Nendo Tamashii

A Nendo Tamashii (from the Japanese nendo, clay, and tamashii, soul) is a hand-molded sphere of clay specially created with the intention of raising the Life Energy – the innate Healing Power – of the person holding it. In its center, a clear quartz crystal is embedded as its Soul: the Soul in the clay. The ultimate function of the nendo is to help the person find his own Soul – his own Tamashii – thereby easing his deepest suffering. Neither sculpture nor pottery, the nendo is surely one of Dr. Diamond’s most original contributions to using the arts for healing. This exquisite collection is a series of writings inspired by the nendo concept. With the unique combination of depth, insight, and spirituality that characterizes his work, Dr. Diamond explores the themes that surround the nendo through a series of short papers and poems. The result is an inspirational collection, which, like the nendo itself, is intended to raise the Life Energy of the reader. Essential, profoundly rewarding reading for anyone interested in holistic healing, meditation, or a higher philosophy of life. “Dr. Diamond always shows us what true Healing is and how we can help others and ourselves. I am sure this book will be one of our guides to Healing.” – Dr. Shigeto Toyama, D.C. – chiropractor, Tokyo

In this major statement on art and healing, Dr. John Diamond reveals his unique approach. At its root are the twin concepts of Guidance – that everything we do, including all creativity, is guided from the Spirit World – and Matrophilia, the love of the mother, the ultimate basis of all health. These two aspects are exemplified in Paleolithic cave art created by painter-shamans for the purpose of healing. “I can in my mind very clearly see the ancient sufferers, twenty or thirty thousand years ago, stumbling through the passageways in almost total darkness, climbing up and down all sorts of makeshift ladders, and suddenly emerging into a cave filled with the most incredible paintings. They would be overwhelmed by what had been done through, not by, the shamans. They would become aware of a completely different world – the World of Spirit – and would see, would feel, nothing but Matrophilia in the cave. And that was its healing.” Brilliantly integrating an astonishing array of learning, from the spiritual to the psychological, from ancient oriental art to Jackson Pollock, and punctuated throughout by original insights, Art for Healing offers an entirely new appreciation of art, and by extension all human creativity, as a modality for holistic health.

Inspired by a series of surgical operations undergone by Dr. Diamond in the spring of 2010, this remarkable book was created to encourage others to view surgery as a spiritual, transcendental experience, rather than one rooted in fear and anxiety. The result is a unique, deeply personal collection of reflections, poems and meditations. Its themes include: using the power of music, innate in us all, to help transcend traumatic experience such as surgery; a belief in the Spirit World; and that everything that we do and that happens to us in our lives is the result of Guidance from that world. While these themes are found elsewhere in Dr. Diamond’s writings, nowhere are they expressed with such compelling concision, depth and coherence. Singing and Surgery exudes a spirituality and wisdom that confirms the author’s place at the forefront of today’s holistic doctor-healers. It will be an inspiration for anyone undergoing surgery, to those interested in the use of music as a therapeutic modality, and, more generally, anyone interested in the spiritual dimension of medicine. “A rare blend of psychiatrist, traditional healer, and spiritual guide, Diamond has combined an eclectic array of cultural and healing arts to address the intractable issues of the human soul.” —Tom Monte, East West Journal

“There is a level in the appreciation of all art forms that transcends any of the physical qualities of the creation. In photography it also transcends the imagery, the program, and what we may call the message of the photograph. I believe that my Special Gift has always been to be able to look deeply into my patients and students through what I would call a photographer’s eye—seeing beyond the obvious and into the spirit, the soul of the subject.” —John Diamond, M.D. In this magnificent collection of writings, one of the world’s great healers offers his insights into using photography as a therapeutic medium. Ranging from essays of a deep spirituality to practical advice for photographers at all levels of experience, Beyond the Obvious reflects a totally original approach developed by Dr. Diamond over more than half a century of research and experimentation. The result is an inspirational book that shows us how to look beyond the obvious.

Medicine and Beyond is the first of a three-volume milestone collection of writings that confirms Dr. Diamond’s status as a global pioneer in the field of holistic medicine. Originally appearing as newsletters created for health professionals and students under the title The Diamond Reports, the collection presents his groundbreaking research in holistic health, psychiatry, acupuncture, philosophy, spirituality, the Arts, all bound together by the core concept of Life Energy, the Healing Power within. This first volume, Medicine and Beyond, contains one hundred of the original articles selected and organized into three sections: “Life Stories,” “Thoughts from the Clinic,” and “Philosophy.” It is essential reading for health professionals, students of Dr. Diamond’s work, and anyone interested in holistic health. The book teems with insights and original findings, and will benefit not only those already familiar with Dr. Diamond’s work, but also those new to it. His vision of total health, which he now calls The Diamond Path of Life, and which fuses the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of medicine into a coherent whole, manifests in practically every page of the reports, which were far ahead of their time when they were produced, and remain so even today.

Creativity and Beyond is the third volume of writings selected from the milestone series of Diamond Reports newsletters that Dr. Diamond created for health professionals and students of his work. The series as a whole presented his groundbreaking research in holistic health, psychiatry, acupuncture, philosophy, spirituality, the Arts, all bound together by the core concept of Life Energy, the Healing Power within. The focus of this final volume is one central to Dr. Diamond’s work: the therapeutic potential of creativity in all its forms. As he has long shown, artistic endeavor has tremendous power to raise the Life Energy of the individual. Included in the volume are major statements on painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, architecture, dance, poetry, music, and more, which collectively offer a unique holistic perspective on using the arts for healing. The book will benefit anyone potentially interested in creativity and healing whether at a professional or amateur level. The Diamond Reports teem with insights and original findings that will benefit not only those already familiar with Dr. Diamond’s work, but also those new to it. His vision of total health, which he now calls The Diamond Path of Life, and which fuses the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of medicine into a coherent whole, manifests in practically every page of the reports, which were far ahead of their time when they were produced, and remain so even today.

The Meridians and Beyond is the second volume of writings selected from the milestone series of Diamond Reports newsletters that Dr. Diamond created over many years for health professionals and students of his work. The series as a whole presented his groundbreaking research in holistic health, psychiatry, acupuncture, philosophy, spirituality, the Arts, all bound together by the core concept of Life Energy, the Healing Power within. The focus of this second volume is Dr. Diamond’s pioneering research into the relationship between the acupuncture meridians and the emotions. The papers cover important topics including relationships and marriage, parenting, the Will to be Well, learning difficulties, and much more. Illustrated by many remarkable cases histories, Dr. Diamond builds on his earlier work (such as his influential best-sellers Your Body Doesn’t Lie and Life Energy), revealing key psychological syndromes and showing their relationship to particular meridians. The Diamond Reports teem with insights and original findings that will benefit not only those already familiar with Dr. Diamond’s work, but also those new to it. His vision of total health, which he now calls The Diamond Path of Life, and which fuses the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of medicine into a coherent whole, manifests in practically every page of the reports, which were far ahead of their time when they were produced, and remain so even today.