The weekly waka

This flower--
its beauty brings joy
to my wife,
whose smile brings me joy--
who gives? Who receives?


Overturned
rusted bicycle
attended
by two white-haired men,
kneeling in light rain.


Do I mourn
the vanished spring moon
or the hand
that lifted my chin
that I might see it?

By Bart Mallio

To submit your waka, send it in an email to waka@thereikidigest.com. Please include the words "waka submission" in the subject line.

Reiki and the reporter

By Beth Lowell

One day a few months back, I spoke to the pet reporter for a local family oriented publication about Reiki for animals. The first question the reporter asked me was whether Reiki was energy medicine. I paused for a moment, and then told her the honest truth. I wasn’t quite sure what the term “Energy Medicine” means. I told her that indeed, many refer to Reiki as energy medicine, but that people also refer to acupuncture as energy medicine. I’m not an expert in acupuncture, but I do know it’s not the same thing as Reiki. I told her that using terms like “Energy Medicine” when describing Reiki to people who are unfamiliar with either term really didn’t help explain it, and that I preferred to talk about Reiki in terms of what I know about Reiki, not in terms of a vague and general label (that I used to use myself even though I had only a nebulous idea of what I think it means).

This seemed to derail her slightly. “So then, what is Reiki?” she asked. I told her it was a relaxation technique. She audibly sighed. Finally, after a few more false starts, we got into what I thought was the meat of the interview.

I explained the benefits of Reiki, and its appropriateness at all stages of life, how its balancing qualities could assist in helping resolve both behavioral and physical issues, and offer comfort to both pet and owner at the end of a pet’s life. I gave her specific examples from my experience in working with dogs, cats, and horses, many of whom were terminally ill. I highlighted the fact that my vet has recommended several clients to me, indicating a growing acceptance of Reiki among the veterinary community. I explained the mechanics of a Reiki treatment and the difference in treatments for humans and animals.

Things seemed to be going well. The reporter had loosened up. We were having a real conversation now. I got slightly off track. I think it had something to do with Reiki assisting in behavioral issues. I mentioned an incident that had happened at my house only weeks before, when our dog trainer Nicole came to visit.

It’s a complicated story and involves a common and unpleasant behavioral issue called redirected aggression. In short, one animal becomes agitated by an outside stimulus, often another animal or some other threat behind a barrier such as a fence or window, and unable to control herself, takes out her frustration/aggression on the closest person or animal. This is common among dogs and cats. Many of the sweetest animals suffer from this affliction. My dog Bella is one of them. My other dog Dasher has learned to steer clear of her if I’m not in the room when such situations arise.

When Nicole came to the house, we were working through it using a positive training technique. Bella was responding superbly. She behaved nicely when Nicole came and pounded on the door and rang the bell. She listened and obeyed despite watching several dogs walking on our lawn in full view through the glass storm door. But then, the UPS truck arrived. Bella lost her composure and leapt to the couch as if all Hell had broken loose.

Seeing Bella’s agitated state firsthand, Nicole could see how I’d found it difficult, if not impossible to follow her suggested protocol of wordlessly and calmly guiding Bella off the couch by the collar when certain stimuli became too much for her. Since neither calm commands nor gentle force seemed an option, Nicole, knowing that I’m a Reiki practitioner, suggested doing the only other thing she could think of - offering Reiki. So amid the hysteria (Dasher had fled upstairs to escape possible attack) I offered Reiki.

Bella’s frantic barking continued until the UPS truck pulled away. I continued offering Reiki and Bella settled. I used this technique once more when a particularly evil (in Bella’s mind) dog appeared on the block. This time she seemed slightly better.

I laughed then and mentioned to the reporter that since then, Bella seemed to run to attack her blanket (with quite a disturbing vengeance, I might now add) rather than going after Dasher. Realizing that I’d gotten off track, and that I really didn’t want to use my dog as an example in such a way, I tried to recover and I hastened to add that trainers, too, recognized the value of Reiki.

We concluded the interview and thanked each other. I was anxious to see the article.

The good news was my hard work in communicating Reiki paid off. Despite paraphrasing much of what I said into words I’d never actually use, 99% of what the reporter wrote about Reiki was accurate. The ‘other’ news was – well, let’s just say that the reporter had finally found her angle in Bella’s story. What she heard was not quite what I had said. For instance, now Bella runs calmly to her blanket to lie down instead of attacking Dasher, thanks to the fact that my dog trainer told me to offer my dogs Reiki daily.

I’ve got the communicating Reiki part down. Now if I could just manage to communicate everything else as clearly, I’d be set.

My Teacher's Voice

By Susan Mitchell

"Let Reiki teach you." Hawayo Takata said it in different ways, and it's one of the phrases I heard her say most often. Even today, next to "Reiki on, Reiki off," I'm sure it's the most frequently quoted. It remains my favorite.

In part, the words are poignant for me. I was quite young in Reiki when Hawayo Takata died so I didn't have a teacher to turn to as questions arose in my practice. While I talked with my husband and friends who'd also learned Reiki from Takata, none of us had practiced long. At that point, we only had Reiki as our teacher. In my own mind, the words were a kind of consolation. We weren't orphaned; we had Reiki to teach us. Sometimes, I also heard these words as a gift from Takata--I may be gone but "Reiki will teach you."

Her words suggest the importance of creating a relationship with Reiki--for how can I be taught, if I am never with the teacher. It needs to be a relationship that grows out of experience. I only know Reiki through treating myself and other people and being treated. I've come to see my practice like a relationship with an intimate friend. No matter what other people may tell you about someone, you only really know them by being with them. Intimacy, understanding, appreciation, all grow with time.

If we let Reiki teach us, the voice of this teacher flows out of the practice. We can give up the driving need for control. When we place our hands on ourselves or someone else, we're connected with the very essence of life. Although we can forget our place, we do know we're not wiser than the essence of life.

Expectations and attachment to outcome, which is so often tied to our attachment to the person we're treating or our own need for praise or being seen as important, eases as we experience our place in the order of life--not most important but equal in importance with all life. Ease, peace, contentment (not complacency) are the results.

To know the ways of this friend and teacher requires attention and mindfulness because the voice can be subtle. While results are sometimes dramatic, the gradual changes that happen over time may be the most transformative. Reiki nurtures and nourishes us so that we're able to recognize and gradually release the knots that tie us up, freeing our hearts and minds.

"Let Reiki teach you" has been a call, a reminder, sometimes even a summons for me to appreciate the gift I've been given and aspire to be a worthy student.

(This article was originally published in the June 2010 issue of the Reiki Heals e-zine.)

Living the healing lifestyle

By Beth Lowell

Writers are familiar with the saying, “If you’re thinking about writing, you’re not writing.” While this may be so for writers who use thinking about writing as an excuse for procrastination, it’s not true for all writers. Prolific author Joyce Carol Oates, for instance, thinks each of her books entirely through before sitting down to write.

Can this same concept be applied to Reiki? You might argue that Reiki is not like writing and that thinking about Reiki is not really practicing it. But I think this is not always so.

Recently, I remembered an experience I had at an old job. I’d been working steadily for weeks, trying to complete a project with an aggressive deadline. Five days before the project was due, my boss informed me that the client had forgotten to include a key component, which would double the amount of work on the project, and that they’d like to have that by the deadline too. I was angry, stressed, frustrated and overwhelmed. I told our editor that I just didn’t see how I could get the work done. I was exhausted.

The editor told me that I needed to take a break, and not to worry. The job would get done. That was easy for her to say. I grumbled that I didn’t see either relaxing or finishing the job on time as a possibility. Nevertheless, I had to admit I felt so much better after talking to her. I took the break, and I finished the job by the deadline.

I realized back then that there was something different about the editor from everyone else at the small company where we worked. Everyone wanted to work with her. Everyone said how nice she was. But it wasn’t really that she was just “nice”. It was her calm way of being that attracted so many people to her, especially in such a stressful work environment. When I got to know her a little better, I understood that her centeredness, her groundedness, and her sheer grace were supported by a longstanding meditation practice. I don’t know if she practiced Reiki or not, but she sure did embody the precepts.

Years later, in a Reiki class, I learned that Usui’s system was originally based on the precepts only and that the hands-on healing part of what was to become known as the system of Reiki was just a side effect. I accepted what I was taught, but I couldn’t understand the leap from the precepts to hands-on healing. As time passed and I thought about it though, I realized how healing focusing on the precepts alone can be. I thought of the editor, and others I’ve known who could so deeply affect those around them, just by their way of being, and how the slightest gesture on their part, like a touch on the shoulder, could be so healing to others.

Hands-on healing is no doubt a valuable tool that Reiki practitioners can access at almost any time and place, but contemplating the precepts, Reiki’s cornerstone, also counts, in which case, I say that if you really think about it, you probably practice Reiki more than you realize.

In the Reiki room

By Julie Goodale



As I wrote in my last post, I volunteered last Sunday at the Manhattan JCC for Spa Day, offering around 150 women with breast or ovarian cancer a half-day of wellness activities. The first part of my Spa Day volunteering was spent offering Reiki to the participant.

Reiki is a healing practice that helps promote balance of mind, body, and spirit. It is a completely gentle, non-invasive treatment. It does not directly address any specific symptoms, but rather balances your system. There is nothing about Reiki treatment that can interfere with medical care; Reiki has been given to patients during chemotherapy treatments or surgery. Some commonly reported benefits of Reiki treatment include relaxation, reduced pain, improved sleep, reduced anxiety, and reduced side effects from medicines and cancer treatments.

The Reiki room was run by Pamela Miles, a New York-based Reiki master. Pamela has worked with numerous doctors and hospitals to integrate Reiki into more traditional medical practices. She ran a Reiki program for AIDS patients through the Gay Men's Health Crisis, has treated surgery patients at several New York hospitals, and is the author of "Reiki: A Comprehensive Guide". Pamela has also been featured on the Dr. Oz Show talking about Reiki.

I went to Pamela last year for a treatment and was so interested and excited about it that the following week I took her Reiki training class. Since then, I practice Reiki on myself every day (well, almost), and have offered treatment to friends. I've also taken part in a couple group Reiki events with Pamela.

I have a strong belief in our ability to help our bodies. There is much we can do to help our bodies heal and be healthier. I also believe in conventional medicine; we have a lot of very strong treatments and procedures that can save our lives. What I like about Reiki is it that it can work with conventional treatments. It's complementary, not alternative! If I'm facing a powerful disease, I want all the tools available to fight it. I don't want to limit myself.

I also have a streak of skepticism in me. I want proof; I want to understand why. After practicing Reiki for a year, I'm not sure I understand why yet. But I know I feel better when I do it. And I know I feel worse if I don't. The skeptic in me says: maybe it's just that you sit quietly for 20 minutes or an hour. Maybe, but if that's all it is, is that bad? Maybe the why doesn't matter so much.

Few of the women on Sunday had any previous experience with Reiki. Whether they were curious, enthusiastic or skeptical, they filed in, laid down on the tables, and put themselves in our hands. In pairs, we offered 20 minutes of Reiki. Whatever their feelings before Reiki, I didn't see a single woman who wasn't grateful for how she felt after Reiki.

Editor's note: This article appeared originally on Julie's blog, fitness for survivors.

The weekly waka

Reiki

Focus, Compassion,
Connection...shine your Bright Light!
This is the Essence,
This is the Way of Reiki,
The Path to Enlightenment!

by Colin Powell

Sunbeams

Misty morning fog
Snuffs out midtown Manhattan
Delicate sunbeams
Slide down pale angel ladders
Bright baubles on the Hudson


Moment

Dancing on two legs
Straining against their leashes
Young puppies whimper
Beg to meet sniff jump play run
Delighting in the moment

by budo adana

To submit your waka, send it in an email to waka@thereikidigest.com. Please include the words "waka submission" in the subject line.

Do not worry

By Zeynep Yilmaz

No wonder “Just for today- Do not Worry “ is the second Reiki precept. We all worry about different things at different stages of our lives; about tests, our jobs, a financial crisis or a health issue. Our worries are linked to the fear of an unknown future and our perceived lack of ability to cope with it. If we put them in perspective, most of our worries are a “what if” scenario that nine out of ten times won’t happen; however the fear in our minds is very real. If you have no worries, no fear of the future, then congratulations! You are one of the select few who don’t have any attachments or one of the few who can completely surrender and trust the higher power, higher plan, or universe. Mastering this is extremely difficult. For those of us who are not completely free, and those of us who fall into the trap of fear, worry and anxiety, here are few suggestions that can help deal with worry:

First of all, recognize worry and accept it. Recognize that we are all human beings and as long as we live in this world, we are not free. We have desires, expectations, and attachments that create a fear of separation; a fear of separation from our dreams, life styles, family, job, or health that can trigger our worries.

Accept your emotions. Don’t beat yourself up. Focus on your worries (without clinging to them too much) so you can better understand their root causes and inner repercussions. Let’s say you’re worried about your health. Ask yourself why. You might think, “I’m scared there is an undiagnosed disease”, “My health might fail anytime”, or “I might die”.

After you recognize your worry and the root fear underlying it, accept it and make a decision to free yourself from that fear. The most important decision that you need to come back to again and again when dealing with your worry is your determination to neutralize the fear!

Take action. Ask yourself if there is anything you can do. If you are worrying about a test or an interview, make a plan for how you can best prepare for it. Make a study plan or find resources to help you.

Visualize yourself coping with what is worrying you. First of all, smile. It’s hard to worry with a smile on your face. Then visualize yourself completing the test, the relief after a successful interview, or having a completely healthy body. Send Reiki to that image and let that be so. Remember the rule of attraction: Your thoughts are energy and what you think is what you attract.

Remove unwanted belief systems. Worries are sometimes based on negative beliefs about life like that life is tough or that you need to struggle to earn money, or if you laugh too much, sad things will happen. EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) works very well in these situations. I also got an excellent tip from Finding your own North Star. This book suggests doing something different every time you indulge in the unwanted habit or worry, like squatting, or saying a strange word to help you break the habit.

Breathe and say affirmations. If the worrisome situation comes with prolonged uncertainty, or is life threatening for you or a loved one, it’s better to keep the mind busy with positive thoughts so that the mind won’t engage or become entrapped with negative ones. Here are some examples of affirmations:

I trust. Inhale, say “I” and open up yourself up, feel as if your whole being is opened up to whole Universe. Exhale, say “trust”. Inhale again, and suck up that trust into your very being. Exhale and accept deeply in your consciousness that you trust with your whole being. Accept deeply that you trust this system, universe, God, creator, your life plan, and that the outcome of your situation will be for your utmost good.

I am light. Inhale, say “I am” and feel your whole being expanding into the universe. Exhale, say “light”, and imagine drawing Reiki in the form of light from the universe into your very being. Imagine yourself lighten up with the power and light of the universe.

I accept myself the way I am/ I love myself the way I am. Feel a deep acceptance of your fears, worries and anxiety and your whole being as you are.

I am surrounded with everything I need. Feel a deep trust that you are surrounded with divine power and love and you have everything you need to tackle the situation.

I am completely healthy. You can also be more specific, for example: The tumor is benign. In your mind’s eye, imagine yourself being completely healthy. You can use your breathing, inhaling “I am”, and exhaling a deep trust and belief that you are completely healthy. You can send Reiki to this image in your mind.

I give up all negative thoughts, I am all positive. Imagine opening yourself up and offering up your negative thoughts with each inhalation to a higher power and exhaling in pure light.

Praying is a powerful way to deal with worries. Pray to God, the universe or any higher power that you believe in. Imagine that you are being loved, cared and fully supported throughout these troubled times.

Stop pitying yourself and try to continue with your life. Write down a to-do list, a list of all the things you want to achieve or change once you get out of the situation. Don’t wait until you are out of the woods to start getting to it.

Watch funny movies and try to keep smiling. It’s harder to be negative with a smiling face.

Do nice things for others. This opens your heart and reminds you that you are not alone but connected to everyone else.

Express your worries by writing. Writing can be very healing.

If you feel like you can’t deal with your worries, reach out to talk to your family, friends, therapists and ask for help.

Remember that everything happens for a reason. It might be time for you to work on the root cause. Louise Hay’s book, You Can Heal Your Life, is a good guide for finding out some of the root causes of problems. Work with a good therapist to help you realize the root causes.

Go back and revisit what you’ve learned from this experience, be thankful and move on. Earth is a laboratory for us to experiment with how we can give up our attachments and surrender. It might be hard at first to be thankful for something that causes us so much trouble but ten years from now you’ll see how much you’ve learned from it.

May we all reach a stage where we can live completely worry-free.

Calling all Australian Reiki practitioners!

An invitation from John Coleman, president of the Australian Reiki Connection:

ARC 2010 National Reiki Conference

Theme: Integration of Reiki as a Complementary Therapy into Mainstream Health Care and Community Settings

Saturday 9th –Sunday 10th October 2010
Pre-registration and welcome reception Friday 8th October 6.30pm

Rydges on Swanston 701 Swanston Street Melbourne Australia VIC 3053

for everyone who has an interest in an integrative and holistic approach to health care and who believes in putting the patient first


Whereas Reiki is a complementary therapy that works alongside all other modalities, there is widespread misunderstanding that Reiki is an alternative therapy and as such is competing with conventional medicine.



Conference Objectives:

· To further the process of having Reiki as a complementary therapy integrated into mainstream health care and community settings.

· Raising the awareness and benefits of Reiki as a complementary therapy, in these facilities and with relevant government departments.

· Update professional Reiki Practitioners on some of facilities in Australia where Reiki is being used.

· Demonstrate that by working together, we can create better health for all.

· Demonstrate how professional Reiki treatment practitioners can play a key role in the process.

· Raise awareness that this integration of Reiki is already happening, with beneficial outcomes for patients, which in turn has positive beneficial outcomes for the healthcare system and Professional Reiki Practitioners.

· How you can play a key role in the ongoing process of promulgating Reiki in the community.

· Network with other Reiki Practitioners, allied health care workers and share our knowledge and experience

· Demonstrate the importance of caring for the carer

· Demonstrate how recent trends that are supporting the move to a wellness paradigm and its implications for healthcare of the future.

· Show eight years of evidence in providing Reiki for cancer patients in a major teaching hospital

· How animals also benefit from Reiki

· How hospital rooms can be transformed into spaces where people can engage in an experience that helps alleviates their anxiety, stress and pain


Who will benefit from attending this event?

· Practitioners of complementary medicine and therapies.

· GPs, Clinical specialist, Nurses, Oncologists and other allied health professionals.

· Academics in health care disciplines and researchers

· Medical administrators and Policy makers.

· Students of medicine, nursing, allied health professions and complementary therapies.



There are many changes taking place in Australia for complementary therapies including Reiki, new regulations and requirements are being introduced that affect Practitioners and how they deal with the public. We all need to be aware of these and how we can continue the ongoing process of maintaining self regulation rather than Government imposed regulation.

This conference is of immense importance, as it will provide an opportunity to help shift the emphasis from one of defense, justification and attempting to find scientific proof for Reiki(although we should continue with research) to one of offense, validation and patient/client proof.

Conference organizers are proud and honored to have a range of eminent speakers (click here) who will bring a powerful message to attendees, among them the internationally renowned Professor Marc Cohen.

Here is what Professor Cohen says about his presentation:

"The world is currently facing a series of crises that suggest a new paradigm for operating in the world is needed. In healthcare this will mean moving from an illness model that focuses on a medical industry that deals with pain and established diseases to a wellness model that embraces joy and fulfillment from life and deals with lifestyle and preventive measures. It has been said that "the currency of wellness is connection' and this can be applied to our connection between ourselves and our community and environment as well as connection between practitioners and patients and between practitioners from different disciplines".

Professor Cohen’s presentation will discuss recent trends that are supporting the move to a wellness paradigm and its implications for health care of the future.


Here is an abstract of what another of our eminent speakers, Molly Carlile, has to say about her presentation:


"As contemporary, mainstream healthcare now speaks the language of holism (theoretically at least) it is timely for complementary therapies along with the expressive arts to 'come out of the closet' and stand proud alongside the traditional medical disciplines as valid contributors to holistic health and wellness…The time has come for us to stand in the light, to name what we do and to be prepared to put our modalities to the same rigorous scrutiny applied to all other therapeutic interventions".

Molly’s presentation will explore the essential components required for complementary therapies including Reiki, becoming accepted as part of the mainstream health model.


The rising tide of chronic disease and conditions, a growing elderly population, combined with massive hospital budget blowouts are a fact of life for all Australians and indeed for all nationalities. These and other forces will continue to affect the healthcare system for the foreseeable future.

What can we do to help ease this? No one solution can work in isolation.

The only sustainable answer is for ALL of us to work together, put aside our differences and open our minds to what is known to work “for the patient” which in turn works for the system.

We need to put together an Integrated Health Care system where patients are treated as individuals not a mere collection of symptoms, where we acknowledge that body, mind and spirit interact and that what effects one affects all three.

Integrated Health Care promotes health and wellbeing by bringing together the best in conventional and complementary medicine to achieve balance in all the factors that contribute to maintaining or improving optimal health.

Reiki has an important and vital role in this.

More importantly we need to give more respect to and empower patients, so that they can play a central role in their own health care.


What is Integrated Health?

Here is what the Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health in the UK had to say on the subject:


Responsibility for our health isn't something we can continue to simply delegate to doctors and medicine. Most aspects of health are a reflection of the way we live our whole lives - aside of course from the genetic lottery or the misfortune of succumbing to infection (and even then, our lifestyles affect the robustness of our immune system).


Factors like fulfilling work, strong communities, the buildings we live in, our relationship with the natural world and the food we eat directly affect our wellbeing. So the first step in integrated health is helping people to make choices that keep them well and out of the healthcare system.


But once somebody is ill, treating their problem with an integrated approach means bringing together mainstream medical science with the best of other traditions. Complementary interventions may range from stress reduction techniques to therapies like acupuncture or nutritional therapy and Reiki.


Integrated health is a response to the changing patterns of disease in the early 21st century. It recognizes that sudden illnesses – a broken leg, an acute infection – can now be dealt with fairly swiftly by the health service, and cure is often possible. The patients now taking up around 80% of the time and resources of the health service are those experiencing a slow slide into chronic conditions such as allergies, back pain, stress or heart disease. Unaddressed, these illnesses can accumulate into crippling conditions.


The answer to this kind of illness rarely lies in taking tablets alone, but rather in addressing lives in the round. This can often call for lateral thinking on the part of practitioners, finding innovative ways to bring people back to health.


We know too that empowerment is good for patients. Research is starting to reveal that when patients are equal partners (with the health professionals they see) in the management of their own health, it can actually have an effect on their 'clinical outcomes' - helping them to get better and stay as well as they can.


Of course, even the most fortunate person will in the end experience the effects of degeneration, old age and approaching death. So finally, integrated health looks beyond physical health to the factors that can give us solace, courage and dignity in difficult times.


This approach presents challenges for the general public and healthcare practitioners. Patients cannot just wait passively for others to find solutions. Doctors have to listen to their patients and seek more creative solutions – often working in a very constrained timeframe. And a host of other people – from town planners, food manufacturers to complementary health care therapists– has to acknowledge the important role they play in the health of others.


It’s a big idea. It’s complex. It often calls for unlikely alliances. However, there is a growing group of people who are putting integrated health into practice.

In Australia the Australian Reiki Connection Inc. (ARC) a nationally incorporated not for profit Reiki association, run by members for members, since 1997 is one such group.

For further details on this exciting event:

Phone: 1300 130 975

E-mail: information@australianreikiconnection.com.au




Website : www.australianreikiconnection.com.au

Reiki add-ons

By Beth Lowell


Recently, I participated in an online discussion about using other healing methods as “add-ons” to Reiki. For the discussion’s sake, aromatherapy was used as an example. Because of the rapid fire nature of online conversations and the speed with which we multitask, time for thorough contemplation isn’t always an option.

During this particular conversation, I offered the comment that I personally would not combine aromatherapy with Reiki, but I wasn’t sure why.

After the discussion had ended, I came to this conclusion: Reiki, by its very nature, addresses the recipient, rather than a symptom. The use of essential oils in aromatherapy is largely to target specific conditions. This doesn’t mean that aromatherapy and Reiki can’t be used together, but I think the question becomes, what’s the add-on – Reiki, or aromatherapy?

For myself, I think if Reiki were the primary modality, using another method that treats a symptom might cause me to develop an expectation for an outcome. Perhaps just putting an essential oil that promotes relaxation, like lavender, on one’s hands before a Reiki treatment is not the same as applying an oil to treat a specific condition, but a Reiki treatment is so relaxing, I’m not sure it needs help. On the other hand, if I choose to use aromatherapy to address a condition first, then Reiki becomes a wonderful way to support that method.

The distinction is important for those who offer more than one service to clients, and reinforces the importance of clarifying to clients what the difference in purpose and intention for using each method is. Often clients who know nothing about Reiki are referred to me, so it’s important to help them understand what it is that Reiki can do to help them or their animals as opposed to a different method, for instance, massage. And while I can certainly use Reiki to support massage, I would obviously never incorporate massage into a Reiki treatment.

I don’t think it’s a question of right or wrong when it comes to using multiple healing methods at the same time, but I think being clear in one’s practice, and explaining the details to clients is important so that they can understand the implications of each and make informed decisions about the care that they choose to receive for themselves and their animals, as well as explain it to others. After all, how can they give you a good recommendation if they can’t really explain what it is that you do?

What an honor! Please vote for us!

The Reiki Digest has been nominated by our readers for a 201 Top Medical Blog Award in the Inspirational category. Thank you! We're not exactly all that medical, but we do like being called inspirational. And having been nominated, now we need your votes. Please click below to give us your support:

The winners will be announced on June 22, 2010:


Brought to you by: Medical Billing and Coding
 

Music we love to practice Reiki by: Reiki Healing Music Ensemble

We can't tell you much about the Reiki Healing Music Ensemble except that their album, Reiki Music, has just been released on iTunes. With tracks such as "Palm Healing," "Do Not Worry," "The Flow" and "In Your Hands," it's clear that whoever they are, they're definitely familiar with Reiki. Click on the button to listen and find out more.

Thanks as always to our sponsor, iTunes, for helping us keep the music, and the enegy, flowing.

The weekly waka

The sun
despite all sorrow
and fear
is still shining
the clouds but an illusion

By Beth Lowell

Just for today, be grateful

Editor's note: For those who are not familiar with the Reiki precept about gratitude, many versions of the Reiki precepts include a reference to gratitude, and sometimes "be humble" is translated as "be grateful".

By Zeynep Yilmaz





There are so many things to be grateful for in life, but can you be grateful if your daughter has a severe brain disorder and is having 150 seizures day? Can you? Seriously?

It was the day after Thanksgiving, a day after Venkat was pronounced brain dead; I was at the Children’s Hospital to see him one last time. I was honored to get to know him and be with him during his journey with brain cancer over the last 3 years. All of his family, friends, relatives, and teachers were taking turns at the ICU to see him to say their good-byes.


The ICU waiting room was crowded like it had never been before. While Venkat’s loved ones were waiting for their turns, I met a young father, Scott, in the family waiting room inside the ICU. Scott’s little daughter was in the ICU at the time. This little girl was born with a brain disorder. She was having 150 seizures a day. It was such an extreme case that she had never learned to walk because she couldn’t walk long enough without having a seizure. She was scheduled to have a brain operation the next day.


As we got to know each other, Scott asked what all the commotion outside the ICU was about. I explained Venkat’s situation; that he was a brilliant young man who was suffering from brain cancer and that it was only a matter of hours before they cut off the life support. Scott turned to me and said something that I’ll never forget. He said how grateful he was for his little girl. He said,"I'm so grateful that she is alive and she’ll live." It was a great lesson for me to see that everything’s relative when it comes to gratitude.

One develops a different level of gratitude, especially if one is volunteering at hospitals and hospices. The time I’ve spent at the Children’s Hospital has helped me to develop gratefulness at different levels. Every time I see a child having chemo or dialysis, I go back home and hug my kids. One becomes more selective about what to make an issue of; a low grade or not putting the dishes in the dish washer is not so important anymore.

Why are we trying to develop gratitude, by the way? Developing an attitude of gratitude rather than taking things for granted helps us to develop an awareness of life and cultivate joy and happiness. Isn’t it all we want: to be unconditionally happy? Gratitude helps us to take that additional step in the road to happiness.

Gratitude can be a consequence of transcending the first 2 principles of Reiki (Do not anger and Do not worry). If you can eliminate all anger and worries from your life, it automatically takes you to a space of gratitude. There are no other feelings left but being grateful for everything; a stage of unconditional gratefulness for “life” itself, a “life that is perfect as is”. I can’t explain how liberating that feeling is. It happened to me after my Shinpiden class (Japanese Reiki Master training).


Energetically, I got to such a high place that I developed an extreme acceptance and understanding that eliminated all anger and worries from my life (at least temporarily). All that was left was a feeling of gratitude. I remember looking around as if I was seeing the sky, the trees, and the grass, all for the first time and being grateful for their existence. Unfortunately, I fell back down from that stage, but at least I had a glimpse of what a wonderful feeling being in gratitude for an extended period of time could be like . If freedom from anger and worries creates such a liberation and joy, I can’t even imagine the liberation that enlightenment brings.

However, like all other Reiki precepts, we can intentionally practice cultivation of gratitude. Here I share a few tips that can help to cultivate gratitude.

Begin the day with gratitude: Every morning start the day being grateful for your breath, for waking up, for the human experience, for a wonderful day ahead. Starting the day with a positive tone helps set a positive tone throughout the day.

Notice little miracles every day:

Notice the water coming out of the shower and what a miracle it is, be grateful for having running water, be grateful to the person who invented the shower .

Notice the clouds, the sun, the rain, be grateful for the weather of the day, no matter what it is.

Notice the birds, the flowers, the animals, little miracles of the creation.

Be grateful for your work, for the roads, for public transportation, for the cars, for the people who made all the inventions we use in daily life.

Be grateful for food, for the people who grow the food, for the Earth unconditionally sharing its resources.

Be grateful for the people in your life, for everyone who has come into your life to teach and share something.

A great way to show your gratitude is to write letters to the people you’re grateful for (these can be short notes as well). Write a letter to your most memorable teacher, your coach, your best friend, your mom, dad, even though you may choose not to send the letters, writing it down will transfer the ripples of your gratitude to the person.

Have your computer password set up for something that reminds you of gratitude. Learn how to say "gratitude" in different languages and use one of the translations as your password.

Develop awareness that everything you own owes its existence to others (your alarm clock, electricity, a sweater, the cell phone, etc.)

Every time you write a check, write “Thank you” or put a smiley face on it.

Take pleasure in every thing you do or see or touch; this is a fundamental step towards an” attitude for gratitude”.

You may keep a gratitude journal in which you write down every day 5 things for which you are grateful.

End the day with gratitude: Think about all the miracles of the day and be grateful.

I have been keeping a gratitude journal since the beginning of the year. I used a computer download. The Gratitude Journal opens up every time you start your computer. Here is the link to the journal. http://www.gettingunstuckllc.com/

Scroll down on the web site page and it’s on the left towards middle. You can click and download it yourself.
Here are some things that I wrote in my Journal, not in order of priority at all:

I am so happy and grateful for/that:
having a gratitude journal, holidays, meditation friends, potluck dinner, being healthy, having enough to do,108 sun salutations, my son’s recital, the Nutcracker Suite, watching the Survivor finale with the kids, the distant Reiki experiment, Reiki, a great yoga class, holiday break, 2nd tier friends, shelter and warm clothes, meditation, my off-day, having clarity of what I want, wonderful friends, my mind’s games, global rescue organizations, having a friend I love this much, (lots of entries for my best friend being safe in Haiti), being inspired, giving inspiration, my neck is not hurting this morning, hanging on and swinging, a spa day, endless possibilities, four seasons, being fit enough to finish 108 sun salutations, time to fill this in, the fact that I'm on a spiritual path, that I'm surrounded with friends, my life, warm clothes, snow, my work and office, the fog and the beautiful white scenery, chants, I have support/ gurus, I can forgive, I have a purpose, I feel GOOD, for Reiki as a spiritual path,, not panicking, it's Friday, birds, free membership to Allure and Lucky, Universe's plans, being sick to be grateful for wellness, feeling much better, being able to eat, feeling better, was able to do energization, presentations, I am able to PRACTICE, for all the people who donated to Haiti, for my son, a cubicle, being able to make trip plans, for being in MVIC, I am healthy, spring is coming, I have so many things to organize that I LOVE, many options we have, spring is almost here , surrounded with friends ,CYS party, my sister, continuous inspiration, all my upbringing, all great attributes which I'm willing to offer up, meeting hubby for lunch, breath, having time of my own, my off-day, rain, a happy Saturday, a deep sleep, satsangs, interesting personalities, Calyx challenge, my Olay basket, the challenge that prepares me to my future achievements and service, inspiration, I trust, the opportunity to FLOW, being able to serve, yoga teachings, all the blessings, non-alcoholic beer, Tazo tea, chips and green tea, squirrels, earl grey tea, I have a vent, slumber party, cell phones, tazo tea and breakfast, all saints and sages who came before us to inspire, spring, caramel tea, electricity, computer, newsletters, sun, vacation, spring, rain, wind and sun, croissants and sunrise in Paris, diversity of people, Istanbul, the crowd, modem, my hair dresser

I participated in a “Gratitude experience” 5 years ago. During the 42 days of the experience magical things happened. If you want to see the limits of gratitude, you can check it out at http://www.gogratitude.com/.
You can join the worldwide community of Gratitude http://www.worldgratitude.com/, or follow it on Facebook by typing: World Gratitude.

Gratitude attitude is about developing an awareness of life and attracting more miracles to your life by demonstrating gratitude to every day miracles. You will notice that you naturally begin to feel happier, less concerned about what you haven’t got but happy with what you have.





Zeynep “Premdasi” Yilmaz is a Reiki Master/Teacher, Yoga Teacher and Meditation teacher. Zeynep has been practicing, volunteering and teaching Reiki in Cincinnati, Ohio, with the goal of empowering individuals to tap into their highest potential.

Reiki for the Gulf of Mexico

As the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico continues to spread, Reiki practitioners around the world are keeping the area and its precious ecosystem in their meditations. To facilitate that effort, Reiki harpist and Reiki Digest Special Contributor Cymber Lily Conn has recorded a musical accompaniment.

Here's Cymber:

"I used the Dorian Mode to help ground the feelings and reduced drama and tensions, so listeners can think more clearly and remain calm. (However, if you use Dorian Mode for too long, it can start to sound depressing.)

The session opens with D minor/C major chord pattern that allows for sadness and wistfulness to emerge, as well as contemplation for what this oil spill will mean for all of us, now and long term.

Gradually, the Reiki energy changes toward the end of the session, switching the pattern to C major/D minor, providing insight and the much needed lift in energy to live in a different way, so that we are not dependent on oil, and never have to endure another spill."

This podcast and others are available on Cymber's web site.

Go To FileFactory.com

The weekly waka

Dawn and dusk
two sides of the same coin
what is life
but one long day
in between darkness?

By Beth Lowell

The Reiki Digest writers guidelines

As promised, here are the writers guidelines for article submissions to The Reiki Digest.




The Reiki Digest Writers Guidelines

The Reiki Digest welcomes articles from Reiki practitioners of all levels and backgrounds and seeks to add new writers that represent the diversity that exists among te Reiki community.

Well thought out and spell-checked articles can be about any aspect of Reiki, but must not stray from the topic of Reiki. These can include but are not limited to:

Research and studies about Reiki
Reiki Precepts
Distant Healing
Attunements
Professional Reiki practice
Personal Reiki practice
Reiki History
Reiki for animals and plants


Articles about Reiki and other modalities are also welcome, although all references to other modalities must be clear about what is Reiki and what is not.

The Reiki Digest does not impose a word limit on articles but please bear in mind that if your article is very long you may lose your reader. The Reiki Digest reserves the right to edit articles for clarity and length. Authors will have the option to shorten the article him or herself if necessary. Accompanying pictures and graphics are nice if you have them.

Writers can contribute articles at any time throughout each month. Each submission will be acknowledged and you will be notified of its posting date.

Guest editors

Each month The Reiki Digest will feature a guest editor. Guest editors are responsible for putting together and posting the following elements of a monthly edition:

Lead article
Reiki Roundup
Celeb-Reiki
Music we like to practice Reiki by
The weekly waka

Posting instructions and a style sheet will be available (along with virtual hand holding through the technical process, if needed.)

Guests and contributors may submit very short (two or three sentences) bio which will accompany your article, along with a photo.

Contributors must own the copyright or other intellectual property rights to all articles, photos, audio, and video submitted to The Reiki Digest, and must grant the right to nonexclusive publication in The Reiki Digest under both copyright and Creative Commons licensing, which allows reuse for noncommercial purposes with attribution.


The Reiki Digest will also consider publishing Reiki related blog posts from your existing blog.


To submit your articles or blog posts, please send an email to bethlowell@thereikidigest.com and include the words "Article Submission" in the subject line.


We're looking forward to your articles and posts!


And if you have something to say but you're not up to a complete post, we welcome comments anytime.

Don't forget the waka!

Our weekly waka segment continues to be featured here at The Reiki Digest each Wednesday. Our recent Waka Fest during cherry blossom season was a great success and we invite those who contributed to keep submitting their waka throughout the year. Of course, we invite all writers of waka to contribute, whether you've submitted in the past or you're a newcomer.


If you need a refresher on the rules, you can read these two articles previously published here, at The Reiki Digest.


Waka Rules!


Following the waka into Japanese history


To submit your waka, send it in an email to waka@thereikidigest.com. Please include the words "waka submission" in the subject line.

Reiki writers wanted!

Dear Readers,

We're looking for writers! The Reiki Digest is looking to add new voices to the mix and we hope one of them is yours. We're looking for articles about Reiki. These can include but are not limited to articles about:

Research and studies about Reiki
Reiki Precepts
Distant Healing
Attunements
Professional Reiki practice
Personal Reiki practice
Reiki History
Reiki for animals and plants

Articles about Reiki and other modalities are also welcome, although all references to other modalities must be clear about what is Reiki and what is not.

Each month The Reiki Digest features a guest editor. Guest editors are responsible for putting together and posting the following elements of a monthly edition:

Lead article
Reiki Roundup
Celeb-Reiki
Music we like to practice Reiki by
The weekly waka

Posting instructions and a style sheet will be available (along with virtual hand holding through the technical process, if needed.)

You can find out more details about article requirements in the writers guidelines, which will be available later this week. If you have an article you'd like to submit, or if you'd like to sign up to become a guest editor, please email me at bethlowell@thereikidigest.com.

Reiki and the harp: Connections in vibration and entrainment

By Cymber Lily Conn

Special Correspondent

As a Reiki master/teacher and harpist, I know intuitively that Reiki and harp music are compatible. I play 10-15 minutes of grounding music (usually in the Dorian or Ionian mode) to help the client relax. Then I perform a traditional head-to-toe, hands-on Reiki session. (I also have music-only Reiki podcasts on my website.)

My clients are clearly getting far more out of a musical Reiki session than one without harp music. They are able to relax more deeply and the energy seems to seep in at a deeper level. Recently, I played as part of giving an attunement and the attunement was clearer and stronger.

My right brain was satisfied with the intuitive connections between Reiki and the harp. However, my left brain wanted concrete evidence. In researching this article, I found Reiki and the harp, do indeed, have a lot in common: they both use vibration as a mode for healing and they both use entrainment as the means for delivering the vibrational healing.

Vibrational Healing

Both Reiki and harp music use a vibratory model for healing rather than chemical, mechanical, etc. Vibrational healing happens most often in the electromagnetic fields of subtle body, also known as the Human Energy Field.

But what is vibration? At the most basic level, it is an oscillation between two points. It is a measurement of movement of a specific type and strength, through a specific type of medium. For example, sound waves, including harp music, travel through air. Ocean waves travel through water. Reiki waves travel through subtle, electromagnetic and physical bodies, as well as through media we cannot yet measure. The rate at which the waves wiggle, the direction they travel and the medium they travel through tell us how the vibration will feel when it arrives and what effect it might have in healing.

The Vibrations of Reiki

“Because of work done by the late C. Andrew L. Bassett and his colleagues at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, we know that the important frequencies for stimulating tissue repair are all in the biologically important Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) range,” says James Oschman, Ph.D., in his article, "Science and the Human Energy Field." Dr. Bassett’s research identified which ELF frequencies were most helpful in healing. "Two cycles per second (Hz) is effective for nerve regeneration, seven Hz is optimal for bone growth, ten Hz is used for ligaments and somewhat higher frequencies work for skin and capillaries," writes Dr. Oschman. The FDA first approved therapy using pulsing ELF in machines in 1979. Today there are many manufacturers. My friend, Dr. Carol McMakin, is a pioneer in this field.

Another study, by Dr. John Zimmerman, University of Colorado, found that trained hands-on healing practitioners, including Reiki practitioners, could emit from their hands the very same pulsing ELF energy that is needed for the body to heal.

The Vibrating Harp

“The harp provides healing energy by directly stimulating the vibratory/pressure receptors in the body,” writes Sarajane Williams in her book Good Vibrations, Principles of Vibroacoustic Harp Therapy.  “[The harp] has a very wide pitch range and a sonorous timbre with a long decay, that vibrates and resonates with the tissues of the body, thereby affecting physiological processes.

“The plucked string produces an infinite number of harmonics which are capable of vibrating the dense, physical body as well as its energetic counterpart, providing multi-level stimulation and harmonization,” she continues. “A listener is capable of perceiving the action of plucking a string as a feeling of tension and release that resonates in his/her muscles, similar to a massage.”

“The harp creates resonance so beautifully because the strings produce pure overtones across the whole spectrum,” wrote Susan Zevenbergen, harp teacher and mentor of the International Harp Therapy Program. “Perhaps only the voice and the singing bowl do that too, though with a timbre that is quite different.”

Cynthy Johnson, a Reiki Master/Teacher and graduate of the International Harp Therapy Program, commented: "If we think of sound, i.e., harp music, as vibrating energy and the energy that has been scientifically measured from a Reiki Master-Teacher's hands, it makes sense that both occupy the same space/area and can be part of the overall session."

Come Along with Me: Entrainment

Reiki and harp music deliver healing frequencies through a process called entrainment. Entrainment seems to have been first noticed by a European craftsman in the mid-1600s who built pendulum clocks, Christian Huygens. One day he noticed that all of the clock pendulums were moving together. No matter how he tried to change their swings, they would quickly come back into synchronization. Later scientific studies would show that all pendulums. . .indeed all vibrating things. . .would tend to swing in rhythm with the strongest one in the room.

In his book The World is Sound, Joachim-Ernst Berendt writes, "Science has taught us that [entrainment] is universal. Two oscillators pulsating in the same field in almost identical rhythm will tend to lock in, with the result that eventually their vibrations will be come precisely synchronous. This phenomenon is referred to as mutual phase-locking or entrainment. Entrainment is universal in nature.

“In fact, it is so ubiquitous that we hardly notice it,” he continues. “It is a physical phenomenon, but it is more than that, because it informs us about the tendency of the Universe to share rhythms, that is to vibrate in harmony."

Reiki Entrainment in Practice

So it may be that when a Reiki practitioner begins the flow of Reiki, entrainment is happening in the Human Energy Field and in the physical body. As the Reiki practitioner’s hands emit healing frequencies,  the client's energy field and body will tend to resonate with the healthy frequencies for two reasons: 1) it is the body’s natural vibration and it wants to return there, and 2) Reiki energy from a practitioner is more concentrated and focused than the body’s energy. Reiki energy is “the strongest one in the room,” so the body’s energy will entrain to it.

Entraining to the Harp

Entrainment with the harp also works at many levels. Harp music can both be heard and felt and its relaxing nature allows people to open their energy fields more easily. With open fields, Reiki energy can penetrate deeper and more gently.

It is the physical shape and materials of the harp that gives it this special quality, called “resonance.”

What is resonance? Imagine a room full of people all singing their own song, some humming tunelessly, others humming joyfully, all out of sync with each other. The room is full of noise.

Then one person starts singing louder and it is a song that everyone knows. Pretty soon, you have a room that is singing together, some in unison, some in harmony. Everyone feels relaxed and happy to be singing. The noise is gone. This is resonance.

Because of the way the harp is constructed, each note that comes out of a harp is like the room of happy singers, with no “noise.” This is considered to be a “pure tone” and the more pure the tone, the more concentrated the healing.

In addition, the harp can sustain this resonance for a long time, with very little or no decay. And because the tones last long, the body has time to entrain to the tones. During a healing, the harp becomes “the strongest one in the room.”

Healing harpists are also taught how to entrain clients at the physical level. They are trained to look for signals from clients such as heart rate or breathing rates as baseline rhythms. Once the harpist and the client are entrained, the harpist can carefully change the vibration of the client’s energies, tissues and subtle bodies in order for the body to balance itself.

“In order to accomplish the goal of entrainment, we must begin with music that reflects the state the person is in when we start to play for them,” writes Christina Tourin, founder and director of the International Harp Therapy Program, in her class manual, Cradle of Sound.

“If someone is feeling depressed, we cannot simply play ‘happy’ music and expect that the person’s mood will change. We must proceed slowly and carefully, starting with music that matches the person’s mood, then shift gradually (both musically and over time) to music in other moods.”

The Harp and Reiki Together: Rich Fields of Opportunity

There are rich opportunities for research in the confluence of Reiki and harp music. And it is very exciting to see the possibilities for deep healing by using the harp to open fields to allow Reiki further access to the body.

Susan Zevenbergen writes: “In a sense, I think if you are sending Reiki with a harp, you are trying to give the energy forms a different physical presence through sound.”

Cymber Lily Conn is a Reiki Master/Teacher and special correspondent for The Reiki Digest. She creates custom Reiki music for people and animals. Contact her at ReikiHealingHarp@me.com or ReikiHealingHarp.com.

Meet The Practitioners

WHAT'S A MUSICAL REIKI SESSION LIKE? There is no set way of using the harp with Reiki. All of the Reiki harpists I spoke with played intuitively and improvisationally. The key question that all healing harpists take to a session is this: "What is willing to meet me?"

Cynthy Johnson:

Cynthy Johnson had an early career in liturgical music, but in the process of questioning her faith, she found Reiki and the study of subtle energies much more to her liking. After careers in health sciences, Cynthy got degrees in business and computer science and began blending Western and Reiki in her own practice. She graduated from the International Harp Therapy Program in 2004.

At first, Cynthy recorded her own harp music onto CDs. "When a CD is created," she said, "it's digitally compressed. That means the music is not as rich as live music and does not contain the full range of healing harmonics." That's when she started playing live music for her clients.

"I usually start with a soft glissando (running a finger up and down all the strings). This scatters the mind and does not allow the thoughts to rest on a single note. I want the client to relax and not focus on any particular rhythm or tone. Cynthy then continues to work in a pentatonic mode (a 5-note scale, leaving out the 4th and 7th notes of a regular scale). This scale is also called the Angel Mode, because it is historically and mythologically associated with the healing tones of angels.

Cynthy plays according to the needs of the client to bring them into deep relaxation. Once the client is relaxed, Cynthy performs a regular hands-on healing session. After she completes the session, she returns to the harp to help the client return to room using the Angel Mode again and ending with glissandi.

Aedan McDowell: What's a session like?

“For me it’s all a matter of listening to the client and to my guides. Every session is slightly different, as each individual is unique. I don’t apply a basic template – I go with what the client is requesting and how I’m guided to proceed. I may start with 5-10 minutes of harp music to help them relax, then I’ll give the Reiki session. I’ve also given the entire Reiki session as I’m playing. Often I receive information and messages for the client, which I discuss with them at the end of the session. The combination of music, Reiki and spirit-given messages seem to be a wonderful combination.”

Susan Zevenbergen: How do you use your Harp for Healing?

“If I'm using the harp for therapy, then I start in the same place as I do with Reiki by grounding, intention-setting, seeking for what calls to me. When I am in the flow with either Reiki or harp therapy, I feel the tingle of energy alignment. My hands don't get hot playing the harp (at least not that I've noticed yet), but there is a sureness of being in the flow of energy. Of course, as harp therapists, we have audible sound to guide us; that special moment of alignment sounds as well as feels amazing, because of the sympathetic vibration. Then the energy shifts and I follow it somewhere else, always seeking that sense of alignment.”

Books and Articles

Healing with Sound, Color and Movement, by Fabien Maman.

The Reiki Touch, by William Lee Rand

Reiki for Dummies, by Nina L. Paul, PhD

The HeartMath Solution, by Doc Childre and Howard Martin with Donna Beech

Cradle of Sound: International Harp Therapy Manual, by Christina Tourin
Good Vibrations: Principles of Vibroacoustic Harp Therapy by Sarajane Williams

Essential Reiki, by Diane Stein

“Science and the Human Energy Field,” an interview with James L. Oschman, PhD and William Lee Rand, Reiki News Magazine, Vol. one, Issue three, Winter 2002. 

“The Harp Links Worlds of Spirit and Matter,” an interview with Barbara Brennan and Marjorie Valeri, The Harp Therapy Journal, fall 1996.

The World is Sound, Joaquim-Ernst Berendt

Practitioners and Teachers

Cymber Lily Conn, Reiki Master/Teacher, harpist

Christina Tourin, Founder and Director, International Harp Therapy Program, harprealm.com

Cynthy Johnson, Reiki Master/Teacher, 2004 graduate of IHTP, crystalharp.com

Aedan McDonnell, graduate of Stella Benson’s International Healing Musician Program, now part of the IHTP.

Susan Zevenbergen, MyHarpsDelight.com, harp teacher and 2005 graduate and mentor for the International Harp Therapy Program

Sarajane Williams, editor of The Harp Therapy Journal. vibroacousticharp.com

HeartMath Research Center, heartmath.com

Barbara Brennan

New formats, new editors

As we enter our fifth year of publication this month, The Reiki Digest is moving to an expanded format and welcoming several new editors.

Since June 2006, we have been a weekly online publication, available on our web site as well as by email and feeds. Going forward, we'll be publishing on the web site more frequently, to keep up with breaking news and, we hope, livelier conversation. Our email edition will move from weekly to monthly, and each edition will be a digest, so to speak, of everything we've covered on the web site during the month. And by Fall 2010, we hope that new monthly Reiki Digest will also be available in a print, or at least printoutable, format.

As for the email edition, we've heard your suggestions: from now on our email edition will be even more condensed. Long articles will include links to continue reading on our web site so that we don't clog your inbox unnecessarily.

The Reiki Digest began as a one-person project, but in order to grow from here, we need more Reiki hands to help out. So we'd like you to meet our new staff:

Janet Dagley Dagley, Editor and Publisher

The Reiki Digest founder will continue to be involved in all of the publication's new formats. A multi-certified Reiki Master Teacher and longtime qigong practitioner, Janet had a successful career in journalism before dedicating herself to the healing arts. She now practices and teaches in New York City and Hoboken, New Jersey.

Pamela Miles, Editor at Large

The author of Reiki: A Comprehensive Guide as well as numerous medical journal articles,  Pamela has been practicing Reiki since 1986 and has been a pioneer in working with Reiki in medical environments. She also appeared on The Dr. Oz Show in January to demonstrate Reiki not only to a studio audience but millions of viewers. Her blog, Reiki Central, just celebrated its first anniversary with a free webinar (available now on demand) in which she answers questions from readers. She has a private practice in New York City.

Beth Lowell, Senior Editor

Beth is an animal Reiki practitioner and offers holistic services for pets through her business, Animal Spirit. She teaches Reiki, including Reiki for animals, in Morristown, New Jersey. Beth was formerly The Reiki Digest's Contributing Editor, and once jumped in at a moment's notice to put together an entire issue in an emergency. She's also a prolific waka writer and coordinated our recent Waka Challenge.

Heather Alexander, Contributing Editor

Heather is a former BBC reporter who's now a Reiki practitioner and teacher at Brooklyn Reiki in New York City. She was a Reiki Digest guest editor last month, and a translation of her article here on Reiki and Parkinson's disease will soon appear in the French publication Reiki Forum.

Cymber Lily Conn, Special Correspondent

Reiki Master/Teacher and harpist Cymber Lily Conn is based on the Big Island of Hawaii. She has written several articles for The Reiki Digest, including a feature on an historic Reiki clinic in Hilo, as well as Reiki healing harp music for readers to use in their Reiki meditations. Look for her article on Reiki and harp healing later this week in our June edition.

Going forward, you may not see us in your inbox as often, but we'll be posting to The Reiki Digest web site several times a week and inviting you to add your voice to the mix. If there's really big breaking news, we might send you a brief unscheduled email, but otherwise, you can still keep up with the latest developments and discussion in real time by subscribing to our news feed -- or just stop by our web site more often. We'll bring you the best of the best by email each month, and soon, in a more conventional magazine format as well -- something that we hope will be nice to have in the waiting room where you practice, or on the coffee table at home. And there will be many more opportunities for other writers to contribute articles to the Digest.

Watch your inbox later this week for our June edition, or you can drop by our web site to check out Cymber's article on Reiki and harp healing. Find out what a 17th-century scientific discovery has to do with the vibrations of music, Reiki, and healing.

We'll be hosting the Carnival of Healing on Independence Day weekend in July, and Rose De Dan will be our guest editor next month.

The Celeb-Reiki Report

Durban, South Africa: Husband-and-wife actors Koobeshen Naidoo (currently starring in the play Desperate Husbands) and his wife Kumseela Naidoo have a pre-stage good-luck ritual whenever they perform: She does a little Reiki just before they go onstage. And that qualifies them as Celeb-Reikis, along with vintage rock-and-roller Gary U.S. Bonds. Bonds will be headlining a benefit for a New Jersey retreat center for women with cancer June 26. Reiki is just one of many treatments available at the center, Mary's Place by the Sea.

The Reiki Roundup

Bristol, United Kingdom: Another reporter gets a Reiki session, and, like so many others, is pleasantly surprised.

Cumnock, Scotland, UK: Reiki is just one of the services available on the Pamper Bus.

Dunnville, Ontario, Canada: Reiki plays a role in a patient's recovery from depression.

New Port Richey, Florida: An artist says Reiki inspired her to paint.

ADDitute Magazine: Can Reiki help with attention deficit disorder?

Carnival of Healing returns next month!

Can you hear the calliope music in the distance? That's the Carnival of Healing on its way back to The Reiki Digest, and we're calling on you to join in the fun!

The Carnival of Healing is a monthly round-up of personal blog posts on the topics of holistic health, wellness, spirituality, and self empowerment. It's a great way to raise your online profile, because you get links and visits to your holistic-healing-related web site or blog. All you have to do is write a post that's good enough to be chose as one of the month's best, and submit it to the Carnival.

Stay tuned for instructions on how to submit your contributions to the Carnival. Meanwhile, start writing!

And you might want to check out the June edition of the Carnival, hosted by Mind Mart, and the May edition, hosted by The Conscious Life.

Rest in peace

Reiki Master Charles 'Chuck' Hoover, 60, Empire, Michigan, March 11, 2010

Reiki Master Cecile E. Charest, 72, Laconia, New Hampshire, March 18, 2010

Reiki practitioner D. Owen Craig, 74, Westmount, Nova Scotia, Canada, April 1, 2010

Reiki Master Corene Trevelyn Johnston, 66, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, April 4, 2010

Reiki Master Teacher Donna R. Bartram, York, Pennsylvania, April 6, 2010

Reiki Master Teacher Victoria L. Binkley, 58,  Augusta, Maine, April 7, 2010

Reiki Master Teacher Ariana D. Magnifico, 57, North Adams, Massachusetts, April 9, 2010

Reiki practitioner Susan Joyce Lane, 68, Natick, Massachusetts, May 3, 2010

Reiki practitioner Sandra 'Sandy' Bausher, 68, Ocala, Florida, May 15, 2010

Reiki practitioner Gary Ross Logan, 63, Ypsilanti, Michigan, May 26, 2010

Reiki Master Diane Esther (Miller) Yankelevitz, 67, Bozeman, Montana, May 27, 2010