1. What is energy healing to begin with?
Just like we can look at something that exists from the perspective of physics, chemistry or biology, and come up with a different understanding from each perspective while all of them still being right, we can also look at the problems we experience from the perspective of the physical body, the mind and the energy field.
We can find thousands of stories of ‘mind over matter, where people have healed from fatal illnesses through sheer will-power. We may have experienced in our own lives, a significant and unexpected improvement in an illness upon receiving some great news or being visited by someone special.
One unexplored aspect of illnesses is the realm of energy. From the perspective of Quantum physics, everything is ultimately vibration. Illness is simply something that happens when we are stuck in the wrong vibration.
Healing the energetic field is called energy healing.
2. What is Reiki and how old is the practise?
Reiki is a system of healing that originated in Japan exactly a hundred years ago, by a person called Mikao Usui. After several years of self-work, he experienced a transformation after which he found that he was able to heal by touch. Reiki then found its way to the West and today over a million people practice Reiki.
3. What are some of the benefits?
My clients have reported drastic improvements or total resolution in many incurable situations, which could be physical or mental, like asthma, epilepsy, arthritis, chronic back issues, long term depression, to name just a few. Other problems like emotional distress, anger issues, obstacles in relationship or career, etc. The scope is quite vast.
4. What are different ways of healing in Reiki for someone who is interested in pursuing it?
There are over a thousand forms of Reiki healing today, so I believe it is not so much the method or process itself but the authenticity of the teacher and the regularity of one’s self practice which makes the real difference.
It is important to note that during the pandemic, it is not always possible to meet a Reiki healer or teacher in person. However, Reiki healing is definitely as effective online as it is in person, because energy is not limited by space and time. Teaching Reiki online however, is another matter and depends on the experience of the teacher. It took me 15 years of practice to get to a point where I felt that I was able to do online and in person learning with equal justice, so someone with insufficient experience might not be able to deliver on the same level. However, depending on the circumstances, it can certainly be a powerful and life changing experience online.
5. Can Reiki be learnt so that people can heal themselves with self-healing?
Yes, certainly. The beauty of Reiki lies in its simplicity, and it can be learned in one day or a weekend workshop. Self-healing takes about half an hour daily and over the next two to three months, people usually see quite a shift in their physical, mental and emotional stability.
6. How different is Reiki from meditation?
Meditation is the practice of being relaxed in the moment, whereas Reiki is about surrendering to the flow of life and energy. They are not the same and yet are connected, because eventually Reiki makes our lives and minds more meditative. Reiki is easier, requires lesser concentration, and brings faster and better returns on the investment of our time and effort. But more than anything else, Reiki enables you to help the people you love, since you can heal them when they are ill or upset.
7. Could Reiki be considered an alternative therapy and what do you think is the future for Reiki?
It isn’t considered an alternative therapy but a complimentary one, to be used along with other modes of treatment in serious cases. While regular Reiki practice significantly improves immunity and the strength of recovery in the body, the system of Reiki does not advocate discarding other approaches of healing and it is one system which enhances the effectiveness of whatever mode of treatment one chooses.
Many hospitals in USA, Canada and UK employ Reiki practitioners to assist in healing serious ailments. India is yet to adopt the same approach, but more and more scientific studies are now showing the potential of this method of healing so I believe this is only a matter of time.
Our public approach to health for decades now has been to have a lifestyle which damages the body and then wait upon the medical industry to fix it. The pandemic has changed that and people are now starting to realise that prevention of an illness and living healthy offers far better benefits. With Reiki offering such immense benefits with minimal investment, it is already a rapidly growing method for self-healing, and I foresee it becoming much more popular.
– As told to Bushra Rafeek