Natural Healing Traditions in Indonesia Indonesia is an archipelagic nation comprised of 17,508 islands spanning 5,000 km, draped across the equator. The richly forested tropical zone has an abundance of healing botanicals. One simple factor that unifies Indonesia's 350 different cultures is the belief in and use of the healing effects found in this natural abundance. While each culture has its own traditions and applications in natural healing, each uses locally available herbs and spices, along with massage and spirituality to promote and maintain sound bodies and minds. While the western world views massage as a tool for muscular manipulation and relaxation, the eastern world views it as a medicinal tool for maintaining life forces. Indonesians, in general, are very tactile. Close contact with one another is natural, and is a normal and nurturing part of everyday life. Massage is viewed as a nurturing method and is done among family members from a baby's youngest days. An elder woman in the household typically mixes herbs and plants into healing packs or tonics to treat ailments or cleanse and maintain family members' health. The island of Bali is no exception. The belief that air or wind becomes trapped in the body, creating sluggish and uncomfortable feelings of tiredness, is at the foundation of Balinese massage. Through deep compression techniques, muscles and organs are "squeezed" to stimulate the body and organs and expel the wind. This compression to organs stimulates them to function properly and lends to a general feeling of well being, balance and improved energy. Deep massage will "strip" the muscle areas by pulling out the tension. Sometimes coins are used to run along the body's energy meridians to "strip out" the bad, blocked energy. This usually marks the skin, but is believed to be a highly effective healing method. The same principles can be applied with a gentler approach and using only the hands. It is believed that the stronger and deeper the massage, the quicker the healing benefits will occur. In Asia, skin exfoliation is a common beauty practice. Women recognise that a vigorous scrub not only softens but also stimulates and cleans the skin, making it lighter. Traditionally, sandalwood powder was blended with local herbs and plants as natural astringents. Massage is often combined with beautification treatments. Lulur is a traditional exfoliation ritual combined with massage, derived from the royal palaces of Central Java. A body masque of herbs, roots, spices and flowers is applied, allowed to dry and scrubbed off, along with dead skin cells. Traditionally, it is applied daily for 40 days prior to marriage celebrations. Additionally, women in the bride's family honour this time to nurture and prepare the bride for her new role. Lulur is still used in the days leading up to nuptials. The
treatment is renowned for beautifying and softening the skin. Lulur
results in lighter, softer, fragrant skin. It also is the most popular
routine skin care in Indonesia, but is no longer limited only to women.
Traditionally followed by a milk bath, today, the body masque is rinsed
off and followed with application of yoghurt, to neutralise the staining
turmeric. Followed by a soaking bath, the waters are laced with tropical Bali Boreh is a village remedy originated by Balinese rice farmers. Standing knee-deep in water and stooping over in rice fields day after day leads to rheumatic aches and pains. A combination of roots, spices and bark is crushed into a healing pack, which helps warm the body, relieve aching joints, sore muscles and headaches. Handed down through the generations, the treatment it is recognised as traditional medicine. Boreh
is typically applied at the end of the workday, either to the entire
leg or at points of pain. Often, the pack will be left in place throughout
the night, especially during cool and rainy seasons, and rinsed in the
morning. |