Reiki Help Blog :: Oasis Reiki Dojo

Last week as the Fourth of July was approaching, America’s Independence Day, my thoughts turned to “freedom” of the more lasting kind. I had also selected this topic for the monthly dojo meeting with my students on the Monday after the holiday, so I meditated on the topic. The following contemplation emerged:

• Since you can see the body, you’re not the body. You’re the seer.
• Since you can feel emotions, you’re not emotion. You’re the feeler.
• Since you can observe thoughts, you’re not thought. You’re the observer.
• Since you can wield energy, you’re not energy. You’re the wielder.
• Since consciousness allows you to witness, you’re That.
• Being That; consciousness, witness, bliss… you’re free.

Let’s take each one and expand on it.

The body is something we relate to very easily because it’s with us everyday. Its pains and pleasures are never farther than our next action or behavior. Our identity is closely tied up with the body. Yet, who is it that feels pain or pleasure? Who is it that looks and sees your hand or leg? If we are the body, then how is the body self-observant?

Most of us are very close to our emotions as well. We live on an emotional plane and relate to life and others emotionally. This can be challenging. At the same time, emotions make life richer. We have the capacity to feel. If you know what you’re feeling, who is it that knows? Who is it that identifies anger or joy? Is it the body? It can’t be because there’s a knower who knows the body already.

The mental realm is highly regarded. As a society and culture we’re heavily invested in the intellect. And like the body and emotions, we live with our thoughts night and day. All the while though there’s an awareness outside of the thought process that knows the thoughts we’re thinking.

We also have the ability to sense the energy of a meeting, event or relationship. We get a feel for someone in a direct way. Similarly we can create or generate a certain energy that infuses whatever we may be doing. But we’re more than a flavor of energy. And there’s the sensing. Who senses energy? It can’t be the thought process because there’s an awareness that already knows that.

There is something beyond our mind which abides in silence within our mind. It is the supreme mystery beyond thought. Let one’s mind and subtle spirit rest upon that and nothing else.

– Maitri Upanishad (VI: 20)

If we can be conscious of the body, emotions, thoughts and energy, then we must be something other than each of these, or even a conglomeration of them. In the same way, we’re free of their limitations. If we’re not the body, we’re not bound by it. If we’re not emotion, it doesn’t have a hold on us. If thoughts aren’t what we are, they can’t dictate to us. If we wield energy, then energy we’re exposed to is powerless over us.

It’s not even a question of being free. We are free. In truth we’re formless. We come from silence, dwell in silence, and play in form.

Don’t let the play trap you.

Each post for the Reiki Help Blog can take anywhere from 1-5 days to write/research, proofread/edit, and post with an appropriate image and formatting. If you leave this space with any value, knowledge, joy or understanding, please consider making a donation of your choice.

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Today’s story comes from someone I’ve met only online. While the recounting touches upon this person’s introduction to and experiences with Reiki, the highlight is the sharing about April’s Reiju: Community Healing and Alignment, which I offer monthly. This was a first for the person in question.

Do notice, however, Reiki’s profound impact. Click here to find out more about Reiki Training, and make sure you listen to the Reiki Primer audio.

Reiki Stories Project^SM (RSP) is open to anyone who wants to share. Please submit your story to me from the link in “contact” above. For the time being stories are being published anonymously. I may lightly edit your submission.

If you wonder why this project is so very important, and why I’ve decided to curate such stories these words from Muriel Rukeyser say it all:

“The universe is made of stories, not of atoms.”

I will always remember the day last summer when a woman at my job, from whom I picked up such a feel-good vibration every time we met without knowing why, told me that she was practicing Reiki. I had seen the word before but never knew of what it really was.

What is that, I asked. She started to explain and at that very moment, as she spoke, in an instant, I realized that I already knew this. It was already inside my soul and her words just reminded me of what I had forgotten and had spent my whole life searching. The knowledge of Reiki fitted exactly in that empty spot that always had been in my soul as a mark of something lost. First time I received distant Reiki healing last summer, there were several things revealed to me. My experience of the world has not been the same since then. It was as if the physical world and the spirit world merged like two overhead stencils were put on top of each other and I saw the dimensions inside each one.

I have carried a sort of faded inner knowledge and along with that faded memories in my soul as long as I can remember. I knew at a very young age that we are living in a very special time. Over the years though, for various reasons, I both lost and gave away contact with my inner truth and my soul until the knowledge of Reiki gently reminded me.

Reiju Blessing

I found your website, the Reiki Help Blog and immediately felt the connection. This is the place were I go to rest my soul and to put the pieces together. In the words and knowledge you share I find the truth I always carried.

And the beautiful way you paint with words is the same beauty I find in my own soul.

So there I was April 7 tuning into the Reiju Blessing you offer. It was a very gentle experience, very soft yet vibrating with energy. The day after when I sat down to practice distant Reiki, I noticed the first reaction.

I usually feel the energy strongly and can also have visions and pictures or feelings shown to me. This time it was so much more. As I started I felt the energy as if I stood in a shower. The energy just poured over my whole being and opened up my mind as never before. And the location of the third eye was like a marked spot of energy during the whole session. It was an amazing experience and clearly something had happened.

The next day I started to notice a change on the inside.

A new kind of joy and happiness filled my heart so strong that I cannot describe it properly. And every morning the feeling increased and stayed throughout the day until this Monday when I found myself connected with the universe and my soul in a way that I’ve never felt before.

My soul was singing, my heart was filled with light and for the first time I felt Love flow through my veins. Pure Love! I became One with every creation, every mind and soul. One with the Universe. One with my Soul. I reached out and touched the Truth. And I let it all go, the pain, the sorrow and the hurting.

I was at peace, at true peace for the first time in my whole life and I felt so loved. I was complete. And that was exactly what I asked for when I signed up for the Reiju Blessing on your list. It was an amazing moment, a magical moment. The moment of the absolute beginning of my new awareness and consciousness. It was breathtaking!

Pamir, I don´t have words enough to express my gratitude towards you and the Universe for this very life-changing moment. Thank you!

Best Wishes,

–A.L.H., from Europe

You’re so very welcome. What’s your Reiki story?

Read the previous stories in the project.

Each post for the Reiki Help Blog can take anywhere from 1-5 days to write/research, proofread/edit, and post with an appropriate image and formatting. If you leave this space with any value, knowledge, joy or understanding, please consider making a donation of your choice.

Donate to this blog. Thank you!

This is a guest post by Miruh over at Spiritual Healing Journey which is the only blog listed on my blogroll (so far at least). She writes as an insider on all things spiritual and healing, with care, sensitivity and internalized wisdom.

Do you guess I have some intricate purpose?
Well I have, for the Fourth-month showers have,
and the mica on the side of a rock has.

Do you take it I would astonish?

Does the daylight astonish? does the early redstart twittering
through the woods?
Do I astonish more than they?

This hour I tell things in confidence,
I might not tell everybody, but I will tell you.

Who goes there? hankering, gross, mystical, nude;
How is it I extract strength from the beef I eat?

What is a man anyhow? what am I? what are you?

All I mark as my own you shall offset it with your own.
Else it were time lost listening to me.

Taken from Song of Myself,
Leaves Of Grass by Walt Whitman

What Is Your Purpose

I was at a spiritual retreat where the retreat leader told  this story when people complained about having to pitch in to help out with doing dishes or cleaning:

There was  a club in which only the elite of the country could attend. To be a club member you had to agree to participate in all the various roles that allowed for the smooth running of the many parties that were hosted by the club. At each party the participants played a different role from the previous one. These roles included being the butler, the valet, the maid, the dishwasher, the cook, the bathroom attendant and the master of ceremonies. To ensure that each occasion was a success and that everyone was able to enjoy the evening, the participants who helped to host the parties took their roles very seriously. Although in their regular lives they never had to do the tasks they did at the club, they welcomed the opportunity to serve in the way that was assigned to them for the evening. Each person held an important position in their community, but at this club, it did not matter how great their standing, they did whatever was required of them, no matter how lowly, for the sake of the enjoyment of all.

I like this teaching story; this world is like the elite club as we are all great beings. What we do does not make us greater or lesser than others. For many of us, we wish that we had some special purpose in life. I like to think that everyone’s role is a special purpose. Even this blog is dependent on so many others.  I would not have the privilege of writing this post without the hard work of all the people who made it possible: the person who invented the computer, right down to the person in the micro-chip assembly department, the blogging software designers, etc.

In response to a question from a student who asked him if he should renounce his home, the spiritual master Ramana Maharshi said, “If that had been your destiny, the question would not have arisen.” It intrigues me when reading biographies of people who are famous that most often these people have felt driven to do what they have accomplished, and have had synchronistic experiences of being at the right place at the right time to meet the people who were instrumental in making their careers happen.

I believe in reincarnation and I like to think that if, for example, someone was a great leader in a past life, they  would welcome the opportunity to have some down time in the following one. So if you are fretting about your purpose because you have stirrings of past glory in your soul, a long to-do list, maybe it’s your turn to just take it easy in this life.

Perhaps our special purpose is the one right in front of us. Why not make it a special one for yourself and all those whose lives are connected to your purpose. The highest purpose of all though, is getting to know the truth of who you are, asking, Who Am I? Many of us who are asking ourselves what our purpose is, are also looking for our purpose in order to feel fulfilled from engaging in that. On the contrary, it is when we already feel fulfilled that we are truly able to serve from our highest potential. Getting in touch with our own truth, feeling fulfillment from within, is our main purpose.

Miruh is an acupressure therapist who lives in British Columbia, Canada. She writes about spirituality for a general audience. She synthesizes the wisdom teachings of eastern mysticism from her many years of study in meditation, Yoga and Buddhist philosophy. Her blog posts give insights on how to bring spiritual awareness to daily life. She relates stories from her own life and invites her readers to come to know the value of the spiritual healing journey to live life fully and joyfully.

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 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

Each post for the Reiki Help Blog can take anywhere from 1-5 days to write/research, proofread/edit, and post with an appropriate image and formatting. If you leave this space with any value, knowledge, joy or understanding, please consider making a donation of your choice.

Donate to this blog. Thank you!

The founder of Reiki, Mikao Usui (Usui Sensei) was born on August 15, 1865 in the village of Taniai (now called Miyama cho) in the Yamagata county of Gifu Prefecture, in Japan. There are four influences that went into his Reiki teachings: Buddhism, Shintoism, Martial Arts, and Shugendo (mountain asceticism) Here, we’ll briefly look at his martial arts training.

Usui’s family was hatamoto samurai. The hatamoto were the shogun’s personal guard. The Usui family crest, also known as the Chiba crest, is a design that is a circle with a dot at the top. The circle is the universe, and the dot represents the North Star. The North Star is a polestar, it never moves, is ever constant, while life moves around it.

Three Japanese budo masters were contemporaries of Usui Sensei. Gichin Funakoshi founded Karate. Jigoro Kano started judo. Morihei Ueshiba created Aikido a little later on. Mikao Usui was born a Tendai Buddhist and studied in a Tendai monastery as a young child. At age 12 he began the practice of a martial art known as aiki jutsu, made popular by Takeda Sokaku who was Ueshiba’s teacher. This form included harmonizing with Ki, making it possible to experience calmness, concentration, willpower and physical fitness. He also studied yagyu ryu, and it’s interesting that this tradition includes both life-giving and -taking techniques.

About two years ago I had come across a Samurai’s song. It was impressive and thought-provoking. Let me share it here and we’ll look at some ideas that emerge.

A Warrior’s Creed

I have no parents
I make the heaven and earth my parents

I have no home
I make awareness my home

I have no life and death
I make the tides of breathing my life and death

I have no divine powers
I make honesty my divine power

I have no means
I make understanding my means

I have no secrets
I make my character my secret

I have no body
I make endurance my body

I have no eyes
I make the flash of lightening my eyes

I have no ears
I make sensibility my ears

I have no limbs
I make promptness my limbs

I have no strategy
I make “unshadowed by thought” my strategy.

I have no design
I make “seizing opportunity by the forelock” my design

I have no miracles
I make right action my miracle

I have no principles
I make adaptability to all circumstances my principle

I have no tactics
I make emptiness and fullness my tactics

I have no talent
I make ready wit my talent

I have no friends
I make my mind my friend

I have no enemy
I make carelessness my enemy

I have no armor
I make benevolence and righteousness my armor

I have no castle
I make immovable mind my castle

I have no sword
I make absence of self my sword

–Anonymous Samurai, 14th century

Admittedly it’s a little austere and minimalist. This has advantages, however. Many times, there’s nothing quite like a bare bones view to gain clarity and hone in on essentials. Let’s break it down.

• In Reiki we work very closely with heaven and earth in the form of Earth and Celestial Ki.
• Uncluttered awareness in the moment is key.
• Understanding is an enhancer of Reiki practice, whether it’s better results with techniques, or with people. When Reiki is practiced or shared with understanding, its power deepens.
• Reiki constantly gives us ample opportunities to improve our character.
• Quieting the busy mind is a core practice that rewards in multiple ways.
• Right thought, right speech, right action are built-in Reiki ethics.
• Being the bending but not breaking bamboo is the adaptability Reiki brings us.
• Knowing when to be empty and when to be full is a skill Reiki helps us develop.
• Befriending ourself is where healing begins.
• Being careful is a prime example of being full. Full of care.
• Reiki is the way of compassion, which includes benevolence.
• Immovable mind is the beginning and end of meditation.
• Absence of self in the Self is the way of peace and enlightenment.