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| Reiki Master Rick Bockner - the last master initiated by Sensei Takata |
Listening to Rick Bockner's talk
at The Reiki Association gathering in May I was struck by a comment he made
about Oral Tradition. This is one of the
Nine Elements of Usui Shiki Ryoho and refers to the way teaching is offered in
person rather than through distant learning or books. What Rick pointed out is that it also refers
to making the effort to be together in person.
In the past few years I have
participated in many meetings with Reiki people around the world through the internet,
where we are able to talk in real time and sometimes see each other (there's
often not enough bandwidth for us all to activate our cameras at the same
time!). This is a great improvement on communicating
via email, but when I attended the Association Gathering I noticed how
wonderful it is to actually meet people in person! I was grateful that Rick and everyone there
had made the effort.
While modern technology does
allow a part of the energy of a person to be transmitted over the airwaves, it's
not the same as being in physical presence with them. There are subtleties of communication that we
read instinctively when we are with someone, but also I feel there is energetic
presence that goes beyond that.
I've also found that a group of
people who meet together create an energetic field - something I've often experienced
in Reiki Sharing groups. Even though not
a word is spoken while we treat each other, we enter into a deeper connection
with each other and ourselves. This
connection is comforting and supportive, so that we leave feeling better, more
able to cope with the vicissitudes of life.
So if you're wondering why I'm planning
to travel all the way to Almaty in Kazakhstan to attend the Office of
Grandmaster (OGM) Retreat, it's because I feel called to be there in physical
presence, to meet other Reiki students and share in the energetic field that
will be created by this gathering. Of
course I'm also feeling somewhat daunted
by the idea of travelling so far, but I'm receiving wonderful support for this
journey and I'm willing to make the effort!
I've often made long journeys for
various Reiki meetings - usually in the UK, but also to the USA and
Australia. I'm happy to travel because I
know from experience that being there in person can be important. Perhaps that's why I was required to appear
in person rather than by remote link when giving evidence recently to the Crown
court.
While it is possible to give
Reiki treatments from a distance, there is a story of Sensei Takata taking a
long and arduous journey that involved various forms of transport to give
someone Reiki treatment. When asked why
she didn't just send Reiki distantly she responded that Reiki in physical
presence is always preferable when possible.
So I encourage you to take every opportunity to be physically present in
a Reiki energy field whenever you can.
After all Reiki is a way to bring non-physical energy into the physical
world, so to receive it we need to be physically present!
