SEIKI MERIDIAN SHIATSU
INTERNATIONAL
About Training
Seiki Shiatsu training offers a direct, practical and hands-on approach to shiatsu study. Clear forms and precise techniques deepen the therapeutic relationship with seiki, while a flexibly structured program develops competent and confident practitioners.
A successful synthesis of shiatsu’s Eastern medical roots into western educational environments has been accomplished without, resorting to mystical explanations of ki or requiring adherence to a particular religious belief system.
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The deepest part of the heart is that which is infinite and beyond comparison. It is held in common by all cultures, traditions and religions. Thus equal opportunity exists for all to study and practice Seiki Shiatsu, Simply, naturally and directly. The starting point being whereever you currently are.
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Seiki Meridian Shiatsu offers:
• Skilled teachers with extensive clinical experience.
• Flexibly structured training programs emphasizing practical application.
• Eastern concepts and practices synthesized with western educational forms.
• Supportive study environments that emphasis peer support and clinical mentoring.
Why Study?
Why study Seiki Shiatsu?
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Receive satisfaction from helping others in a meaningful way.
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Develop your personal potential in harmony with your working life.
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Be part of the increasing growth in the natural therapies industry
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Become self-employed and owner operate a clinic / home / mobile based business.
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Career Pathways:
Qualified SMS practitioners may work in private clinical practices, multi-disciplinary practices, gyms and sports complexes, complementary health centres, hotels and spa resorts.
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They may work with individuals and groups of all age ranges, from children to the elderly. Practitioners assist those dealing with, and recovering from, chronic pain, injury and health imbalances.
Furthermore, by offering treatment to alleviate stress and the pressures of daily life, they make available a highly effective form of preventative healthcare.
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Advantages of studying SMS:
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Excellent teaching
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experienced and skilled teachers who completed intensive training.
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practical, well structured training that integrates eastern concepts and practices seamlessly into a western educational environment.
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Supportive study enviroment
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variety of approaches caters to a range of student learning styles
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active encouragement of peer support
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international network of centres and clinics
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Respect and value individuals
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Clinical mentoring
Motivation
Helping others in a meaningful way is one of the primary motivations for wanting to become a shiatsu practitioner. Practitioners treat individuals and groups of all ages, from children to the elderly. They assist people dealing with pain, recovering from injury or struggling to alleviate the stress and pressures of daily life.
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People are drawn to the possibility of developing their personal skills and practical abilities directly in harmony with their working life. Shiatsu requires a great mix of skills: hands-on practice, theoretical understanding, and communication skills.
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The rapidly growth of natural therapies gives practitioners a range of career pathways, from self-employment in owner-operated clinics to employment in multi-disciplinary practices or complementary health centers. In addition, gyms, sports complexes, hotels and spa resorts provide further opportunities.
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SMSI has an international network of training centers and clinics providing a worldwide perspective on shiatsu.
Teaching Approach
Oriental philosophy is based on the concepts of Yin and Yang – the contrary and oppositional forces that are the foundations of the universe. They create the dynamic balance in life and harmonise its material and spiritual aspects.
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Eastern philosophies such as Buddhism, Zen, Hinduism and Taoism all emphasize the need for acceptance of the often conflicting and contradictory forces in nature, and those in ourselves and inside others. Furthermore, they encourage us to attempt to do so without judgement or criticism.
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Yin and Yang indeed express the contradictory nature of this opposition, but their true essence helps us to understand the nature and necessity of “complementary” opposition. Such an understanding makes it possible to realize that there is no absolute good or evil. Rather, just states of “being” that exist and change. In a process that involves continual mutual recognition. This understanding, however, has not always proven easy in practice.
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Throughout history, such concepts have been put to the test of experience. As we know on innumerable occasions the gap spanning philosophy and human life was too great to be bridged.
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Tzvika Calisar, with his vast experience in teaching these principles over two decades to students in both Eastern and Western countries, has pondered this dilemma on many occasions. Irrespective of what culture, tradition or religious background students are from, he has witnessed time and time again the tendency to fall into the trap of self-criticism. With it comes the separation arising from dwelling in comparisons between good and bad, right and wrong, and so on.
Thus much research and reflection have gone into the goal of finding a means to allow students to avoid this experience. Allowing them to work with shiatsu in a state body and mind characterized by acceptance and without self-criticism. Such an approach does not exclude observation and analysis. Rather it develops an attitude of non-judgment, both toward our own efforts and the patient’s condition. Furthermore, it cultivates a state of real acceptance toward life and the lives of others.
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Given the presence of opposing forces, how do we unify them within ourselves so that they may complement one another? As human beings, in what way can we implement a life of dynamic balance that recognizes we contain opposites? To not have to live pretending to follow a beautiful seemingly unobtainable ideal.
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The answer to such questions came to Tzvika in the essence of Seiki or what he has called the “third force.” Seiki is a Japanese word that can be written and expressed in several ways by the Chinese characters or kanji used to write Japanese. The more common expression “Seiki” means positive energy, while its opposite “Jaki” represents Jaki or negative energy:
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In Seiki Shiatsu, however, Seiki is written differently:
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Here Sei means life thus its reading is “Energy of Life.” It contains the opposing forces of Yin and Yang, the positive and negative energies. In the beginning, Seiki was the original primal energy that existed before the division into Ying and Yang. Thus it holds both forces within it. So connecting to Seiki in ourselves, and in others, leads to a very different quality in our observations and a deeper understanding that is beyond the dualism of Ying and Yang. Our point of view shifts from a perspective that is two-dimensional to one that is three-dimensional.
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Seiki is the infinitive pure light. In Aramaic it is called Tahiro. This is the impulse of infinitive giving that is the core and foundation of the universe. It is the energy that preceded all, existing before the Big Bang and the creation of the universe. It gave rise to Ying and Yang bringing forth all creation and life on earth as we know it, both material and spirit.
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As human beings we are able to connect to this pure energy simply because we contain it and our life is sustained by it. Every person, undifferentiated by their religion, race, culture, tradition or gender, or whether they are deemed a “good” person or “bad”, all contain the spark of this energy within their heart. This is internal Seiki – the spark of life. Such a connection enables each and every one of us to observe our life as an individual, and its relation to others and the whole, in a uniquely new and different way.
Training Approach
To work with shiatsu in a state of body and mind characterized by acceptance and openness is the aim of the training program. Such an approach does not exclude rational observation and analysis. Rather, it develops an attitude of non-judgment toward our own efforts and toward the patient’s condition and their response to therapy. Furthermore, it cultivates a feeling of real acceptance toward our own life and the lives of others.
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Oriental philosophy is based on the concepts of Yin and Yang. These contrary and oppositional forces form the foundations of the universe and create the dynamic equilibrium in life. They harmonise its material, energetic and spiritual aspects.
Given the presence of these opposing forces, how do we unify them within ourselves so that they may complement one another? As human beings, how do we live our lives, or practice shiatsu, while recognizing that they exist both within us, and in our patients. Being unable to reconcile them can create the pretense of following a beautiful, seemingly unobtainable ideal.
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While Yin and Yang express this contradictory nature, their true essence shows this opposition to be ultimately complementary. Making it possible to realize that “good” and “bad” are not necessarily absolutes, but rather states of being that exist and constantly change in a process of continual mutual recognition and interaction.
Seiki is the source of the internal healing power we all possess. This was the original primal energy that existed before the division into Ying and Yang. Therefore it contains both energies within it. Sometimes translated as the “pure light” or “pure energy” it contains the impulse of infinitive giving that is the core and foundation of the universe. Existing before the Big Bang that created the universe, it gave rise to the creative forces of Yin and Yang that brought forth all life.
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By connecting to the internal Seiki that existing within our selves and others, the depth and quality of our observations move to a deeper level of understanding that is beyond the dualism of Yin and Yang. It is a shift from a two-dimensional to a three-dimensional perspective.
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We are able to connect to this pure energy simply because we contain it and our life is sustained by it. Every person, undifferentiated by their religion, race, culture, or tradition, whether they are deemed “good” or “bad,” all contain it in their heart. This is internal Seiki – the spark of life. Such a connection enables each and every individual to see their relationship with others, and to the whole, in a uniquely new and different way. This is the approach to training that Seiki Shiatsu develops.
