In the practice of Zen Shiatsu, the founder Shizuto Masunaga was very adamant about reading the Ki and rebalancing it using a “mother” hand that is listening and a “son” hand that is working.

The technique

I have been practicing massage using that concept for over 20 years (10 years of practicing massage in Duluth MN) and am still humbled by the power of this simple technique; one hand listens to what the body is saying, the other is creating a change.  Recently, I have been practicing this technique with the Zen Shiatsu Bladder Meridian Channel along the spine all the way down to the little toe. My mother hand listens from one of the points along the thoracic spine while my son hand works the meridian until I feel the Ki moving under my mother hand. This has produced surprising changes in some clients. I wasn’t sure why this meridian was so universally powerful until a conversation I had with Jakki, our Acupuncturist, sparked a connection.

The meridian

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has mapped Shu points along the Urinary Bladder (UB) meridian. These points interact with each of the other 11 meridians. Balancing the Shu points can have a systematic effect on the body. What I had picked up through intuition and listening has a long history of knowledge and treatment.

I don’t claim to have this knowledge, I am still in discovery mode. Next summer I am diving deeper into TCM education with the distance program at the Zen Shiatsu school in Evanston, IL. This Summer I am taking the Beginning Zen Shiatsu class to brush up on my Shiatsu knowledge. I am excited to bring my practice back full circle to my first love of massage which is Zen Shiatsu. This time with 20 years of massage experience behind my touch. If you or someone you know is interested in doing this program at the same time please reach out to me! I would love (a) study partner(s). The Beginner Shiatsu Class is open to everyone with no prior massage experience necessary. I am doing the July intensive. https://zenshiatsu.edu/ce/beginning_zen_shiatsu/