Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
Jivaka Komarabhacca, the physician to the historical Buddha himself, is said to be the
father of Thai massage and Thai traditional medicine. Although he wasn't mentioned at
length in Buddhist scriptures, Dr Jivaka holds extremely high status in Thai lore; there's a
statue of him at the Grand Palace in Bangkok and you'll often see his likeness next to
statues of the Buddha, like a protector. It's said that the doctor spread the practice of mas-
sage to monasteries to help ease the monks' pain after long hours of meditation. Today's
massage practitioners still practise
wâi kroo
(the Thai tradition of giving prayers and offer-
ings to a teacher) devoted to the revered physician with chants that include his name.
King Rama V commissioned a textbook, completed in 1900, of traditional Thai medicine that included
massage
Massage techniques and knowledge were passed down through the generations by mas-
ters to their disciples within the monasteries. With the support of royalty and the devotion
of the practitioners, techniques evolved for healing the sick and injured of the community.
Everything was passed down orally until the 1830s when Wat Pho was built and included
stone engravings and statues explaining and depicting Thai massage arts. It wasn't until
the 1920s that Thai massage became a profession.
TRADITIONAL THAI MEDICINE
Much like other schools of Asian medicine, traditional Thai medicine (TTM) takes a holistic approach to health to
include the physical body, heart, mind, spirit and flow of energy through the Sen. Much is based on the four ele-
ments of fire, water, air and earth, with each element ruling body parts and functions - earth rules the organs, air
rules the 'wind' (generally meaning respiration and digestion), water rules bodily fluid and fire rules four types of
bodily heat (including circulation). Living in harmony with nature, eating well and being in tune with one's own
natural cycles (from night and day to ageing) are the keys to health by TTM standards.
Tastes are important to Thais in a culinary sense and this extends into the realm of medicine. How a herbal rem-
edy tastes determines how it balances the elements and what ailment it can treat. For example, sweet treats fa-
tigue, salty is good for constipation and bitter helps fight infection. TTM treatments generally include herbal rem-
edies, massage and lifestyle changes.
