What has arrived from the East into Western Massage

Swedish massage, which is the basic western massage, is a western version of Chinese massage which was modified to fit into western culture and practices.  Since the second world war other eastern practices have arrived in the west to be taken up by enthusiasts. They come from cultures which have not abandoned traditional ways of understanding human beings in an holistic way for the western, post enlightenment model based on science. In the west it is anatomy, physiology, biochemistry  and pathology with all the other streams of human existence that scientific study has revealed. Practices like Reiki, acupuncture, reflexology and Ayurvedic medicine are examples from the east but there are others. Whilst the enthusiasts who bring them may remain as loyal as they can to all that relates to the practice, others will tend to pick and chose what best serves their purpose. In the massage field the 2 most widely advertised are Thai Massage and Tantric Massage.

Thai massage is widely advertised and practised throughout the UK. It appears to me that most of the practitioners who offer these massages have either come from South East Asia or that’s where their families came from and took up residence here. It also appears that a high percentage of these practitioners are ladies. I have had a number of Thai massages on my travels, sometimes in colleges for the blind and noted in particular the pressures that they applied to particular points on my body.

My introduction to Tantra and tantric massage started only 10 years ago but in such a short time has had a profound impact on me, my life and the massages I offer. Whilst it has been practiced for thousands of years in India, it was brought to the West in the 1960s -70s at a time when there was renewed interest in eastern mysticism, spirituality and practices, popularised by the likes of the Beatles and certain gurus. OSHO was one of the leading lights who helped to teach and instruct. He makes it clear Tantra whilst spiritual, is not a religion, a philosophy or doctrine. It is instead techniques to discover the mystery within. This is about experiencing in our bodies and not about thinking in our brains. I will deal with Tantric Massage in the next episode of this blog but for those who want to learn and experience more widely tantric techniques there are groups that run in  Greater Manchester, one a group specifically for gay and bi men ( https://www.meetup.com/gaytantraformen-manchester/?eventOrigin=home_groups_you_are_in) and another which is a mixed group (.  https://www.meetup.com/spirituality-sexuality-and-shamanism-north/?eventOrigin=home_groups_you_are_in ) and there will be similar groups meeting throughout the UK if you search online.

I have attended workshops at both the groups i have mentioned and I can recommend them 100%.