48 health Action | www.hans.org

by sudha M. Devi, MA, MPhil

P ain is real but we have the ability to heal and free ourselves from chronic

pain. My intention here is to honour and validate the pain.

What gives me authority to speak about chronic pain? I am my own testimony. I am one of the roughly six million adults in Canada who live with chronic pain. I walk this walk with the pain of fibromayalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome—extreme deviations of vata and pitta from the Ayurvedic perspective of balanced health. I feel blessed to receive training to “know thyself,” to walk this path of self-healing and supporting the healing of others.

I invite you to hold this inquiry gently in your heart.

Holding pain as a precious jewel

“Can one remain with that pain? Can I look at that pain, hold it, hold it as a precious jewel, not escape, not suppress, not rationalize it, not seek the cause of it, but hold it as a vessel holds water?”—Jiddu Krishna Murthy

Pain opens the gateways to other realities: who we already are in our wholeness. Is recovery possible? If so, to what extent? What is realistic and what is a fantasy? How can we self-soothe pain with ongoing nurturing and self-compassion? How can we reconnect to

other realities and universes to understand that we are more than this physical body? How can we access these realms in simple yet profound ways?

We may not be like the famous Indian saints and philosopher Jiddu Krishna Murthy, whose relationship to pain was totally different than ours. Yet, when we surrender to the uncertainty and to the difficulty of pain, we can find certainty. Pain is the doorway to receiving our preciousness—our jewel—of who we already are.

Our intention is to honour the need for pain medication, as and when needed, and also to offer an alternative gateway for people who are interested in proactively managing their health by exploring new

approaches to health and wellness.

Through the gateway of feeling your weakness

lies your strength.Through the gateway of

feeling your pain lies your pleasure and joy.

Through the gateway of feeling your fear lies your

security and safety.Through the gateway of feeling

your loneliness lies your capacity to have fulfillment, love, and companionship.Through the gateway of

feeling your hopelessness lies true and justified hope.Through the gateway of

accepting the lacks of your childhood lies your fulfillment

now. —Pathwork Guide

Pain as the Gateway to Our Precious WholenessEmbracing pain through spiritual and energy healing

49health Action | www.hans.org

Pain relief through Ayurveda marma

therapyAccording to Ayurveda, pain

is caused by blockage to the flow of prana, the subtle life force also known as breath, cosmic life energy or chi. This blockage results in stagnation and a deviation from our original homeostasis, and causes imbalance.

As Ayurvedic Vaidya Vasant Lad shares his lifetime study, wisdom and knowledge of Ayurveda: “Pain is a language of the doshas that speaks through the mouth of the marma points. Marma therapy can alleviate pain by stimu-lating the flow of prana and pacifying the related doshas.”

Marma therapy supports you to receive the preciousness of who you are in this moment. “A marma is a vital energy point accessed on the skin’s surface, serving as a bridge between body, mind and spirit. When you learn to touch a marma point, you can change your body’s biochemistry and unfold radical, alchemical changes in your makeup,” explains Dr. Vasant Lad.

Jin Shin Jyutsu, self-help for pain managementAccording to the ancient

written record Kojiki, which remains in the archives of the Imperial Palace of Japan, Jin Shin Jyutsu was widely known thousands of years ago. This ancient art of living harmonizes the life energy in the body, helping to reduce stress and tension, eliminate chronic pain, increase self-awareness and promote the natural healing abilities of the body. It can be applied by a practitioner or done as a self-help technique, empowering yourself to participate in your own healing.

For specific physical issues such as back pain, a torn ligament or nausea following chemotherapy, you would spend an entire hour on the healing table receiving a Jin Shin Jyutsu treatment.

When you receive Jin Shin Jyutsu from me I will send you home with simple applications you can apply yourself to complement the work we have done together. The concept of self-help is one of the wonderful aspects of Jin Shin Jyutsu. Self-help can assist with specific physical conditions, to balance emotions and generally support your journey

of self-healing in any way you need.

Sudha M. Devi, MA, MPhil, is a natural health and healing sci-ences practitioner with over two decades of experience. She offers in-person and long-distance inte-

grated healing support, including Ayurvedic marma therapy and Jin Shin Jyutsu, as well as group Jin Shin Jyutsu self-healing seminars through her practice, Shiva Shakti Healing Consultancy located in Richmond, B.C. www.vancouver-healing.com | (604) 307-4283

(604) 544-2902Cell: (503) 701-5102

Email: trishlimodonnell@aol.comFor more info: www.trishlimodonnell.com

1 ON 1 • GROUPS • WORKSHOPS TELEPHONE COACHING

Polarity therapy, energy balance

D r. Randolph Stone, who developed polarity therapy, used to say that “spending 10 minutes a day working on

your fingers, toes and feet is the best health insurance in the world.”

Hold the thumb for physical pain.Hold the little finger for emotional pain.Know thyself and your meridian times and how to harmonize the body, mind, soul according to your birthdays and time of the days.4–6 am – Lung – Aries (I AM) – Hold Ring Finger6–8 am – Large Intestine – Taurus (I HAVE) –

Hold Ring Finger8–10 am – Stomach – Gemini (I THINK) – Hold Thumb10 am–12 noon – Spleen – Cancer (I FEEL) – Hold Thumb12 noon–2 pm – Heart – Leo (I BEAM) – Hold Little Finger2–4 pm – Small Intestine – Virgo (I ANALYZE) –

Hold Little Finger4–6 pm – Bladder – Libra (I BALANCE) – Hold Index Finger6–8 pm – Kidney – Scorpio (I CREATE) – Hold Index Finger8–10 pm – Diaphragm – Sagittarius (I PERCEIVE) –

Hold Centre Palm10–12 midnight – Umbilicus – Capricorn (I USE) – Hold

Centre Palm12 midnight–2 am – Gallbladder – Aquarius (I KNOW) –

Hold Middle Finger2–4 am – Liver – Pisces (I BELIEVE) – Hold Middle Finger

People in Pain NetworkThe only organization in British Columbia providing peer led pain self-management support groups.Check out one of our many active groups throughout BC.please visit our website www.pipain.com for more informationor call toll-free at 1-844-747-7246