The Art of Meridian Touch
Meridian Touch™, sometimes called the “Art of Letting Go”, s a new way to look at total health and wellbeing from a very old perspective. Thousands of years old in fact. Created by Darryl Aiken-Afam, Meridian Touch is a form of Chinese medicine based yoga that has “no form,” meaning the performance and mimicking of postures, poses, or Asanas is secondary to one’s moving naturally and assuming a shape which allows a person to relax and let their body find its own way. The releasing exercises/movements of Meridian Touch are based directly on the final work of the great Japanese Zen Shiatsu pioneer Shizuto Masunaga, founder of the Iokai Shiatsu Center in Tokyo, Japan. His work, in turn, was directly based on the ancient Chinese yogic exercise system called Dao-In, the exercise system that was the forerunner to Tai Chi Chuan.
The movements are simple and pleasant to do. They are based on the Five Elements theory of traditional Eastern medicine; Metal, Earth, Fire, Water, and Wood. Each element contains its own movements designed to relax and activate the meridians of the body creating and allowing better flow of Ki (Chi in Chinese) energy and blood. Meridians are the lines or rivers of energy that run throughout the body where all the acupuncture points are found. These are the same points used by Acupuncturists and Shiatsu practitioners and other healers to treat people for a wide variety of reasons and conditions. Ki energy is the life-force energy said to flow in everyone and everything in the universe. It is the condition of this Ki within one’s mind/body that determines one’s health, mental well-being, physical performance, emotional make up etc.
The touch technique used in Meridian Touch is a form of compassionate, symbiotic supporting touch that benefits both the giver and receiver. It helps each person relax and encourages the releasing of tension and increased Ki flow throughout the body. Unlike other partner types of stretching, the touch of Meridian Touch is almost effortless as each person “melts” into the touch of each other. The idea is not to help another person to stretch, but to encourage both partners to relax together.
The effects that can be derived from Meridian Touch are truly amazing and can serve an extremely wide variety of people. The underlying techniques are based on the Chinese philosophy of a universal oneness that creates all things and sustains all things, better known as the Tao (Pronounced Dao). In Eastern medicine, the forces of Yin and Yang are said to have come together from the Tao to create everything in existence. Therefore, the dancer or athlete wanting more flexibility or performance gains, the arthritic housewife looking for some relief, the 30 something Wall Street trader stressed to the max, the post-surgery accident victim wanting to hasten her healing, can ALL find some of what they need in Meridian Touch, because that desire and need for wholeness comes from the same source, the Tao. And this is where we ”play” and heal ourselves in Meridian Touch.
The Five Elements & Compassionate “Touch” of Meridian Touch
Meridian Touch movements can be done alone, with a partner, or in groups and will help those that practice the art to become much more aware of themselves inside and out and how they relate to others and to their environment. You will learn, through use of the Five Elements’ correspondences, which movements to do when you have digestive problems, when you are overwhelmed by fear, when your joints ache, when you are obsessed with worry, when you need to relax your hamstrings before a race, etc. You’ll also come to understand why you crave sweets so much, why you dislike the color green, or why autumn is the only time of year you feel really like “yourself.”
The various correspondences of the Five Elements, which are life phenomena that relate to all aspects of one’s inner and outer life, were discovered long ago by Chinese Taoists. It’s these same correspondences you will learn while doing Meridian Touch which makes this a “workout” of the deepest kind. Where Yoga, Pilates, and other mind/body classes leave off is where the work of this wonderful Japanese form of movement picks up. I call this a Japanese form fully acknowledging it’s Chinese roots. At the same time, what I learned from my many teachers, and what I have formulated in Meridian Touch itself, comes from a background based on Japanese Zen Shiatsu, Meridian Therapy, and the direct Meridian system espoused by Master Shizuto Masunaga. Therefore, when Meridian Touch sessions are done and classes are taught, more Japanese terminology is used than Chinese. Still, it is a peaceful harmonious marriage between the two and there is no conflict.
The “touch” in Meridian Touch is a soulful symbiotic connection with another living being for the purpose of mutual support, growth, and for obtaining deeper results. One person does not stretch the other. Instead, a melding together which assists you both in getting to where you want to be physically and emotionally occurs. The touch techniques used in Meridian Touch are directly from Zen Shiatsu and from various martial arts like Filipino Kali (Stick Fighting), Japanese Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai Kickboxing from Thailand, and Brazilian Jiu Jistsu and Capoeira. It may be hard to see how various fighting techniques can blend into a system of wellness and healing, but if know and have an understanding of the beautiful philosophy of Chinese Yin/Yang theory you can see how this is so.
You’ll truly gain the personal knowledge you need to create your own health, while going beyond mere “exercise,” through daily use of Meridian Touch.
Darryl Aiken-Afam has taught this amazing form of holistic fitness internationally to Collegiate and Olympic athletes, professional dancers, TV personalities, presidents of international corporations, people recovering from illness and injury, people overwhelmed or burdened with heavy emotions and psychological stress, and many, many more. Now it’s your turn to feel and experience what Meridian Touch can do for you and for your entire life.
