For The Love Of Reiki

Recently someone close to me told me that he does not believe in Reiki.  I was not at all surprised by the opinion or the need to share it.  It’s a confession I hear from time to time, so I answered in some form of my automatic typical response; “Okay, thanks for letting me know.”  Shortly after, we moved on with the conversation, as is usually the case.  I’ve heard many people doubt my work, some even in the same breath as praising the tangible benefits that it had for them.  I’ve also had many people praise my work, and some who started out skeptical and ended up scheduling regular sessions after a healing.  And it is all okay with me.  We are all on our own journey.   My journey is much more about healing and transforming than converting.   

Life is always balancing and later that same week I had a stranger tell me how interested she is in Reiki.  This person lit up with excitement when she heard that I was a practitioner and asked me to explain what Reiki is.  A few days later, someone I had known for years asked me the same question.  Both people received my standard, equally automatic reply “It’s an ancient Japanese technique designed to work with the recipient’s energy body to allow them to get into a state of relaxation that will permit the body to naturally heal itself.” (Insert crickets here)

After these encounters, I realized that this amazing gift that I have been blessed enough to discover, study, and share is getting as much affection and enthusiasm from me as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Maybe less because I’m a big peanut butter fan!  And while I fancy myself a teacher, and am well known as a talker, I shy away from sharing information about something that I would easily list in my top 5 greatest joys.  I mean, what’s up with that?! So, for the love of Reiki and all who are curious, I’ll give a bit more detail here.

Reiki (pronounced Ray Key) was discovered by Japanese Dr. Mikao Usui in the early 1920s.  Made up of two Japanese characters or words, Reiki translates to universal or vital (Rei) life force or energy (ki).  While some people will refer to it as “love energy” or “God energy”, this is literally the energy that flows through all living things.  The practitioner (that’s me) acts as a channel of Reiki energy.  I offer Reiki to my clients by gently laying hands on them and allowing Reiki to flow through me (the practitioner) to work for their highest healing and greatest good (my intention).  Recipients remain fully clothed (less shoes and maybe belt or constricting items) and typically experience a sense of deep relaxation.  Often, I find my clients fall asleep during sessions.  It is a simple form of intuitive energy healing.

Okay, hippy girl, how does it work?  Well, how does your radio work?  Your television?  Light and vibration.  We have these five senses that we rely on constantly, right?  Take vision.  All light is made of electromagnetic waves vibrating at different frequencies.  (So is matter, for that matter… See what I did there?  Matter/matter… Sigh… anyway…).  The spectrum of light that people see is red to violet.  Thanks to physics, we know that there is also infinite light beyond that spectrum; infrared and ultraviolet.  We cannot see these, but we do use them for practical purposes such as heating food, taking pictures, and changing channels on a television.  If we are willing to accept that there is light and vibration that we cannot see, meaning accept the laws of physics, then why so skeptical to accept that they may work for a higher purpose than to heat up our leftovers?

Want proof?  “Proven” is for sales and pudding and neither have ever really been my thing.  Scientific research is though and there have been several empirical studies that show that Reiki is effective for pain reduction, anxiety and depression relief, and overall physical, spiritual and emotional well being for people of all ages.  On its own or complementary to medical treatment, Reiki just rocks!  Technical term there. 

However, as stated earlier, I’m into transformation not conversion, so if Reiki isn’t your thing, so be it.  Massages aren’t for people with haphephobia, and bacon cheeseburgers aren’t for vegetarians.  For your own sake though, don’t just dismiss it or anything else based on lack of knowledge, fear, or someone else’s opinion.  Be it Reiki, meditation, juicing, juggling, gratitude journal or a new exercise routine be open to stepping into something new or at least learning more about it. Any healthy, positive practice that serves you will raise your vibration which serves us all. I can tell you from experience, even the things which we mock the most have the potential to become the things that we cherish if we’re willing to open our hearts and our minds. And when you do find something new that you love, don’t be too shy to share it. Stand on your soapbox of discovery and let that love light shine!