Cranial Sacral Therapy
"Keeping the hips still, making his sacrum stiff,
dangerous, the heart suffocates."
—I-Ching,
or Chinese Book of Changes
Cranial sacral work (also called craniosacral therapy)
is an evolution out of Cranial Osteopathy, a
specialization of the osteopathic profession that was
introduced to the world in the 1930s by an American
osteopath and visionary called William Garner Sutherland.
Cranial sacral work has traditionally focused on the 22
bones that make up the human head, the vertebra and
sacrum, and also on the brain, the central nervous system,
the cerebrospinal fluid and the system of membranes inside
the cranium and spinal column.
It combines sensitive hands-on bodywork with the
meditative use of inner vision and dialogue. Techniques
are drawn principally from the school of Osteopathy
honoring both the analytic understanding of how things
happen and the intuitive perception of how things really
are. This synthesis touches the soul and allows healing to
occur.
CST sees the body structures not simply as muscles and
bones, but as aspects of consciousness. The structures
dialogue with each other through the ebb and flow of the
intelligence of the cranial wave. The work is useful in
alleviating painful or restricted conditions anywhere in
the body.
Brief History of Cranial Sacral:
Cranial sacral (craniosacral) work comes out of
osteopathy. Osteopathy comes out of bone setting, and bone
setting was practiced in Neanderthal times, 130,000 years
ago, and probably much longer ago.
The historical record of the origins of what is now
called "cranial sacral work" begins in the 19th century
with Andrew Taylor Still, who coined the term
"Osteopathy."
Still called his practice Osteopathy, from osteon,
or bone, and pathine, suffering. Still founded the
American School of Osteopathy in 1891. Later he writes,
"If he is wise in Anatomy and Physiology, he (the
osteopath) will at a glance detect any abnormality in
form, and can easily prove the cause of any failure in
perfect functioning....He knows how to adjust every bone
and muscle in his patient's body."
In 1899 William Sutherland was studying in the first
osteopathic school to be set up in the USA.
Cranial sacral therapists often focus upon optimizing
the position, fluid movement ('wave') and energy
(piezoelectric charge and chi) of these parts of the
cranial sacral system. Or they may focus on bringing the
cranial sacral system back to balance in the central line
of the body, called 'midline.' Some schools focus on
differing wave states, tides, and opening to the arrival
of stillness.

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