Hello all! Today you will be learning about a special traditional Chinese medicine practice called Guasha “刮痧”. Afterwards, I will be giving you a quick movie review of, “The Guasha Treament”.
Guasha (typically used in South East Asia) is a traditional Chinese medical treatment where the skin is scraped which further produces bruising. It involves repeated pressured strokes over greased skin a smooth edge. Guasha has been used for centuries in Asia, in Asian immigrant communities and by acupuncturists and practitioners of traditional East Asian medicine worldwide. With the expansion of traditional East Asian medicine, Guasha has been used over far-reaching geographic areas and by millions of people. Guasha is valuable in the treatment of pain and for functional problems with impaired movement, the prevention and treatment of contagious illness, respiratory and digestive problems, and many long-lasting disorders.
In the past, the western society did not know anything about Guasha. There were many cultural misunderstandings brought about over this controversy. Many individuals believed that Guasha was a form of child abuse in the Chinese Culture. However, now many western countries progressively are beginning to accept it.
The reason I am talking about Guasha today is because over the weekend I watched the film The Guasha Treatment—a story about cultural conflicts experienced by a Chinese family in the USA regarding Guasha medical practices. This movie happens to be one of my favorites, in that, I learned both about the different Chinese medicine practices and the cultural differences between America and China. I would most certainly recommend this movie to anyone who is studying Chinese Language and Culture or even for anyone who is ready to watch a movie with a great storyline.
Story Plot: Zhu Xu comes from China to visit his sons (Datong) family. While in the United States, he gives his grandson, Dennis, a treatment of Gua Sha to treat a minor fever .The authorities, nevertheless, mistake the harmless traditional Chinese medical treatment for child abuse because of the marks left on Dennis’ back. The family goes through torture when the child is taken away by the child protection agency.
Will Dennis and his family ever reunite again? If you watch the movie you will find out! Comment below your prediction of how this movie will end.
Until next time, bye for now!
刮痧，针灸在中国都是沿习了数千年的传统，老祖宗的智慧能延续到现在实属不易。
I was introduced to 刮痧 when I was 4 or 5. My grandmother would frequently use this ancient medical technique on me when I was sick. The procedure doesn’t hurt at all, but leaves a really unpleasant bruises for the next few days. To be honest, it actually feels quite relaxing. It’s quite amazing how people in ancient China were able to invent such unique and efficient treatment methods. Great article Keanna, 加油!
Oh wow, I remember watching this movie in Chinese 3, and finding this movie really interesting because of how easily it is to misunderstand the actions of some people due to cultural misunderstandings. Although guasha is definitely used for medicine, I still find it rather strange how bruising the skin (an act associated with harm) leads to positive results within the body. As displayed in the movie, it is rather difficult to blame the officials for taken away the child from their parents, as the bruise marks from the guasha definitely looks like a result of abuse. I found this article really informative, keep up the good work!