Massage Lewes A Gift From India
In the ongoing evolution of massage techniques, sometimes it pays to stop peering into the future and, instead, unearth hidden treasures from the past. Marma-point massage, stemming from Ayurveda, the ancient healing system of India, is just such a gem. Practiced in Lewes East Sussex, it can make a huge difference to your wellbeing.
Although marma-point massage has been utilized for thousands of years, it's just recently been introduced to the Western world. Now, spas worldwide, such as Massage Lewes, are offering marma-point massage. The guiding principal of Ayurveda is disease prevention by harmonizing the body's rhythm with nature. One way to create this balance and align the body's healing energies is through marma-point massage."Marma-point therapy is a mind/body/spirit massage," explains Sue Davis, an instructor of Ayurvedic medicine in Harlem, New York. "It goes way beyond the physical to penetrate the body on a deeper level. It's on that level that true healing takes place."Visit massage lewes for more information.
Marma is a Sanskrit word meaning hidden , or secret. By definition, a marma point is a juncture on the body where two or more types of tissue meet, such as muscles, veins, ligaments, bones or joints. Yet marma points are much more than a casual connection of tissue and fluids; they ar intersections of the vital life force and prana, or breath. "The marma points are where consciousness meets matter; where deep silence resides in the body." says massae therapist Pamela Haynes, former owner of Ayurveda Plus Rejuvenation Center in Portland, Oregon, and now an Ayurvedic massage therapist at the Barefoot Sage Spa, also in Portland. In Ayurveda, marma points are thought to house the three pillars of life, otherwise known as the doshas.
According to Ayurvedic philosphy, doshas make up a person's constitution. The trinity includes vata (air), pitta (fire) and kapha (earth). Everone is born in a state of balance, or prakriti. During the aging process, factors such as anxiety, lackluster diet, or poor sleep habits cause disharmony among the doshas. Over the years, doshic imbalances begin to block the movement of free-flowing energy in the body. Eventually, the stagnation opens the door to physical and mental discomfort and disease. Enter marma massage. The idea behind massaging the marma points is to cleanse blocked energy, also called chi, by either arousing or calming the doshas. Like a television with three channels, each marma point has three receptors that align with the three doshas. During a marma-point massage, the points are stroked in a deliberate sequence using specific essential oils.
"Strictly speaking it's not a massage as defined by hands kneading tissue," explains Davis. "Marma massage is more like a very light stimulation of points on the body."
In all, 107 marma points cover the human body. They range in size from one to six inches in diameter. The points were mapped out in detail centuries ago in the Sushruta Samhita, a classic Ayurvedic text. Major marma points correspond to the seven chakras, or energy centers of the body, while minor points radiate out along the torso and limbs. The points cover both the front and back body, including 22 on the lower extremities, 22 on the arms, 12 on the chest and stomach, 14 on the back, and 37 on the head and neck. (The mind is considered the 108th marma.) Each has its one Sanskrit name given by Sushruta, one of the founding fathers of Ayurvedic medicine.
In the ongoing evolution of massage techniques, sometimes it pays to stop peering into the future and, instead, unearth hidden treasures from the past. Marma-point massage, stemming from Ayurveda, the ancient healing system of India, is just such a gem. Practiced in Lewes East Sussex, it can make a huge difference to your wellbeing.
Although marma-point massage has been utilized for thousands of years, it's just recently been introduced to the Western world. Now, spas worldwide, such as Massage Lewes, are offering marma-point massage. The guiding principal of Ayurveda is disease prevention by harmonizing the body's rhythm with nature. One way to create this balance and align the body's healing energies is through marma-point massage."Marma-point therapy is a mind/body/spirit massage," explains Sue Davis, an instructor of Ayurvedic medicine in Harlem, New York. "It goes way beyond the physical to penetrate the body on a deeper level. It's on that level that true healing takes place."Visit massage lewes for more information.
Marma is a Sanskrit word meaning hidden , or secret. By definition, a marma point is a juncture on the body where two or more types of tissue meet, such as muscles, veins, ligaments, bones or joints. Yet marma points are much more than a casual connection of tissue and fluids; they ar intersections of the vital life force and prana, or breath. "The marma points are where consciousness meets matter; where deep silence resides in the body." says massae therapist Pamela Haynes, former owner of Ayurveda Plus Rejuvenation Center in Portland, Oregon, and now an Ayurvedic massage therapist at the Barefoot Sage Spa, also in Portland. In Ayurveda, marma points are thought to house the three pillars of life, otherwise known as the doshas.
According to Ayurvedic philosphy, doshas make up a person's constitution. The trinity includes vata (air), pitta (fire) and kapha (earth). Everone is born in a state of balance, or prakriti. During the aging process, factors such as anxiety, lackluster diet, or poor sleep habits cause disharmony among the doshas. Over the years, doshic imbalances begin to block the movement of free-flowing energy in the body. Eventually, the stagnation opens the door to physical and mental discomfort and disease. Enter marma massage. The idea behind massaging the marma points is to cleanse blocked energy, also called chi, by either arousing or calming the doshas. Like a television with three channels, each marma point has three receptors that align with the three doshas. During a marma-point massage, the points are stroked in a deliberate sequence using specific essential oils.
"Strictly speaking it's not a massage as defined by hands kneading tissue," explains Davis. "Marma massage is more like a very light stimulation of points on the body."
In all, 107 marma points cover the human body. They range in size from one to six inches in diameter. The points were mapped out in detail centuries ago in the Sushruta Samhita, a classic Ayurvedic text. Major marma points correspond to the seven chakras, or energy centers of the body, while minor points radiate out along the torso and limbs. The points cover both the front and back body, including 22 on the lower extremities, 22 on the arms, 12 on the chest and stomach, 14 on the back, and 37 on the head and neck. (The mind is considered the 108th marma.) Each has its one Sanskrit name given by Sushruta, one of the founding fathers of Ayurvedic medicine.
