Don’t Get Stuck on the Shiny Things

There are many people who are drawn to Reiki because they can feel or otherwise sense energy. Some are deeply psychic or intuitive in other ways and wish to work with energy so that they have an avenue to further this. Some come to be Reiki practitioners after a spiritual awakening and long to deepen their spiritual growth and understanding. Reiki can certainly deepen, or even awaken all of these things. However, that is not the case for all people who come to the Reiki path. And that’s perfectly fine.

While the opposite is typically discussed, many Reiki practitioners don’t have an increase in their intuition after a Reiki attunement. It is also not uncommon for new practitioners to not feel very differently at all, especially at first. There has come to be a lot of pressure on new Reiki practitioners to feel a sudden and drastic change in how they perceive the world, energy and themselves. It is unhealthy and damaging, if taken too seriously.

If you did not have psychic visions or intuitive insights prior to being attuned to Reiki, it is very likely that you will not have them after Reiki. However, you will certainly be able to use the healing skill of Reiki. If you do daily self-Reiki and work with the Reiki principles and meditations that are part of the practice, you will certainly expand your spiritual growth, as well. There is no need for psychic or intuitive skills to do these things. You are not broken if these things don’t come naturally to you!

If you have been attuned to Reiki and you don’t receive visions, insights, see colors, see angels, or any of the psychic phenomenon that you have heard and read about, please do not worry! The primary purpose of Reiki is for you to self-heal, and worry and self-criticism will only block that. You are a Reiki channel. Keep doing your daily self-healing, meditate on what Reiki is to you, and let go of any pre-conceived notions of Reiki. It is unique in the way it moves through and affects each person, yet it is effective and available for all.

Despite all the fuss about intuitive insights, visions, and things picked up during a Reiki session, these things are not at all necessary for a Reiki treatment to be successful. Many practitioners have practiced for 20 or 30 years and never had a single psychic vision and don’t make it a part of their practice to report insights to clients after a session. Yet, their treatments are no less helpful in treating their clients than other sessions.

It can be interesting for both client and practitioner to share any interesting experiences after the session. Yet if we make the session all about the colors we saw, the impressions we pick up, the blockages we felt, or any visions either of us saw, we forget that healing is the purpose of the treatment. Your purpose as the practitioner is to create and hold the space for healing and loving Reiki energy to flow. There is no need to allow yourself to feel pressured to do anything but allow Reiki to flow.

When we work with deepening our spiritual growth, or our understanding of energy, some of us will encounter shifts in perspective that can be called psychic. That doesn’t mean that they are better than those who don’t. In fact, those who experience these things can sometimes become distracted by their visions and lose sight of the soul growth or the service they originally sought to do. Many great teachers and mystics have warned about getting overly caught up in the shiny things of the psychic realm. Some even taught that it is not wise to share our private psychic information with others.

All the glitter of the shiny things can distract us and make our practice complicated. It is true that there is much to be learned from dimensions other than our own, yet there is much to be learned and experienced in this realm, as well. When we simplify, we can see that we are right where we are meant to be. Reiki is not about doing. It is about allowing. Simply open and allow. Whatever is meant to be present, will be. Leave the rest and don’t worry.

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.