January 14, 2014
Experiencing cultural and
academic events in Thailand has really opened my eyes to the value that Thai
people have around self-care. For example, a few weeks ago, we experienced a
monk chat. We had the opportunity to listen to a monk talk about his personal
experiences with connecting to Buddhism, becoming a monk, the history of the
Buddha, and traditional practices. One of the things from this monk chat that
stuck with me and that I really learned from is that Buddhism is more a way of
life and philosophy than a religion. Many of the traditional practices are not
linked to worshipping a higher being but rather strengthening and empowering
the self. As I was familiar with before, meditation and purifying the mind is a
large part of the Buddhist practice. KK, the monk who lead this discussion,
showed us the multiple meditation positions and how to let the body free of
stress and thinking. KK also shared with us some of the other values and
philosophies behind Buddhism like the importance of living in the present and
detaching the self from wanting more that you have. As he was describing
Buddhism, I thought about how much these philosophies direct the mind to the
self and the body. The inner-self is emphasized through these Buddhist
teachings rather than looking outside of the self to what others around may
think.
We had this monk chat early
in the trip, and since that experience, my eyes have been opened to the other
areas of the Thai culture that tie the mind, body, and soul together—further
emphasizing self-care and focusing within. The importance of getting massages
also connects to the self and taking care of one’s body. When visiting the Waat
Pho Massage School, I learned that these types of Thai massages are really an
art and way of healing the body. The professional massage staff studies the
physiology of the body and where certain pressure points are while also
incorporating self-stretching into the practice. And I noticed at the elder’s
home and the mental hospital that we visited also offer these massages as part
of the therapy and healing process.
It has been interesting for
me to reflect on the differences between Thailand and the United States when it
comes to self-care and doing things for oneself. In the USA, our unequal
society and capitalistic economy creates a social evaluate threat for people.
These are threats to a person’s self-esteem and social status (Wilkinson &
Pickett, 2009). In a capitalistic society, the more material wealth that one
has results in a higher status on the social ladder. This results in people
wanting more and there can be a stronger sense of vulnerability and sensitivity
to one’s social status, which ultimately increases the social evaluate threat
when there are higher levels of inequality. In the USA, we are so conscious of
how we look to others in terms of our social status and how much that we have. Sometimes
I find myself doing things for others more than doing things for myself and
looking inside myself. My self-esteem can be dictated by how I am perceived by
whoever is around me or important to me.
Learning more about
self-care and looking within myself through these cultural experiences in
Thailand has really emphasized how important this is. Thailand is a
collectivist society but still places so much emphasis on empowering and taking
care of the self, which I am looking forward to incorporating more into my
life.
The
picture of a woman giving our guide, Zuzana, a massage was taken at the
Wat Pho Massage school that we visited. She was demonstrating the
multiple techniques of the Wat Pho massage.
The picture of all of the monks was taken right outside a Buddhist temple and by the area that we had the monk chat.
The
picture of me sitting in a chair with funny brown pants is when I was
getting my first Thai foot/leg massage, which was incredible!
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