We all know that when we knock or hurt ourselves that we quite naturally try to rub the pain away. This is an unconscious and innate behaviour that we have all experienced. Scientists have conducted complex experiments to demonstrate this, but it's probably best exemplified by the bond between a mother and her child. It is from this basic need for touch that the modern healing paradigm of massage has developed. Over the centuries a diverse range of cultures and philosophies have influenced massage therapy. Let's start at the very beginning…

3000BC: China
Ammo - press/rub; Tui-na - push/pull The earliest writings on massage were found in ancient Chinese texts. The techniques described included: rubbing/kneading over the entire body, gentle pressure and traction to the joints, and the stimulation of specific points along the body with needles or fingers (the beginnings of acupuncture and acupressure). It was through trade with China that countries such as India and Japan came to learn of massage.

2330BC: Egypt
The walls of a physician's tomb in Saqqara show reflexology being used to heal.

1700BC: India
Their knowledge base came from Chinese trade and study of their writings. The basic principles of massage were incorporated in to Ayurvedic treatments.

700BC: Greece
Massein/masso - touch, handle, squeeze or knead. Before the ancient Olympics the athletes received friction, anointing and rubbing with sand to prepare them for competition. Aesculapius was considered as a " god of medicine" for combining exercise and massage, and founded the first gymnasium to promote health and treat disease. He relied exclusively on massage.

400 B.C. Hippocrates was known as the "father of medicine". He established a code of ethics for practitioners. He understood and supported the role of massage in treatment and was the first to describe the medical benefits of massage. He called his art "anatripsis" which means to rub up. Many of the techniques he implemented, such as stretching and traction, are still in use today.

Pre AD - Jewish
A full body massage with oils (anointing) was viewed as an ancient ritual. The Jews honoured anointing to such an extent that the Jewish word for "rubbing with oils" and "Messiah" is the same. Massage for both ritual and therapeutic benefits are a documented part of the culture.

AD: Christian
Christian writings speak of touch as a way of healing.

100 AD: Roman
The Romans acquired the art of therapeutic bathing and massage from the Greeks. They built public bathhouses making massage and it's benefits available to all. Physicians of the time believed that rubbing up, was more beneficial than rubbing down. Galen was the gladiators' physician and ensured that they were rubbed before combat. Celsus, recommended head massages to relieve headaches, and the rubbing of limbs to strengthen and heal.

600 A.D. : Japan
The Japanese also gained their knowledge of massage from Chinese writings. They further developed finger pressure techniques into the technique known as shiatsu. Shiatsu was used to stimulate circulation, ki (life energy) and nerves.

700 A.D. : Arabia
With the spread of Islam through Asia Minor, Persia and North Africa much of the Greco-Roman culture was preserved. Razi and Avicenna wrote many books supporting the ancient practices of diet, exercise and massage. These books were eventually returned to the West by way of conquest and trade.

500 -1450 A.D: Middle Ages
The Middle Ages saw the decline of the Roman Empire and the spread of Christianity. During this time, art and science suffered greatly, including the accepted practices of bathing and massage. Superstition abounded with the church claiming that the healing powers of massage practitioners came from the devil. Those who did apply their knowledge, such as laypeople and folk healers, were often persecuted. However people from the Slavic, Finnish and Swedish cultures kept alive these healing traditions.

1450 - 1660 A.D.: Renaissance
There was a revival in the arts and sciences, where the classical writings were once again studied and used as a basis for the development of new ideas. The printing press was also invented at this time, and this aided the spread of literature. Frenchman Ambrose Pare (1517-1590), the founder of modern surgery, began to use massage after surgery, to ease joint stiffness and promote wound healing. He described three massage styles - gentle, medium and vigorous and passed this knowledge on to fellow surgeons.

C18th: Polynesia
Captain James Cook found relief for his sciatica here in 1779. The native cultures of the Sandwich Islands, the New Zealand Maoris, the Tongans and Samoans all have their own traditional forms of massage.

C19th: Europe (Sweden)
Per Henrik Ling is credited with the development of Swedish massage. He proposed an integrated program consisting of active and passive movements and massage for the treatment of disease. This system of massage used many of the positions and movements of Swedish gymnastics, and his regimes for range of motion, resistive exercise and stretching are still in use today. His work endured because of the school he founded.

C19th: Europe (Britain)
In 1894 a British Medical Association commission revealed many problems with the standards and practices of the then massage industry. With inconsistent training, practitioners lying about education and experience, patient stealing and increased fees for service being some of the issues. Improper recruitment tactics of students was yet another issue that has had far reaching consequences.

These poorly trained students, once graduated found it difficult to find legitimate employment, and many turned to prostitution to repay their course fees. Hence the association of massage with "massage parlours" and prostitution. The Society of Trained Masseuses was formed in the same year. The founders recognised the need for rigorous standards and imposed academic prerequisites, inspections and examinations for both students and teachers, which we still follow today.

C20th: Worldwide
At the beginning of the 1900's massage was used to treat World War One veterans who had suffered shell shock and nerve damage. As the century progressed scientific research enabled the effects of massage to be defined, validating massage as a treatment regime. Massage has diversified in to many disciplines, several of which form the basis of modern remedial massage. These include: manual lymph drainage: MLD (1930s); deep transverse friction: DTF (1940s); trigger points: TP (1950s); proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation: PNF (1950s); myofascial release: MFR (1960s); Rolfing (1970s); and watsu: water therapy (1980s).