The history of the emergence and development of massage
Since ancient times, massage has been considered the most effective procedure that has a positive effect on the human body. The legends have developed about the beneficial properties of massage, and in modern realities they make up a lot of scientific work and conduct a lot of research. But how did the massage procedure come about and who became its discoverer?
History of massage
The first written evidence of massage dates back to the 9th century BC. e., which came to us from the East.
The ancient Chinese manuscript "Nei Ching" has a whole section about diseases that were treated not only with drugs, but also with massage.
After some time, the massage technique gradually began to migrate from Ancient China to Korea, Japan, as well as Indochina. And during the Han Dynasty, back and whole body massage spread to the Middle East, Pamir and Central Asia.
Therapeutic massage has also developed in India. The ancient holy books of Ayurveda (1800 BC) describe massage techniques that were used for some diseases. Massage was done using rubbing and gentle stretching of the whole body, starting with the head and ending with the feet. Also, to maximize the effect, the Indians combined steam baths with massage.
Interesting to know: only clergy could do massage in India and China. It is important to note that in these countries there were even specialized schools in which massage techniques were taught.
In addition to Ancient China and India, Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome also made a huge contribution to the development of massage. Mention of massage can be found in the poems of Homer, in the works of Hippocrates and Asklepiad.
Massage in the Middle Ages
During the Middle Ages, massage was practically not used for medicinal purposes. Interest in him began to subside rapidly, but with the advent of work on anatomy in the XIV – XV centuries, massage again began to gain popularity and was used for medicinal purposes.
During the rise of Christianity, massage was unjustly expelled, as it was considered a remnant of paganism. The first person to seriously study massage and its effect on the body was the Swedish doctor Peter-Heinrich Ling, who was born in 1776.
Thanks to his painstaking work and dozens of scientific works, Peter-Henry opened the central royal gymnastics institute in Stockholm, which still exists today.
Massage nowadays
Centuries later, mankind has discovered many types of massage. Now they are mainly divided into two categories: manual massage and hardware massage. Each of them has its own subspecies. At the moment, such types of massage are widely popular as:
- anticellulite massage
- Thai massage
- structural facial massage
- massage for pregnant women
- lymphatic drainage massage
and many others.
Many scientists conduct research in the field of massage and study its effect on the human body.
Nowadays, you can visit a massage session in clinics, salons, as well as in a private massage room. The most important thing is to decide what result you want to achieve and choose a good massage specialist. By the way, you can read about it here.
Take care of your health, and come for a massage in Riga in the massage room GURU DAS SPA®.
