JIN SHIN JUYTSU®
HISTORY
JIRO MURAI
Jiro Murai, the originator of Jin Shin Jyutsu, was born on the western coast of central Japan in 1886. His family was educated and well established as medical doctors. Although Murai’s father and elder brother were physicians, Murai took another path and received his degree in sericulture engineering (silk production). As a young man,, he was an active participant in many dumpling-eating contests.
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In 1912 at age 26, he was diagnosed with a serious illness, which involved his digestive system. Medical professionals informed him that his illness was terminal. After hearing this news Murai sought solitude at his family's remote mountain cabin. There he turned inward to center himself, to gain peace and tranquility as he faced the end of his young life. As he was waiting to die, he began to contemplate various philosophies and spiritual practices. He sat in Zen meditation, focused on breathing, fasted, and practiced mudras. As he sat in meditation over the course of seven days, he went in and out of consciousness. His body became progressively colder. On the seventh day this cold was lifted and he experienced intense heat, like a stream of fire coursing through his body. When this tremendous heat subsided, he felt no more discomfort. Quiet, calm, and peace encompassed his entire being. He stood up and was able to walk.
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He devoted his remaining years to the study, understanding and comprehension of the process he experienced; that knowledge would later become Jin Shin Jyutsu. Murai returned to the cabin to fast, study and practice mudras. Through self-observation, he was able to understand his healing experience and learned about the internal flow of fluids and energy. He illustrated the pathways of these flows and in the process of drawing them he realized they were similar to the Traditional Japanese Medicine acupuncture channels.
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From all of this research he developed an adjustment method using the hands placed on two parts of a person’s body. The energy transmitted from the hands enhances the circulation of the energy in the body.
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Thirty-four years after his initial discovery of Jin Shin Jyutsu in 1912, Murai began to teach. He standardized the complicated information he had compiled through the years into basic principles for those interested in learning. Murai’s teaching career spanned the last 14 years of his life. Mary Mariko Iino, Uhachi Iino and Haruki Kato were Murai’s most prominent students.
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Jiro Murai continued to study, practice, and teach up to his death in June 1960.
MARY BURMEISTER
Although Jiro Murai never left Japan, he wished to make the Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu available to the world. Murai approached a young Japanese-American woman to help him accomplish this vision.
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Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1918, Mary Lino arrived in Japan in the late 1940s to serve as a translator and study diplomacy. She was teaching English to a group of students, when she was told that Murai Sensei (Teacher) was coming. When he arrived and met Mary, he immediately asked if she would take the gift of Jin Shin Jyutsu back to America. Not knowing what was being offered, but without hesitation, Mary said yes. This began her lifelong journey and dedication to the Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu.
Shortly after Mary began to study with Jiro Murai, her father Uhachi Iino returned to Japan and also became a student of Jin Shin Jyutsu. Together, Mary and Uhachi Iino developed a deep and lasting friendship with Jiro Murai.
In 1953 Mary Iino left for America, to marry Gilbert Burmeister and to continue her studies with Jiro Murai through correspondence. Her father, Uhachi Iino, remained in Japan to continue studying with him and work with clients. Jiro Murai continued to develop his theories and create more standardized flows over the remainder of his life.
After Mary’s return to America in addition to raising her two young children, she studied Jin Shin Jyutsu and began to work with her family and friends. Mary soon found herself working from early in the morning until late in the evening, sharing her healing hands with the people who found their way to her home.
In 1965, 12 years after her return from Japan, Mary began to teach Jin Shin Jyutsu. Soon scores of students flocked to her as she began to share the Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu. Using her background as a translator, Mary found ways to translate Japanese concepts and terms she had learned from Jiro Murai into English. She related the theory and philosophy of Jin Shin Jyutsu to western concepts. She studied the ancient wisdom schools, Greek philosophy and mythology, numerology, astrology, and other systems that were becoming culturally accepted during the explorations of the 60s, and realized their interconnections to Jin Shin Jyutsu.
Mary taught simplicity, the importance of being in the moment, and the fundamental importance of the breath to the basic expression of life energy. One of Mary’s great contributions to the Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu was the theory of the Depths, her integration of both the theoretical and the practical understanding of the dimensions of universal energy as it transforms into matter. Additionally, Mary placed considerable emphasis on the practice of self-help. Like Jiro Murai, she believed that people could be their own source of balance, wellness, and healing. She spent many years developing the Jin Shin Jyutsu art of self-help, creating practical and simple applications of Jin Shin Jyutsu on oneself.
In 1987 Mary Burmeister began training instructors to continue the teachings of Jin Shin Jyutsu. In March of 1990 Mary fell at home sustaining a serious head injury, which abruptly ended her teaching career, however she continued to give Jin Shin Jyutsu sessions. On January 27, 2008 Mary Burmeister passed away.
HARUKI KATO
Haruki Kato was born prematurely at 7 months, in Tokyo in 1928. Due to his parents’ efforts he survived. However, because of the resulting complications his health was severely compromised. Conventional medical treatment was not able to help him. Eventually he was taken to a medical doctor who practiced acupressure therapy, and within a week of treatment he was digesting normally and began walking. He said, “From our experience, my parents and I became believers in the mysterious power of oriental medicine.”
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In his early 20’s Haruki Kato became interested in learning the healing Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu and in 1953 he attended Murai’s study group and lectures. He became a prominent student, studying and training with Murai until the end of Murai’s life.
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As part of his training with Murai, Kato went to acupuncture school and became a licensed acupuncturist. This gave him a professional and legal standing in Japanese society. However, his true calling was to the Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu. After Murai’s death, Kato continued to share Jin Shin Jyutsu in Japan.
Haruki Kato had corresponded with Mary Burmeister for many years after Mary moved back to the US. This helped Mary to continue her studies and stay current with Murai’s ongoing research and developments.
In 1992 Kato traveled to America to meet Mary and to work with the faculty of Jin Shin Jyutsu, Inc. Kato also conducted two seminars for Jin Shin Jyutsu students, one in Honolulu and one in Osaka, Japan. In 2014 Haruki Kato passed away, and his son Sadaki joined the Jin Shin Jyutsu Inc. faculty. Sadaki practices in Tokyo and continues to share the material from his father’s Jin Shin Jyutsu Texts, teaching around the world.
