Abhyanga: the traditional practice of self-massage with oil

Abhyanga is the practice of massaging the body with oil, traditionally before bathing. In the Ayurvedic literature it is listed under dinacharya — the daily routine — alongside things like cleaning the teeth. That placement tells you how it was regarded: not as an occasional indulgence but as an ordinary part of looking after yourself, done most days, by yourself, at home.

The word is often translated as oil massage, though the sense is closer to anointing. In practice it is unhurried, warm, and — this is the part most modern descriptions miss — usually done alone rather than received from someone else.

When to do it

Traditionally in the morning, before bathing. The oil goes on, it is given time to settle, and then you bathe — which removes the excess and leaves the skin soft rather than slippery.

If you have a daily practice, the usual order is asana first, then abhyanga, then bathe. Oiling before movement makes for a slippery mat and a distracted practice. In the evening, a shorter version focused on the feet and scalp is common and is generally found settling before sleep.

How it is done

1. Warm the oil gently. Standing the bottle in a cup of hot water for a few minutes is enough — do not heat it directly or in a microwave.
2. Work somewhere you do not mind oil reaching. Old clothes, an old towel underfoot.
3. Start at the scalp and head if you are including them, then the face and ears, then work downward.
4. Use long strokes along the long bones — up and down the arms, up and down the legs.
5. Use circular strokes at the joints — shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles.
6. On the abdomen, move clockwise. On the chest, work in gentle circles outward.
7. Give the feet more time than feels necessary. The soles are traditionally given particular attention, and it is the part most people rush.
8. Let the oil rest on the skin for ten to twenty minutes. Sit, read, let it be absorbed.
9. Bathe with warm water. Use soap sparingly, or the point of the exercise is lost.

How much oil, and how long

Less than you think. Enough to move your hand over the skin without dragging — the skin should look sheened rather than wet. Somewhere around fifteen to twenty-five millilitres for a full body is typical, which means a 50 ml bottle covers two to three full sessions, or considerably more if you are doing feet and scalp only.

For time: fifteen to twenty minutes is a full practice. Five minutes on the feet and scalp is a real practice too, and it is the one that survives a working week. As with sadhana, the version you actually do beats the version you admire.

The five-minute version

If a full abhyanga is not going to happen on a Tuesday, this is what to do instead:

• Soles of the feet, thoroughly, two or three minutes.
• Scalp, working the oil in with the fingertips, one or two minutes.
• Behind the ears and the back of the neck, briefly.
• In the evening this can be done without bathing afterwards — wear old socks and go to bed.

Choosing an oil

Traditionally sesame is the base most often named, with variations by season, region and constitution. Herbal preparations infuse plant material into that base over a long, slow process, and the character of the finished oil comes as much from the preparation as from the list of ingredients.

What is worth looking for is straightforward: a base you are happy putting on your skin daily, an actual preparation method rather than a fragrance added to a carrier, and no added preservatives if you would rather not have them. What is not worth much is the length of the ingredient list on its own.

When not to

Traditional practice is fairly clear about when abhyanga is set aside, and modern common sense adds to it:

• On broken, irritated or infected skin, or over a rash of unknown cause.
• Immediately after eating. Leave a couple of hours.
• When you have a fever or are acutely unwell.
• During pregnancy, without first speaking to your doctor — and in any case avoiding the abdomen.
• If you have a known allergy to any component of the oil. Patch test on the inner forearm and wait twenty-four hours before a full application.

Why it belongs in a daily routine

The reason abhyanga sits in dinacharya rather than in a list of treatments is that its value is cumulative and unremarkable. It is fifteen minutes in which nothing is required of you, your attention is on your own body, and you are not looking at a screen. In a week that contains very little of that, it turns out to be worth more than its description suggests.