more highly charged energy points, which are called pressure points in English or tsubo in Japanese. This is where the qi is most easily affected. Stimulating different tsubo will correct the energy imbalance. In the case of Shiatsu, the affected meridian or points are worked on directly until proper energy flow is restored. By using different shiatsu techniques, such as pressure, stretching, rubbing and corrective exercises, you will be able to release the blockages, "open" the meridian and recharge yourself.


The Five Elements 

According to traditional Chinese medicine, the universe is composed of five elements-Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood. The human body is considered a microcosm of the universe, and so is also composed of these Five Elements. Each element is associated with different organs, meridians, and characteristics. For example, the wood element is connected with anger, and a hostile person would be diagnosed as having an imbalance within that element. To alleviate the anger, appropriate meridians would be treated to restore balance.