Reiki Help Blog :: Oasis Reiki Dojo

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The first part of this post ended with:

“Yet, there is a greater field which enables us to experience and share finer, elevated feelings. Love, kindness, compassion, empathy, or as the Dalai Lama calls it “warm-heartedness” all come from a spiritual field that encompasses and influences us. Of course to really receive this benefit, we must put in the time for sincere spiritual practice.”

Now we will look at some of the subtleties involved in energetic integrity, through the lens of Oneness. Oneness is an essential model of reality that can be quite heady, so let’s simplify and break it down. Oneness says:

1) You are one with yourself.
2) You are one with others.
3) You are one with your environment (where you live and work).
4) You are one with Nature and all of its lifeforms.
5) You are one with the Planet.
6) You are one with the Cosmos.
7) You are one with the Divine.

You may be thinking, “This sounds nice but what does it mean?”

1)  You are one with yourself, a holistic being composed of:

• An energy template
• A physical body
• Emotions
• Mind
• Spirit

These are designed to work seamlessly as one unit, as long as you are alert, awake and present to each one. Everyone has natural strengths. Some are athletic, some intellectual, some great meditators, some show good emotional intelligence. It doesn’t make for a well-rounded and happy life, however, if your meditation doesn’t also lead to the ability to balance your checkbook, your intellect gets in the way of opening portals of perception, or you are a mindless jock.

Self-awareness and the insights it yields which lead to integration is what truly unifies you. You become aware of the parts that need attention, bring them up to speed and integrate all parts into a smooth-functioning whole.

We also tend to abandon ourselves as a result of wounds. You have to journey back home to yourself and once again inhabit all the parts of your being.

2) You are one with others, even though encased in your skin it looks like you’re separate, with several feet between you and everyone around you. How much more this distance seems when people are many miles away or from different cultures of which you know nothing. Right?

Without getting into all kinds of esoterica, let’s see how it’s true that you are one with others: Every single person in the world wants to be happy, healthy and safe. Beyond culture, status, education and career we all want the same core conditions and qualities. It couldn’t be simpler.

3) You are one with your environment (where you live and work), which retains the emotions and thoughts of everything that is experienced there. The spaces we occupy become part of us. Your cubicle, bedroom and living room say a lot about you. Often outer space reflects inner space. If you’re not in energetic integrity with yourself, your outer environments will also be disharmonious. Similarly, cleaning, clearing and beautifying a room will have a positive mental and spiritual effect. There’s a relationship between the human and the spaces we occupy.

4) You are one with Nature and all of its lifeforms, because life is a circle. Where do dead animals go, an elephant for instance? First on the scene are larger scavengers: jackals, vultures, and hyenas that possess a unique ability to crunch and digest bones. Then come smaller carrion-eaters, including insects. The excrement from the scavengers and the detritus from their endless feeding fertilizes the soil beneath and around the carcass. This causes vegetation to grow and draw a veil over the final residue; instead of the body being lowered into the ground, the ground rises over the body.

Humans are inextricably linked to this circle and are at the top of the food chain, which really means we have more responsibility, not just consumptive and destructive power.

5) You are one with the Planet, for without the Earth you would not exist! It is the Earth that provides the surface and gravitational pull on which you build your home. It is the Earth which grows your food. It is the Earth on which roads are built so you can visit family. It is the Earth and its atmosphere which gives you water, of which you are composed in two thirds. You can breathe on Earth.

You are one with the Earth. Your body is composed of elements all found on Earth.

6) You are one with the Cosmos. Yes it’s vast. Yes it’s unknowable. Yes it makes you feel like a speck. You’re still one with it. What else could be the truth about this? You’re swirling in it on your own planet. A planet that was born from cosmic forces. The cosmos prettifies your night sky and gives you a sun to make life possible. The cosmos provides a continuity too, a reassurance. Sirius the “dog star” (brightest star in our sky) is nine light years away;  Orion Nebula is 1500 years; Andromeda Galaxy 2.5 is million years.

As you begin to open your portals of perception, it becomes increasingly tenable that the universe is not random. There is meaning and order in the universe and thus in life. Loss of meaning is a sure way to step out of energetic integrity. The void created by not having a sense of belonging is many times filled with a hungry attitude of “those with the most toys win” and all manner of addictions and personal aggrandizement.

And this continues to reinforce a deeply entrenched material consciousness in the human psyche. A material consciousness that refuses to at least consider the possibilities of Oneness.

7) You are one with the Divine. A living master, Dattatreya Siva Baba says, “Love is God.” In other words when you feel love, you experience God. The word “God” is a button-pusher for many, but everyone can accept and relate to love.

The Divine is unlimited and doesn’t have to be “God.” You can relate to the Divine in any way that is comfortable for you. This doesn’t mean that you’re deluded into declaring that a self-destructive behavior is your Divine! Creativity, skills and talents, beauty, great art and music, loving sex, charity, good leadership, solid education; there are just so many ways to be Divine.

Everything you’ve read here so far is an expression of the Divine. To be fully human is to be One! If we stay in separation we victimize ourselves and remain small. A small worldview produces small results, and keeps you stuck in unnecessary and unreal drama. Drama is a fool’s trap. Drama is a blame game. When you point the finger, three fingers are pointing back at you, and you have the option of pointing your thumb UP.

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.

–Buckminster Fuller

Before delving into this subject, it may be useful to outline what ‘energy’ and ‘integrity’ mean in this context. Where we relate to energy most easily is the energy we use to function through the day, and the energy that powers our various devices and machines. The first is specifically described as metabolic energy and isn’t what is being referred to here, although it too can be enhanced by having overall integrity which will be detailed below. And the second is an even more material form of energy, which is also not the subject of discussion, although again having inner integrity can bring about better energy solutions in the world, and there are several posts about that on this blog.

The energy in question here is subtle or spiritual energy. It doesn’t exist in the electromagnetic spectrum. Yet it does exist and powers all we are. It has been given various names which all coalesce to a single meaning: Life energy. Reiki is a life energy teaching.

Integrity is used here to mean the quality of being whole or united and of being unharmed or sound. Further, integrity reaches into who we are and how we live: a consistent set of principles that determine our thoughts, words and actions.

Another premise is being employed as well: The physical body’s biochemical molecules are a form of vibrational energy. Einstein’s E=mc² and quantum physics can be looked into for a working knowledge of this, as well as various wisdom teachings including Reiki.

I teach my students that Reiki is a form of energetic integrity, that this isn’t the type of learning normally provided us in our schooling or other training, and as such Reiki Training is highly unique and beneficial. But I want to expand the scope and talk about the tremendous value of energetic integrity. Reiki directly helps to create energetic integrity because of its special access to an energetic level of reality, but any authentic wisdom teaching worth its salt can. And that is the caveat: find a true teaching and practice it sincerely to return yourself to a sound and whole state.

All manifestations in the material world, together with our own deeds and creations have an energetic blueprint that acts as both ground and springboard.  Therefore, energetic alignment is integral to bringing about the highest versions of yourself and your impact on the world. Disease has energy behind it, as does health. Giving is of a certain energy, looks and feels very different than taking. Drama comes along with certain disharmonious emotions, while detachment is much less burdened. Sincerity feels one way and insincerity always catches up with you.

Since energy is primary toning, strengthening, balancing and harmonizing yours means results are clearly noticeable in all parts of you and all areas of your life. Air is present everywhere, just like energy. Energy can be likened to air: we know it’s there when a tree sways in the wind or we feel a draft on our skin. Although energy is invisible to normal perception, it can be sensed and densifies into tangible human experiences.

It can also be likened to water which collects at the lowest point. Beware where you put your energy. Energy like water can flow through bottlenecks or around blocks, but repeated obstacles cause it to stagnate, as does repetition of unhealthy physical, mental and spiritual personal patterns.

In the vibrational model of human existence and the nature of reality there are layers of subtler gradations. For humans, we begin with the densest which is the physical body. Surrounding and interpenetrating it is a subtle field known as the etheric body, which occupies the same space as the physical but which vibrates at a higher frequency, and on which the physical is based.

Then each with progressively higher and finer vibratory rates we have the emotional, mental and spiritual bodies. Surpassing and containing all of it is Consciousness which is the subtlest, most highly vibrating, all-permeating and crucial, yet least understood component of our makeup. Consciousness is the prime Energy.

Often Consciousness is confused with the functioning of the brain. Here it doesn’t mean the chemical, and electrical signal-processing of the brain and it isn’t limited to the brain. Not only is it everywhere in the body, but it’s also part of the universe.

One of the most common analogies used to describe the Buddha-nature is space itself. This analogy has three aspects. First, just as space is omnipresent and yet is unpolluted by everything it pervades, similarly, Buddha-nature pervades every sentient being without being in any way tainted. Second, just as galaxies and universes arise and pass within space, so do the characteristics of our personalities arise and pass within Buddha-nature. Our sensations arise and pass away; Buddha-nature continues. Third, just as space is never consumed by fire, so this Buddha-nature is never consumed by the “fire” of aging, sickness, or death.

–B. Alan Wallace

Consciousness is also very much an integral part of the human heart. While the physical heart is far more intelligent and sophisticated than originally thought, it is the heart space that has a direct link to Consciousness that is referenced here.

Just as we limit Consciousness to the brain, we limit our understanding of emotions to neurochemical reactions in the limbic system or the emotional centers of the brain. Yet, there is a greater field which enables us to experience and share finer, elevated feelings. Love, kindness, compassion, empathy, or as the Dalai Lama calls it “warm-heartedness” all come from a spiritual field that encompasses and influences us. Of course to really receive this benefit, we must put in the time for sincere spiritual practice.

When the brain and a warm heart go side-by-side, then all our ability becomes constructive.

–Dalai Lama

to be continued

As previously announced here, Oasis Reiki (that would be me) held Shoden/Level I Reiki Training at Florida Atlantic University’s Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, in Boca Raton, Florida. I can’t rave enough about the space that has been designed there for a nursing program deeply rooted in caring. So first let me share a slideshow. Please read below to get a real sense of what transpires in Reiki Training.

Reiki is a way of living with wisdom and compassion. It’s a way to reclaim your authentic self. To move out of the past, return from the future and live fully awake in the present. Reiki shifts your paradigm too, revealing the many layers of reality. It helps you find energetic integrity. Reiki heals the human condition. It transforms your consciousness so you can be your true self. Your heart and mind become unified and you’re empowered to walk in peace. Reiki brings you what you need. Through the years, I’ve witnessed with inner joy and gratitude everything student practitioners share about their Reiki training experiences. These are nothing less thanpoetic and I’ll now attempt to convey some measure of what I was privileged to witness this past weekend.

An ocean, cloud and light was received. Plans changed many moons ago came to completion and an ordination was received. Tears inspired by sheer beauty flowed. Peace was tangible. Never before reached depth in meditation was commonplace. After lunch heartburn relieved completely. Back pain healed. Several first-time spiritual awakenings. The courage to face things one doesn’t want to. A young person’s talent validated. Success affirmed. Shoulders lightened. Realization of inner powers. Wonder. Recognition.

And hugs. Heart on heart hugs.

Always heart on heart hugs.

Updated July 2, 2008

An early testimonial:

“…Now that I have had a little time to reflect and absorb, I want to thank you for being YOU and what you brought to me this weekend. I can already notice changes in me, there is a deepening sense of calm within, much more energy both physically and spiritually. It has been both a fulfillment and rebirth of sorts. I am different, I am one with myself, and my surroundings. The teaching and empowerments brought through you this weekend are amazing. Thank you for thus far guiding and teaching me. The teaching and tools you brought to me will continue to aid and guide my journey…”

–J.G., West Palm Beach, Fla

I just love how online technology is able to bring such intentions forward.

Don Alverto Taxo, a Quichua elder and Iachak (community leader/healer), speaks of the ancient prophecy of the eagle and the condor meeting to bring a new harmony into the world. Don Alverto invites us all to trust the universal human intuition to bring greater harmony into our lives, and to seek after life’s deeper meaning. (Video below…if you have an email subscription, click to the original post to view it.)

The previous entry on this began:

What does it mean to be a Healer? The Healer is first a unifier. This can be at a political level or in the psyche.

Let’s explore what this means in the psyche. There’s a simple 5-body model of our makeup:

1. Energy or etheric body
2. Physical body
3. Emotional body
4. Mental body
5. Spiritual body

This describes what we are in the holistic and spiritual view. We are this whole, interacting, layered being, with all parts influencing and dependent on each other. The wellbeing of any one body depends on all the others. We want to function well as a whole, addressing all bodies.

It’s key to understand that there isn’t a hierarchy here. Each body is significant. There are natural strengths, likes and dislikes. You’ve probably observed that you may be comfortable with physical activity and sports, or perhaps best when putting your intellect to use, or feel confident dealing with your emotions, or perhaps your spirit is where you find the most joy. All of us have bodies which make sense to us, that we’re good at maintaining and excelling. Then there are those bodies that feel out of reach for us or confusing. Sometimes we even don’t know that a certain body exits.

From the Healer’s viewpoint integration is the answer to knowing ourself as a whole. When we spend all our time on parts we know intimately, parts we can wield well, our other bodies feel left out, like they don’t have keys to our home, or the key doesn’t fit. With no other recourse, these parts draw our attention in unhealthy ways, leading to imbalances and suffering that could’ve been easily avoided with a little care for the whole self.

It’s well known that “heal” simply means to make whole, but it’s worth repeating here. We originate as a whole, then through life experiences we fragment and focus on the fragments. Sometime we entirely forget parts of ourself for years and years. Or we let others and circumstances steal these parts.

When the Healer finally shows up, it acts like a giant magnet, pulling essential parts of yourself back to you, and reinstalling them once again in their rightful place in your being. The Healer also acts as great communicator between your bodies so each knows about the other, what ails or redeems it, what it needs, what it can offer the rest of the team that is you.

With unconditional love the Healer coalesces us to our unified origin.

to be continued…