Current location:	One Miramar St.
Current mood:	meditative
Current music:	Pandora station "Terra's Trax"
Entry tags:	reiki, sunday meditation

Sunday Meditation 10/07/07
Sometimes I feel keen on sharing the things I think about what I believe. Hopefully none of you mind.


There is a Japanese art known as reiki (often capitalized, i.e. "Reiki") that has existed for the greater part of the 20th century, and which is purported to be usable (and useful) for healing. I am currently investigating reiki because it possesses some intriguing draws that resonate strongly, for whatever reason, with who I am.
I'll give you sort of the Cliffs Notes on reiki; the idea is that there exists as part of the universe a force which we can call lots of things, but which when translated from the original Japanese name, is probably best written as "universal life energy." Those who practice the art use their hands (and sometimes feet) as channels of this energy into others, who are then nurtured by this energy into healing better/more quickly.
I know, it sounds a lot like the Force from "Star Wars," only you don't do any cool ninja tricks with it. However, there are some things about it that I still find strangely hard to ignore. I, for example, have always had sort of a hand-centric awareness. Maybe it's just because they have so many nerve endings; maybe I'm just making a big deal of physiology. Or, maybe I'm not. However, reiki reminds me of the (Christian!) faith healing practice of "the laying on of hands." Could there be a connection? Maybe.
Also, there's this idea in ontology (also known as metaphysics, though metaphysics is often classified as a subset in ontology) called the anthropic principle that states that maybe the universe happened in the way that it did simply so that we'd come to exist--or, alternately, that the only way the universe could have "worked" is for it to have been made in a way suitable for us. This generally presupposes evolution as a part of the universe's history, which I don't personally agree with even though I see how people can believe it. Still, the anthropic principle would make an immense amount of sense if we assume the existence of a divine creator. The world would be made in such a way that we would be able to live in it, and the world would be placed in a universe that fits our little wet rock properly--physics and all.
But here's the interesting thing--even if maybe there was only one way for the universe to exist and function, one set of fundamental physics equations that describe it with the constants like gravity and everything worked out, why does it exist at all? Furthermore, why does it continue to exist? What is it that, as I believe Stephen Hawking put it, "breathes fire into the equations" and brings to life a universe that we continue to live in? In my opinion, though of course I don't necessarily demand that you agree with me, this was (and remains) a result of God's action in the world. His continued action, or at least a persistence of whatever he put into place, makes reality exist, and was the thing that put it all into place at the beginning.
Now, according to Genesis God declared that all of creation was good when he first made it. We're doing a fairly good job of messing it up, but we also work at patching things up, as well. So, if perhaps it is this creative action or medium that brought reality into existence in the first place, and continues to sustain it now, could it be that perhaps reiki practitioners are in fact channeling this substance? Could it perhaps be that by acting as conduits to bring this sustaining and life-realizing force into those who are hurt or harmed, we can restore to them more of the goodness that was present at creation? Could this perhaps be how reiki works, even though it involves nothing but one's hands? The possibility intrigues me too much to let it alone.
Now, even amidst all of this remarkably existential blather that I've put forth, reiki may still be itself a load of bunk (albeit very intriguing bunk); it is for this reason that I am investigating it. That being said, simple touch has been shown to be something good for humans; children who are rarely held when young are often less well-adjusted, and they will often cling to others for reassurance. It is considered proper practice for reiki practitioners to try to project love and light and goodness and so forth into what they are doing, and as mentioned before, it seems quite possible that our thoughts affect our surroundings. With these in mind, it is possible that "universal life energy" or no, the practice of reiki can still be something of a mild boon to those who practice and receive it alike.
There are five principles, intended to be recited daily, which were set forth by the creator of reiki (purportedly in part inspired by the writings of past Japanese Emperor Meiji) that also contain useful wisdom. Though individual translations vary, as the Japanese language is primarily ideographic and can be written in a number of ways in other languages, read something like the following:
Just for today:
(1) Be thankful.
(2) Do not worry.
(3) Do not be angry.
(4) Do your work truly.
(5) Be kind to others.

These seem like remarkably sound principles, and are rather aligned with the views I've historically held, along with those in perhaps other worldviews as well. By trying not to worry or be angry, we save ourselves stress, which causes us real damage over time. By being thankful and kind (and again, by not being angry), we center ourselves in the goodness and benevolence which, I would contest, is intended for us by the divine. And by doing our work the best that we can, we accomplish the most we can in this world with the time that we have, which I've described in greater length in past meditations (and will likely do again some day). And they are wrapped up with the preface of "just for today," which seems a lot more manageable to our limited minds than saying "I'll be this way for the rest of my life." Focusing on fulfilling these just one day at a time allows us to manage it until it becomes a habit.

So, regardless of whether reiki does what it claims to do, I do not find any harm in it thus far as a means of augmenting my own spiritual journey in addition to (assuming it does work) perhaps being a way to aid in the healing of myself and others--which is itself a major avocation of mine. Though I do not expect any of you to immediately go out and start learning about the art yourself, I do hope that the principles of the art will be thought-provoking or even helpful to you on your own spiritual journeys.

My best wishes to you as you press onward, one day at a time.