Interviews Interview with Dr. Delduwe Gnanasumana Thero
I like to receive healing sessions when ever the opportunity presents itself. I find that it helps me to resolve more of the baggage that we tend to carry through our lives. It helps me to continue to grow as an individual and to further my own development as a healer. I rarely find other healers that I will allow to work on me. But I was dealing with some stressful situations at the time and decided to have him work with me. I was able to get in a few sessions before my departure at the beginning of May. And then I did another fourteen sessions during the month of August. Gnanasumana Thero would have me sit in front of him during the healing sessions. He would use his hands to sense what was going on in my body and mind. He then began to wave his hands in front of my body as he transmitted healing power to me. I could feel a very palpable sensation as he did this. Sometimes I could feel pulsating waves of this power flowing through me. Initially I felt a very pleasant high and sense of lightness after the sessions. Unpleasant emotions would often surface in the following hours or later into the next day. And there were even times when I felt a little fearful and doubted the process. But my instinct said to stick with the process. I continued to have him work with me at every opportunity. And after some weeks I felt a tremendous difference. It was like this huge heavy weight had lifted. Much of the confusion pertaining to the issues in my life abated. I felt much clearer and some really wonderful changes took place in my life. Gnanasumana Thero has a limited grasp of English. He was able to answer some of my questions and the remainder of this interview was made possible by the translation from Sinhalese to English by two of his assistants. The following interview is from a conversation that took place on January 24, 2007 at the Vishva Shakthi Temple in Rajagirya, Sri Lanka. How did you first decide to become a Buddhist Monk? Gnanasumana Thero: I would often look at the monks at the forest temple near our home. I felt this desire to become a monk. And with some encouragement from my parents I decided to become a monk. What was your experience like as you began your training as a monk? Gnanasumana Thero: I began to study Buddhist doctrine and meditation once I went to the temple. I spent many hours during the day doing various meditation practices. Sometimes I would meditate the whole day. What types of meditation practices would you do? Gnanasumana Thero: I did many different forms of meditation practices. My favorite practices were to work with the breath and sakhman bahwana which is the walking meditation. How would you focus your mind during these meditation practices? Gnanasumana Thero: I began to clear my mind of thoughts during the walking meditation. And then I would concentrate my entire attention on the lifting and setting down the foot and then on the sensation of my foot as it rested upon the earth. And then during the breathing meditation, I would focus my attention on the inhalation, the retention of the breath, the exhalation and then the pause between the next breath. How did you begin to develop your gifts of healing? Gnanasumana Thero: These gifts began to develop as a result of the meditation practices and the chanting of Pirith or blessing words. I began to experience some unusual sensations in my hand after meditating. These sensations later spread through my body. And from that a form of knowledge came into my body and mind. And that increased day by day as I continued to chant and meditate. I then came to experience and understand the universal energy field in my body and mind. What do you see as you work with your clients? Gnanasumana Thero: I use my hands to scan the body and that allows me to feel what is taking place in the body of those I work with. Through my hands I can feel bad energies or illness. There are three stages of healing. Initially I scan the body for bad energies and illness. Then I begin to clear the body of the bad energies. Then I transfer healing power to the individual I’m working with. Where does your power to heal come from? Gnanasumana Thero: I believe there is a scientific explanation for this phenomenon. Meditation activates the brain. The brain is then able to synchronize with the universal wave pattern. These universal waves then come through the brain. In some ways, it’s like tuning the dial of your radio. I can allow this universal frequency to flow through me as I tune into it. That’s how I’m able to transmit this universal healing power. I focus my mind on the illness of the client. I direct the energy through the chakra. The universal power is then absorbed by the various endocrine glands which govern the function of the organs. This healing power is then distributed to the organs of the body. This power then creates health in the body. What type of conditions can you assist people with? Gnanasumana Thero: I work with respiratory disorders, heart and kidney problems, cancer, psychological problems… For more information, contact the Vishva Shakthi Center at: (94) 279 2956 E-mail: info@vishvashakthicenter.org
|
One of my friends told me about Gnanasumana Thero when I was visiting Sri Lanka in April of 2006. Gnanasumana Thero is a Buddhist monk. He is known though out Sri Lanka for his amazing gift of healing.