Detaching from the Tools of Reiki

When you start working with Reiki on a regular basis, it is easy to feel caught up in all the ways that energy is available to connect with us. It can seem like focusing on the ways to talk about the energy, or the paths to connect to it are the most important thing. And our logical minds want something we can grasp hold of and talk about, or mentally think about.

The mind is a wonderful tool, but at times it can get in the way by trying to over process what is happening. We have other tools, like the symbols, that allow us to work outside of the parameters of the mind, freeing us from this over processing. However, when we cling to the tools, wondering what they mean or how they work or why they’re there, then this creates a whole new kind of processing for the mind to do. It defeats the purpose of the tool.

We have many tools that the energy and the system of Reiki present to us. I have mentioned the symbols, the hand positions are another, as is the increase in empathic and intuitive awareness that many people experience to some degree. These are all very helpful in their own way. Each can connect us more deeply to the energy and guide us how to use it.

However, these tools work best if we use them in a detached and flowing manner. If we become rigid and dogmatic about how these tools are meant to be understood and used, then we close off many possibilities for the tools to teach us and help us to expand. Clinging and rigidity only closes energy. Openness allows it to flow.

For example, if you receive an intuitive understanding during a Reiki session about placing your hand in a new position that doesn’t fit your standard of the typical hand positions, you have a choice to make. Do you decide to flow with the tool of intuition, or remain with the tool of the hand positions as they were taught to you?

Or suppose you felt an energetic block in an area of your client’s body, which Reiki helped to clear. Do you need to tell the client the block was there, even though Reiki cleared it? Do you need to determine the meaning behind of all the energy movements or blockages in your client? This can lead to a great deal of mental “fidgeting” and can even cause distress in your client. If you know that Reiki is working, then perhaps it is best to trust that you were given the intuitive insight to help guide you during the session. It may not be necessary to continue thinking about it beyond that moment.

Another example is with the symbols. Suppose you have just finished with Reiki 2 and you now know the three main symbols. You were taught that they are used in specific situations and how to work with them. However, you feel led to use one of them in a different way that wasn’t mentioned in training. Or maybe you feel led to use them in a different order. Or perhaps there are situations where you feel led to use no symbols at all. Do you stick precisely with your training? Or follow your intuition?

Symbols are a means of quickly accessing types of energy. The energy is too large and incomprehensible to really process mentally and symbols allow us to use it without having to think about how. It’s similar to flipping a light switch and not having to think about how or why the light comes on.

It is always good to explore your intuitive leads, unless they are unsafe, unkind or reckless. Explore them with an open mind and see what happens. There is usually a reason for your subconscious to lead you in that direction, so check it out like a scientist checking out a new hypothesis. If it doesn’t work out, you can always go back to the old way.

Tools like the symbols, the hand positions and our intuition and empathy can be very helpful for us as practitioners. But like all tools, carrying them around all the time is unnecessary and cumbersome. They should be put down when they are not needed, with the full knowledge that they are there for us any time we need to pick them back up and use them. Clinging to them makes them part of our ego, and we have to let ego fade to the background to be safe and effective practitioners.

Article by Angie Webster

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Angie Webster made a significant contribution to the Reiki community, with a particular focus on Animal Reiki, which she had a deep affection for. As a knowledgeable Reiki Master Teacher and Author, she conducted online courses on energy healing, herbalism, flower essences, and personal growth.
She is the author of “Animal Reiki: How it Heals, Teaches & Reconnects Us with Nature” and “Reiki from A to Z”. Currently, Angie has decided to retire from her professional life to devote more time to her health, family, and the little joys of life.