The Reiki Digest for February 14, 2007: O! Reiki on the Radar!

O!

Last week, when we explored the power of focused attention, there was one effective means of focusing the attention of millions that we neglected to mention. She appeared in one of this year's Super Bowl commercials, sitting in David Letterman's lap. This week, she turned her attention to so-called alternative medicine, and that's how Reiki showed up as a tiny blip on the screen of Oprah's radar. Whether you prefer champagne or sparkling cider, it's time to break out the bubbly, because Oprah Winfrey is one of the world's most powerful lenses for focusing people's attention. It's time to celebrate!

Every author, every publicist, anybody with a cause or a product to sell dreams of being noticed by Oprah, because when she takes notice, millions of her viewers, readers, and listeners also take notice.

So when a fellow Reiki Master let me know yesterday that she'd heard Dr. Mehmet Oz mention Reiki on Oprah's show, I scheduled my television box to record the rerun of the program at 1 o'clock this morning. It's a good thing I did, because if I hadn't been able to rewind and play through the segment several times, I might have missed it entirely.

I knew Dr. Oz was aware of Reiki because months ago, a new subscriber told me that Dr. Oz had mentioned The Reiki Digest on his satellite radio program. But I didn't expect the resounding endorsement he gave to energy medicine yesterday. Here's an excerpt from Oprah's web site:

"...It's not just about acupuncture," Dr. Oz says. "The reason I'm so excited and passionate about alternative medicine is … [because it is] the globalization of medicine."

Alternative medicines, Dr. Oz says, deal with the body's energy—something that traditional Western medicine generally does not. "We're beginning now to understand things that we know in our hearts are true but we could never measure," he says. "As we get better at understanding how little we know about the body, we begin to realize that the next big frontier … in medicine is energy medicine.

And here's my own transcript:

[Oprah bravely allows an acupuncturist to put needles in her hand and foot, but has to break for a commercial before getting a full treatment. After the break, she and Dr. Oz talk about acupuncture and more.]

Oz: ...But let's broaden the discussion, because it's not just about acupuncture. The reason I'm so excited and passionate about alternative medicine is because, you know, Oprah, this show is watched all over the world.

Oprah: Yes.

Oz: We have questions today from other continents.

Oprah: Yes.

Oz: So we have global media. We have global banking: you can go put your bank card in a bank machine anywhere in the world and get cash back in their currency.

Oprah: So why shouldn't there be global medicine?

Oz: Bingo!

Oprah: Bingo!

Oz: And alternative medicine is the globalization of medicine.

Oprah: Are you saying that medical science is more open to alternatives?

Oz: Ironically, it's more open because we're beginning to catch up. Let's take energy as an example.

Oprah: Energy.

Oz: Acupuncture at its very foundation is tapping into meridians of energy we can't actually see. When I look at you out there, I actually see beams of light. That's what we're all about. It's what defines life, is energy. A cell is defined as being alive if the membrane around it separates the energy on the inside from the energy on the outside. You put those cells together, into an organ, the heart, the heart has to have energy. Those organs in the body have to give up energy. So at the end of the day, Reiki, Therapeutic Touch, and prayer, all deal with energy.

Oprah: I was going to ask you about prayer. This is amazing, because I've been doing this show a long time, and I would say 10 years ago, I couldn't have gotten a doctor in America to say what you just said.

Oz: As we get better at understanding how little we know about the body, we begin to realize that the next big frontier is energy medicine.

Oprah: Because we're all energy. Isn't that exciting? I think that's exciting. Very exciting.

From your lips to the world's ears, Oprah. And Oprah, if you'd ever like a Reiki session, on or off the air, we've got hundreds of Reiki practitioners standing by.

Meanwhile, we'll do our part by naming Oprah Winfrey this week's Celeb-Reiki.

Speaking of globalization, please welcome our new readers in the Czech Republic, Oman, and Guatemala. The Reiki Digest now reaches 44 countries.

The focus of this week's edition is not attention, however, but intention. Reiki Master Jean Bromage covered that subject in her Reiki Symposium presentation on candles last month. For those who weren't able to attend, we asked Jean to write about it. Here is her article:

Reiki, Candles, and Intention

By Jean Bromage

The Candle Workshop at the Reiki Symposium generated some interesting discussions and was received with much enthusiasm. First we talked about how candles help to draw in a great sense of spirit, which is one of the reasons they have a long history of being used in different spiritual and religious practices. We also discussed how they are used to support us in our day-to-day lives whether it’s for a celebratory gathering or some relaxation time at home. We then went on to discuss how one of the things that makes candles so unique when used in our Reiki and meditation practices is the fact that candles transform themselves from the tangible earth plane to the spiritual ether plane as they burn. The tradition of making a wish before blowing out the candles on a birthday cake is an example of how our requests to the spirit world can be transported through candles. So when we channel Reiki into a candle with a clear intention, we are creating a highly charged focus and a great sense of empowerment as we experience the candle’s transformation into the spirit plane.

We then went on to talk about how the shape, color and scent of a candle can also help support and bring clarity to the intention we are setting for our candle. For example, if you are asking spirit to help bring energy to a situation in your life that has stagnated, then a bright colored red, orange or yellow candle with an uplifting citrus or energizing herbal scent might be what you’d choose for the candle you want to burn during your meditation or Reiki session. If you’re asking for the energy to help ground or stabilize a situation, then perhaps a square shaped candle would be a good choice, but if your intention is to move the flow of energy, then something rounded would be more appropriate. It was also noted that if you use a scented candle for a Reiki session with a client, make sure you have their permission first. Some people have allergies or reactions to certain scents.

Of all the candle elements we discussed during the workshop, color was the topic we talked about the most. Everyone has different experiences with color as well as different traditional uses in their culture. For example, red can be energizing for one person but cause an angry reaction for someone else. I told the story of the gigantic, bright orange butterfly who visited my candle display at the flea market last summer and how that 5 minute visit transformed the energy of the day not just for me, but for everyone who had experienced her joyful presence. The vibration of smooth flowing abundance came over the market and I smiled to myself as I witnessed this because orange has always been a color that for me personally resonates both joy and abundance. We concluded our color discussion by asking ourselves when we gravitate to a specific color, is it because it resonates a quality or resource that is already accessible to us? Or is it because there is something in our life that needs support from the vibration of that color? Experiencing color in our day-to-day lives is a real gift from Mother Nature, especially when we are aware of its presence and how it influences us.

After a meditation that used the candle as a metaphor for our own inner wisdom, beauty, and strength, the workshop concluded with an intention setting exercise. Everyone chose a candle from a variety of colors, scents and shapes. Then we each wrote down on a slip of paper a personal intention. As a group, we took a moment to call in the Reiki energy. We then sandwiched the intention slip and candle between our hands and asked the Reiki energy to support the intention on the slip of paper. Those who had studied Reiki II and above used the sandwich technique, silently calling in the Reiki symbols, and those trained in Reiki I simply focused on sending the Reiki to their intention. As we prepared for this exercise, the discussion of intention setting got very interesting. We talked about the importance of asking for what we want instead of what we don’t want. Also, the question of asking for something that is beyond our control came up. The consensus in the end was that the desired outcomes of many situations in life aren’t completely in our hands and Reiki can be a huge help for supporting those situations as long as we don’t become overly attached to the outcome. Our desires evolve as we travel along our spiritual journey, and remaining open and receptive to how the universe responds to our requests is an important tool for our own personal growth. The other conversation that came up with the intention setting exercise was the question of asking for materialistic things. This is an issue that comes up for many of us who are on a spiritual journey. One really great point made was to ask how are the materialistic things we seek going to support and/or be an outward expression of our personal life’s journey and co-creation process? We took our time as we channeled the Reiki into our candles and as the exercise progressed, I asked everyone to also focus on how their intention looks and feels to them. If it’s a goal, how does it feel to already have it accomplished? If it’s a challenge, how does the transformation of that challenge look and feel? In taking our time to let our intentions be experienced as feelings as well as thoughts, we are actually helping to move along the co-creation process.

One last thing I want to share about the intention setting exercise is that this is something that can also be done when giving someone a candle as a gift, as long as you know the intention being set is something that the receiver wants. An example is when a friend mine was having trouble with a noisy neighbor. I gave her a candle I had made and infused with Reiki and told her that I asked for the Reiki to help bring peace and quiet into her home. You can also channel Reiki into candles being used in a specific event, such as a celebration. For example, if there is someone special you are spending a candlelight dinner with on Valentine’s Day, why not channel a little bit of Reiki into the candles, asking for the loving energy of the universe to bless your evening together?

Thanks, Jean.

With that pleasant image in mind, we'll bring this week's edition to a conclusion. The Reiki Roundup will be back next week, along with another report from the Reiki Symposium.

Our final item is a two-for-one, since we left out the usual link to The Reiki Show podcast last week.

Last week's Reiki Show was about Reiki and recovering from brain injury, and this week's is about connecting with the Reiki kanji through calligraphy.

And remember, The Reiki Digest now comes in a printable, portable PDF edition. Click here to download this week's issue.