Talk:Lomilomi massage

moved to proper talkpage
There's also an article on lomilomi, which in the form I found it, was simply an advertisement for a local massage therapist. I erased all the advertising, there and here. I'm not sure about leaving the book. I haven't seen it, and it could be a woo-woo bit of advertising rather than a reliable source. The two articles should be merged under one heading. Zora 22:54, 30 July 2005 (UTC)

Aagh! I just found this page. An ad! This is horrendous.

Someone just started an article called Hawaiian massage. Let's redirect this page to Hawaiian massage, which is a more informative title for most people and try to merge whatever is useful, minus the advertising. Zora 22:48, 30 July 2005 (UTC)

From: Christian Herold I do not agree. Hawaiian Massage is known in spas all over the world as Lomilomi. xtian@swissonline.ch 31 July 2005


 * Well, I'm OK with having Hawaiian massage redirect to Lomilomi, until we get complaints. But the articles SHOULD be linked in some way. Zora 20:49, 31 July 2005 (UTC)

editing changes made
Based on the new Bishop Museum Press book, I deleted information that was inaccurate and added information on how lomilomi was used in old Hawai'i. I added the book to resources and another book to put lomilomi in global context. The original book listed, on big island massage, is a valuable resource.

I've checked the Hawai'i State Archives and the Bishop Museum Archives and have found no historic pictures or drawings of lomilomi. Makana Chai 07:38, 9 February 2006 (UTC)

stub
Is this article still a stub, or can we safely remove the template?
 * I removed it, but the lead needs to be tightened to less than three paragraphs (two would be nice) and sections need expansion. --Viriditas 05:50, 5 January 2006 (UTC)

Dubious bits
I don't believe that lomilomi can raise the dead, sorry. Nor am I sure that it was associated with "colonics" -- that seems to be a haole/New Age preoccupation. I don't remember anything like that from my readings in Hawaiian history and culture. I could be wrong -- are there any references to support pre-European use of "colonics"? I also removed bit re "the ancients", which sounds just too woo-woo. If there is a history of massage article, we could link to that. I also fuzzed out question of origin of earliest settlers. Most anthros say Marquesas; Tahiti migration is controversial. Zora 08:01, 5 January 2006 (UTC)

Re Colonics & Commercialization
The foundation of the physical practice of Hawaiian medicine was "cleansing out the system." This always involved either enemas, colonics or purgatives, and often diuretics, emetics and bleeding. This is all documented in the new Bishop Museum book cited at the bottom.

As to raising the dead - I have to admit, I did not find one first-person account of reviving someone with lomilomi massage. Even Mary Kawena Pukui had only second-hand reports and legends. However, I did find several first-person testimonials of people being revived from the dead as a result of enemas!

The commercialization of lomilomi is debatable. For now, I removed this sentence: "However, it is still less commercialized than many other forms of massage." In some places it is terribly commercialized. This needs to be addressed, and I hope someone will do so in the future. Mahalo. Makana Chai 07:33, 9 February 2006 (UTC)


 * Thanks for stopping here and sharing information! Your info re "cleansing" suggests to me that we need, if we don't have it already, an article on Native Hawaiian medicine. I can't take the lead on this, and don't know all that much, but if you wanted to start the article, Makana, I could do some copyediting and wikifying. Zora 08:05, 9 February 2006 (UTC)


 * Yes, an article on Native Hawaiian medicine is much needed. I hope someone else will do it!  Makana Chai 01:01, 10 February 2006 (UTC)


 * It is said that the demi God Maui got his strength when he got an anus, impling that internal cleansing and "super powers" were related.

Added Lua, Removed Commercial Web Site
I added reference to the use of lomilomi with lua, Hawaiian martial art, and removed a commercial site for a practitioner in Germany. Makana Chai 08:13, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

Sorry, I just have notes from a past visit to Big Island. I am sure it was a Bishop Musem book. I have never seen reference to what the mechanics for a colonic would be. I know of the roasted kukui nut and sea water cleanse. Both very efficiant.


 * The mechanics of colonics are in the book, Na Mo'olelo Lomilomi. Makana Chai 22:25, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Updated Migration Info
Due to new archaeological data (see Honolulu Advertiser, 3-10-06) removed reference to early settlers being from Marquesas or Tahiti and just left it at Polynesia. Makana Chai 02:03, 14 March 2006 (UTC)

Maui's anus
From Olelo Noeau, Mary Kawena Pukui: According to ancient legend, man did not have an anus and was not physically strong and well until Maui, the demigod, made the opening for him. Makana Chai 01:54, 27 April 2006 (UTC)

Revision
Someone had gone over the article and rewritten much of it in an inflated, wordy style. I copyedited ruthlessly. There are also too many assertions, and quotes, that aren't referenced. We need to fix that. Zora 16:58, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Spiritual Massage
Although as stated in the text lomilomi is a spiritual practice, it is not accurate to translate the word lomilomi as spiritual massage. See Pukui & Elbert Dictionary. Makana Chai 18:26, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

However, did find a spiritual meaning in a reliable reference and added to the definition. Makana Chai (talk) 08:48, 15 February 2008 (UTC)

Removed "Lomilomi also means to act upon, as the spirit of God acts upon the heart. (Kent)" May be Christian influence. Makana Chai (talk) 08:31, 8 May 2008 (UTC)