We feel safe in wagering that most of you reading this right now have probably never heard of a Thai fire massage before. That’s because it is only performed in Thailand and in only one region of Thailand at that. If you clicked this link thinking, ‘What kind of massage involves fire?’ – This one does!
It involves a giant pot of boiling oil, lapping flames of fire, and human feet! Intrigued yet? Just wait – we’re going to blow your mind when we tell you all about this unbelievable massage technique in this ultimate guide to the Thai fire massage!
What Is Thai Fire Massage?
Picture this: You are lying face down on a stone slab in the same way you would for any back massage. Beside you, close enough to hear but not see is a bubbling vat of oil, and beside that is a grill with flames popping and cracking and leaping out of it. Your masseuse dips their foot in the oil and then into the flames before pressing their heated foot into your flesh. That is a Thai fire massage or Yam Khang as it is known in Thailand.
Doesn’t sound very relaxing, does it? Well for many, it isn’t. Think of Thai fire massage as a means to get an adrenaline rush, like jumping out of a plane or swimming with sharks. Granted some people do feel relaxed after a Thai fire massage (they say). It is also believed to have healing powers because of the blazing hot iron that sits inside of the flames.
Somehow it transfers healing properties from the minerals in the iron, through the foot, to the body. Therapeutic herbs are mixed into the oil which is also supposed to have healing powers. So why don’t the masseuses’ feet burn to a crisp in this process? Ironically it’s the oils that are believed to keep the flames from burning the flesh.
Whatever it is, the masseuse doesn’t have scorched up feet and the fire doesn’t seem to hurt them. As you can imagine, not many people are skilled at this technique. Plus it is only performed in small villages in northern Thailand. Maybe it’s heredity; maybe it’s just an immunity built up over years and years of practice. Who knows, but we certainly wouldn’t recommend trying this massage technique at home!
After learning all about the Thai fire massage, are you game? At the very least, this is a cool bucket list item that just might teach you something about yourself. Or just go and watch and live vicariously through the brave sots willing to let someone stick their flaming foot on their baHistory of Thai Fire Massage
There’s very little info about the history of Thai fire massage, largely because it is so ancient and the area of Chiang Mai where it is practiced has remained quite isolated for thousands of years. The traditions and cultural affections like this extraordinary massage technique have basically been passed down over the years without much notice from the outside world until recently.
Still, what we do know is that it follows in the same line of most of the well known types of Thai massages which were brought to Asia from India; carried across borders by Buddhists. In northern Thailand the indigenous peoples of the area have kept those traditions intact for centuries, since many families can trace their roots in that particular location back to ancient times.
The Village of Baan Rai Kong Khing
You can still partake in many of the ancient traditions of the Lanna people that go back thousands of years in the small, incredibly authentically preserved village of Baan Rai Kong Khing. Quite frankly, you will probably have to travel there if you ever want to experience the Thai fire massage for yourself.
Located in the southwestern end of Chiang Mai, many outsiders and tourists have stumbled upon this relic of the past while visiting the more popular city of Chiang Mai. For the last few decades, there have been efforts to maintain these traditions and to share them with visitors to the area. For this, Baan Rai Kong Khing is a virtual gold mine of traditional Thai medicine and massage!
It’s a very interesting place. You won’t find commercial skin care products there and you don’t need them. Every household in the village has its own secret herbal recipes for everything you need. Families make their own soaps, their own face washes, their own medicines that were created ages ago but are still used to this day.
Tourists get to sample all of it too. Whatever is leftover becomes a part of local markets where you can buy some of those traditional homemade creams and potions. Even if you don’t have the guts or desire to try the Thai fire massage, it is definitely something you want to see.
When you visit Baan Rai Kong Khing, you will see this massage technique performed before an audience. The masseuse is part of the act, many times dancing to the music playing in the background and applying their fiery feet to your body in dramatic movements to entertain the crowds.
Benefits of Thai Fire Massage
Considering just how crazy this thing sounds, you have to wonder is there any benefit that you get from a flaming foot massaging your back as opposed to the more relaxing Thai herbal compress ball massage for example? Both use aromatherapy as a part of the healing process. Both techniques use heat and both use pressure. It’s just that one is much scarier than the other!
The answer is you get a lot of the same benefits. The use of oil and herbal aromas are meant to relax you mentally and emotionally as well as to infuse botanical goodness into your skin. The heat generated from the foot and applied to your body is supposed to relax the tension in your muscles.
Like many Thai massage therapies, Thai fire massage follows Sen pathways to rid you of bad energy and release good energy. But there is something that the fired coals do that these other techniques don’t. At the end of the massage, you are going to be covered in little bits of coal.
Those black dots are believed to be the muck and gunk blocking your Sen paths coming out from deep inside of you. The masseuse is careful to wipe them away before you can touch them. If you touch them, it is believed that the bad energy will enter right back into you through the dark coal bits.
Where to Get a Thai Fire Massage
Believe it or not, even in Thailand finding a place to get a Thai fire massage is a challenge. These types of massages are not supposed to be done by just anyone. It is considered a sacred treatment, not to be bungled by amateurs who don’t understand the spirituality of the process. Your masseuse is not only supposed to be able to perform the technique but they are supposed to be kind of holy…really good high quality spiritual people.
So there are no Thai fire massage schools generally speaking. However, there are places to learn and experience yam khang outside of Baan Rai Kong Khing. There are places in the city of Chiang Mai where authentic Thai fire massages are learned and given – but only on occasion.
Thai masseurs in training often get to see or even experience Thai fire massages for themselves as part of their school curriculum. We found several schools in and around Chiang Mai where you can either observe or take part in a traditional Yam Khang session. Some allow visitors to check it out but most are there just for the students’ education and not necessarily so that they can go out and practice it.
- In Chiang Mai at the Baan Tasala Thai Massage Training Center, you can learn all about many different Thai massage therapies including the Thai fire massage as well as Swedish massage!
- In the Hang Dong province of Chiang Mai is the Hang Dong Thai Massage School where the curriculum is focused on not just learning Thai massage therapies including Yam Khang but more importantly, it focuses on teaching traditional Lanna customs.
- Only established 15 years ago, the Intellectual Development Institute Thai Massage is one of the newest schools offering training in Thai fire massage in addition to training to be a pharmacist or a medical practitioner.
- SMH or School of Massage for Health teaches you every single type of Thai massage there is. From traditional luk pra kob to Thai fire massage you will learn the technique and then receive the different massages from your teacher.
- One school we found outside of Chiang Mai is located in northeastern Thailand in the province of Udon Thani. There you’ll find the Udon Thani Thai Traditional Massage and Health School where you learn every different type of massage technique Thailand has to offer!
