spiritual healing
The Modern Practice Of Spiritual Healing
In a world driven by science and technology, the value of our spiritual health is rarely recognized or appreciated these days, yet it is an essential aspect of our holistic health and well-being.
The truth is that spiritual healing has been practiced since the beginning of time to promote physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. Our ancestors were much wiser in this regard. They had a holistic view of health and wellness that not only focused on the physical and mental, but also honored the spiritual or metaphysical aspects of our existence.
In ancient Egypt, for example, illness was treated as a battle between good and evil, and magical remedies were used in addition to herbal medicines. In ancient Greece, holism underpinned everything, and the soul, mind, and body were considered one.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, a holistic system practiced for at least 23 centuries, healing is achieved by balancing the yin-yang life force energies that permeate everything in the universe. In the indigenous healing traditions of Native America, holistic health is represented by the four quadrants of the ‘medicine wheel’ or ‘sacred circle,’ namely the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual states of being.
In Christianity, spiritual healing is documented with many references to the healing power of faith and prayer. The Bible also refers to the spiritual gift of healing, and there are several accounts of Jesus performing miraculous healings. In Hinduism, Ayurveda is a five-thousand-year-old Vedic system of medicine that seeks to restore the balance between the body, mind, and spirit.
Crown Chakra Meditation For Mental Health
These days, many people face mental health challenges. In a world where so many demands are placed upon our time and energy, there never seems to be enough time for relaxation and proper self-care. One way to improve one’s mental health and gain greater clarity is to regularly do some energy work focusing on the crown chakra.
The chakras are a system of energy centers that regulate our physical health, mental acuity, and emotional well-being. Chakra (cakra in ancient Sanskrit) means ‘wheel’ and it is essentially a ‘spinning disk’ or vortex of energy. The chakras represent the flow of life force or pranic energy through the mind-body.
There are seven primary or major chakras in the subtle or light body, spanning from the base of the spine up to the crown of the head. Each chakra has its own frequency, symbolism, color, and function. For optimal health and well-being, the chakras should be kept activated, open, balanced and aligned.
The seventh chakra at the crown of the head, also known as sahasrara padma, is the highest of the primary chakras. It is depicted as a 1000-petal lotus flower and represented by the color violet. This chakra is the energy center of our spiritual connection to the divine, from which all the other chakras emanate. The crown chakra is where we connect to God, Goddess, Source, Spirit, the Divine. It is also my experience that it is at the crown where we engage with our guardian angels and spirit guides.
The Basics Of Reiki
Reiki is popular concept in modern spirituality, metaphysics and energy healing. It is therefore good for anyone interested in these fields to have a basic understanding of this technique to engage in discussions with likeminded people in a meaningful way.
The term reiki is a combination of two Japanese words. Rei means ‘divine wisdom’ or ‘divine power,’ and ki means ‘life force energy’ or ‘vital human energy.’ Reiki is therefore a ‘divinely empowered life force.’
Reiki, or rather the system of Reiki, was developed in Japan a century ago by a Buddhist monk known as Mikao Usui. He was a renowned spiritual man who dedicated his life to being of service to others. While seeking spiritual awakening on Mount Kurama, north of the Japanese city of Kyoto, he was divinely inspired with the gift of Reiki. It was introduced to the United States in the late 1930s by Hawayo Hiromi Takata, a Japanese-American woman who received training in Reiki in Tokyo and became a master practitioner.
Although it is more commonly known only as a form of energy healing, true Reiki is in fact a comprehensive spiritual practice and a conscious lifestyle. Yes, it involves the healing of the mind and body, but it also proposes living in total peace with oneself, and being aware of your own unique purpose and spiritual light within. The system of Reiki seeks to remove the layers of fear, worry and attachments that conceal our innate brightness of being.
Protect Yourself From Negative Energy Attachments
A neighbor once asked me to smudge her home and bless it, because she felt there was a lot of negative energy there. She could just ‘feel it.’ People lived below her that she could hear arguing until late hours in the night, using foul language. They would chain smoke too, to the extent that it would rise up through the floorboards. It made her feel sick and caused her to have migraine headaches. Apart from that there were also some old ‘cobwebs’ of trapped negative energy that she wanted me to some and clean out.
She had been dealing with the ups and downs of depression for as long I’ve known her. She is one of the sweetest people you could ever hope to meet, let alone have as a neighbor. She is very kind and always there if you need her. She would be very social at times, inviting friends from church over and entertaining friends regularly, for several weeks, and then she would suddenly feel overwhelmed by the chaos and drama of the people around her, feel drained and depressed, and withdraw from everyone. Then you would not see her for weeks, sometimes months.
I told her I felt that she needed to protect herself energetically and shared with her ways that she can do this. I explained to her that sometimes, when we engage with people, we can pick up some of their negative energies. Even if they are seemingly good people, who go to church and so on, it doesn’t necessarily mean that these people are free from negative energies, or worse, unwanted spirit attachments.
Life Lesson From A Resilient Robin
A few days after I saw a robin attempting to build a nest on a neighbor’s balcony in my apartment building, I spotted another robin with a chest covered in mud. I was thrilled, as I knew this meant a little miracle of life was going to happen. And, it did. Three days later, she laid her clutch of tiny blue eggs in a nest built in a perennial shrub, next to the complex entry way where residents come and go all day.
Her strategy for building the nest in such a busy location became apparent two days after she had laid her eggs. A pack of savage crows descended on the nest, tragically cutting her clutch in half. Unlike the other robins, she had built her nest here so that she could potentially depend on human activity for added protection. Sadly, her plan failed.
Crows are one of the most intelligent bird species on the planet. They know and remember their potential enemies and prey. She may have cleverly built her nest here, hoping to avoid them because there are constantly humans around, but keeping crows away can be a real challenge, because of their intelligence and their adaptability. Things that scare them off at first, soon does not bother them anymore.
The crows were however the least of the strategic robin’s problems. After the crow rampage, the landscaping crew came through the property, using a weed whacker on the shrub where her nest was located. I later found her outside. Assuming she was traumatized and stress-foraging, I felt really sad for her. But she stared at me questioningly, then flew into a tree, while I feebly tried to console her. “All your efforts have been in vain,” I sadly thought while looking at her.
How To Truly Honor Our Departed Loved Ones
I attended a service recently at the local spiritualist centre that I found particularly meaningful. One of the spirit messages channeled by a visiting medium was for a recently bereaved man in the congregation. The grieving gentleman had been dealing with many mixed emotions since the passing of his spouse.
At first the medium provided the man with undeniable evidence that it was indeed his late wife who was making contact. She relayed several factual details and personal memories that only the man and his wife could possibly know of. This was especially evident from the amazed expression on his face in reaction to everything the medium was saying.
The deceased wife then admitted to being somewhat of a ‘firecracker’ during their 50-year marriage. She further confessed that towards the end of her life she had become especially difficult to deal with and said many hurtful things to him. She acknowledged that despite her unkind behavior he consistently remained patient with her and thanked him for his kindness and forbearance.
The man then confirmed that his late wife had suffered a series of mini-strokes that altered her mental state. She had also been prescribed medication that further affected her mood and behavior in a negative way. The wife then asked for his forgiveness and encouraged him to stop focusing so much on the negative memories of their final months together.
“She is asking you to please think more often of your special moments together,” said the medium.
Reflections
Sitting on the porch. Rocking. Yes, rocking in my willow rocking chair, surrounded by the smell of petrichor – that delightful odor the earth gifts us with when fresh rain is coming down after a long, dry spell. The aroma of the freshly hung chile ristras greets me in the Santa Fe, New Mexico tradition at this time of year, when the growing season is done and the picking of the season’s ripe offerings has begun. Richness abounds with the aromas of the petrichor and the strung pods of red chile blending in the softness of the evening breeze.
The automatic flood light and the blue laser lights have come on, as they do every day at dusk, to illuminate the waterfall in the garden, although it’s still a bit early for them to shine their brightest. Not quite dark enough yet, but soon it will be. I just fed my precious four-legged fur daughter her dinner. Now that my day is done and another week has gone by, I am contemplating whether or not I have done well this week.
Yes, I believe so! I have learned so much and have grasped many new concepts. I also renewed my awareness of some familiar concepts that were in need of repetition, so I could complete some hard earned lessons. And I found resolution to some newer viewpoints on old issues. Whew! I feel I’ve been turned wrong side out in just one week, only to realize it is the other way around. I was wrong-side-out before. Now I’m right-side-in, or more so at least.
I look up from my musings to see the lights. It is dark now and they’re shining brightly against the dark night sky. The lasers look like blue fireflies as they pinpoint their magical presence. The synchronicity feels deeply significant. At the end of another week, after much breaking down of old thought patterns, I see the flood light and laser lights reflecting the realization that I am different now than last week, or at any time before.