218 R A 田 C A L R E M 引 0 N or prana. '' For the sake 0f this chapten I will refer t0 it as spiritual energy, but if メ ou are a person 、 vh() cringes at the word you can Just mentally replace the words "spiritual energy with deep, peaceful energy ・ There are five aspects Of spiritual energy that Radical survivors and alternative healers describe frequently. After exploring them in depth, we will dive into a Radical Remission healing story about a young man with brain cancer 、 used spiritual energy for healing, and finally we' Ⅱ conclude with some simple action steps you can take tO start developing your own spiritual connectlon practlce. SPIRITUALITY AS AN EXPERIENCE The RadicaI RemiSS10n survlvors and alternative healers I study describe spiritual energy as something they feel simultaneously as bOth a physical sensation and an intense emotion. lt is typically de- scribed as a feeling of warm, peaceful energy that flows downward' 伝 om head to toe, coating both the physical and emotional bodies with a blanket of deep peace and unconditionallove. Many people assume that feeling spiritual energy requires you tO have spiritual or religious beliefs. This is simply not true. This feeling of blissful' spiritual energy is not the result of a 房//イ、 but rather a mental and/ or physical practice that produces an lntense どアどど〃化 Of spiritual energy ・ For example, someone may experience SP1ritual energy tO degrees after a good yoga class, a long a relaxing massage' or an afternoon nap. There are aISO spiritual practices designed spe- cifically tO elicit this experience, such as deep prayer, meditation, or chanting. AS with most things in li , everyone responds tO things differently. For some people, they may never feel a spiritual "buzz" after a yoga class, but feel it intensely at their weekly prayer circle.
Fo 〃 owing u 司 n ルⅲ on 9 / / どんなルイゞ確ル / ななⅸな / 町 0 4 ル 42 巳 ... ス〃イ 4 ゞ 0 〃ツ 0 〃み 42 どどール 0 ア 0 切なー 0 / ンんど ルどルど c 房 / 孕 4 アなルおな″どな Matrix / 町が尾なを 0 。肝みノ加ア〃イど加 0 砌必イどの鑽アみん襯ノ . ln other words, Susan believes that everything in this world, in- cluding our bodies, is made up ofvibrating energy. From a scientific perspective, this is true. Far below the level of cells and bacteria and viruses, we are all made up Of trillions Of atoms that are indeed vibrating at the atomic level 10 The question, hO 、 vever, iS 、 vhether using an energy healing technique like Matrix Energetics—which involves using light touch and a healing intention—can actually change the vibration Of our atoms enough tO lead tO a substantial change in our cells. Researchers dO not currently have the tech- nology available to test this hypothesis, although many longtime energy healers certainly believe it iS possible. Therefore, I asked Susan whether she thought energy healing could actually lead to physical changes in the body. She described her belief that there is a vibrating field energy that exists both inside and outside the physical body, called the "energy body" or "etheric body. " The energy itself is called "chi," qi," or prana rn different healing systems. The physical body is also thought to be made up of energy, although this energy is thoughtto be vibrating at a much slower frequency, which makes it feel more physically SOlid (just as H 0 can be in the form Of steam, 、 vater, or ice). More specifically, she believes that once this energy is inside the body, it uses a system Of centers (chakras) and path 、 vays (meridians) [ 0 circulate energy around the physical body in order to keep the
R A 田 C A L R E M る引 0 N CO イどイ 4 〃ゞ〃 c ん 4 臾方 T 4 〃ーーみど c 〃ん々イ 0 お訪 0 ル ん 0 なーー坊れハ釮砿〃房 / ん c どイ〃どお〃ん比 4 ル イぉげル師砿 . 爿〃イど吻〃 co お 4 明 " 4 4 " 4 イ眦を〃イイア / / 一切ィん功〃 , を c 側 co 〃 g 砌 / . ッ房をど加 0 〃訪ア〃。 why ″ ん″ノみ笳ル g 砌砿加 0 The notion that a cancerous tumor IS simply a buildup of stuck energy gave Susan a new, less fearful way ofthinking aboutthe diag- nosis her dOCtors had given her. SO She started using energy medicine and kinesiology techniques—such as Donna Eden's and MachaeIIe SmaII Wright's methods—to learn how to trace the energy i n her body andfeelwhere it was stuck. This gave Susan a powerful sense of control over her health. She began tracing her energy meridians every day and followed up with energy release exercises designed to get her energy unstuck and flOWing again. During 1 メ interview with susan, I asked her if she had any ideas about why her energy had become stuck in her pancreas, to which she replied: ″ 4 な 0 ど厖おど 0 脚 . 爿〃イ / 4 な 0 ん加ル , 尹 0 ッ みルん訪 0 ル / ど 0 〃ル〃ワル c 孕な 4 〃イツ眦尾加ア 4 ゞ化 4 〃ノア尾〃訪。釮〃 どツど , / んを方 4 んな , ″ 4 衂 4 / ケルん砌歸んん砌
98 R A 田 C A L R E M 引 0 N body operating healthfully. For Susan and most energy healing practitroners, thoughts and emotions exist first and foremost in the energy body. However, because the energy body also penetrates the physical body, they believe repetitive thoughts and emotions can eventually lead to physical blockages in the body, which can eventu- ally lead to disease. Susan explains: たんどんみーど砿みー - 。たどんア記 みあ立ん“。脚イな 4 尾ア 0 血 / イ 4 ん 0 んな co どんル笋〃砌ワ坊な , 0 房 co どんル笋〃ワど zo , 訪ど砌砿な〃必加 勗あ切ど砌砿アど ... Ⅳ〃〃のん〃 g な ん 4 化眦ど 0 な , 確加 c ん〃 g どど , どル ん 4 んど 4 〃 / ど化 0 お GO ノ 0 C 尸ど加 0 ルんなど鑽ツ 0 〃 ca ″″ - ーーど 川 / おど怩〃 intO どアんツゞな 4 / み 0 イア . 爿〃イ 4 ールん 4 〃ゞお ln other words, Susan not only believes thatthe mind and body are made up Of the same substance—energy—・ but alSO that certarn emotional patterns can lead tO that energy getting stuck in the physical body, thereby causing illness. Her theory is quite different from Western medicine, which vie 、 illness as something purely physical. ln Western medicine, physical organisms such as bacterla or viruses enter the physical body when they are not supposed to, causing problems thatlead [ 0 disease. Therefore, the Western medi-
224 R A 田 C A L R E M 引 0 N feel as strongly as Brahmdev does about the primacy of the spirit over the physical body; however, almost all of them believe that spiritual energy iS an important aspect Of 、 Mh() 、 are as human beings and connecting to it regularly can significantly help the physical body heal. THE IMPORTANCE OF REGULAR PRACTICE MOSt people read accounts Of spiritual healing in WhiCh a person IS flooded with spiritual energy, merges with the "oneness," and heals shortly thereafter, and they think to themselves, ん ん 4 砌どみ″ル辺〃孕ア砌加ど . I used t0 be one of those people, because I did not know I could slowly develop a practice that allowed me to feel more palpably the sensation of spiritual energy coursing through my body. ln many of the spiritual heal- ing stories 、 read, people are flOOded 、 this spiritual energy instantly and inexplicably, without much effort on their part. However, one thing I have learned from Radical Remiss10n survrvors iS that, 、 some may be lucky enough tO experience an lnstant flOOd Of spiritual energy, most Of us have tO 、 up tO it slowly with regular, committed practice. The analogy I like [ 0 use is weight lifting. You cannot walk into a gym having not lifted a weight in five years ()r more!) and expect suddenly to bench- press tWO hundred pounds. SimiIarly, you cannot Sit on a medita- tion cushion having never meditated and expect tO have spiritual energy instantly inundate your entire being. Rather' just like the weight lifter, you need to start small and build up your ability with regular—ideally daily—practice. Furthermore, just like weight lift- ing, if you take a month 0 仼 from your practice, メ ou cannot neces- sarily jump back in where you left off; instead' you may have t0 start back at the beginning ・
96 R A 田 C A L R E M る引〇 N ″ 4 みルのツど阨 r ど比坊みイ go ん れ / イイ加ワどん , 〃イ / 切ヮ〃訪 4 アどんアど〃 . So, / ルヮアどイりみ . アみ / 4 け / ケ加 0 〃 カケイ切爿 4 / んノど加 . 立訪 4 着ル / ケ ど ag 〃のル / / をつんルどな / な / り 0 〃 4 リ眦 After her diagnosis, Susan cut back tO working part-time for a short while, but as her healing journey deepened and she learned more about the importance Of unblocking stuck energy, She even- tually realized thatshe needed to quit her job entirely, which she finally did in March of 2008. Doing this gave her the courage she needed tO clear out even more stressful things in her li . For in- stance, she had spent most of her li caring for other people, such as her children, her husband, her aging parents, or her friends. ln fact, her parents raised her tO believe that taking care Of Others 、 vas her primary role in life. However, now that healing cancer 、 her primary role, Susan decided tO cut back on S01 れ e Of her caregiving obligations and finally give herself some much-needed "me time. Atthis point, she was single-mindedly focused on clearing away anything that 、 stuck or no longer serving her. She sa 、 a chiro- practor, who was very helpful in releasing stuck energy in her spine ・ She also got trained in an energy healing technique called Matrix Energetics, which uses the principles of quantum physics, gentle physical touch, and a healing intention [ 0 determine where energy is stuck in the bOdy and then tO release that stuck energy. Susan describes the subtle technique in this way:
Deepening 「 Spiritual Connection 22 / found out about her recurrence; however, this anger actually helped her get out of her thinking mind: 厖房どを″巳″釮 . " / 切 4 尾ん尸り尾 , み どなど . ル 0 0 尾 / ルぉ , 加 0 尾み 00 - ー〃ん〃 You " Later that week, a set Of strange coincidences led Rita tO try a new energy-healing treatment and tO intensify her meditation prac- tice. She alSO chose not tO back intO conventional medicine right away. After a month of meditating and receiving the energy- healing treatment, her breast tumor was no longer palpable tO the touch. Her healing Journey continued, and although she chose never [ 0 return tO conventional doctors, and therefore has never ver- ified that her cancer has indeed gone a 、 May, she is currently—more than twenty-four years later—loving li and enJOYing excellent health. For Rita, deepening her spiritual practice required her first to turn off her thinking, researching mind. The Radical Remission survrvors and alternative healers I study all say that this step iS ab- SOlutely essential if 、、 vant tO be able tO access the spiritual energy inside all of us. SPIRITUALITY RESEARCH We will talk at the end of this chapter aboutsome ways in which you can start tO connect tO spiritual energy, but first I 、 Mould like tO let メ ou kno 、 about some Of the recent research that has been conducted on this topic. Thanks to the relatively new inventions of fMRI (func-
Deepening Your Spiritual Connection 223 causes Of cancer and physical treatments for it. But if you believe the spiritual energy / / み physical bodies needs just as much care as the physical bodies, then メ ou willlook beyond just the physical. Many of the people I study believe that the soul or spiritual energy aspect Of humans is the most important aspect Of ourselves, and if 、 forget tO connect tO that aspect on a regular basis, the body will eventually get run-down or sick. One alternative healer who believes this is a man named Swami Brahmdev, founder of a yoga and meditation ashram in northern lndia. Brahmdev believes that deepemng your connection tO the spiritual energy within each of us should be the first step in any physical healing process. He explains this in his rhythmic V01Ce: みゆ房〃なんなみノな 4 どイル切ど . 立〃んノ イ切どな / 切イどヮ 0 .... ス〃イッ 0 〃ん加ル ッ 4 尾ル勗な〃辺 , / 砌釮加ル co どルど み 4 ノ / ″ / 〃ど、ル化方どケッ 0 〃 , 加アな c ツ 0 〃 , どツ 0 〃 , c 〃 ッ - ー 4 〃イ involve 坊ど . G ル勗切ど″切ど ツ 0 〃 . んなーア 0 切ななみ 0 イアノな〃 0 your ん 0 ぢーんなな〃 0 your み礪 . な box み〃坊ど〃巳 ... ス〃イ加ルなどな切 〃砿〃 . % 辺〃ゞん 0 化み , / 加ルな″ど 0 ル〃確研 坊ど笳ど , ? / 砌な 4 巳 / 〃んを 4g00 イル勗 ど , アん 4 ゞど CO ど 0 〃た / / どケ巳 " ln other words, Swami Brahmdev views the human body as a container for diVine energy, similar tO hO 、 many religions View the body as a container for the soul. According to him, reestablishing and strengthening one S connectlon tO this divine energy inside each of us is the best way to care for this "box" that is the physical body, especially when it becomes ill. Not all the people I interview
Deepening 「 Sp ⅲル 0 / Connection 225 SiSter Jayanti commented on hOW most people these days dO not have a regular spiritual practice because lt IS not considered as im- portant in our culture as getting things done' : , ルど ' 房 co 襯ど〃 4 〃。切 , ' イルり〃釮れ 44g ん 切切ど / , ど 4 市 . 乃どア c イ房 / 加みん加んイルん going 0 〃 within 釘 0 4 〃イ加 co ど房加坊 4 なイ / 〃 g 切ルん / c ん〃をア化 ッ ... ル加〃 / 切 4 ルど研ルん / 4 襯切ッ - んア化イ〃 0 〃けル勗ッ ln other words, Jayanti believes that a healthy human is one who regularly connects the action-oriented bOdy tO the peace-oriented soul. I know that when I am meditating regularly, peaceful, spiri- tual energy fills my body quickly and stays with me for most my day. However, when I meditate sporadically—usually because I am tOO busy" with life—that connection is very difficult tO make and I feel only a small amount of that peaceful energy trickling through my body. According to Jayanti and many of the other people I in- tervre 、 the consequences Of not connecting regularly tO spiritual energy are not t0 be taken lightly: at first, you may start [ 0 feel a generallack 0f peace in your life, but eventually physical illness can develop, because the bOdy iS not "recharging its batteries" (). e. , con- necting to spiritual energy) on a regular basis like it should. There- fore, as with SO many Other things in this 、 MorId, the take-home message IS simple: practlce, practlce, practice.
62 R A DI C A L R E M る引〇 N was given. As he sat up there on the roof 0f his apartment build- ing each morning, soaking up the warm energy 0f the sunlight' he began tO notice something subtle about hiS breathing: / 加ノ舛みル市〃 g 房な確り既ん″ん g 〃イ勿 4 房ケ切ん″〃 & ... ス〃イ砌 0 〃どイ / ノ加ア 4 ル勗どなを〃 4 〃 g ん加なルんんんん〃 . ハ印砌加イ 4 40 んノ . 爿〃イ / co 〃〃どは訪 ln Other 、 MOrdS, Shin 、 combining one Of hiS talents—muslc— with two of his new healing modalities: exhaling and watching the sunrise. AS he experimented With singing a single note during an exhale, he discovered that certain notes reverberated more strongly ln certarn areas Of hiS bOdy.. For example, a 10 、 note resonated more strongly in the center of his chest, while a slightly higher note resonated more strongly in the center Of hiS throat. ・当, ・ ithout knowing it, he 、 discovering the seven energy centers Of the bOdy, or chakras, as they are called in yoga. (Shin has since studied the chakra system in depth. ) These energy centers start at the base of the spine and move up to the top of the head, and they are thought tO be very important in the flOW Of energy throughout the entire body. Also, if one or more of your chakras are closed or partially blocked, the theory is that illness or dysfunction will result. By exhaling and singing vibrating tones 、 vhile 、 Matching the sunnse,