What is lomilomi? Its history, meaning and traditions
Most people who've heard of lomilomi know it as a flowing Hawaiian massage with lots of oil and long forearm strokes. That's accurate as far as it goes...
Most people who've heard of lomilomi know it as a flowing Hawaiian massage with lots of oil and long forearm strokes. That's accurate as far as it goes. Behind it is a much older practice that grew up in Hawaiian homes, nearly disappeared, and was brought back by a small number of Hawaiian teachers. This article explains where it comes from and the ideas that still shape it.
For what happens in a lomilomi session with me, see the [lomilomi page].
A Hawaiian word for massage
In Hawaiian, lomi simply means to massage, rub or knead. Repeating a word is common in Hawaiian, and lomilomi can mean either a specific massage movement (alternate strokes with each arm) or a whole treatment.
You'll also find the word in the kitchen. Lomi salmon is a Hawaiian side dish of salted salmon, tomato and onion, mixed together by hand until it breaks down.
Something families did for each other
In old Hawai'i, lomilomi was mostly something done at home. Parents massaged their children, adults looked after their elders, and the knowledge stayed within the family, passed from one generation to the next.
More skilled practitioners used lomilomi alongside other Hawaiian healing arts. These included lā'au lapa'au, the use of plants as medicine, and ho'oponopono, a way of resolving conflict and restoring relationships. Healing was seen as bringing the whole person back into balance, and a practitioner might work with the body, family relationships and spiritual life at the same time.
Hawai'i wasn't alone in this. Related massage traditions exist across Polynesia, under names such as romiromi and mirimiri.
Kept alive at home
In the 19th century, missionaries and later the government in Hawai'i turned against traditional Hawaiian healing. Practices involving Hawaiian prayer were criminalised, and that law wasn't repealed until 1972. Lomilomi continued, but quietly, in private houses and without being advertised.
That changed in the 1970s, during a wider revival of Hawaiian culture that also brought back the language, hula and traditional ocean sailing and wayfinding. A few Hawaiian practitioners began teaching outside their own families.
The most influential was Aunty Margaret Machado of the Big Island. She learned lomilomi from her grandfather, trained as a nurse, and became one of the first Native Hawaiians licensed as a massage therapist. She taught for decades until her death in 2009. ("Aunty" is a title of respect for a Hawaiian elder.)
Hawaiian healing now has protection in law. Practitioners recognised by councils of Hawaiian elders, organised through the Native Hawaiian health body Papa Ola Lōkahi, are exempt from medical licensing. The elders themselves decide who is a genuine practitioner.
Many lomilomis
The Hawaiian islands were once home to fairly separate communities, and each developed its own ways of working. Some practitioners were gentle, others firm and almost clinical. Some used tools as well as their hands, such as carved sticks (often guava wood), smooth stones, heat and salt.
Most of the lomilomi taught in Europe today comes from two main lines:
- Traditional Big Island style, from Aunty Margaret Machado, which is grounded in prayer and attentive touch.
- Temple style, also called Kahuna bodywork or lomi lomi nui, from Abraham Kawai'i of Kaua'i. It draws on hula and Hawaiian martial arts, and the practitioner moves around the table with long, dance-like strokes.
The two styles are not well defined and plenty of teachers mix the two. Some Hawaiian elders have also said that versions taught abroad have drifted towards New Age ideas and away from Hawaiian ones.
My training was in a traditional style that came from an aunty in Hawai'i which had been passed down through her family.
The ideas behind it
Aloha
Aloha is used as a greeting, but it also means love, compassion and kindness. Aunty Margaret described the difference between lomilomi and other massage as it being "loving touch". In lomilomi, aloha shapes how the practitioner works: unhurried, attentive, and focused on the person and the intention towards them rather than the technique.
Pule (prayer)
Prayer has always been part of traditional Hawaiian healing, based on the belief that healing ultimately comes from a higher power. Many lomilomi practitioners still open and close a session with a prayer. The actual belief system behind the prayer is not as important as the intention behind it. Aunty Margaret's prayers were Christian, which shows how the practice has adapted over time.
Today some practitioners pray aloud, some silently, and some not at all.
Hā (breath)
Hā means breath, and in Hawaiian thought breath is closely tied to life itself. You can see this in the honi, a traditional greeting where two people press their noses together and breathe in.
During a lomilomi session, the practitioner's own breathing sets the pace. Slow, even breaths help keep the strokes slow and even too, which is a large part of why lomilomi feels so calm to receive.
Lomilomi today
A lomilomi session in a London treatment room is a small part of a much bigger tradition. The herbal remedies, family setting and healing rituals mostly aren't there. What carries over is the flowing, whole-body touch and the loving care behind it.
To find out what a lomilomi session with me involves, from what to wear to how the draping works, see the lomilomi page.