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Cupping -The Early History
The earliest use of cupping that is recorded is from the famous Taoist alchemist and herbalist, Ge Hong (281341 A.D.). The method was described in his book A Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies, in which the cups were actually animal horns, used for draining pustules. As a result of using horns, cupping has been known as jiaofa, or the horn technique. In a Tang Dynasty book, Necessities of a Frontier Official, cupping was prescribed for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis (or a similar disorder). More recently, Zhao Xuemin, during the Qing Dynasty, wrote Supplement to Outline of Materia Medica, including an entire chapter on fire jar qi (huoquan qi). In it, he emphasized the value of this treatment, using cups made of bamboo or pottery, in alleviating headache of wind-cold type, bi syndrome of wind origin, dizziness, and abdominal pain. The cups could be placed over acupuncture needles for these treatments. One of the traditional indications for cupping is dispelling cold in the channels. This indication is partly the result of applying hot cups. For example, bamboo cups would be boiled in an herbal decoction just prior to applying to the skin (this is one type of shuiguanfa, or liquid cupping, so-called because a liquid is incorporated into the treatment). Both liquid cupping and cupping over an acupuncture needle are favored for treatment of arthralgia. Cupping also is thought to dispel cold by virtue of its ability to release external pathogenic factors, including invasion of wind, damp, and cold.
Cupping Treatment Among Malays
In Malay this practice is known as 'BEKAM' and in Arabic the called 'AL-HIJAMAH' while in China 'gua-sha'. In Arabic this method of therapy was popularised by our propet Muhammad S.A.W ( 570-635 )A.D as state in many Hadith.
The Saying of Prophet Muhammad saw
Rasullullah saw said," Jibrail alaisalam repeatedly emphasised upon me to resort to cupping to the extent that I feared that cupping will be made compulsary." - Jamul' Warsaii p.179.
Rasulullah saw praised a person who performs cupping, saying it removes blood, lightens the back and sharpens the eyesight (Jamul Warsaai p. 179. The above quoted al-Hadith are clear that cupping was practised by rasullulah saw himself and strongly recommended by him.
In South East Asia Archipelago, the technique know as 'BEKAM'. It is still practiced by Malays and Javanese. Bull horn, Bammboo are among the basic tools.
Cupping Therapy is still practiced nowadays
Cupping developed over time from the original use of hollowed animal horns to drain toxins out of snakebites and skin lesions. Horns evolved into bamboo cups, which were eventually replaced by glass. Therapeutic applications evolved with the refinement of the cup itself, and with the cultures that employed cupping as a health care technique. The true origin of cupping therapy remains in obscurity.
The Chinese expanded the utilization to include use in surgery to divert blood flow from the surgery site. Cupping eventually developed into a separate therapy, with healers treating a variety of conditions. Early written records date from 28 AD, and a traditional Chinese saying indicates "acupuncture and cupping, more than half the ills cured". Chinese medicine observes that cupping dispels stagnation of Blood and Chi, along with external pathogenic factors that invade a weakened constitution. A depleted constitution is often a result of depleted "Jing Chi", or original essence. This will often progress to a weakened "Wei Chi", or defense (immune system).
The Egyptians produced a text on ancient medicine that discussed the use of cupping for conditions such as fever, pain, vertigo, menstruation imbalances, weakened appetite and accelerating the "healing crisis" of disease. From the Egyptians, cupping was introduced to the Greeks and eventually spread to ancient cultures in many countries of Europe and even the Americas. In recent history, European and American doctors widely used cupping in practice into the late 1800's. Research papers were written in the 19th century, and a collaborative effort between the former Soviet Union and China confirmed the clinical efficacy of cupping therapy. It became an official therapy to be found in all Chinese hospitals. Breast cupping became common for inflamed breasts and lactation dysfunctions. The familiar breast pump emerged from this. The 20th century brought about a decline in interest as technology and machines came into use. New cupping sets were introduced using pumps to create the vacuum, and these sets were carried by medical supply companies well into the 1940's.
Cupping -The Development
During the 20th century, new glass cups were developed. Common drinking glasses have been used for this purpose, but thick glass cupping devices have also been produced and are preferred. The introduction of glass cups helped greatly, since the pottery cups broke very easily and the bamboo cups would deteriorate with repeated heating. Glass cups were easier to make than the brass or iron cups that were sometimes used as sturdy substitutes for the others; further, one could see the skin within the cup and evaluate the degree of response.
The glass cups are depressurized by providing some fire in the cup to heat up the air within just prior to placement. For example, hold a cotton ball dipped in alcohol with a pincer, ignite it, hold it in the cup, then rapidly apply to the skin; this is called shanhuofa . Sometimes, a small amount alcohol is put in the cup and lit; this method is called dijiufa (alcohol-fire cupping).
At the end of the 20th century, another method of suction was developed in which a valve was constructed at the top of the jar and a small hand-operated pump is attached so that the practitioner could suction out air without relying on fire (thus avoiding some hazards and having greater control over the amount of suction). Both glass and plastic cups were developed, though the plastic ones are not very well suited to moving along the skin once in place, as the edges are not entirely smooth and the strength of the cups is limited. The modern name for cupping is baguanfa (suction cup therapy).
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