Mind, body and soul

Kimde Marak

Life is stressful. No matter how much we try to eat healthy, live healthy or feel healthy, the hustle and bustle around us still manage to overwhelm even the most patient amongst us. Health magazines will give numerous ways to pick the right food to maintain the right amount of calorie intake or the various exercise methods for a healthy life; but there are times when all the exercise and eating right becomes such a chore.

Once in a while all we want are others to do the hard work for us. In such situations, a massage is certainly the best way to rejuvenate. Not only is the mood upliftment instant, the body also needs a bit of pampering now and then.

Massage parlours are usually present in most places. If your budget is an expansive one, there are numerous spas that will help you spend that money in a healthy way. But for the more budget conscious customer there are a number of reliable ones to choose from.

Khem massage parlours have been around for a long time and most are family occupations where the technique has been handed down from generation to generation. Alka Kharsati herself learnt it from her grandmother.

The Khem massage is different from other massages in that it is very gentle where the nerves are the target. Oil made from various local ingredients such as herbs and certain roots are also used.

Ayurveda is one of the oldest traditional medicines from the country and its basic principle is that the body is governed by the Vata, Pita and Kapha. An imbalance of these causes the various ailments. Thus an ayurvedic treatment helps restore this balance.

Ayurvedic massages are gaining a lot of popularity in the northeast but this has led to the establishments of a number of quack institutes in the region due to the ignorance of the people on the authentic stuff; so before you go to any place that claims to offer such a massage do ask the right questions from those in charge of the centre. If they fail to give suitable answers, chances are that they will be people trying to make a quick buck by providing a not so authentic ayurvedic massage for a highly exorbitant price.

A proper ayurvedic massage lasts for over a week with trained therapists applying oil in a very rhythmic manner. Each sitting can last over 45 minutes. A proper massages has the ability to cure a variety of ailments like arthritis, paralysis, high blood pressure, certain kinds of skin diseases, headaches, even obesity etc.

But clearly the most popular massages are those given by parlours where we cut our hair. Their head and shoulder massages which last for less than 5 minutes are at times enough to make our immediate troubles disappear. But please do avoid the rather harsh ones that the barbers give men after their haircut. People have been known to black out when the neck cracking massage is given.