Chi Massage
What is Chi ? and How does it relate to massage?

Chi ( or Ki in Japanese) means “life force” or “vital energy”. This concept has been around for thousands of years in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Along with Blood it is one of the two main philosophical concepts of Chinese medicine.

Chi, or life force is considered to be an underlying layer of the human being, more essentially part of what makes a human being than even their body.

In fact, in Oriental and Ayurvedic medicine (the medicine of India) people and all other forms of life are said to be chi, or life force, that is covered by a body made of the gross elements of earth, water, fire air, etc…..

This can be evidenced by the fact that people’s body’s are always changing, by eating food, drinking water and eliminating waste, yet the fundamental essence of self awareness is still the same. In other words even though every molecule in your body is different than it was 7 years ago you still exist as the same person. That part or aspect of you that continues to exist, even though the body is completely different is the chi or life force.

Oriental medicine has always had as it’s basis the fundamental idea that a smooth flow of the chi through the body is one of the main ways through which health imbalances are prevented. When there is a blockage then muscle tension will develop in that area, and nerve impulses won’t work as effectively and blood won’t circulate as well.

The fundamental basis of acupuncture as well as oriental massage and acupressure techniques is to open up the flow of chi in the body. This is done by stimulating various acupressure points in the body along lines, called meridians, that the chi flows through.

Each meridian relates to a various organ such as the Stomach, Liver or Lungs. There are 12 meridians each relating to an organ system. The meridian system contains more than just the organ and the meridian, it also deals with emotional issues as well. For example if the lungs are constricted it may relate excess grief in the body while if the Liver is tight it may relate to repressed anger and so forth.

The goal of a good system of massage, such as Raynor massage, is to stimulate the flow of chi in the body and to remove any associated emotional blockages. By getting the chi flow moving in the body this will also get rid of the muscle tension that plagues so many people and that conventional massage techniques are focused upon. But opening the flow of chi will achieve a lot more than just loosening the muscles. The whole body and mind will be benefited.

May people who have strong blockages in their chi flow experience interesting things that happen to them when someone starts to massage them and the chi starts to move. Emotional releases, where a person feels old emotions come from their subconscious into their conscious mind are common, as well as strong tingling feelings in the hands and face

A person sometimes has the urge to express any trapped emotions that have been stirred by crying or screaming. After an emotional release, a person usually feels more peaceful and lighter and feels like a burden has been lifted of them. Many emotional releases are caused by blockages in the belly region, a very important area in shiatsu, the traditional Japanese form of massage. This area, also known as the hara, can hold many emotions for years and can lead to many problems of a neurological, psychological, reproductive and digestive nature.

For example, tension in the belly caused by emotional stress, may put pressure on the ovaries causing infertility, Pre menstrual Syndrome, or cysts. Or emotional tension in the belly may lead to ulcers, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, constipation and other disorders.

Freeing this tension is the goal of massage styles like Raynor massage which incorporates massage techniques and strategies from Chinese massage, Indian massage, Japanese massage and many other forms of natural therapies and simplifies them into all being geared towards the goal of totally freeing a person’s body of all muscular tension, (including the “involuntary muscles” of the belly such as the small and large intestine), as well as making sure that all the chi is flowing smoothly throughout the human body.

This is a prime ingredient, if not the prime ingredient, along with good nutrition and right attitude to life, towards having a healthy mind, body and spirit.

Written by Brandon Raynor, Naturopath and founder of Raynor massage.
Please see www.brandonraynor.com for more details
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