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Thai massage with Stephanie Golden
When receiving a Thai Massage (Nuad Boran), you remain completely passive as your therapist moves you through yoga postures
while massaging (compressions) along your body's energy lines ("Sen") and pressure points (marma). It's a full-body treatment that relieves muscular
tension, improves circulation, mobility & flexibility, relaxes you and re-energizes you. This meditative practice is the physical application
of "metta" (loving kindness).
If you're thinking, "Oh, I'm not flexible, that's not for me", then Thai Yoga Massage is exactly what you need. Thai Massage is the world's oldest form of physiotherapy. Postures, pace and pressure are adapted to the individual; no two massages are the same.
If you've always wanted to try yoga but don't know where to begin or perhaps find it intimidating, Thai Yoga Massage is a great introduction to the healing benefits of yoga. Often referred to as the "lazy person's yoga", all that is required of the recipient is that they be present and mindful of their breathing. The practitioner does the rest!
Stretching and massage at the same time. It doesn't get any better!
The Ayurvedic Link
The word ayurveda derives from two Sanskrit words: ayur, meaning "life" and veda, meaning "knowledge" - the science of living. According to Ayurveda, individuals are composed of any or a combination of the three doshas (body types): vata (airðer), pitta (fire&water) and/or kapha (earth&water).Each yoga posture affects our energy in different ways: they can have a grounding effect, or enhance circulation, they can help focus and center our energy, or raise it up. Every time a person is brought into a yoga posture one or all of the doshas is activated. In a Thai massage, a recipient's energy can be balanced by applying postures of the opposite nature, in order to strengthen the weaker dosha(s). For example, for the fast-paced, nervous vata type the practitioner would apply soothing postures at a slow pace, while an invigorating and dynamic massage will help the slow-moving kapha to beat that sluggish feeling. [Read more on Thai massage and energy.]
History
The founding father of Thai Massage, Jivaka Kumar Bhaccha, was a celebrated yogi and a doctor in the healing tradition of Ayurveda who treated, among others, the Buddha.Traditional Thai massage developed over millennia within the environment of Buddhist temples. It flourished as a way for spiritual people to share the benefits of meditation and compassion in a physical form. It is a respected form of healing practiced today in hospitals and temples throughout Thailand.