The Connection Between Thai Massage and Yoga

Yoga and Thai Massage are members of the same family. Thai massage was introduced in Thailand by a physician from India who was a contemporary of Buddha. His gift to Thailand was his skill of yoga and yoga therapy. Western therapists have coined the term Thai Yoga Massage which is actually more accurate than Thai massage.



Yoga as a self practice never made it in Thailand. There actually is a form of Thai yoga in Thailand, but it is not widely known and hardly practiced by anyone. Yoga arrived in Thailand, but only the massage aspect (yoga therapy) survived and the self practice yoga was forgotten. Recently Thailand has been experiencing a renaissance of yoga, but it was introduced by westerners who set up quite a few yoga centers in the tourist areas of the country. It is a very recent phenomenon that the Thais have discovered the benefits of Indian yoga, and now you can find yoga schools for Thais in some big cities.



Generally Thais and foreigners don't mix in the yoga schools. Why? One reason is the language barrier, and another reason is that the Thais approach yoga as well as life in general in a more relaxed, easy going way, whereas westerners take their yoga practice very seriously. The Thais feel that western yoga classes tend to be more competitive than relaxed, social events.



What accounts for the recent popularity of Thai massage? For many hundreds of years massage and herbal medicine were standard and effective treatments in Thailand until modern medicine appeared on the scene. Gradually western medicine started to replace Thai massage. It was only revived by foreigners who took an interest in this unique therapy. They began to write books about it, they produced Thai massage videos, and opened Thai massage schools.



When Thai massage became decoupled from yoga, it resulted in a degeneration of the potential of this healing art. Originally it had been practiced by monks in temples. When it moved out into mainstream society in the last few decades, it often turned into a come-on for the sex industry. But this was counteracted to some degree by western therapists who began to take a lot of interest in this new and exotic healing art. They reintroduced yoga principles, and created a huge demand by westerners for Thai massage education and treatments in Thailand. Nowadays there are hundreds of Thai massage schools in Thailand, and the students are almost exclusively foreigners.



The Thai government has been making serious efforts to boost the standard of Thai massage by setting up training facilities for Thais, therapists and schools, issuing official certificates, and promoting higher standards.



Thai massage can be utilized as a purely physical system of stretches, manipulations and pressure points. But by adding yoga principles to the massage, it can be elevated to a real healing art. Mindfulness, awareness of one’s own body and the client’s body, working from one’s "hara", the energetic center right behind the navel, awareness of one’s breath, conscious channeling of healing energy, and an increased sensitivity of touch all greatly increase the quality and effectiveness of the treatment.



Thai massage can be far more than a technique. The combination of yoga principles with Thai bodywork is not only an ideal combination, but it brings Thai massage back to its roots of yoga. After all, they are part of the same family.