History of Tui Na and Massage in China

The earliest use of Tui Na and massage in China can be traced back to the primitive society, when the Chinese ancestors were living and working, the body would often suffer from pain due to trauma, and humans would naturally use their hands or wooden sticks to massage or tap on the damaged parts to achieve the effect of reducing swelling and relieving pain.

The earliest origin of Tui Na and massage

The earliest use of massage and massage in China can be traced back to the primitive society, the Chinese ancestors in life and labor, the body often due to trauma and pain, humans will naturally use their hands or wooden sticks to massage or tap the damaged parts to achieve the effect of reducing swelling and pain. In the accumulation of this experience, the Chinese ancestors of instinctive touch or massage evolved into a systematic approach to treatment and health.

The initial development of Tui Na and massage

But Tui Na and massage as a skill, the first written records in the Shang Dynasty. Evidence can be found in the oracle bone inscriptions excavated from the Shang Dynasty Yin Market. The word “pat” is recorded in the oracle bone divination, “Shuowen Jiezi” states: “pat, pat also”, “揗, mo also”. And oracle bones also recorded the form and preparation of massage and massage therapist’s name.

This is also evidenced by the ancient document “Historical Records: The Chronicle of Bianji Cangong”. It is recorded that: “In the ancient times, the doctor had Yu Tarsus, treating diseases not with tonics …… but with the method of bridge lead, case stool, poison iron, etc.”. These records of the “case stool”, “bridge lead” are referred to massage.

The development period of Tui Na and massage

Tui Na and massage formally became part of Chinese medicine and was used in medical activities and health care in the Spring and Autumn period. We can find records from the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, which appeared in that period. In this book, nine books of Su Wen and five books of Ling Shu, there are discussions on massage and tui na.

The book records the origin, functions and indications of tui na and massage, and also has detailed records of specific tui na and massage techniques. For example, the Suwen Blood Qi and Shape Zhi Chapter said: “the shape of the number of frightened, the meridians do not work, the disease is born in the unkind, the treatment is massage, mash wine.” This treatise points out that the human meridians do not work, the body will be sick when the blood is not smooth, in the treatment of massage techniques can be used to unblock the meridians and qi and blood to achieve the purpose of treatment.

For the case of massage treatment of disease in the “Zhou Li Shu” has a record, the book recorded the medical case of Bian Magpie curing the corpse of Prince Hao, from this medical case fully illustrates the important role of massage and massage in clinical applications. As for tui na and massage for health care, the records can be found in the works of Zhuangzi, Laozi, Xunzi and Mozi. These writings have a systematic introduction to tui na and massage for health care, and also provide the basis for future generations of people’s tui na and massage for health care.

The mature period of Tui Na and massage

With the improvement of people’s use and understanding of massage, massage medical and health care into a period of rapid development and theoretical maturity, the period mainly includes the Sui and Tang to Song and Yuan periods. The main performance in the medical institutions set up massage department, and the establishment of massage medical administration. In the “Sui Shu – Five Officials”, “Old Tang Shu – Officials” there are records of massage doctor, health masseur, massage worker, massage student and other positions, and there are strict regulations on the medical process of massage and massage.

The period on massage and massage books and monographs also came out one after another, such as the period of “massage guide scripture ten volumes” for massage and massage special works, and the Sui dynasty “the source of diseases,” “thousand gold essential formula” have massage medical and health care discussions, and massage and massage applied to pediatric diseases and pediatric health care.

In the Song, Jin and Yuan periods, massage and massage therapy has been further developed, this period is mainly in the application of massage and massage therapy to gynecology to induce labor. According to the relevant literature, the Song Dynasty Pang An time “for the treatment of people, the rate of ten cure eight or nine. A pregnant woman is about to give birth, seven days and the child does not, a hundred techniques do not work, so his family to warm her waist and abdomen with soup, since the up and down stroking, the pregnant woman felt a slight pain in the stomach and intestines, moaning in the birth of a man. This shows that at that time, massage and massage have accumulated rich practical experience in dealing with obstructed labor.

The key period of Tui Na and massage

Massage and massage play a key role in health care period is the Ming and Qing dynasties. The period because of the “respect for Confucianism and Taoism” the dominance of feudal rituals, that massage “hurt the elegance”, is a laborer’s “cheap skills”, is not ” Fengjun way”, so that the massage was cold by the government.

In this premise massage from the government to the people, so that the general public can contact and use massage techniques, at the same time because of the period of depression in the private economy, people have difficulty in seeing a doctor, the effectiveness and affordability of massage and massage therapy for the prevention of disease and health care is extremely popular.

During this period, books on Tui Na and massage for health care were also published, covering internal, external, gynecological and pediatric health care.

Tui Na and massage recovery and prosperity period

From the founding of New China to the reform and opening up, massage as a means of medical and health care into a period of recovery and prosperity, mainly because Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and other older national leaders of the importance and reform and opening up a new understanding of health, so that massage medical and health care has a healthy growth of the soil.

The main manifestation is the establishment of massage and massage schools, specialized hospitals and economically developed regions of massage and health care institutions around the world. Such as the late 1970s, Shanghai, Beijing, Henan, Shaanxi, Shanxi and other cities have resumed the establishment of massage schools, some Chinese medicine colleges and universities to add the Department of acupuncture and massage, training a lot of massage talent.

In 1980, Changchun University, Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xinjiang College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Beijing Union University, successively opened blind massage college classes and undergraduate classes. 1990, the China Disabled Persons’ Federation established the China Blind Massage Center, which implemented standardized industry management for blind health massage and medical massage.

It is worth noting that after the reform and opening up, massage health hall and massage weight loss center were opened in many big cities one after another, which provided a broader world for the development of massage health.

From the above, we can see that massage and massage in China has a long history and reliable efficacy, and in today’s increasingly fast-paced life, massage health care has become one of the important means of health care for Chinese people.