The ancient Egyptians invented an advanced method of curing diseases without the need for drugs. This method, reflexology, was presented by practitioner and academic Saad Al-Masry at a seminar at the Al-Sawy Culture Wheel in Cairo recently, where he defined it as “the science of reflection — that is, that both the disease and its cure exist in the same human body, as our ancestors believed.” Reflexology is the application of appropriate pressures to specific points and areas on the feet, hands, or ears of the body, parts believed to correspond to different organs and systems. By pressing these parts in a certain way it is possible to cure the corresponding organs and improve the person's general health, practitioners believe. “It is because a king was a holy that the priests were forbidden to touch him, so the priest had to look at the hands and the feet of the king to see what ailed him. It was from this technique that the ancient Egyptians developed reflexology,” Al-Masry said. “The foot is an x-ray of the body,” he continued. “It is possible to do a check-up on anyone by looking at his feet. The first people to use reflexology were the ancient Egyptians during the reign of King Zoser. It was named ‘royal medicine' and it was the only form of medicine that existed at the time. The Egyptians believed that their pharaoh should be strong and healthy as they thought he was their god and this is how a god should be.” According to Al-Masry, charts have been found in the Saqqara Pyramid in Giza that show parts of the hands and feet that correspond to or reflect the organs of the human body. The big toe reflects the state of the brain, for example, while the other toes reflect the state of the eyes, the ears, the nasal cavities and the teeth. The internal part of the big toe reflects the neck vertebrae. The inner side of the feet on the side of the big toe reflects the spinal cord and takes the shape of the person's back. The middle of the leg corresponds to internal organs like the stomach, the heart (if it is the left foot), and the pancreas. The lower part of the leg reflects the state of the urinary system and the state of the kidneys. “In the charts the body is split into two halves and each foot reflects its side of the body and is responsible for it,” Al-Masry said. “Any sort of malformation or abnormalities in the heels, for example, or any part of the foot, means a problem in the well-being of the organ that corresponds to it. For example, if the skin on the heel of a foot is thick, this means that the person has a high percentage of uric acid in his body.” Millions of people in Asia and in European countries like Denmark now use reflexology to complement other medical treatments for conditions such as anxiety, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular issues, diabetes, headaches, and kidney problems. Research has shown that reflexology can reduce anxiety, pain, stress, and depression and can increase relaxation and sleep. Al-Masry, who studied reflexology and Pharaonic Medicine in the United States, said that “the length of the human nerves is around 50,000 km, and there are 1,600 nerve spots in the human hand alone, showing just how complicated the system is. The ancient Egyptians used to cure themselves with reflexology, commonly called manual therapy, as well as by giving the patient certain foods which helped in the healing process. They also figured out the importance of the sun in providing the human body with Vitamin D, which can help with joint problems.” “The ancient Egyptians were advanced in medical sciences in general, and they were the first people in history to conduct operations. They figured out how to heal bone fractures as well as how to find out the sex of a foetus using wheat grains. The brain in general is a ‘human pharmacy' that needs no chemicals from outside the body to heal as every type of chemical is already there. What reflexology does is it tries to use these existing chemicals for curing illnesses in the body,” Al-Masry said. “It is also very important that teachers should not hit children on the hands at school, as this could lead to problems in the corresponding organs.” Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly, Al-Masry gave some tips for curing diseases using reflexology and done by using the bare hands. By pressing the middle section of the little finger on the left hand, for example, you can cure the problem of children bedwetting as this gesture strengthens the bladder muscle. Depression, insomnia, and fear can be treated by clasping the hands together so that they look like they are praying but with the fingers of one hand closing on the other. This makes the brain form a hormone responsible for courage. To end a feeling of hunger, if you are on a diet, for example, massage the middle and top of your ear and you will lose your appetite. If a child does not have an appetite for food, a mother should use her two fingers to press each side of the bone just above the back of his heel and this will give him an appetite for food. If you want to quit smoking, massage the top of your ear and then you will not feel like doing it again. To cure addiction, press the middle of the nose of a patient for a few minutes and that will make his body stop asking for the substance he is addicted to. To cure constipation, use your thumb to massage the middle of your left hand while trying to collect the sand-like balls under the skin and push them to the space between your thumb and index finger. To cure anxiety, massage the soft skin between your thumb and index finger. To cure sinusitis, massage the two sides at the bottom of the nose with your index finger while inhaling and exhaling from the mouth. This will clear your nose and will also decrease the probability of having wrinkles in the future. To cure a headache, press the top of your thumb while taking a deep breath and exhaling from the mouth three times for about five to 10 minutes. To cure a headache behind the eyes, massage your forehead and the sides of your head in circular movements while taking a deep breath and exhaling from the mouth. The technique of breathing is used to get rid of pain because the brain functions with oxygen and pain is felt whenever there is a shortage of it. To cure hypertension, diabetes, or fainting, press the middle of your left hand using your thumb and the rest of your hand and take a deep breath while exhaling from the mouth for five to 10 minutes. This will regulate the blood pressure, strengthen the heart muscle, and regulate the levels of sugar in the blood. To get rid of impurities or skin problems, put a quarter of a spoonful of yeast and a spoonful of honey in a cup of milk and mix it. To help you relax, sit on your knees so that your two feet are also bent, a posture which makes the brain excrete natural cortisone. To get rid of breathing problems like asthma, flu, and sinusitis, start by using your thumb and index finger to massage your finger knuckles from the sides (from the top to the bottom and vice versa) and then from the front and back starting with your left middle finger. Do this three times a week and you will have no asthma problems.
