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“Lotus flower essence helps to bring balance to ‘floaty’ individuals that get caught up in lofty ideals and tend to forget to appreciate their earthly bodies. It allows the crown chakra to be open to receiving higher communications with universal truths without disregarding the physical.” Phylameana lila Desy, flower essence consultant, spiritual advisor.

A case study of male client’s obsession with perfection, painful circumstances, and external camouflaging resulting in 85% covered body-tattooing and numerous surgeries stemming from an unresolved past life script of “submission and torture are necessary for survival.”

Thomas Paul/ Past Life Therapist (TP): Close your eyes and allow your unconscious mind to be in the experience that will allow you to know why 'everything needs to be perfect.' Express any word or words that come to mind or describe in words anything you feel, hear, taste, smell, or see.

Initially, John does not express anything. I ask him an additional question.

Which incident are you more drawn to right now; the tattooing or hair transplant experiences?

John/ Client (C): The tattooing.

TP: As a scene continues to develop surrounding the tattooing from this life or a past life, tell me your physical position?

C: I'm sitting in a chair.

TP: What is the strongest emotion or feeling that comes to mind as you are sitting in this chair?

C: Anticipation.

TP: Where in your body are you holding the most anticipation; the very first part of your body that comes to mind?

C: My right shoulder.

TP: Give me the very next word or words that come to mind coming from your shoulder, as if your shoulder could speak?   Speak in the first person/ present tense.

Having a client focus on the body and instructing them to speak in the present tense helps ground the client in the experience. It assists in accessing cellular/soul memory.

C: Lotus; Pink; Pond; Water

TP: Place those words in a sentence; the very first sentence that comes to mind involving any or all of those words.

C: I'm looking out at the water in the pond at a pink lotus.

TP: What are the next words that come to mind or what you are aware of next as you look at the lotus flower?

C: I'm a beautiful, Asian woman. I'm definitely female...white face, white face. My face is painted white. I am a Geisha!

TP: What is your physical position? What are the next words that come to mind describing this scene? Repeat any internal dialogue or external dialogue coming from anyone speaking directly at you or near you in this past life experience.

John is instructed to repeat any initial phrases numerous times in order to continue grounding him deeper into the experience. Again, he is instructed to speak in the first person/ present tense regardless if the dialogue is coming from him or another person in a particular scene. This will prevent him from over-narrating and intensifies the experience which also keeps the session flowing.

Note: The specific techniques used to access this past life scene have been removed for simplification and discussion purposes. The abbreviated case study continues with John revealing the source of his present life obsession with perfection and submission as an unresolved survival-based script.

C: I'm on my knees. I'm watching others eat...the meal I prepared. I feel like I've just been hit in the face. It was by a man. He is angry that I didn't come over quick enough when he called.

    'You scum. Clean up!'

    'Yes my Lord. Sorry my Lord. It won't happen again.’

My face is sore. I'm looking in the mirror. I'm putting on white paint. It covers things. It covers the bruises where he hits me. It also covers the bruises of the heart.

John's mind moves to another scene.

C: He is forcing himself on me. He smells. He is disgusting. I submit because then it will be over quicker.

TP: What are the words he is saying as he forces himself upon you sexually?

C: He talks to me like a dog.

    'Get down on me, you bitch.'

    'Yes sir.’

    He strikes me on my face. He is doing awful things to me!

John's mind returns to the mirror scene.

C: The paint is a costume. And as long as I have this costume on, it will protect me. He thinks he owns me, but he only owns the illusion of me. He is having sex with the costume, not me. The painted costume keeps me safe and protects my virtue.

I understand why I cover myself up [in this lifetime]! I have tattooed my entire body because it protects me. It puts a layer between me and the people I don't want near me; though they still find me. I attract them. I think the man from this past life scene is the same man I was with in this lifetime! He has the same type of energy...and he abused me.

    'I'm looking at myself in the mirror and I'm adjusting my hair. I am an illusion of perfection. As long as I'm looked upon as perfect, I can hold myself in high esteem and I can survive. (Survival Script: If I'm perfect, and if I submit, I will survive.)

C: I'm back at the pond now looking at the lotus. I look at it each day for it reminds me of my spirit. I cover my spirit with the paint. The lotus represents love. It is safe in the middle of the pond where no one can touch it. I look at it to remind myself to believe in love.

TP: Be at the moment of your death in this particular past life. Let this scene unfold.

John begins to feel his neck tighten and begins moving his neck back and forth.

Give me the first words coming to mind from you or outside you when you realize death is near. Talk from your neck as if your neck could speak.

C: I feel as if a sword just entered my neck.

TP: If the sword could speak, what would it say? Give words to the energy of the sword. This is important for you to know since it may contain programming you are carrying with you in every lifetime.

C:    'You disrespectful Bitch! You humiliated me in front of others.'

John becomes silent for a few minutes.

He beheaded me!   The sword entered my neck. I'm kneeling down looking out at the pond.

John then speaks the following words.

Lotus, pink lotus.

TP: Just be at the moment when your soul has completely left your body and tell me what you experience.

C: I'm at peace now. I'm one with the Lotus.

John was then asked to go back to the moment just prior to his death. It's important to get any internal or external dialogue at the time of his death in order for him to become fully conscious of false survival-script logic. Then, it's possible to resolve and re-frame the trauma which causes the change in consciousness.

TP: Be at the moment just prior to the beheading and speak any words coming from him or you.

C: The only way out of this abusive life is to rebel. I look him in the eyes and say,

    'I can't be your dog anymore.'

He becomes very angry. He snaps! He yells,

    'You disrespectful Bitch! You are nothing but a dog! And that is all you will ever be!'

Lotus flowers

Lotus flowers have strong symbolic ties to many of the Asian religions and especially throughout India. The lotus flower starts as a small flower at the bottom of a pond in the mud and muck. It slowly grows up towards the waters surface continually moving towards the light. Once it comes to the surface of the water, the lotus flower begins to blossom.

Within Hinduism and Buddhism, the lotus flower has become a symbol for awakening to the spiritual reality of life. The meaning varies slightly between the two religions of course, but essentially both religious traditions place importance on the lotus flower. In modern times, the meaning of a lotus flower tattoo ties into its original religious symbolism or an expression of spiritual growth.

Most tattoo enthusiasts feel the lotus tattoo represents life in general. As the lotus flower grows up from the mud into an object of great beauty, people also grow and change into something more beautiful. The lotus symbol represents the struggle of life at its most basic form.

Lotus flower tattoos are often chosen by those who have gone through a hard time and are just awakening. Like the seedling they have been at the bottom of the muddy pond, they have risen above to display an object of beauty or a life of beauty as the case might be. Thus a lotus flower tattoo or blossom can represent the difficulties in life a person can overcome.

The Role of a Geisha

“A successful geisha must demonstrate beauty, grace, artistic talent, charm, impeccable etiquette, and refinement.”

How Geisha Work
by Julia Layton

The best-selling novel "Memoirs of a Geisha" depicts life as a geisha in Japan in the World War II era. The heroine arrives at a geisha house as a slave and becomes one of the most successful women in Gion. She is a dancer, a musician and a woman with few choices. Her virginity is sold to the highest bidder for a record sum, earning her a place in geisha history.

It is a story of hardship, exploitation and tremendous success -- but it is, first and foremost, a work of fiction. The geisha who provided first-hand information for the book proceeded to sue the author because she believed he twisted her accounts and missed the mark entirely. So what is the truth of the geisha? In this article, we'll examine who and what a geisha is and how the "flower and willow world" fits into Japanese culture.

What is a Geisha?

A geisha is a woman highly trained in the arts of music, dance and entertaining. Geisha is Japanese for "person of art." She spends many years learning to play various musical instruments, sing, dance and be the perfect hostess in a party of men. A geisha, when she is working, is just that: the illusion of female perfection.

A geisha's makeup, hair, clothing and manner are calculated to indulge a man's fantasy of the perfect woman, and men pay huge sums of money to have geisha attend to their every whim; or rather, almost every whim.

Many Westerners confuse geisha with prostitutes. Those who understand the intricacies of Japanese culture explain that a geisha is not a prostitute. A true geisha is successful because she projects a sense of unattainable perfection. When men hire geisha to entertain at a party, sex has nothing to do with it. A geisha entertains with singing, music, dance, story-telling, attentiveness and flirtation. She can speak about politics as easily as she can explain the rules of a drinking game. In a time when Japanese wives were excluded from public life in general, geisha were the women who could play the role of attentive female at business gatherings.

The original geisha were men, and they entertained all over Japan -- social restrictions dictated that women could not entertain at a party. These men kept the conversation going, gave artistic performances and flattered guests at parties thrown by noblemen and other members of the upper class. In the 1700s, women calling themselves geisha first appeared in the "pleasure districts" of Japan. There are many takes on the origins of the female geisha. One has a group of female artists stealing business from prostitutes in the pleasure districts by hiring themselves out to sing and dance at parties. Another one has a failing prostitute taking a job as a geisha to make some extra money, and as a geisha she was a hit. However the female geisha came about, they were a threat to the brothels. Because geisha were not affiliated with the brothels, the people running them received no money from the geisha's wages. In order to curtail the geisha's popularity and get the focus back on registered prostitutes, the government set very strict rules for geisha concerning their style of dress, how and where they could entertain and the hours they could work. To make sure sex was not part of the party, geisha were not allowed to be hired singly. But instead of reducing the geisha's success, these restrictions only made them more desirable.

As time went on, particularly during economic depressions in Japan, the success of the geisha led many impoverished parents to sell their young daughters to a geisha house (okiya). These children trained from the age of five or six to become successful geisha and repay the okiya for the cost of their training. Today, young women choose to become geisha just like they might choose to become doctors. They typically begin their training after junior high school, and the training is rigorous. Only the most dedicated women make it to full geisha status.

Training to be a Geisha

A young woman's first step toward becoming a geisha is to apply and be accepted into an okiya, a geisha house owned by the woman who will pay for her training. This woman is the okami or okasan. Okasan is Japanese for "mother."

Training to be a geisha takes about as long as it takes to train to be a doctor. Typically, a young woman spends about six years studying the arts of music, dance, tea ceremony, language and hostessing. During this time, and sometimes throughout her career as a geisha, she lives in the okiya, which is something like a boarding house for geisha and geisha-trainees. The okiya is a big part of a geisha's life -- the women in the okiya are her geisha family, and the okasan manages her career. A geisha pays a percentage of her earnings to maintain the house and support the people living there who are not working geisha, including apprentice geisha, retired geisha and house maids.

Geisha study the arts at a kaburenjo -- a school dedicated to the training of geisha. This school may also house a theater where geisha give their rare public performances. During the course of her studies, a geisha learns how to play the shamisen, a three-stringed instrument that is strummed with a large pick. She will play the shamisen at parties and in performances, usually accompanying another geisha who is singing. She may also learn to play other traditional Japanese instruments including the shimedaio, a small drum, the koto, a large, stringed instrument, and the fue, a type of flute.

Musical instruments are only one aspect of a geisha's artistic repertoire. She studies singing, traditional Japanese dance (nihon-buyoh) and tea ceremony (sadoh), all of which she will use in her job as entertainer. She studies flower arrangement (ikebana) and calligraphy (shodoh), because she is the quintessential cultured woman. A geisha may specialize in one art form, such as singing or dancing, but she is proficient in all of them.

A young woman spends years studying not only to be an artist, but also to carry herself with grace. She learns the proper way to speak in the accent of the district where she works, to walk in a floor-length kimono without tripping over her them, and to pour sake so that her kimono sleeve doesn't dip into the cup. In a group of men and geisha, she learns whom to greet first and how low to bow when greeting each person. She learns how to flatter a shy man, an arrogant man and a disinterested man with equal success. These less formal aspects of her training take place while she is a maiko, an apprentice geisha. The apprentice period begins when a young woman finds an onesan ("older sister"), a full geisha who will serve as her mentor. The ceremony that binds them together is the same ceremony that marks the "marriage" of a geisha and her danna. Each takes three sips from three cups of sake. In this transition to maiko status, the young woman takes a new name that will be her "geisha name." This name is typically derived from the name of the onesan.

An apprentice geisha spends several years studying the behavior of full geisha to learn the arts she can't learn in the classroom. Her onesan brings her to parties where she will not entertain -- she will remain quiet and observe, learning how geisha interact with men and how they use their wit, attention and feminine wiles to keep everyone happy. Her attendance at a party is not only a learning experience, though. The job of an older sister is to introduce a maiko into geisha society, making sure everyone knows who she is. This way, when a maiko makes her debut as a geisha, she already has relationships with the customers and teahouses that will be her livelihood.

The ceremony that marks the transition from maiko to geisha is called eriage, which means "changing of the collar." At this time, the maiko exchanges her red, patterned collar for a solid white one, a symbol of her debut as a geisha. Now she officially starts entertaining.

Working as a Geisha

A geisha's primary job is that of hostess. All of her skills go into making sure a party is a tremendous success and that everyone has a good time. A good chunk of a geisha's work traditionally involves parties attended by businessmen who are trying to strike a deal together. A man throws a geisha party to show his potential associates a good time -- and to impress them with how wealthy, cultured and well-connected he is, because geisha parties are exclusive and expensive. Today, a geisha party can cost $200 to $300 per guest for every two hours the geisha are present. What goes on at a geisha party is private -- a geisha does not speak about her clients. In a culture known for its social reserve and workaholics, a geisha party is a place where men can be loud, drunk and flirtatious with no social repercussions.

Japan's most popular geisha districts (hanamachi, or "flower towns") are located in Kyoto and Tokyo. The teahouses (o-chaya), inns (ryokan) and restaurants (ryotei) where geisha entertain are concentrated in these areas.

Geisha are exclusive hostesses. You cannot simply call a geisha and hire her. When someone wants geisha to host his party, he can go through one of two avenues: He can call the okasan of a geisha house, or he can call a teahouse where geisha entertain. The okasan or teahouse mistress then calls the central office for geisha affairs, which handles all geisha bookings and charges the client for geisha services. Every geisha must register with the central office in order to work in her district.

A geisha never eats with her guests when she is working. She must be on her toes at all times, making every guest feel welcome and happy, having the perfect story to tell when the conversation starts to lag and keeping an eye on every sake cup to make sure it's never empty. She may be called on to perform a dance, sing a song or accompany another geisha on the shamisen. If two men appear to be having a conflict, she will smooth it out, preferably without anyone knowing she is doing so. A party is not a relaxing experience for a geisha. It is her workplace.

In addition to the fees the central office charges for a geisha's time, she typically receives generous tips from customers. Most of the money a geisha earns goes toward maintaining the okiya and keeping herself adorned in the proper make-up, expensive kimono and valuable hairpieces for which she is known. A geisha's appearance is one of her primary assets: She is a living piece of art.

Dressing as a Geisha

For a geisha, getting ready for work involves hours of preparation. The distinctive appearance of a geisha is part of her allure, but it's not only about beauty and exclusivity. It's also a way to tell the difference between a maiko and a geisha and between a child geisha and an adult geisha. You can tell a lot about a geisha just by looking at her.

Unlike a regular kimono, a geisha kimono exposes her neckline -- in Japanese culture, this is considered the most sensual part of a woman.

The Difficulties Of Geisha Komono Dressing

Every geisha has a dresser -- geisha-style kimono are very difficult to put on correctly, and it's almost impossible for a woman to get into one herself. There are underlayers, overlayers and yards of expensive fabric that must be tucked and folded into place. A maiko obi is so long she can't even hold it off the floor without help.

Kimono can cost thousands of dollars each. A maiko wears a kimono that has extra long sleeves (they touch the ground when she drops her arms) and is very long, colorful and intricately adorned with embroidery or hand-painted designs. Her collar is red, and her obi is long and wide. She wears tall wooden clogs called okobo to keep her kimono from dragging on the ground. Learning to walk in this outfit without falling over is part of her training.

The white makeup that is a trademark of the geisha was once lead-based and poisonous. Now, it is harmless. If a maiko follows the traditional way of achieving the look, she first applies oil and a layer of wax to her face. This makes the skin perfectly smooth and forms a base to which the white powder can adhere. She then applies red lipstick only to her lower lip. This is a sign that she is an apprentice.

Before becoming an apprentice, a young woman grows her hair very long so that it can be shaped into the elaborate hairstyles of a maiko. She wears at least five different styles, each one signifying a different stage in her apprenticeship. For instance, a new maiko wears a hairstyle called wareshinobu, which incorporates two strands of red ribbon that signify her innocence. An adult maiko wears a style called ofuku. This change was once determined by mizu-age, or a maiko's first sexual experience, but now it is simply a function of time. The switch usually occurs when the apprentice turns 18 or has been working for three years.

Apprentice geisha spend hours at the hairdresser every week to maintain their hairstyle. They sleep on special pillows that have a hole in the middle so they don't ruin their hair while they sleep.

When a maiko becomes a geisha, she switches out her red collar for a white one and her maiko kimono for a geisha kimono.

A geisha kimono is simpler in appearance and easier to deal with. It has shorter sleeves and does not require high clogs to keep it off the ground. A geisha wears zori, which are like flip-flops, and a shorter obi tied in a simple knot. After working for several years, a geisha may chose to wear lighter, "Western-style" makeup instead of the traditional, heavy makeup worn early in her career. A geisha wears variations on the shimada hairstyle.

These intricate hairstyles and kimono distinctions mark stages in a geisha's career. Once, they were also a way to tell geisha from prostitutes when prostitution was legal in Japan. If both geisha and prostitutes attended a party, she could look at a woman's hairstyle, kimono or makeup and instantly know which she was.

Ultimately, the appearance, mannerisms and work of a geisha is about pleasing men. But the daily life of a geisha revolves around women.

Living as a Geisha

For all of their focus on men when they're at work, geisha live in a matriarchal society. Women run the okiya, women teach girls the skills they need to become geisha, and women introduce new geisha into the teahouses that will be their livelihood. The head of the okiya is called okasan, or "mother," and the mentor is onesan, or "older sister." Women run the teahouses and can make or break a geisha's career. If a geisha offends the mistress of the main teahouse where she does business, she may lose her livelihood entirely.

In the flower and willow world, a geisha's family is her okasan, onesan and the other maiko, geisha and retired geisha who live in her okiya. A geisha is always a single woman. If she decides to get married, she retires from the profession. The traditional path of a geisha's life looks something like this:

Shikomi - Prior to becoming an apprentice geisha, a young woman helps the maiko and geisha in her okiya and does chores around the house to earn her keep.

Misedashi: Around the age of 15, a shikomi finds a mentor and undergoes the misedashi ceremony. This ceremony binds them together as sisters, and the new maiko begins her training to become a geisha. She now has a new name that is derived from the name of her mentor.

Maiko: As an apprentice geisha, a maiko spends about five years learning the arts of music, dance and hostessing. She attends parties to observe and be seen.

Erikae: The erikae ("turning of the collar") ceremony marks the transition from maiko to geisha.

Geisha: Throughout her career, a geisha lives in the district in which she works. She spends her time entertaining, studying arts and performing. If she binds herself to a danna (patron), she may move out of the okiya into her own apartment.

Hiki-iwai: The hiki-iwai ceremony marks a geisha's retirement. She no longer entertains at parties, and she may discontinue her studies. At this point, a former geisha might become the head of an okiya or teahouse, or she may leave the geisha life entirely.

Very few women pursue the life of a geisha in the 21st century. The population of true geisha in Japan has dwindled since its height in the early 1900s. In the 1920s, there were 80,000 registered geisha. During World War II, people had no money for geisha parties, and geisha worked in factories to produce goods for the war. While Japan was occupied in the 1940s, geisha entertainment was against the law. Beginning in the 1950s, geisha began to return to work, but the profession never bounced back to its previous largesse. In 1970, there were about 17,000 geisha in Japan, and today there are fewer than 1,000. Most of today's geisha choose the profession because of its romantic, artistic nature or because it's the family business. Even those who attain the status of geisha may only remain in that role for a few years, until they choose to attend college or get married. Today's geisha are modern women whose career involves recreating the past.

Past Life Regression Therapy sessions can be scheduled by contacting Dr. Thomas Paul, DCH, Master Clinical Past Life Hypnotherapist, and founder of Past Life Therapy Center (Past Life Regression Center). PLTC/PLRC has its primary office in Los Angeles, CA. Dr. Thomas Paul is available for therapy intensives by phone/Skype/Zoom. The PLTC/Netherton-Paul Method of Past Life Therapy and De-Hypnosis is available exclusively at Past Life Therapy Center®.

In compliance with state and federal laws, PLTC does not claim to diagnose, treat, prevent or cure diseases. PLTC provides alternative/healing arts therapy that encourages emotional resolution of current challenges at their unconscious sources; this may include past lives, prenatal/birth experiences, present-life traumas, surgeries, etc. Information contained in this article has not been evaluated by the FDA or any psychological or medical licensing body. Written approval was received to anonymously publish this article/case study for educational purposes.