Tantsu – A Yoga of the Heart 
Tantsu is a unique form of bodywork on land, on a floor mat in loose
clothing to allow for proper space, stretches and movement.
It is a practice in which we share our joy with others through whole body holding.
 watch this video
Tantsu brings the flow and essence of Watsu onto land.
Because it is based on a water modality, Tantsu incorporates its
Basic principles
The wavelike movement of the water
Nurturing holding
The breath and heart connection
and deep, supported stretches.
"When you hold someone - feel their surrender and your connection to them - it is hard to maintain a judgmental or superior attitude.
When you feel another letting go of tension and the fear behind it, it is hard to hold onto your own fears". Harold Dull
Tantsu is characterized by it's breath-conscious awareness,
fluid full-body contact stretching and nurturing holds.
It releases tensions, restores and deepens inner balance
and provides a deep sense of stillness and
peaceful well-being to the body and mind.
It provides a containment in which it is safe to go deep within,
as breathing connects and movements resonate through our bodies,
sometimes spontaneous - sometimes exploratory, playful and creative -
sometimes leading us into a deeper stillness
than we have ever shared with another.
'In the emptiness at the bottom of the breath is the greatest peace, a peace that can surround and envelope us, just as we surround and envelope the one in our arms.
Being held is our first experience of healing.
When an infant is in pain, reaching out and touching them does not have the same effect as picking up and holding them.
For the infant that containment is a return to the safety of the womb.
For us, the clearer our resonance, the more balanced our flow, the freer our wave, the more open the return back into the emptiness, the greater is the peace that contains us.'
The year Harold Dull created Watsu®, the world's first Aquatic Bodywork, he created Tantsu® to bring back onto land Watsu's nurturing holding,
and the joy in the movement freed floating someone level with the heart.
Tantsu is being with someone without intention, breathing and listening with your whole body as you lean in or rock their back free, or stretch an arm or leg and, when called, pull the other arm or leg into the dance. No part of our being is left out of the dance.
Freed from the confines that esoteric interpretations place upon other paths, freed from any intention to heal or fix that can accompany bodywork,
Tantsu is a new way to be with others, a new humanism, a way to access and share our creative joy in the interplay of breath, movement and stillness.
Starting with Forearms
We start with our forearms instead of our hands.
Our hands communicate to and take orders from the brain. They have been trained to do, to manipulate, to massage, to caress.
The hands have incorporated habits and ways of feeling through their past experiences touching someone else’s body.
Our forearms haven’t.
Their broader contact gives more of a sense of being held than being touched. Our forearms are closer to our core and it is easier to engage our whole body in their movements.
Once we’ve established our whole body’s movement with the breath through our forearms then our whole body can also arrive in the holding and movements through our hands.
Then the hands, too, can participate in our being with another.
 
Although Tantsu is not used to "fix" a certain problem, it is extremely therapeutic and beneficial to the systems of the body.
It provides a strong mind/body/spirit connection that I have never experienced in any other form of bodywork, both as the giver and receiver.
Because of the energetic and physical connection Tantsu provides, it takes both he giver and receiver into deep states of meditation and energy awareness that are extremely powerful and healing.
Special Tantsu weekend workshop with Ateeka: April 2010
I am delighted welcoming Ateeka to Cornwall - who is based in Italy - to offer a workshop to learn the basics of Tantsu after which you will be able to share this beautiful gift with others and /or incorporate in your existing bodywork.
Treat yourself to a nurturing weekend
Come on your own or with your friend or loved one to relax, recharge, re-connect to your Core Self,
experience new ways of communicating without words,
explore ways of deepening your relationships in a safe and
nurturing environment,
allow the flow of breath and unconditional touch take you beyond
self imposed limitations,
free yourself to BE,
become alive in a new way
and feel to be loved and love.
Take back home with you
- unlimited potential to stay deeper connected to live, to your loved one, colleagues and friends,
- tools for just yourself
- tools to enhance your already existing bodywork.
All students receive 16 hours WABA credit (but NO experience is necessary)
Venue: 'The Count House' Botallack, St. Just, Cornwall
(call for direction if coming by car,
otherwise we can offer a lift from St. Just town centre)
  
Lelant mine nearby
Dates: 23-25 April
Pre-booking essential as places are limited.
(Please send a £50 deposit now to secure your space)
Your Investment: £150
B&B is optional at extra costs, please inquire for various options
Times: Friday 6pm - 9pm introduction
Saturday 9am - 7pm
Sunday 9am - 6pm (approx. times)
what to bring:
wear loose comfortable clothes
packed lunch, (coffee shops are close by)
a blanket
two yoga mats or one futon per person
an open heart without any expectations
(but don't worry, even a closed heart will gently uncurl over this beautiful weekend)
How to book: A deposit of £50 sent to Delphiris secures your space .
If you need assistance with accommodation, let us know soon, so we can pre-book for you.
(You will find a list of B&B nearby here.)
Please contact Delphiris for further details
If you like to extend your stay and nurture yourself even further we like to offer you the following:
Systemic Yoga with Ateeka on Monday 26th April
Yoga of the fluid body. We might incorporate some movements in the warm swimming pool!
Your Investment: £50
£40 if taken as part of the weekend
optional extra: Sauna evening £5 donation to Boswedden
Venue: Boswedden House, Cape Cornwall, St. Just
www.boswedden.org
Ateeka's Systemic Yoga is "Cellular Soul Food"
Ateeka has developed SYSTEMIC YOGA based on the fact that all living systems are connected. Our bodies have cycles of growth, decay and regrowth. In the stress of our modern society, it can be easy to fall out of balance and lose contact with our body’s natural cyclical rhythms. In Systemic Yoga, living cycles and movements of life are honored and explored.
Systemic Yoga combines ancient traditions with modern relevance and includes fluid asana, expansive pranayama, active and silent meditations, work with sound, Tantsu (contact & touch) all within the context of the collective archetypal energy patterns and symbology of the Vedic and Hindu.
Systemic Yoga is an “evolutionary yoga.” It’s practices respond to each moment’s needs. The science of Yoga has traditionally been taught by men to young men, in preparation for going inward in meditation and isolation.
Systemic Yoga invites the fluid, changeable, responsive nature of water and flow into the practice. It is in this evolution that we will restore our balance personally and collectively. SYSTEMIC YOGA is for the modern practitioner, lifting the veil of our cultural conditioning and tradition to see clearly what is vitally needed for today. . . RESPONSIVE, FLOWING, LOVING CONNECTION with each other.
Systemic Yoga explores asana with curiosity, openness and creativity. Rooted in evolving practice and personal experience, levels of alignment are approached as an intuitive and intelligent individual choice rather than an imposed demand for a perfect standardized form.
Aquatic Body work with Delphiris on Tuesday 27th April
sessions are 75min (£40 special weekend rate)
and need to be booked in advance as warm pool days get booked up quickly.
Be floated in 34 degree warm pool
- The ultimate in-water bodywork experience –
'I take you on a personal journey through quiet holding, relaxing stretches and, if you wish, underwater dolphin dances'
For more info click here
 
Ateeka with Fabricio and Harold Dull (middle)
www.alchemyofthebody.com
www.ateeka-yoga.com
www.tantsu.com
Extracts of this site taken from the links above
  
  
Flower pictures taken during my Watsu training in Goa. My teacher Xavier Boisson spreading love to everyone. |
