Shana Lacs Spa

A modern look at Hilot Massage

Accreditation and licensing is a welcome development in the history of Filipino traditional hilot massage. But there were dark times when hilot was labeled as quackery, pseudo-science, and massage was passed off as immoral. The advent of commercialized sex in the 1970s gave a bad name to the legitimate art of therapeutic massage, and the tarnished image of this ancient healing art is not yet totally well.

The message that needs to be understood by the general public is this: Bona fide spas are not prostitution dens. Massage therapists are not prostitutes. They are certified and licensed workers whose gifts and training are officially recognized. Therapeutic massage is a clean and decent health care occupation.

So there! There are behavioral and legal boundaries to make sure that the baby of wellness is not thrown out with the bathwater of commercial sex. What should be downsized and eradicated is, of course, sexual harassment and exploitation. Only then can the image of massage and Filipino hilot be itself healed.

Wellness Tourism

The Department of Tourism is on the right track in tying up with the DOH to promote the Philippines as a center of wellness and “medical tourism”. The problem is the machinery is not yet that well-oiled. The stakeholders are nagkakahiyaan pa about who should take the lead in the critical areas of the wellness industry. Key areas with yet insufficient results are:

1. the reconciliation of western and alternative approaches,
2. the standardization of methods and modalities of traditional and alternative health care or “TAHC”;
3. the accreditation of TAHC practitioners; and
4. the training of new TAHC practitioners.

The longer the “pioneering” phase is stretched, the bleaker are our chances of realizing what we have been equipped to become.

Countries which are known for spa and wellness pride themselves for having just one or two of the following wellness assets: mineral waters, thermal springs, therapeutic mud, medicinal herbs, seaweed, aromatherapy oils, scenic and biodiverse environs. Lo and behold, the Philippines is blessed with all of the above and what’s more, Filipinos themselves are essentially kind and hospitable!

Despite the slowness, foreigners have already begun appreciating the Filipino healing arts, even more than Filipinos themselves. Why not begin to appreciate the beauty of the Philippines? Why not protect the good things of our native heritage? Why not try Filipino hilot massage? Yes, why not?

Here's what author Stephen Gallup posted on the internet: “The Filipino healers have been ridiculed by many Western doctors. They attempt no rebuttal to the charges. They did not seek the gift and responsibility that has been laid upon them, nor do they explain it. But anyone who is dissatisfied with Western medicine can take comfort in knowing that this alternative is available. If nothing else, it provides an excuse to go catch a glimpse of a very beautiful corner of the world.”

We should not fail to appreciate the giftedness of our land and our people for traditional and alternative health care. Make no mistake about it. The Philippines has a rightful claim to the title of global wellness hub, over and above Europe, the Americas, and even our Asian neighbors. We just have to begin appreciating what God has given us – for our benefit and for others.