Kandy Times

Back in Kandy, where she was born, after many years, Tania Brassey has started teaching Reiki and Shiatsu treatment to those interested in learning this branch of alternative medicine.

Tania left Sri Lanka in 1962, for the United Kingdom, where she married and raised three children. She remembers with nostalgia her home in Gampola and her schooldays at the Kandy Convent. From Gampola her parents shifted to Lady Blake's Drive, Kandy from where she attended school.

She recalls how she was scared of the nuns who were strict and how she would run away from school, every few days. But it was only up to the bus stop, where the nuns would catch up with her and bring her back to the Convent! She was about five or six years old at the time.

Then the family shifted to Colombo and she attended Lindsay Girls' School Bambalapitiya and finally Ladies College.

"Ladies’ College prepared me for life abroad as I met many people from different countries. At one time there were seven girls in her class who were all different nationalities. They were daughters of diplomats. At that time there were no international schools and children of expatriates attended Ladies," says Tania.

During her pre-teens she sang at the Radio Ceylon and would go for elocution contests. "I would miss my school work but I loved singing and I didn't mind missing lessons," says Tania.

In England, she attended Acting School and worked in TV and films in England and Italy. "I loved Rome. I even named my daughter Roma and as I also lived in France, I named my son Paris," she says.

Tania first married a children's author at the age of 22 and much later a photographer.

"I ran a shop in Bath, England, selling Barbara Sansoni's fabrics which was a big hit with the English people. They loved the bright colours and thought they were from Mexico or South Africa." Through this, she says, she was promoting Sri Lanka as a tourist destination in her own small way.

"This inspired me to start travel-writing and I was asked to write the Insight Guide to Sri Lanka in 1998, which is still in the shops. This became the best selling Insight Guide of their Asia series," says Tania proudly.

Writing about Sri Lanka brought back many sweet memories and she was homesick, after all those years. "I was hungry for our culture. No meal tasted right. I wanted to eat seeni-sambol. I would dream of mangoes and breadfruit and suddenly life in England seemed bland and drab. I yearned to return to Sri Lanka."

At that time she had started her Reiki and later Shiatsu. "When I came to Sri Lanka for my research work to write the Insight Guide to Sri Lanka, I cured a Veddah child in Mahiyangana of a stomach ailment with my Reiki healing. So, I thought I could practise this healing method if I came to live in Sri Lanka."

Explaining Reiki, Tania says, "It is a powerful but gentle ancient healing art using energy known as Ki or Chi which stimulates the body's ability to heal itself. It is safe for old and young." This also forms the basis of Tai chi, Shiatsu and Aikido. It can be used with any other medication or therapies and can be practised even on pregnant women. She says that for maximum benefit it is advisable to have four sessions of Reiki in succession within a week.

Back pain and muscular fatigue, digestive problems, asthmatic symptoms, menstrual and menopause problems, headaches, migraine, insomnia, sinus, anxiety and depression are some of the conditions that can be treated through Reiki. The treatment lasts one and a quarter hours, is non intrusive and can pass through plaster casts, bandages and clothing and un-dressing is not required.

Tania has worked in various clinics. She had her own clinic at the prestigious Harley Street at No. 5 and later at Somerset where she lived.

For Reiki treatment, you will be asked to lie down while the practitioner places his or her hands on various energy centres or chakras of the body. "There is no manipulation," Tania states. “You will feel relaxed and even drowsy. There may be a sense of heat and tingling. Each individual has a different experience. As the Reiki energy begins working on areas of stress, muscular fatigue or pain, your body can begin flushing out accumulated toxins.

After the session, to assist the process of detoxification and healing, you are advised to drink plenty of fluids. "You could experience slight symptoms such as sweating or frequent passing of water or loose bowel movements, which will generally last about a day. At the same time, you will experience a heightened sense of well-being and energy.

"Though it is good to have four sessions, even with one session you will feel the benefits of Reiki," says Tania.

"Shiatsu uses the power of touch to work along energy channels throughout the body. By gentle pressure or stretching, the energy can be brought into balance." It speeds recovery from illness and is an excellent tonic stimulating and strengthening the body's immune system and natural vitality. This is an extension of the Zen Shiatsu known as Barefoot Shiatsu. A session lasts one hour.

Her interest in Yoga led her to discover the profound effects Shiatsu, Qi Gong (pronounced Chi Gung) and Reiki can have on physical, emotional and spiritual well being She studied Zen Shiatsu at the Bristol College of Shiatsu for two years. She then met the founder of Barefoot Shiatsu, Shizuko Yamamoto aged 80 years winding down her International Macrobiotic Shiatsu Society in New York. "Meeting this amazing innovative saint of Shiatsu was for me, a magical turning point in my healing potential."

"As a small child in Sri Lanka I had been taught to 'walk' on my older brother and sister as a home-spun massage and had learnt to hone my balance. From the moment I tried Barefoot Shiatsu on my clients, they wanted only that!" Tania stated.

The comments made by happy clients in her register are many -

"My Migraine simply ceased after Shiatsu" - Sylvia Boothe, Melksham.

"I was frustrated by having to get up in the night to pee. After just one session, I slept through like a baby. I am truly amazed how quickly and simply the problem was cured." - Miss P.B. Edinburgh.

"I've never experienced such a deep level of relaxation with any other therapy. After each session, I feel I've been back together on some profound level." - Caroline. W. Bath.

"A generous friend and the best Shiatsu giver imaginable…..Hey, some people are like a breath of fresh air; you are a kind of Minstral of energy and generosity!" - Crysse Morrison, Frome.

Tania's daughter Pikka, a Kundalini Yoga teacher has also become a Reiki Master which means she can teach Reiki I and II.

Her other daughter Roma who is holidaying in Sri Lanka also does Reiki. She discovered it by chance during her gap year teaching English in Tokyo and the Japanese people would come up to her and say "you have Reiki in your hands."
There is much more to learn about Reiki and Shiatsu. Tania now resides in Watapuluwa, Kandy and could be contacted on e-mail - tania.brassey@gmail.com.
-U.U.