What is Sotai?

After working for many years as a Western Medical Practitioner and seeing numerous cases that could not be treated with typical treatments of pharmacological or surgical interventions. Dr Keizo Hashimoto, who passed away in his late nineties, started to turn to Oriental Medicine to see if he could find more answers. While therapies such as massage, acupuncture, herbal medicine and diet seemed to have higher success rates with fewer side effects, Dr Hashimoto still felt there was a missing link.

He concluded that wherever there was sickness, there was a distortion in the basic physical structure of the body. In order to change this distortion, he found that movement or motion in the opposite direction of pain or movement that felt good would correct deformation or imbalance in the body.

He also believed that we could all live with the greatest of ease, remaining free of disease with the ability to have increased vitality by regulating ourselves through our breathing, diet, and physical and mental activities. If any of these became unbalanced, our body would move towards disharmony. Awareness of the quality of the foods and drinks we consume, are they in harmony with our bodies’ needs? Are we over / under-consuming? Are we feeling in balance during and after consumption? Where are our thoughts, and how are our bodies positioned?

When the balance of what we consume and release from our bodies changes because of our own unawareness, our inner and outer balance also changes, not just one small area, it is the balance of the whole that changes.

He believed that by being in touch with one’s intuition by listening, feeling, understanding and responding to our inner and outer in a gentle and comfortable way, we can learn how to maintain a balance between the inner and outer.

Body movement, mind, spirit, breathing and diet are all linked. This linkage’s correct use helps promote harmony and brings our bodies back to the ways of Natural Law.

This was how Keizo Hashimoto believed we could find perfect health and from these ideas and his own life experience, he developed Sotai

The Course

During this 5-week course, you will develop a basic knowledge of Sotai theory and clinical application and integrate these with Shiatsu treatments.

Thursday afternoons from 13th March to 10th April 2025 at the Learning Centre, Ceres, Brunswick

This short course has a prerequisite of prior study in the Zen Shiatsu Short Course.

This series will be eligible for 12 CPD hours