What is a traditional Thai Massage? Traditional Thai massage is like a combination of acupressure, yoga, and zen shiatsu. It consists of rhythmic and slow compressions and stretches along the body’s energy lines, or “sen” as pronounced in the Thai language. There are over 70,000 sen in the body, and traditional Thai massage concentrates on application of pressure along the 10 most important of these sen. The therapist use their hand palms, thumbs, elbows, and feet in an effort to manipulate the release of tension from within the body. Therapists also maneuver the body into yoga-like positions and gently rock and stretch the body to open the joints and facilitate limbering. The history of traditional Thai massage: Thai massage reportedly began over 2,500 years ago along with the introduction of Buddhism. Dr. Jivaka Kumar Bhaccha, known as Shivago Komarpaj in Thailand is the legendary historical creator of Thai medicine. He was from the north of India and was chief of the original community and close group of associates that gathered around Buddha. The teachings of massages and medicine were brought to Thailand with the migration of monks there around the second century B.C.E. In Thailand it developed within the context of Buddhist monasteries and temples, where Thai people went to find relief from all kinds of suffering and ailments. The written history of Thai massage was lost during when the Burmese beseiged the old royal capital of Ayuthaya in 1767 and the the only surviving records are now inscribed in stone can be found at the famous temple of Pra Chetuphon in Bangkok, more polularily known as Wat Pho, the temple of the reclining Buddha. At Wat Pho Thai massage school the teachers still to this day begin their classes with the practice of waikru, a rendition of prayers and recitals dedicated to Shivago Komarpaj, the father of Thai massage and the Goddess of Healing, and teachers of the tradition through the history of its development.
Posted on: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 10:17:32 +0000
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