“What I learned from horse riding”
I’m now practicing horse riding. I have been doing it for a couple of years at the suggestion of my teacher, who is an acupuncture and moxibustion specialist. Horse riding is an ideal way to cultivate one’s sense of balance because the body teｍperatures of a horse are just slightly higher than ours. 　A horse is a lovely animal, but for me touching a horse was a kind of challenge at first.　It took time for me to get used to be comfortably alone with the horse with its long face and enormous eyes. One day, just before dinner time, the horse impatiently approached me from behind and gave me a bite. When I got near the horse a few days later, the usually obedient animal gave me a threatening look. A horse is a herbivorous tame animal. That may be the reason why it is quick to respond to our minds or spirits. As I fearfully passed nearby, the horse obviously saw through my mind. The horse knew that I was in fear of some sort. How sensitive it is!

“’Tsubo’ (specific points of our body) is very likely frightened”
Here I wish to write about things that occasionally happen to us while we try to give an acupuncture treatment to a patient lying on his/her stomach. Of course, the person being treated in the back but the needle makes the point respond the moment it is aimed at the specific point (tsubo). This occurs especially when the patient is mentally stressed and his/her “noxious air” is accumulated. In oriental medicine, the noxious air is called “Jaki.” When the abdomen is touched a ticklish sensation is felt even by adult patients. Being near such “patients” affects the person who is giving the therapy as well. Believe it or not, “Jaki” or noxious air fears the acupuncture needle and tries to avoid its influence. So, the most important thing in treating such a patient is to “arrest” the noxious air and keep it out of harm’s way. When the treatment is completed, the susceptibility disappears even to the surprise of the patient him/herself.

“The balance between the specific pressure point (tsubo) and the mental status of the patient”
The relationship between the specific pressure point and the patient’s mental condition is very close and mutually affective. In other words, if your mental status remains tensed up, the specific pressure point of the body fails to relax. On the other hand, however, if this condition is left as it is, it is likely to move in the opposite direction and suffers from lack of vigilance. This excessive slackness is regarded as a weakened vigilance. Being near such a person makes us feel as if our own energy is being sucked up by the patient. Such a relationship between normal vigilance and lack of it is in sharp contrast toward each other. Thus the delicate balance between the two is of utmost importance, because it directly relates to the balance of spiritual conditions. When this balance is lost the imbalance comes out in some form of physical symptom reflecting the oneness of mind and body. The manic-depressive psychosis, however, can be cured through acupuncture and moxibustion therapy. Examining the condition of the specific pressure point will help us to see if the therapy is working properly. Thus the mental status of the therapist is extremely important. If the mental status of the therapist loses proper balance, it can hardly expect to determine the mentality of the patient. Mr. Rempu Fujimoto, my master in oriental medicine, always tells us how important the therapist’s mental status is. For instance, if a thief happens to come across a small child almost at the point of falling into a deep well, the thief cannot help rescuing the kid. When a sudden pain occurs somewhere in our body, our hand moves to the point from where the pains seems to be coming. In like manner, when the therapist single-mindedly conducts the treatment for the patient, an incredible power comes out. What that “power” could be? It is nothing but the power of “Buddhahood” that is in all our lives. This truth is introduced in a publication written by the master himself: “The Secret of Acupuncture Moxibustion Treatment.” The book contains some philosophical truths.

Thus ceaseless efforts to accomplish perfect humanity on the part of the therapist is demanded. I myself have a long way to go! Whatever occurs in our minds, even if it remains unspoken, is conveyed to the patient transcending the distance that separates human beings. Oriental medicine is based on the philosophy which considers all human beings to be absolutely perfect.