TOYOHARI - JAPANESE NEEDLE THERAPY

The European Branch of the Toyohari Association is pleased to
announce the eleventh International Toyohari training program in Amsterdam

TOYOHARI - JAPANESE NEEDLE THERAPY
A NINE-MONTH, TWENTY-DAY POSTGRADUATE PROGRAM

Instructors Stephen Birch, Junko Ida, Alexander Schuurmans, Joke Bik-Nowee, Marian Fixler, Leon d’Oliveira and Sue Pready.

Toyohari is a form of Keiraku Chiryo - Japanese Meridian Therapy. It is a theoretically simple but technically sophisticated complete system of acupuncture. It is different from most other forms of acupuncture in that it uses a more delicate treatment method, placing great emphasis on the use of pulse diagnosis and palpation skills. The Toyohari Association has developed quite unique training and teaching methods that can accelerate the learning of skills that usually take many years of practice to develop. Many who have studied the Toyohari style of acupuncture have reported that it is more like what they thought they were going to be studying in acupuncture school.

The Toyohari Association was founded in 1959, evolving out of earlier developments in meridian therapy in the 1930s and 1940s. The Toyohari Association began as an Association devoted to Japanese meridian therapy for blind students and practitioners. Today it includes both sighted and blind practitioners. Many of the senior instructors in the Association are blind, and have considerable clinical experience. Toyohari is taught in Japan as a post-graduate training of 20 days over two years. Instruction in Japan is given through the highly organized, academic and hands-on clinical training methods of the senior members of the Association, utilizing the "Kozato-study method". The European Branch, the EBTA has developed a training program that follows the Tokyo based program. The late past President of the Association, Kodo Fukushima wrote a book available in English translation: "Meridian Therapy", which is required reading for this program. The book along with some supplies are included in the cost of the program.

Graduation from this 120-hour program entitles the graduate to join the Toyohari Association through one of its European branches and become a registered Toyohari practitioner. At present there are five branches, Dutch, UK, German, Swiss and Spanish. The principle purposes of the branches are to foster and improve clinical skills by providing ongoing study opportunities both in Branch study groups and study sessions with senior instructors in Japan and Europe. The European Branch of the Toyohari Association has been established to provide the structure for these educational opportunities. Graduates will receive a certificate signed by the EBTA and the Tokyo headquarters of the Association, and then be able to join the Toyohari Association through one of the EBTA branches.

Principle amongst the techniques used in the Toyohari system are:

- Diagnosis: focusing especially on pulse diagnosis and touch diagnosis;


- Treatment: very delicate supplementation technique; various draining techniques; harmonizing technique (waho); "contact" needling techniques (sanshin); warming moxa (chinetsukyu), direct moxa (okyu), cupping (kyukaku), bloodletting (shiraku), specialized treatment of the neck and inguinal regions to relieve symptoms (naso & muno), specialized use of the extraordinary vessels (kikei), specialized use of midday-midnight method (shigo).

- Graduates will considerably improve their pulse and tactile diagnostic and assessment skills.

- Graduates will also develop a greater sense of qi sensitivity through applying the needling techniques of the Association.

- Graduates will learn a range of methods specifically aimed at relieving symptoms.

- Graduates will be able to join ongoing study groups through joining the Toyohari Association.

This international Toyohari program will be taught in Amsterdam, and is the eleventh such program in Europe. It will be taught by three senior EBTA instructors, with four junior instructors also assisted by graduates from previous programs. The senior instructors are: Stephen Birch, Academic Dean of the EBTA and first recipient of the Kodo Fukushima Prize, Junko Ida, President of the EBTA, past-president of the first US branches and recipient of the Kozato prize, Alexander Schuurmans, past Board Member of the EBTA, each of whom studied extensively in Japan, Europe and the US. The other instructors are Joke Bik-Nowee, Marian Fixler, Leon d’Oliveira and Sue Pready all of whom have studied extensively both in Europe and Japan.

The program will be taught in English. For each day of class there will be a minimum of two instructors to supervise the practical training, complemented by recent graduates as teaching assistants. Over 60% of the program will involve hands-on practice of the various methods and techniques.

The dates, and hours for this Amsterdam based eight-weekend program are:

October 16-18, 2009 - 3 days / 18 hours; November 13-15, 2009 - 3 days / 18 hours
January 16-17, 2010 - 2 days / 12 hours; February 13-14, 2010 - 2 days / 12 hours
March 12-14, 2010 - 3 days / 18 hours; April 10-11, 2010 - 2 days / 12 hours
May 7-9, 2010 - 3 days / 18 hours; June 5-6, 2010 - 2 days / 12 hours

To ensure maximum hands-on training, the number of participants will be limited to 20. We expect the program to fill quickly, so it is advised not to delay application, as applications will be taken on a first-come-first-served basis. You must have completed a training program in acupuncture or be in the final year of such a program.

Program costs: 2,100 Euros (including supplies and written materials).

If you have questions about this program, call 00 31 (0)20 689 5145. If you have to leave a message or fax your question, you will be called back.

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