Thai Yoga Bodywork
by Sonia Osorio
Lotus Palm: The Mindfulness of Touch
One of the ancient healing arts of traditional Thai medicine
(along with herbal medicine and spiritual meditation), Thai
massage is a full-body massage, performed on a floor mat, with
both parties in loose, comfortable clothes. It incorporates t'ai
chi moves, rhythmic motion, palming and thumbing along sen lines
(energy lines), gentle stretching and the conscious use of
breath. The practitioner uses her hands, feet, arms and legs to
guide the recipient through various yoga postures, while
remaining focused on their own body-center. This combination of
movements and focused awareness creates a slow, flowing "dance"
around the recipient's body.</p>
"Thai massage is a well-respected and proven healing art that's
quickly gaining popularity in the West because of its meditative
approach and its application of yoga's well-established
benefits," said Kam Thye Chow, founder of Lotus Palm, one of the
first North American schools of Thai massage, located in
Montreal, Canada.
Chow, originally from Malaysia, has taught classes worldwide and
written books on the practice of t'ai chi and massage. He views
Thai massage as having far-reaching applications, and refers to
the technique more accurately as Thai Yoga Bodywork because of
its varied influences and appeal. "Yoga practitioners are
finding it adds a whole new dimension, complementary to their
practice. Nurses, physiotherapists and massage therapists are
adding to their training with this technique. Also, the gentle
opening and stretching of the body provided by the massage has
improved the performance of athletes, martial artists and
dancers," said Chow.
Thai massage has been described as assisted Hatha yoga. During a
session, the practitioner pays careful attention to the
recipient's level of flexibility and breath as they gently move
the individual into different poses. Each pose is designed to
open up the body and allow energy to flow freely along the sen
lines (72,000 of which have been mapped out, although 10 major
ones are focused on in Thai massage). This "opening" increases
joint mobility and flexibility, improves circulation, tonifies
organs, and relieves muscular and emotional tension.
<b>Energy in Motion</b>
Working the energy lines is the basis of Thai massage. Thai
medicine is based on the belief there is an intrinsic life force
or energy (prana) that circulates within the body. To create
health and vitality, it is essential to allow this energy to
circulate freely. When prana is blocked or restricted, sickness
or disease results which can manifest physically, emotionally or
even spiritually. The main purpose of Thai massage is to clear
such blockages and allow energy to flow along the sen. Although
not based on the Chinese meridian system, the sen line system is
very similar.
By working the body physically and energetically, Thai massage
produces a highly therapeutic effect that helps relieve common
conditions such as low back pain, arthritis, headaches,
digestive difficulties, menstrual and menopausal problems and
stress-related conditions, as well as provide an overall sense
of relaxation which helps people to deal better with emotional
issues.
Though very dynamic, Thai massage is deeply relaxing, enabling
the body and mind to rebalance naturally. As with any yoga
practice, blood and lymph circulation are increased and internal
organs are stimulated, all helping to strengthen the immune
system, rebalance the endocrine system and clear toxins from the
body. In addition, the variety of stretching and joint isolation
exercises helps to increase joint mobility and flexibility.
Since the technique respects each person's body type and level
of flexibility, Thai massage is ideal for many individuals.
<b>Synchronizing Movement and Breath</b>
The stretching and energy line work in Thai massage is important
in helping to lengthen muscles and make them more flexible,
supple and less prone to injury, while joints benefit from a
greater range of motion. Stretching also increases capillary
density, thereby helping to address ischemia and promoting the
release of lactic acid. This is particularly important in our
culture that tends to emphasize more aggressive muscle movements
resulting in the production of large quantities of lactic acid
in the muscle fibers. In addition, studies have shown that
stretching can raise the temperature of a tendon, which can have
a protective effect via increased skeletal muscle tensile
strength. The stretching in Thai bodywork also releases
endorphins, further promoting a relaxation response.
Conscious use of breath has been proven to reduce both physical
and emotional tension. In Thai bodywork, practitioners learn how
to make clients more aware of how they use their breath and of
areas of tension where the breath is impeded. As well,
practitioners themselves are trained in how to use their own
breath to facilitate transitions between postures, work with
different body types, and to calm and synchronize their breath
with the client's for deeper concentration and awareness.
Thai bodywork's emphasis on body awareness has also helped
practitioners avoid many of the injuries common to bodyworkers
today. Since the massage focuses on both the practitioner's and
client's body, it allows for a session that places comfort and
safety first. The importance of self-care is emphasized and
integrated with the notion of creating a smooth, flowing session
incorporating natural transitions that avoid straining either
the practitioner's or the client's body. These transitions,
based on the practice of t'ai chi, are essential to what Chow
refers to as the "dance" of Thai massage -- the flowing movement
and regular breath, the sense of moving from one's center and
using one's weight vs. strength to avoid joint pain or injury.
In this way, Thai bodywork respects the body's natural rhythms
-- both external and internal.
<b>The Lotus Palm Tradition</b>
To understand where Thai massage is today, we return once again
to its origins -- specifically, to the founder of Thai massage,
Jivaka Kumar Bhaccha, a personal physician of the Buddha more
than 2,500 years ago. Thai massage, in fact, developed within
the environment of Buddhist temples, reflecting the spirit of
metta (unconditional love and compassion) and vipassana
(moment-to-moment awareness). As a practical application of
these two forms of meditation, Thai massage emphasizes that, in
its deepest essence, the massage is a meditative healing
experience for both the recipient and the practitioner. Sessions
in Jivaka's time were known to last several hours as part of a
regular, spiritual practice.
Chow saw the importance of bringing the practice of Thai massage
back to these more spiritual roots, though he also understood
the need to develop a form of massage specifically adapted to
Western bodies and needs.
"In Asia, people are generally smaller, more flexible and often
squat or sit cross-legged on the floor," he explained. "Also,
people in Thailand spend a lot of their working time in fields
or doing some other form of manual labor. For this reason, Thai
massage there focuses 75 percent on the lower body and legs. In
the West, people sit more, and their bodies are generally taller
and heavier. In addition, they spend more time at desks and
computers. Also, because of the nature of our lives in North
America, lengthier yoga-massage sessions are no longer
practical." Chow decided that Thai massage in the West would
need to divide its focus equally: 50 percent on the lower body
and 50 percent on the upper body, within a 60- to 90-minute
session, vs. the typical two-hour (or longer) sessions in
Thailand.
"When I first came to North America, one of my teachers told me
that any session less than two hours could not be called Thai
massage," Chow said. But, after practicing and teaching in the
West for five years, I've realized that it's better to teach an
art that people can practice. It's the quality of the massage
that matters, not the quantity."
Another factor was that, although Thai massage is readily
available in Thailand today for as little as $6 in many massage
clinics and there are reputable schools teaching the technique,
it is often seen as either a "service" along the lines of
hairdressing, or as a thinly-veiled prostitution offering --
neither of which is regulated in any way. The massage clinics
operate without specific guidelines, and quality and training
varies from clinic to clinic and region to region. The norm in
Thailand is to have mass massages in a single clinic with up to
20 recipients being massaged next to one another.
All these factors led Chow to have his school recognized and
accredited by a provincial massage federation in Canada, and
gave him the impetus to develop the Lotus Palm method, which he
teaches throughout North America, to bring Thai massage back to
its spiritual origins and basis in traditional healing.
The Lotus Palm training is designed to merge Eastern practices
with a Western approach to health and healing, while maintaining
high standards of practice. In addition to the basic training,
practitioners are encouraged to attend regularly scheduled and
supervised workshops to ensure they maintain the massage's
proper form and that they are using their own bodies correctly
to prevent strain or injury. The Lotus Palm approach also links
Thai massage to the ancient Indian healing tradition of
Ayurveda, providing a solid philosophical and theoretical basis
to the technique itself.
<b>Ayurvedic Roots</b>
Although it is called Thai massage, this bodywork has a
therapeutic foundation in the Indian healing tradition of
Ayurveda. Ayurveda comes from two Sanskrit words: ayur (life)
and veda (knowledge). Together, these concepts refer to
harmonious living and form a body of knowledge that acts as a
guide to proper maintenance of life, explained Chow.
"The Ayurvedic approach to healing is still practiced in India
and Sri Lanka and is receiving more recognition in the West for
its ability to treat the body as a whole," he said. "Within
Thailand, the Ayurvedic link to traditional Thai massage has
been all but lost, and is now reduced to pharmaceutical purposes
only. The aspect of massage and bodywork is no longer
emphasized. One of the aims of the Lotus Palm method is to
bridge the practice of Thai Yoga Bodywork to its Ayurvedic
roots. This does not mean that we intend to operate as Ayurvedic
doctors, but rather to integrate some general principles within
our work." Chow likens this to shiatsu massage, where
practitioners draw on the principles of Traditional Chinese
Medicine (TCM), though they themselves are not TCM doctors.
Ayurveda means "science of life," and Chow said his aim is to
simplify the concepts of Ayurveda and apply them within Thai
bodywork. "It's a beautiful healing and lifestyle tradition," he
said. "It's a mirror of yourself, representing who you are and
how you are. Ayurveda strives to bring happiness and balance by
addressing all aspects of a person: physical, mental and
spiritual. This provides an opportunity and a method for
positive change."
Lotus Palm practitioners are trained to create a massage that
incorporates an ancient tradition of health and well-being with
modern medical knowledge. Practitioners can determine each
client's specific constitution and body type based on the
Ayurvedic concept of the tridoshas -- vatta, pitta and kapha --
categorizations based on lifestyle, diet, emotional outlook,
physical and emotional characteristics, etc., enabling the
massage to be customized to each person's needs. Specific yoga
exercises are also recommended to the client to further address
their dosha requirements.
<b>Meditation of Compassion</b>
Lotus Palm training hails back to Thai massage's Buddhist
philosophy, teaching that the massage is a healing meditation
where the giver learns to feel the recipient's body as if it was
her own. This deep awareness, incorporating the concept of metta
and vipassana, reminds us that to touch another is to remember
our connection to life itself, to a deeper source of being. This
mindfulness and compassion is at the core of Lotus Palm.
"Meditation is the practice of being fully alive in the moment
and present to whatever it is we are engaged in," said Chow. "It
is essential for the Thai Yoga Bodywork practitioner to be in a
meditative state while working. This helps them to be more
centered and clear-minded."
To massage with clarity and the intention of kindness and
compassion is believed to benefit both the giver and the
receiver, allowing the life force to flow unobstructed between
both. Such a practice cultivates a discipline of both internal
and external awareness. You listen to yourself, you listen with
your hands, and you hear the body and spirit in each moment.
Chow regularly leads participants in his classes in a chant: "Om
Mane Padme Hum" -- a Tibetan mantra reflecting the spirit behind
Thai Yoga Bodywork and the Lotus Palm method. Its translation:
"May the jewel in the lotus shine forth this light of love and
compassion to unite all existences as one. May all beings be
happy."
In that mantra, we are taken back to the wat, to Thai massage's
temple origins, and to the sacred nature of this practice: that
to touch another is to reconnect to our bodies and to ourselves,
to our true essence in the moment. In so doing, we are reminded
that this awareness and compassion can be extended beyond a
massage session and reach into the moments that constitute our
daily lives.
Article originally published Massage & Bodywork Magazine
Copyright. Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals. All
rights reserved
Information on Thai Yoga Massage and the Lotus Palm School can
be obtained at: Lotus Palm School of Thai Yoga Massage 5337
boul. Saint-Laurent, suite 240 Montreal, Qc. H2T 1S5 tel. (514)
270-5713 <a
href="http://www.lotuspalm.com/">www.lotuspalm.com</a>
About the author:
With a background in dance, yoga and natural health care, Sonia
Osorio is a practitioner of <a
href="http://www.lotuspalm.com/">Lotus Palm Thai Bodywork</a>.
She is also in private practice as a California massage
therapist.
.