On the fourth floor of hotel Manny’s Palace behind Ramgopalpet police station, men and women, can be seen swaying their hands in an arc. Look closely, the participants are all dressed in white tees and red and blue trousers pulled up till the ankle. Dr. Minchul Park observes the session from a distance. “The participants are full of enthusiasm. From a 20-year-old youngster to a 78-year-old man, the men and women are from different religions and ages,” he states. It is a Sam Won Dong camp being held in the city. “Sam Won Dong is a moving meditation,” explains Dr. Minchul, global president of International Sujok Association. “It is a physical meditation; With a slow spiral movement, one can control the mind and be in meditative state.”
“In Korean, ‘su’ means hand and ‘jog’ means foot. It is based on the concept that our hands and foot have inbuilt mechanism to cure a disease in the human body. There are many modalities in this like wrapping a tape on the finger, acupressure with a needle and harmonious sound,” explains Dr. Minchul, whose father Prof. Park Jae Woo founded the Sujok therapy. Park Jae Woo was only eight years old when he drew similarities between a human body and palm. “After he studied medicine, he understood the anatomy and realised there is some reason behind this similarity. He finalised his Sujok theory and since ’87, it has been spreading all over the world.”
Although Dr. Minchul grew up with the therapy, he went on to study medicine in China and worked for two years in the army. “Once when I attended a seminar, things became clear,” he recalls. We ask him about his first visit to India and Dr. Minchul replies with a smile. “I came to India in 2004 for my honeymoon,” he shares and adds, “We went to Jaipur, Agra and then Chennai. I think my father knew this and was preparing me for this moment.”
He currently lives with his family in Nagpur where the headquarters of the association is located. He travels across the world from there. “This is the 30th anniversary of Sujok,” he exclaims. Dr. Minchul affirms different forms of alternative healing are vital for the present-day society. “As the world progresses, there is a growth in technology and economy. In the same way, people have a lot of choices when it comes to healing. They will decide what suits them and with this choice, they are motivated and become focussed to follow it.”
Before concluding, he reveals a happiness mantra shared by his father. “His aim was to create a smile civilisation. Many people feel they are not perfect. According to him existence means perfection. If something is not perfect then it will not exist. When we smile we don’t require anything. Meditation is emptying the mind and many find it difficult to concentrate. But when you smile, it is an attempt to bring perfection to the emotion and with that, perfection comes to the mind and body.”
