Moxas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A traditional form of heat therapy involving the burning of dried mugwort on acupuncture points
2. A practice in alternative medicine where a stick of herb is ignited to release warmth for healing purposes
3. A technique used in complementary therapy to stimulate acupuncture locations by applying direct or indirect heat from an ignited herbal substance

Etymology: "Moxas" is the plural of "moxa," and the singular comes from Japanese 艾 (mogusa), meaning "mugwort," the plant whose dried leaves are burned on or near the skin in this heat therapy. The Japanese pronunciation dropped the u, which weakened the initial consonant and led to the "moxa" form English speakers now use. The word reached Europe through an unlikely figure. Hermann Buschoff, a Dutch minister in Batavia (now Jakarta), wrote the first book on the remedy in 1674, introducing the practice and its name to Western readers. Buschoff's account made the Japanese treatment known in Europe, and the borrowed term followed it into print.