In the Summer 2009, Number 65, of The Main Central Jin Shin Jyustu Newsletter, Carlos Muptualis Knorr Gutterres submitted the following article that I find amazing and enlightening. I am so grateful to Carlos and all our JSJ instructors for their love and commitment to help me/us grow and expand awareness while learning how to KNOW MYSELF BE IT IS, IS.

The Art and the Healing Art

it is interesting to observe how words in a certain language, during their lifetime, change their meanings or end up not being used anymore. Many times, not only words but certain kinds of knowledge or human activities head to a similar end – even though many of them reappear after some centuries as being a completely new and revolutionary proposal. As an example, we can see this in the word “IATRIC”, which we still use as a suffix in words like: pediatrics, psychiatrics, etc.

“Iatric” comes from the Greek word (Iatrike) meaning “the healing art”. At first sight, we can think that this word is just a synonym for the word medicine. It is very important to accurately evaluate the word art in order to notice subtle differences, because nowadays medicine is understood, treated and studied as a technically applied science. Although it has been forgotten that a long, long time ago the study, the process and the search of the living cure as an art existed, and the world “iatric” mentioned above is its testimony.

If we look up the word art in the dictionary, we will find definitions like: practical execution of an idea with perfection; or a set of rules in order to be expressed in harmony and perfection. So, “iatric” must mean: the action of restoring health with harmony and perfection. Going beyond definitions, we know that all kinds of art expressions need science and technique, because if the artist doesn’t know the processes or doesn’t master the technique, he certainly will not know how to express himself in harmony or in perfection, although he clearly feels the harmony and perfection inside himself. On the other hand, science and technique don’t need art, because they can define the steps for executing an activity following a logical procedure, and those who use these steps will certainly obtain the goal previously determined. The technique obeys well defined rules, and if they are followed, these rules will be turned into mechanical and repeated actions and be transformed in competition. In order to complete these actions, people will make big efforts in a very accurate and fast way. But art is not repetitive, because each creation is unique and its process is individual. In real art there isn’t any kind of effort or competition. The artist works in order to express himself in an individual and unique way, and his own way of expressing flows in a natural manner without any kind of effort. Picasso certainly was never motivated by expressing his art like Leonardo da Vinci, because this would be too effortful. While being himself, he just had to be.

To be continued…