Foot massage originated in China about four thousand years ago and is part of traditional Chinese medicine, which shares the same principles as another traditional medicine, acupuncture. It has a history of thousands of years, with the earliest foot massage originating from the ancient times of dance and health care.
The preface of 'Lushi' records, 'During the time of Yinkang, the pores and skin were obstructed and multiple layers were attached, and those who could benefit from their joints did so, even to the extent of dancing, calling for others to dance to guide it, which was called the Great Dance.' Since in ancient times, humans were barefoot, when they were happy, they would dance rhythmically, or when it was cold, they would jump vigorously, and they found that dancing could produce heat and rejuvenate the spirit, relieve fatigue. In addition, when people had certain diseases, they also had pain in their feet. After the disease improved, the pain in the feet also improved. Through repeated practice, they discovered a regularity, which formed the basis for touching the feet to diagnose diseases and massage the feet to treat diseases and strengthen the body.
Although foot massage originated in China, it did not spread widely in China. This is because the continuous dynastic changes and natural disasters in Chinese history have almost led to the disappearance of this cultural heritage, which was invented during the era of the Yellow Emperor.
With the continuous progress of society, the concept of foot massage for treating diseases and strengthening the body was very popular during the Qin and Han dynasties.The Yellow Emperor's Inner ClassicThe foot heart chapter of "Early had a discussion on foot massage. 5000 years ago, it was called "Observation of the toes method," and in the Han Dynasty, the famous doctor Huatan called it "Foot Heart Way" in his "Huatan Secret Book." The main effect of his research on "Five Animal Sports" is "to remove diseases and benefit hooves and feet," "to drive away evil spirits from the joints." The Han Dynasty's founding emperor Liu Bang had a foot washing habit. It is said that before his death, his greatest wish was to wash his feet again.At that time, there was no special position of foot massage therapist.
Foot massage has a history in China dating back to various dynasties, and it was introduced to Japan during the Tang Dynasty, where it evolved into the Japanese practices of "acupuncture" and "foot reflexology.
During the Song Dynasty, due to the constraints of Confucianism, foot massage gradually disappeared.
Foot massage was introduced to Europe during the Yuan Dynasty.
To the Ming Dynasty, many medical practitioners regarded it as a good method for health preservation and health maintenance. In his work "The Examination of the Eight Meridians", the famous Ming Dynasty physician Li Shizhen pointed out, "Cold starts from the feet," so the feet are the fundamental source for treating diseases. One of the longevity secrets of the Medicus Sun Simiao was to massage the soles of the feet every day, with a focus on the Yongquan point.
Foot massage originated in China about four thousand years ago and is part of traditional Chinese medicine, which shares the same principles as another traditional medicine, acupuncture. It has a history of thousands of years, with the earliest foot massage originating from the ancient times of dance and health care.
