Comments on: Curious Double Standard in Thai Massage

By: Shama

Shama — Fri, 18 May 2012 10:20:19 +0000

Well, I know what you mean – that’s why I live in Thailand.

By: Terence

Terence — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:10:33 +0000

Great comments. That is why inThailand everyone is laid back and appreciates life daily. Here in the western world its rules..rules..rules,(HE WHO MUST OBEYED!!) fail to follow them and BIG trouble. I am a firm believer in slow down and see what is around us ENJOY LIFE! Not so here must be busy busy or you are useless

Regards

Terry

By: Shama

Shama — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 18:58:20 +0000

Hi Heidi, you are right – there was a lot of joy and fun at this festival, and a real free flow in the healing arts. Luckily we don’t have to contend with much regulation here in Thailand.

I am glad that you like the Heavenly Head Massage course. I hope I can continue to provide more inspiration and education to you and all my clients and students.

By: heidi

heidi — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 18:35:03 +0000

Hi Shama,
Very much enjoyed reading your article.It is soo true,unfortunately,that massage in the States is so regulated.Also enjoyed watching your video of the Mala festival.What stood out to me the most was the sheer JOY that people expressed on their faces and in their body movements! I feel that is sadly missing in “mainstream culture” in the U.S. many clients I work with sensor their body movements so much that there is no flow or joy left!Just finished downloading my last Heavenly Head Massage video.Great information and teaching! thank you

By: Sue

Sue — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 11:33:58 +0000

Hi Shama. Many thanks for your really interesting articles. I have not yet been to Thailand but am saving up to visit. I really like your approach and wonder if you do any direct teaching over there?

By: Shama

Shama — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 17:21:07 +0000

You know Graham, this is a strange thing. You are absolutely correct that the therapists in Thailand would make a killing if they would step out of their mold and offer something different. But the vast majority of them are simply not interested in learning anything new. Their concept is that they know enough to do a session and make some money, so why bother with new information.

I have offered to teach some of my styles to Thais, but I never had any takers, even if I would have taught it for free. Thais have a very different mentality from westerners who want to learn as much as possible and who are always interested in new information and new techniques in the massage world.

That’s the reason why Thai massage is evolving and changing in the west, but staying the same without any changes or modifications in Thailand.

There are many socio-economic reasons for that which become very obvious when you live here, and I have written about it in several articles on this website and on http://shamakern.com. It goes beyond the scope of this comment here, but there really is a big difference between east and west why people become therapists and how they see their work.

By: Graham

Graham — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 05:21:52 +0000

On the other hand, most of the massage schools that Westerners do attend are very structured. Do this 3 times then up and down the leg and no suggestion of ever being creative. And I have the feeling that most Thais are also taught this way. So not many step out of the mold of the same conventional Thai Massage sequence that they deal out to all clients.

It could be interesting to teach your Heavenly Head and Abdominal massages to Thai Masseuses. There are thousands of massage parlors all offering the same menu of treatments. They might make a killing offering something different to Tourists.

By: Shama

Shama — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 09:45:37 +0000

Quite true Graham. I have also studied with Poo and Chaiuth when he was still alive, and both of them gave Pichet a run for their money when it comes to eccentricity and being way out there. And they all had some very unique talents. Most regular massage schools in Thailand are more conventional than those three. It is an interesting combination that I have gotten some of my best education from some of the most eccentric people. None of them would make it in the US, for sure.

I have been with Pichet for a few months when I started out. I don’t think that his students were eccentric, but there really aren’t many places to go after you got your basic Thai Massage education in one of the many schools, and you want to go deeper.

Back then Pichet was a bit more organized and structured. I hear that nowadays he did away with all that completely. It is just all free flow, and must be hard to take for anyone who is expecting some kind of structure. Yes, Pichet is some kind of a cross between an enigma, a genius, an eccentric, a shaman, a healer. And you really have to drop all your ideas how a massage school should be run if you want to be able to put up with him. In either case he was my most influential teacher.

By: Graham

Graham — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 07:43:02 +0000

Its quite obvious that its Pichest Boonthumme that you studied under and he is totally not conventional even in Thai society. So its not even Thais that go to study with because they like things a bit more structured than he is. In fact its mainly eccentric foreigners who find him so fascinating because he is so unconventional yet exceptional.
So I don’t think he is really a model of how to be for us because its almost like he comes from another planet and its a mystery where his inspiration comes from.

By: Shama

Shama — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 20:28:55 +0000

Yes Julia, visit Thailand when you can, you will like it! Lots of good study opportunities here.