Reusi Dat Ton
A Brief Outline © EquiLibrium
‘Reusi’ in the Thai language means hermit, or hermit-sage, a direct reference to the ascetic hermits
(Sk. rishis) living and practicing in the Himalayas around 500BC. Their strict adherence to and practice of meditative disciplines demanded protracted periods of contemplation and detachment from the sensory world, thus bodily functions and movement were restricted to an absolute minimum. Hindu scriptures (the Ramayana in particular) and Buddhist oral tradition describe specific breathing techniques and movements practiced by the rishis to care for the body and enable such self-control over long periods of time in relative immobility.
Shivago Komarpaj (Jivaka Komarabaccha in India) or the ‘Father Doctor’ as he is known in Thailand, was himself a rishi before joining the monastic order led by the Buddha, and is thought to have incorporated the practice of reusi dat ton (hermit self-stretching) into the body of medical knowledge which was slowly integrated/absorbed into Thai traditional medicine (TTM) when Buddhism spread north-northeast from India.
The destruction of the majority of Thai medical texts during the 1787 Burmese invasion left an irrevocable mark on TTM’s history and provenance, but in the early 1800s King Rama III ordered all remaining medical texts and writings to be collected and catalogued, among which were drawings based upon the remaining statues in the Wat Pho courtyard depicting reusi dat ton poses. Each depiction of a pose or exercise is and has been open to interpretation, but the accompanying prose gives guidelines and describes the therapeutic benefits derived from the exercise.
Reusi dat ton has been metaphorically referred to as ‘Thai Yoga’. This is not entirely incorrect, as the influence of yoga and Ayurvedic medicine certainly spread along with Buddhism and was ultimately absorbed into TTM. Once primarily practiced by monks and ascetics, it has with time gone through several permutations, and is now believed to be the basis of Thai dance. Indeed, there are several forms of reusi dat ton practiced in present-day Thailand, ranging from the 18 simple moves endorsed by the government for use by corporate entities to promote health in their employees to a fluid, dance-like sequence, to a vigorous but energizing exercise using long poles. The overall importance of breath and breathing technique have remained focal to the practice of this ancient form.
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