The central problem that Dürckheim seeks to address in Hara – The Vital Centre of Man is the spiritual decay in the West that has resulted from an excessive dependence on rationalism. While conventional Western religious practice - in Dürckheim’s view – cannot resolve this problem, he argues that there are techniques derived from Eastern spiritual practice that can.
Whereas the Western attitude to the body is a “chest-out-belly-in” approach, the Eastern view is from the ‘belly up’. Hara denotes not only the abdominal area, but a way of living, or Haragei – activity perfected through Hara. The Tanden, an area in the lower abdomen below the navel, is traditionally regarded as the seat of vital energy in Japan and China. Read more
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