Reiki for the Skeptical Mind
I’m all about a person’s energy, balancing chakras, consulting my tarots before major decisions…you know …THAT type. Luckily I live with a pessimistic skeptic who by default keeps me grounded at all times. So when I happily announced I would be taking a specialized course to be become a certified Reiki practitioner I was met with a quizzical stare and an eye roll regarding “how much did the meditation gurus sucker you for this time?” I felt the need to explain and defend Reiki as I was and still am very adamant that its practice is legit and so for those who are intrigued or those who don’t buy it, here’s a crash course.
I won’t bore you with the details behind its history but in a nutshell, Reiki is a Japanese modality of healing through energy. No, I don’t mean lobotomy/electrocution type energy but one’s white light energy that we all have but not all can harness for a specific purpose. If I’ve already lost you don’t worry, like many things you have to believe in its ability to heal and therefore this is a perfect example of a “power of the mind” type situation where an open mind will most likely reaps its benefit the most.
Anyone can receive Reiki but only after attunement can someone perform Reiki thus a multiple weekend course at Den Meditation in Los Angeles where I sat cross-legged with new age hipsters was needed before I could add Reiki practitioner to my resume. There’s a whole lot of meditation and focus happening along with guided light touching of complete strangers which sounds kind of fun and kinky but was actually intense and enlightening. When faced with forced silence among strangers I’m the type that would think totally inappropriate thoughts about that one time during spring break in college and bust out laughing while I am supposed to be quiet so I was very concerned about how I would do.
I surprised even myself when I was able to sit perfectly still and really focus on intentions and harnessing my energy for upwards of 30 minutes at a time. When I practiced Reiki on others I gave it my all, honestly picturing all the negativity floating away and infusing life and vitality into the person as best I could. It’s a fancy way of saying that I sent positive vibes while simultaneously mediating with people on the same wave length as myself. I walked away feeling less burdened, more content and with an overall sense of peace and tranquility.
Bottom line, you either believe in the power of Reiki or not; and like most things you get back whatever you put in. The power of human touch is incredible and while the idea of some invisible light energy having the ability to heal may seemed far-fetched it’s also relatively risk free. My advice…let your guard down; you’d be surprised how liberating that can feel.
