Valuing Community

One of the Four Aspects of Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki is called Mystic Order and refers to the way that learning Reiki brings us into a community of like-minded people with shared experiences of healing and personal growth.

I have attended several meetings in the past couple of months which have given me deeper insight into this Aspect.  One of these meetings was with other Reiki masters, most of whom I’ve known for a long time.  I found it comforting to be in the company of my friends again. We shared Reiki treatments and talked about how we are getting on in our lives. Some were not able to join us due to illness or death of family, which brought home to me how our connection with each other offers support when we face challenges in life.

I gave a Reiki treatment recently to someone who had suffered a trauma. She mentioned how what had really helped her in the days after the accident were the kind words and actions of her community. This made me reflect on how connection with others can be so helpful in getting through difficult times. I have found that practising Reiki has offered me this greater connection and a community of supportive friends.  There is strength in a community that is greater than one person alone.

Some of the meetings have been more about Reiki business, but I found that even with those I came away from them feeling empowered and supported.   The most recent was a meeting where someone commented how much she loves the times people come together – she said it was like a holiday for her as she does a lot of work alone in her office.  I could completely relate to that because there is definitely a difference when we meet in person.

This month I’m looking forward to The Reiki Association gathering and our theme for the weekend is Connection. There will be old friends and new people to meet.  I know that because we share a love for Reiki and will be giving each other Reiki treatments there will be a feeling of connection even if we begin as strangers to each other and that I will come away feeling supported, refreshed and uplifted.

I can barely remember the person I used to be, who felt alone and found being in new groups difficult. I'm marvelling at myself and valuing the richness in my life that comes from being part of the Reiki community. It hasn't always been easy, but like the grit in the oyster that creates the pearl it has helped me to grow and develop greater self confidence. Feeling more at ease in groups has enabled me to receive the support I once found it difficult to ask for. This has given me enhanced feelings of comfort and security. I also notice that I have been taking this confidence into other situations, such as my local business networking group and that this has given me different kinds of beneficial and supportive connections.

How this happened is has been a mysterious and subtle process over many years. Perhaps that's why it's called mystic order! I feel a deep gratitude to my community of Reiki connections – thank you for being there!

Interview with Alec Jones: Taiji teacher and Reiki Master

My husband Alec turns 60 this month.  In celebration I am sharing with you an interview with him about his practice as a taiji teacher and Reiki master first published in Reiki Magazine International in 2000. 

K: What drew you to learn Taiji?

A: I’d always wanted to learn a martial art and meditation. One day in 1973, I was watching a TV programme about the Hong Kong kung fu movie industry. There were shots of actors leaping across buildings. It went straight from this to a little old man in a park, standing still. Then he started moving very, very slowly. What I didn’t realise was that he was actually moving at that speed; I thought they’d slowed the film down. At the back of the park was a road hidden by trees and a lorry went by. It just went belting across the screen and I realised that this man was actually moving that slowly! It struck me as unusual and extremely graceful; how on earth could he keep his balance, moving that slowly? So I started looking for a taiji teacher: it took me seven years to find one!

K: How did you come to learn Reiki?

A: After studying and teaching taiji for some years, several people had told me that they felt a particular quality of touch in my hands. They suggested I should do something with it in some kind of healing capacity. Then I found a leaflet about Reiki. I thought that if I learned Reiki, when I touched people to adjust their posture in the taij class, I could zap their tension. Then they would relax into the posture and understand the movements better. Part of my mind thought that this was what I was looking for: it didn’t take long to learn and it wasn’t expensive. But the other part of my mind thought it was some kind of get-rich-quick scheme – how could you possibly learn a healing technique in 3 days? I rang the number that was on the back of the leaflet and they started telling me about the course. They told me how much it was and I had enough money; when it was and I had the weekend free. Then they started telling me where it was and it turned out to be held in my taiji teacher’s house! So that clinched the decision.

Several of my taiji students have learned Reiki. There are certain exercises in the taiji and qigong classes that give you an opportunity to feel your energy moving through your hands. Most people who have done Reiki can feel it sooner and stronger than those who haven’t. It enhances that connection because it’s all Qi or Ki.

K: Do you feel that being a Reiki master affects your Taiji?

A: There’s a parallel path of my personal growth in my practice of taiji and in Reiki. Becoming a Reiki master was part of that growth. So I couldn’t say exactly what Reiki or taiji has done, but they have both greatly affected my path of personal growth. I met someone in 2000 who I hadn’t seen for over 10 years. She said that I’d changed completely in that time: I was a more confident, more open person. She could really see the growth.

I sat down once and wrote a list, taiji one side, Reiki the other. For each of the taiji principles, in terms of using them in daily life, I could put something in the Reiki column as well. It’s the same with Reiki: anything I could put down about what Reiki is or does there was something in the taiji column to match. When I’m giving Reiki to someone it puts me in touch with that sense of there being no boundary between where I end and the other person begins. The energy crosses that boundary and blurs it. I also experience that in my solo taiji practice: I feel a part of my environment; I don’t stop at my skin. Both disciplines give me a sense of my place in the universe, my connection to the scheme of things.

K: Do you think Taiji can benefit Reiki students?

A: When you’re giving a Reiki treatment, whether you’re standing or sitting, you have to find ways of aligning your body to be comfortable and relaxed, so you don’t lean on the other person. One of the main things in taiji is posture and the alignment of the body. You work with balance, so that you’re not fighting against gravity. Also, there are taiji exercises that work on the quality of touch. There is one called ‘sticking,’ where you rest your palm on the back of someone else’s hand. They move their hand around and you keep the same quality of touch as though your hand is stuck to theirs. Having done that for several years before learning Reiki, I found that when I came to put my hands on someone I knew how to touch them: the quality of touch was already established.

K: Could you talk about the discipline in Taiji?

A: There are different styles and schools of taiji, but whichever form you learn you do the same form all the time. That’s the discipline of it: you don’t need to change it. If it’s difficult in places it’s meant to be. Once you relax into the idea that it’s like that for a reason, that simple understanding changes it and makes it easier. Mental resistance creates physical resistance and constriction, so relaxing mentally relaxes you physically. Then the movements become easier.

There is a freedom in discipline. The structure of the form is what gives you the freedom to express the quality of your own energy. You don’t have to change the form to be creative. It’s the boundary of a movement that defines it. If you go beyond that boundary it becomes something else, a different movement. That’s true of the whole form: it’s the boundaries that give shape to the art. Without the boundaries, there is no shape and without the shape it’s just somebody moving about, not following the taiji principles any more. For example there is the principle of empty step: if you take a step that’s too big it’s no longer an empty step: you fall. The boundary of an empty step is very important to discover and to work on the edge of. A boundary is a dividing line; if you cross that line then what you are doing becomes something else, something formless. The difference between form and formless is that form can be reproduced and therefore passed on to others. For example if someone offered you some water to drink and you said yes please and they pour some water at you, it’s not very helpful. You need a container to make use of the water. The container is the form.

I see an exact duplication between Taiji and Reiki in that. I see that as true of any spiritual discipline – you have to have a container and the container is the form. The form includes the personal practice and the method of teaching.

(for Taiji read 'Taijiquan & Qigong')

Change Takes Time

This is a time of year when many people are thinking about change: reflecting on the year past and looking ahead to make plans for what they would like to be different in the coming year.  Living as we do in a time when information arrives very fast it can appear that change happens fast as well.

When people come to Reiki they are often looking for change in their lives and want that change to happen quickly.  They may be suffering physical or emotional pain and want to be free from the discomfort.  Sometimes they simply feel stuck in life and know that something needs to shift.  I know that Reiki will help change to happen and sometimes helps it to happen more quickly and easily than it would otherwise, but I also know that real change takes time.

For example many people are thinking about loosing weight after the festive over-indulgence.  It is now common knowledge, however, that rapid weight loss doesn’t last and can even be damaging for the body.  Gradual change is more natural and usually more lasting because it comes from better lifestyle habits and real change rather than what for the body is essentially a crisis!

Reiki is a wonderful catalyst for real change.  Sometimes it happens so slowly it is easy to think nothing is happening.  Looking back over the past year, however, I’m amazed to see how different my life has become compared to previous years.  I feel more contented and peaceful more of the time, I am able to manage my time and energy better and my work is even more rewarding.  I see that this change has happened gradually with the help of regular Reiki practice.

One of my plans for 2013 is to spend more time caring for my garden.  Gardens are a wonderful example of how slow and yet exciting change can be.  I have already planted some cornflower seeds that may already have started to grow.  I won’t see the plants for some time and flowers are still several months away.  However it gives me satisfaction to know that little by little the growth and development is happening, even if it’s unseen at the moment.

It is much the same when I give Reiki treatments or teach people Reiki for themselves.  Sometimes I see a dramatic change in one treatment: people are often amazed how relaxed they become during the session or find that their pain has gone or been reduced.  This change has still taken time though: the person has set aside an hour or more to simply receive Reiki.  I often see wonderful change in people over the course of the first degree Reiki class as well.  Only a few days can bring about a transformation – but time is still being given to allow this change to happen.

So while our minds are somewhat addicted to what may be perceived as rapid change these days, in nature and in truth change takes time.  So be patient with yourself...

What are your thoughts about change?

Endings and Beginnings

I have heard talk about December 2012 being the end of an era lasting thousands of years, with the conclusion of a cycle in the Mayan people of South America’s calendar.  There are dire predictions of the end of the world or at least the end of the world as we know it!  Personally I am not expecting anything out of the ordinary.

Endings and beginnings are part of the natural cycle of life, so beautifully depicted by the ancient Chinese symbol of yin and yang.  In this image we see a dot of light in the area that has the greatest amount of dark.

In December we mark the end of the year and anticipate the beginning of a new one.  In the Northern hemisphere it is also the winter, a time of withdrawing energy, long dark nights, short cold days.  In times when people lived lives more connected with Nature winter was a time for rest with little work to be done in the fields.  A quiet time, a time to pause, reflect and prepare for the next year.

In modern times the pace of life hardly varies, there is less need to stop. Indeed with the attempts to have a ‘perfect’ Christmas it can be busier and more stressful than any other time of the year!  However we are still a part of nature, we are still aware of the darkness and cold, longing for the return of light and warmth, so not that different from our ancestors!  We still need the time of pause to mark the endings and prepare for new beginnings.

I have found Reiki to be a perfect way to remain in tune with the natural cycle of life and thereby stay healthy and happy.  Reiki encourages rest, offering a time to pause and reflect.  Whether this is through receiving a treatment from someone else or self treatment, it offers a time to stop all the busyness, rest, reflect, be in the moment and feel warm and comforted.  Some people actually experience Reiki as light, lifting the spirits and enhancing a feeling of well-being: a perfect balance for winter.

This need to pause and receive comfort can also happen at any time of year: in 2012 the lives of three dear friends of mine came to an end (two people and our dog).  When the losses occurred I give myself time to pause and receive Reiki treatments, feel my grief and shed some tears.  I was then able to move on, embrace what came next.  The pause was a preparation for the next phase, continuing my life without their physical presence, just as the winter is the preparation for spring.

Before I had Reiki’s help with this, like many people I resisted endings, trying to pretend they weren’t happening, declining to acknowledge when something was over, not wishing to see it end.  This led to distress, anger, pain and sometimes depression.  However endings, as we have seen, are natural.  When we allow them, they make space for new beginnings.  Reiki has helped me to live more easily with the natural ebb and flow of life.

I gather that the Mayan people saw making it to the end of an era as cause for celebrations: that sounds good to me!  So as 2012 comes to a close, may this be a time for acknowledging and letting go of what has ended.   The seeds of new beginnings have already been planted: in letting go we make space for them to grow. Let’s celebrate!

21 years of joyful Reiki teaching!

Through-out my life November seems to have been quite a significant month for me:  In November 1964 I ceased to be an only child with the birth of my sister!   In November 1987 my father died suddenly, which led to me receiving a series of Reiki treatments.  These led to another significant November event 21 years ago today when I was initiated as a Reiki master.

                         

I was initiated by Reiki master Martha Sylvester, alongside my husband Alec at our home in Cotteridge, Birmingham.  I have heard that some Reiki masters are initiated in special and significant places, such as waterfalls or the tops of mountains.  For us being initiated in our home was perfect!

Our teaching career began straight away: the day after we were initiated we received a phone call from some people who were keen to learn Reiki, so our first class was that December.  It has been my pleasure to teach regularly ever since.  I can hardly believe how many years have passed now!

There has been a lot of learning and growth in the intervening years, but some things have not changed.  I have never lost my passion and enthusiasm for Reiki and all the gifts it offers.  Indeed the more I practice and learn, the more respect and awe I have for what has been passed down to us by the lineage. 

It also still gives me as much, if not more, joy to initiate people into Reiki.  I am still just as excited (though less nervous) as I prepare for a Reiki class as I was in the early years.

As I stand with the student for the first initiation I rejoice in the choice they are making, the potential for bringing healing and peace that they have embraced by deciding to learn Reiki.  And as I give the last initiation and remind them that they now have this gift for the rest of their lives I share their delight.

I am honoured to have been able to touch the lives of 945 people by initiating them into Reiki over the past 21 years.  I have initiated many of them into second degree as well, but as yet have not initiated a master myself.

In the first few years I thought I would soon initiate one of my students as a master, but listening to the advice from Phyllis Furumoto, lineage bearer of Usui Shiki Ryoho, decided to wait.  There have been a few people who have asked to study with me to become a Reiki master, but they all decided to be initiated by someone else.  I felt at the time that I wasn’t quite ready and looking back I can see this was true. Hawayo Takata didn’t initiate her first master until she had been practicing Reiki for almost 40 years.  So I’m in no hurry.  However I now feel the time has come, that I could now begin to guide someone towards the honour of being a Reiki master.  I feel sure that when the Reiki-time is right that person will appear.   

I am deeply grateful to Martha for giving me the honour and gift of being a Reiki master and look forward to the next 21 years!

CNHC Registered: a Milestone!

I was recently accepted as a registrant of the Complementary and Natural Healthcare (CNHC) Reiki register.

To be honest I don’t know if I would have sought registration if it wasn’t a condition of being on the CNHC Reiki profession specific board (PSB).  I want to continue on the PSB to help make it possible for Reiki practitioners to offer treatments widely, including in the NHS.  Now that I’m a registrant I can see that it’s something of a milestone and the culmination of many years’ work, so I’m pleased Reiki has brought me to this achievement.

Many years ago my Reiki master Martha Sylvester asked me to start keeping a list of Reiki practitioners so that people in different parts of the country could find someone to give them Reiki.  Not long after this The Reiki Association was born and soon began to make referrals of Reiki practitioners.

We soon found we needed a way to ensure that the person we were referring would be a trustworthy practitioner who would give a good Reiki treatment.  So we began to discuss what qualities a Reiki practitioner needs and how to evaluate this.

These early discussions and some conferences about the public practice of Reiki with Phyllis Furumoto led to a deeper understanding of what it means to be a Reiki practitioner working with the public, rather than just offering Reiki to family and friends as many people do. 

I found what I learned during this exploration useful when I contributed to setting the National Occupational Standards (NOS) and creating core curriculum for Reiki practitioners in subsequent years.  These are the standards that CNHC Reiki registrants now need to meet

I have therefore seen Reiki move from being a very little known personal practice that was occasionally offered more widely to a well known healing option that now has a place in hospitals and hospices.  As a result it now has the support of an independent organisation that is happy to hold a register of practitioners.  This is recognition from outside the Reiki community that Reiki practitioners are responsible people who offer something of value.  One of the characteristics of professional practice we identified at the conferences over 10 years ago is recognition from wider society, so it’s gratifying to see this come true in the UK.

I am very keen to see more people offering Reiki as professional practitioners.  Working with Reiki is very satisfying and offers people an option that is not like anything else.  Reiki helps people deal with the difficulties of life in a gentle yet powerful non-invasive way, especially good for people who want to lessen the side effects of medication or other invasive treatment.

I’ve seen a wonderful transformation recently is several clients who were suffering physical and emotional pain.  They came to Reiki in states of fear, pain and gloom, feeling that life was very difficult.  Now, after regular treatment,  their pain and suffering is noticeably reduced and they express positive feelings of being able to cope better and having more resilience to deal with life’s challenges.

My hope is that the CNHC Reiki register means that more people will trust and have access to this wonderful healing and that Reiki practitioners will find it easier to make a living doing this much needed work.

Letting People Know about Reiki

Reiki students are advised not to advertise, but to let people come through word of mouth.  However this can be backed up by having a business card or leaflet to give to people you meet.

I have recently been involved in re-writing a leaflet about Reiki for The Reiki Association, which members will be able to buy to give to potential clients. 

Students who have attended my introduction to public practice workshop will remember that one of the characteristics of public/professional practice is a greater need to take note of the expectations of society.   This has become relevant in the re-writing of this leaflet, due to recent adjudications of the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA)

There is much greater awareness now about Reiki and complementary therapies in general than when the leaflet was first written years ago.  Some people hold the view that these therapies are just fooling the public into parting with their hard earned money!  As a result complaints about some Reiki advertising were made to the ASA recently and were upheld.   In revising the leaflet it was therefore felt to be wise to pay more attention to the wording so that it would not cause problems for those who might use it.

The complaints the ASA upheld were about statements concerning what Reiki could be beneficial for.  The role of the ASA is to ensure any advertising is ‘legal, descent, honest or truthful’.  There is a concern that people with a medical condition might choose to go to a complementary therapist instead of their doctor and so become more ill.  They therefore do not accept any mention of medical conditions that Reiki might help without “robust evidence” in the form of clinical trials.  They have been made aware of some of the positive research in to the benefits of Reiki, but dismissed them because they did not involve a large enough number of participants in the trials.

The Reiki Association consulted the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) which gives guidance about what advertising content is likely to be acceptable to the ASA.  What was interesting in their suggested revisions was that, while they removed any reference to physical conditions, they inserted the words ‘emotional’ and ‘spiritual’ where we had not thought to include them. 

Hawayo Takata, who brought Reiki from Japan to the West, taught that the underlying cause of physical problems lies on the levels of mind, emotions and spirit and that this is where Reiki is really beneficial.  I have seen this to be true from my own treatment practice. 

So while it is frustrating not to be able to say that Reiki can help problems like period pain, healing from surgery or arthritis (to name but a few) because people are often first drawn to seek help due to physical conditions, it is indeed perhaps more truthful to say that what Reiki helps with is the emotional and mental aspects of these problems, which may in time result in improvement of the physical. 

I have one student who has indeed found that Reiki has not improved the physical condition she hoped it would cure.  However she says it has changed her life and she wouldn’t be without it because it has helped her feel so much better.

What are your thoughts about how to let people know about the benefits of Reiki?