More on Reiki

[percival]

brightfame mentioned in her reply to my post that many Reiki masters seem unfocussed and unable to handle the energy properly. Similarly, apel mentioned that some people who know magick stay away from it.

I can see why that is. Reiki - if the theory behind it is true - opens a strong connection to the Divine (mainly as conceived of by humanists and persons open to New Age ideas, i.e. not a personal God, but a universal force of love).

This connection has to be looked after (note to self: omg what have I let myself in for???) with care. A blocked channel is far less effective than a clear channel, so to speak.

This is where the self-healing rituals come in that loupnoir was interested in. Basically, every day, I am supposed to do the following:
- still myself
- seek contact with the energy
- give thanks for being used as a channel and ask it to work for the highest and greatest good of all concerned
- visualise the energy streaming through me
- hold my hands close to my crown, in front of my face, throat, heart, solar plexus, kidneys, genitals, knees and feet. These places are energy centres used in e.g. Indian medicine. Each position is held for two to three minutes, and it is thought that positive energy streams into your body while you are doing it.

After you're finished, you give thanks.

If nothing else, it is a highly calming exercise, where you send all parts of your body positive, loving, healing thoughts. As such, it is already highly effective.

Reiki is taught in three levels: Self-Healing, Practitioner, and Master (I-III). Some people teach all three levels in one go. However, this does not take into account the personal development work that needs to happen inbetween levels. Sources that link Reiki with psychology and New Age psychotherapy and that emphasise the spiritual aspect of the discipline insist that a student needs at least 3-6 months between I and II, and ideally a year or more between II and III, together with an apprenticeship.

What I'm writing here reflects my own experience and my teacher's words as well as the books I have consulted on the subject so far.

Comments

Re: Force

[perceval.livejournal.com]

It might well be the personal God who connects with you - now how on earth could I think that a personal, deep connection with God could be sacrilegious, I wonder?

You raise a good point about being too busy praying to listen to God. After I had received the attunement (this is not meant to be blasphemous), a thought came into my head "Now I have got you". The interpretation I had was that God was going to use the space I was going to make for Reiki to connect with me.

Incidentally, my favourite prayer is "Thy will be done", and Reiki is very much about channelling Love for the highest and greatest good of all concerned - without directing it yourself anywhere in any way.

Does that make sense to you?

Incidentally, my Reiki teacher is a Christian.

make's sense

[seraphimsigrist.livejournal.com]

of course it makes sense, and also in the
end it is maybe not nercessary for us both
to pray and to understand prayer is it?
+S.

Re: make's sense

[brightfame.livejournal.com]

Seraphim, thank you for expressing with clarity what I was struggling to say. Perceval, I didn't mean they didn't know how to handle the energy. The lack of focus to which I was referring is in their not understanding what, or indeed, who they are dealing with and acting as if they did.

I believe that prayer ... i.e. communication with God, is partly effort on our part, but mainly a gift and grace on the part of the divine (in the sense that we have to show that we are willing, but the actual communication and its effects, tangible or non-tangible, are from God). Perfecting my love and willingness to God is what I strive for, understanding communication with God is something I don't claim to do. It bothered me that the reiki masters seemed to be trying to ritualise it and depersonalise the divine, almost creating another set of religious rules, as if they did indeed understand it. Like seraphim, I wonder if understanding it is necessary, or even possible with human capacity.

Re: make's sense

[perceval.livejournal.com]

Yes, but if you do not understand who you are dealing with, then how can you handle the energy constructively? That is my gripe with Reiki without personal/spiritual development.

I agree with you that there is a huge temptation to self-aggrandize instead of being just a humble channel, and it might well be a trap that masters fall into all too easily.

Also, I am suspicious of any exclusivity claims. If God indeed means us to channel healing energy, then God will have given us other ways than Reiki, as well.

And I deeply, deeply distrust claims such as "Reiki is The Fastest Path To Enlightenment (TM)".

Understanding what happens is impossible, and it is also impossible to direct the energy other than channelling it through specific entry points. You just have to trust that what is being channelled flows for the greatest and highest good of all persons concerned.