Reiki at the simplest level is an amazing relaxation and stress reduction technique but at it's most complex, well, I'm not even sure if I know all of what it is at it's most complex, but at a deeper level, it is an energetic healing modality that helps balance the subtle energies of our body. The healing can be physical, emotional, spiritual, ancestral and karmic. The subtle energies that Reiki helps to balance include our chakras, our aura and our own ki or chi. And indeed these energies are very subtle, which can make it difficult for us to grasp them and to grasp reiki.
There is science behind it - all matter is energy, energy is also all around us in forms that we can't even perceive, and since we are made up of different forms of energy too - why wouldn't we be able to use the inherently positive energy from the universe to help rebalance our energies? This is actually deeply connected to Quantum Physics - much of which I intuitively understand but have not studied at any great lengths therefore will not go into that aspect of it, yet anyway!
The intuitive part is the part that doesn't fit into hard science and can easily be discredited by the scientific, pragmatic left brain side. Intuition is that gut feeling you have that tells you "yes, go forward!" or "Nope, run away dear, run fast!" Many of us second guess this part of our being or we are so disassociated from it that we don't even feel it. Often our socialization, our families, our experiences or trauma have created an even further divide between our conscious mind and our intuitive body.
I know I'm always preaching about meditation- but it is a wonderful way to start to reconnect to our intuition. Also, when we are faced with decisions, we can do a "decision meditation" where we sit and get into a meditative state and then bring the decision into our conscious mind and see what our "gut" feeling is. That feeling may be in our gut or it may be in another part of our body, but often it is more of a feeling, the less rational side of things. That "gut" feeling may contradict everything you know and believe but it is your intuition telling you something from a more expansive place. If you find yourself thinking too much or being overly cerebral about it, then you're probably not intuiting.
An example of how my intuition works best is my people meter. There have been now several occasions when I met a friend of a friend (different friends) and had a bad feeling in my gut and sure enough, usually within a short period of time, that person did something pretty bad to the friend. I often second guess the feeling, afraid that I'm being judgemental or not giving them a chance but each time it's been confirmed by actual behaviors. I have also had personal experiences where I just didn't listen to my intuition several times until I finally started to feel badly about a situation. It was only once feeling bad that I realized I kind of knew all along this wasn't going to work out. So there is merit to listening to your intuition and it can save you from unnecessary discomfort!
Intuition can also inform you about some of the goodness in your life or what that goodness is. Listening to intuiton can help us figure out our life passion, what we need to focus in in the present moment for our own wellbeing or the wellbeing of our loved ones! When we have that feeling of inspiration, that is our intuition telling us, "YES!" Whatever has inspired you, your intuition is letting you know that it is for your highest good!!!
**Disclaimer** There is of course a great difference between an adrenalin rush and inspiration. There are some experiences, foods or substances that may give us an adrenalin rush or stimulate us but they may not be good for us... food addiction, smoking, drama, gossip, etc... try to pay attention to the difference!
I really urge anyone I talk with to start to connect with their intuition and use it as part of their decision making information. Don't base an entire decision solely on intuition, especially major ones, but use it in addition to your pros/cons list and the other things you do to make decisions!
Breathe! Smile! Intuite! Trust!
The image for this post is from Simon Howden's profile on Free Digital Photos.
