Spirituality

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Comment by Las Vegas Massage In Summerlin on May 31, 2011 at 10:43am

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Hi Nancy!

 

Good topic and an interesting one  ;)

 

You ask a lot of good questions, yet I'd like it if you could answer them from your own perspective as well...especially this question:  What is Spirituality to YOU?

 

My entire clientele is based on professional relationships, thus, there's probably much more communication and conversation between myself and clients than most.  With that said, I've very, very careful in regards to what we discuss until I know this client a bit more and how they act or re-act to topics. 

 

Spirituality, religion, politics, the economic situation, family matters, their own job situation, etc., etc., are avoided unless they, the client, mentions them.  I've learned to listen to clients very closely, and pay attention to many other indicators (such as body language) that they present.  Their lips may say one thing, yet their body may say the opposite  ;) 

 

I've much to contribute on this topic, yet not right now.  I'm moving my entire practice from outcall to a massage room and it's taking all my time.  I'll participate when I can!

 

Kris   

 

Comment by Nancy Toner Weinberger on May 31, 2011 at 10:20am

I started this group to open up a discussion on this important topic. It's a topic that is in many ways dividing the profession right now.

 

There is a letter in the Fall 2011 issue of the PERG (Professional Education & Resource Guide) that I am posting below that I hope will inspire people to participate in this discussion! I have lots to say about it, too. And it's not something I have figured out the answer to. But listening and speaking through this forum can help us all crystallize our thoughts and opinions.

 

Welcome!

Comment by Nancy Toner Weinberger on May 31, 2011 at 10:20am

Spirituality. Does it have anything to do with the profession of massage and bodywork therapy? Or, like separation of church and state, are we obligated to keep spirituality out of our work? And what exactly do we mean by spirituality? Do we mean God? Religion? New Age philosophy? What about energy work— is it possible to cut spirituality out of that? Or disallow energy work during massage?  Is the concept of presence during hands-on work related to spirituality? And if the body holds and reflects mind and emotion, would that constitute spirituality or something else?

Of course it’s ancient history now, but at one point in time massage was called a “rub-down” and you went to the YMCA to get one; bodywork meant repairing the frame of a car. Or you were rich and famous and had your own “masseuse.” That was it outside of massage parlors, where you did not go to get a massage. Then the era of the 60’s and the 70’s championed mind-altering drugs and free love and the search for enlightenment. This passionate search to experience more, both sensually and spiritually, created an historical culture clash with government, religion, and tradition.

From this chaotic soup greats like Ida Rolf, Milton Trager, Moshe Feldenkrais, John Barnes, and others, supported by places like Esalen and later, New York University and the New York Open Center, were revamping the “rub-down” into something new. At the same time Ram-Das, Fritz Perls, and others led a spiritual, psychological and metaphysical movement that contributed to a migration away from the traditional religious structure of America. Hippies, and all those tag-along sort-of hippies, hungry for awakening on every level, were the womb from which the massage and bodywork profession as we know it today was birthed.

Massage and bodywork brought self-discovery, self-understanding, and self-awareness to the individual. These were young people, and the healing they sought was not of the body, but of the psyche and of the spirit. It was only later as the profession developed, as these young people who had found themselves through massage and bodywork became massage and bodywork therapists and worked with others, that the full physical health benefits began to be publically acknowledged. 

Who among us has not undertaken the journey of self-discovery that comes with massage and bodywork? And what journey of self-discovery is not of the spirit? We need to be careful that in our desire for acceptance into the medical community we do not deny our heritage, and even more so, that we do not deny our own direct experience of what massage and bodywork have to offer. Let's share our thoughts on this important topic in the forum group, Spirituality at www.massageprofessionals.com. I’ll see you there—

 

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