The Kenyoku Technique

Also known as “dry bathing,” Kenyoku purifies body and soul. It strengthens your energy and helps you to detach from your clients, situations, thoughts, and emotions. It brings you into the present moment. It can be used before and after a Reiki session, and can also be used anytime you feel a need to release negative energy and/or nervous tension.

Kenyoku-ho is a technique to clear and strengthen the energy channels. The technique was common to many martial arts and chi kung schools such as JuJitsu, Aikidoand KiKo and was added by Usui.

Those familiar with the martial arts will recognize the two parts of this technique as common techniques. The first is a down block across the midsection (this technique is used in a variety of martial arts such as Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido, etc.). This down block is followed by what is commonly called in the martial arts as a “shirk” or technique to remove an opponents hand from your wrist that is done by sliding the knife edge of your hand down the arm.

Part One:

A. Place your right hand on the left shoulder so that the right fingertips are on the left shoulder. The hand is open, the fingers held together all point upwards. The hand (palm down) is against the body.

B. Slide the hand downward toward the right hip. Move the hand, going across the chest and ending up fingers down at the right hip. The hand (palm down) stays in light contact with the body the entire movement. (This is what is called an open handed down block in the martial arts.)

C. Repeat this process starting with the left hand on the right shoulder and going down to the left hip.

Part Two

D. Place the right hand again on the left shoulder. Slide the right hand down the left arm (inside or outside, each will cover different meridians) all the way to the fingertips. (This is what would be called a “shirk” in the martial arts, used to remove an opponents hand that is grabbing your arm.)

E. Repeat this with the left hand on the right arm.

F. Start with the right hand on the inside of the left elbow, and slide the hand down to the fingertips.

G. Repeat this with the left hand on the right inside of the elbow.

Note – Some masters teach the hand should slide to the inside of the arm and others teach it should slide down the outside of the arm. Different meridians are stimulated for each.

• The inside slide is yin and will effect the lung, heart, and kidney meridians.
• The outside slide is yang and will effect the triple warmer, colon and small intestine meridians.

It is interesting that this technique appears to have survived after a fashion in the Rand school that teaches to cut the cords on the solar plexus using a “karate chopping technique”

For my sources see: Recommended Reading