The Theory
and Practice of Spiritual Acupuncture
Original Text Copyright © 1988
Revised Web Version Copyright © 2000 by Academic Services
International
All Rights Reserved
This Course was
approved for Continuing Education credit in 1986 by the
California Acupuncture
Board
Then, in 2001, they refused to re-approve
it
because it contained techniques that are not included in
The Scope of Practice of Licensed Acupuncturists
So we created "Source
Acupuncture" with the same material
in a slightly different form - and they
approved that one
Lecture 1 - The Essence
of Spiritual Acupuncture
Introduction Spiritual acupuncture An overview of the levels of consciousness Diagnosis and treatment The patients and their goals
THE ORIGINS OF ACUPUNCTURE are lost in a history whose written records can be traced back no further than the Han dynasty (200 BC), and whose "implied age" is 5,000 years. The quaint stories about soldiers being wounded by arrows and their medics noticing unusual healings indicate that acupuncture was a science and an art built up during the slightly-later-than-stone-ages in China. A popular metaphysical view indicates that the ancient Chinese sages had operating etheric vision, and were thus able to directly see the channels and points. A third, and more recent, theory states that China inherited acupuncture from a highly-advanced, previous civilization, and the knowledge which we have today is that which survived by being orally transmitted through China's stone-age to eventually be written in classics like the Nei Ching (the famous "Yellow Emperor's" text).
Whichever historical tradition is true, this book introduces the Theory and Practice of Spiritual Acupuncture, a subject not yet fully described or even explained in the Oriental medical literature now available in the West. In fact, it may not even be available in the Orient, for the concept of Spiritual Acupuncture seems to have been lost - except for perhaps a few Taoist acupuncture practitioners (and they won't discuss the subject except with their children or their direct lineage students). This course contains spiritual concepts and techniques of value to any holistic practitioner, including acupuncturists, chiropractors, massage therapists, psychologists, and medical doctors.
Spiritual Acupuncture leads to some very interesting results. These results are indicative of a true holistic treatment that balance and align all the "bodies" of the patient, including the physical, the emotional, the mental, the paraconscious, and the causal (Soul) bodies or energy fields.
OUR CONTEMPORARY MEDIA, such as newspapers, tabloids, and television, has ensured that almost everyone has heard of acupuncture and has made them aware that it is used for pain control, weight loss, and facial toning. A smaller segment of our population has learned that acupuncture is also applicable to virtually the entire spectrum of human illness, ranging from the common cold to life-threatening diseases.
Very few people, including many acupuncturists, have been aware of the depth of spiritual healing available through the use of acupuncture. We all learned a little more when Shirley MacLaine, in her book, Dancing in The Light, told the tale of her "spiritual awakening" under the influence of acupuncture needles.
Most acupuncturists are aware of the Spirit points used in acupuncture; they are the ones with the Chinese names which contain the word, "Shen." Thus we find points called Shenmen (Spirit's Gate) and Shencong (Spirit's Storage), to name only two. There are also the points which are said to influence the Spirit, such as Baihui (the Hundred Meetings), a point which traditionally "calms the Spirit," and the "Window to the Sky" points which are access points for spiritual energy on the various channels.
Armed with all this esoteric terminology, and even when endowed with considerable, traditional, acupuncture experience, many practitioners are yet unable to produce the results of Spiritual Acupuncture. This is because they are not in possession of a method for selecting the points and/or they are not themselves adequately trained in the areas in which they are seeking results for their patients.
What are these results? For one, Astral Projection, the process of taking one's consciousness out of the physical body and into the "astral" realm. A second common result is remembrance of previous existences; this is the so-called, Past Life Regression. A third, and the most important, result is Direct contact with the Higher Self.
How, then, is this mysterious Spiritual Acupuncture performed?
First, the practitioner makes a traditional clinical diagnosis of the patient's problems, including inspection, auscultation & olfaction, inquiry, and palpation. Secondly, he or she must have some means of determining the states and the associated blockages in the various levels of consciousness of the patient - this is not taught in contemporary schools of acupuncture.
One of the most accurate diagnostic tools is viewing the human energy fields, commonly called the Aura. Merely by assessing the etheric-physical body (this is where the acupuncture points and channels are found), one can often come up with an Oriental medical diagnosis which is absolutely confirmed afterward by pulse and tongue diagnosis.
Looking deeper (or further out, as you might say), the astral or emotional body gives evidence as to the excess or deficiency of various emotions in the anger/depression spectrum, and also indicates which qualities the person has cultivated (devotion, truth, loyalty, dishonesty, etc.).
Next, the mental body tells us how the person's mind functions, and how cluttered it is with unresolved thoughtforms (worry complexes).
These three vehicles, the physical, the emotional, and the mental, constitute our personality. They represent the sum total of our "toolkit," the qualities we have and use when dealing with the three-dimensional world. Normally, the acupuncturist will not be able to reach beyond these diagnostic levels without special training and much self-discipline.
The next level, referred to as the paraconscious, tells us where the individual is on his or her "Path of Destiny," and how they react to their own spiritual guidelines set forth for their progress. This body or field registers the interface between the personality and the causal body. The paraconscious field will also indicate the evolutionary/initiatory level of the patient as well as their mode of relationship to others and to society..
The causal body is the first level of consciousness we can contact which we might call the "Higher Self." The causal body has been called the Soul, the reincarnating ego, the Solar Angel, the Holy Guardian Angel, the Genius, the Superior Man, and many other titles which vary with language, culture, and philosophical background. This body holds the key to each person's present purpose. Is there any greater information any one of us can have than that of our true Will or purpose?
Beyond the causal body are two, rarefied energy fields which pertain to specific cosmic energies we may carry. These are vehicles for the intuition-wisdom and monadic levels. We, as human beings, cannot normally extend or expand our consciousness beyond the monadic, for the monad is the essence of all that we are, and resembles something closely akin to a star - nay, it is the central point of a star, and to go "beyond" this unified consciousness is to spread one's self out amongst all the stars in universal oneness. It happens frequently in Spiritual Acupuncture sessions.
After assessing the various levels of consciousness of the patient, we are not only in a position to say what their problem is, but also which level of consciousness contains the CAUSE of the problem. In general, the approximate percentages attributed to causes at the various levels are as follows:
Table I - Levels of Consciousness attributed to Cause of disease.
LEVEL ---------> |
Physical |
Emotional/Astral |
Mental |
Paraconscious/Causal |
Cause --------> |
10% |
85% |
5% |
[100%]* |
* We call this "Karma."
Having diagnosed the patient by available western methods and through the four methods of Oriental diagnosis, we may now add our auric (or other) analysis and select the acupuncture points accordingly.
It is recommended to always use Du 20 at the Crown in order to give a spiritual influence to the whole process. Then one point is inserted on each extremity (bilaterally) to be determined by the physical diagnosis. For example, if the patient is emotionally depressed and anxious, Liver 3 and Pericardium 6 would be appropriate. Other points, chosen specifically for medical symptoms, can also be added at this stage. But don't get carried away - try to hold the total number to seven needles (including those points mentioned below).
Next, we scan the Ren channel, either by etheric vision or by the sensation in the palm of the hand, searching for the imbalanced areas in the major centers (chakras). Usually, a key point is found in the abdomen, the epigastric area (the "Soma-Zero point of Spiritual Acupuncture), and the chest. Yintang, the "third eye" point, can be added to enhance visualization abilities in patients who have difficulty visualizing. See photo ---->
After the needles are inserted, the patient is asked to enter a short period of breathing regulation (several, deep, slow breaths). Then we move directly into visualization exercises designed to unlock the past lives, the out-of-the-body experiences, and contact with the Higher Self which makes all of this possible - (see the Lecture on "Techniques").
During the procedure, it is the practitioner's duty to gently guide the person into their chosen area of investigation, mainly through visualization exercises. Once the scene is set, we step back and require the person to get their own information, and our job becomes simple: (1) to keep the person talking in order to "ground" the information (lest they slip away into sleep or uncontrolled daydreams), and (2) to prevent the person from wandering away into unproductive areas. Anytime a patient becomes unresponsive (does not answer your questions), the needles should be immediately removed.
Over a two-year period (1986-88), just over 80% of the people your Instructor has treated with Spiritual Acupuncture techniques have successfully made contact with their Higher Self during their first session - by this we mean that they consciously and directly contacted their causal body (Soul) or they contacted both the causal body and the monad. Over a longer period (1986-1999), the percentage figure is higher - mainly due to careful pre-screening of patients in order to determine if this technique will be beneficial for them.
After the treatment session, these patients usually report feeling great - well in excess of the usual endorphin-induced euphoria of traditional acupuncture treatments. What has happened is that the higher consciousness has been contacted and has then penetrated into the lower vehicles (or the lower vehicles have been raised to higher consciousness, depending on your viewpoint), and an alignment of ALL levels has taken place. Long after the treatment (weeks or months), patients often report that the pathway or ability which was opened or unblocked during the acupuncture session can be accessed in their private meditations. This amounts to a permanent breakthrough!
Experience will teach you to work only with those patients who have a background in some form of metaphysical or spiritual discipline. Anyone who meditates regularly or who practices some type of spiritual self-discipline will usually have no difficulty with the Spiritual Acupuncture techniques. Your Instructor has learned to reject people who have read a book or two but have no concept of self-discipline or meditation - these are the "curious" people, and even though everyone seems to have some positive result, the results are usually too meager for the curious, and they end up being disappointed - also, the practitioner is not very happy either! The patient's original expectations were not in harmony with what could be realistically attained.
Patients have come to your Instructor with a variety of goals, including raising of the kundalini, development of psychic skills, enhancing their writing skills, overviewing creative projects (including movie productions and stage-plays), to get out of their bodies, to explore past lives, and (all too often) to seek re-balancing of their vehicles which have been afflicted with nervous and psychological conditions imprinted by less-than-competent gurus and groups. For those who seek to discover their purpose in life, they often find that Will or Intent is merely a level of energy and consciousness as opposed to a specific goal that can be identified.
If the patients themselves can identify an inner blockage, then we usually can address it through Spiritual Acupuncture - and more often than not, we can dissolve it. This is usually accomplished in a single treatment. Patients who come for Spiritual Acupuncture more than once or twice are coming for "development," not a breakthrough experience. Your Instructor always requires that a patient come in with a specific problem that they can verbalize.
THIS COURSE examines the above concepts in greater detail, and is intended as a guide for licensed acupuncturists and other health care providers who are working ever more deeply into spiritual discovery.
