Amy @ Generous Wisdom | Spacious Heart – Page 23 – Generous Wisdom

Jewels: The Sweet Gems of My Reiki Level 1 Experience

“Reiki energy speaks for itself.

All other descriptions are only approximate.”

~ Reiki Level 1 Manual, Yoga on High

It’s tough to put the experience of Reiki training into words – Reiki is so beautiful, so life-giving, and so was my training.

I had thought about investigating Reiki at Yoga on High back in 2003, and off and on for years, but I had never felt comfortable going for it, and it seems the universe had different timing in mind. What a joy to have been able to take the training in person just weeks before the pandemic lockdown orders came in March. Timing couldn’t have been sweeter.

I wanted to share a little bit about my takeaways here, just a sweet distillation of the immense amount of wisdom I received, the jewels that stood out for me. Every person has a completely unique experience, of course, and this is just mine.

A Spiritual Practice

There are no caveats about it. The opening instruction was, “Reiki is a spiritual practice.” This acknowledgment was so refreshing. There was no pulling reiki out of a spiritual tradition and secularizing it somehow. We dove in and discussed universal life force energy, and all were encouraged to connect and engage with the practice in a way that was authentic to our own spiritualities and/or religious traditions.

The Five Precepts

The five precepts recited during the Gassho Meditation are a way to “calm the mind and bring heart-centered focus to the healing session.” We were taught the traditional precepts and then – the most marvelous thing – we were given permission to make them unique to our own experience(!).

The traditional phrases include releasing anger and worry while embracing gratitude and honesty, as well as an intention to live in the present moment with kindness.

I use the traditional precepts often. But sometimes I substitute “notice” for “release,” and I’m going to try out using, “I am whole,” ‘I am fierce kindness,” “I am honest,” “I am loving kindness.”

For me, this is similar to the way I pray or set intentions before I teach a yoga class or consult with someone. I practice letting go of self/ego and allow whatever is meant to be taught, expressed, learned, or experienced to be present during the time together.

The Hara Line – Grounding & Centering; Flowing Through Your Heart

I had heard of the hara line before, but never had any formal training in it, and I had certainly never practiced extending it beyond my body to connect to something larger than myself. This was an amazing experience and one that has stayed with me, manifesting itself often now when I center, ground, or sense into and expand my energy. My guide offered these practices when she was teaching us how to enliven our energy and tap into an energy source bigger than ourselves. This reinforces and actualizes the truth that “giving reiki” is not a draining practice, but one that is self-nourishing and replenishing because we are not giving of our own stores; rather, we are channeling the universal healing energies of Love. When I come into a place of stillness, whether before teaching a yoga class or guiding meditation, I practice tapping into this energy line connecting me to the core of the earth and the cosmic energies above our atmosphere. It is a radiance of imagery with myself at the center and gold glowing lightstreams of energy flowing up, down, and through the hara line all surrounded by the cosmos. I can invite the energy from the larger light source (or star) down through the crown chakra, through the throat chakra and into the heart at any time. I can then allow and invite the energy to grow in my heart chakra and course down through my arms and into my hands, palms, and fingers. This allows me to enjoy the healing reiki energy as I share it.

Trust the Reiki Energy

This trust is one of the main teachings of the practice: trust the reiki – it knows where to go and what to do. There is freedom, joy, and ease wrapped up in this Trust.

Photo by Felix Mittermeier on Pexels.com

I am so grateful to have received this training in person. It has been one of the great blessings in my life.

You might be wondering how all this jives with my “Christian-ness,” but that is for another post!

In the meantime, if you’re interested in learning more about Reiki, follow this link to read about Yoga on High’s Reiki tradition.

Wishing you wellness, ease, and deep trust,

Amy

The Universal Yogi

What’s your Word?

Hello, Friends,

What’s your word?

I’ve had people text me this question recently, and have also encountered it in my coursework lately. For the last several years I’ve been using a guiding word like a north star but had completely forgotten about it this turn of the calendar. Thankfully, other people in my community have remembered! Typically, I use the first few days or weeks to let the word reveal itself, but I’m already thinking it’s something like Unfolding.

Your One Word

Your one word is what you want to practice for a set period of time. It’s like setting an intention about what you want to bring into being, or manifest through your thoughts, speech, and actions – how you want to show up in the world. Your one word is like a deep distillation of your heart’s desire, the diamond sparkling at your core.

Your word might reveal layers of your hopes and aspirations, what you hold dear. It can be anything that feels uplifting, encouraging, or inspiring. Last year my word was Ease, which wasn’t easy, but then a curious thing happened. “Allow” cuddled up right next to Ease, and I realized a certain amount of allowing was asking to be invited to my party. Ease needed a friend, and Allowing knew it. This speaks to a long held pattern of behavior in which I try to orchestrate, set up, and navigate everything and everyone so that everything and everyone can have the best-possible-experience-ever in any given situation. Well, one can’t experience “Ease” when one is busy doing all of that.

It’s Foundational

Your one word becomes the foundation from which you move.

Without realizing it, I began practicing allowing as a way to practice ease. This “without realize it” thing is key. The reason this can happen is because the one word is a sweet concentrated nectar that saturates other layers of our being. It doesn’t just “stay in your head.” After seeing it posted it on your walls, mirrors, & shelves, and repeating it while you walk, drive, and breathe, pretty soon the word is in your muscles, bones, & blood, similar to praying without ceasing; or really, it’s similar to anything you practice intensely to the point that you no longer need to think about it, like the violin, the sun salutation, shooting a basketball, typing on a keyboard, knitting, etc.

Practicing your one word is like building a new habit, the same way we might employ new behaviors during Lent or Advent. After several months my body-mind was functioning from a foundation of ease. This doesn’t mean I felt stress-free or easeful all the time (or any of the time). It means that because I wanted to feel ease in my life, I made decisions that would help bring this about. I would ask myself, “Will doing this bring about ease? Will I experience ease if I continue to talk about these things or keep quiet about these things?” Or “Is thinking these thoughts creating ease or blocking it?”

I didn’t need to make a conscious decision to practice “letting go of control.” Instead, my body-mind began incorporating the practice of allowing things to be as they are because I was basing all my decisions on a bedrock of ease. My being knew from experience that this had a way of bringing about the opposite of constriction, grasping, striving — you know, Eeeaaase. So while I wasn’t trying to exact control over every single external circumstance that made up the situations of my life, I was more in control of how I experienced my life, how I actually lived it.

Variation

Maybe your word is an image. I happen to be word-oriented, but maybe you are super visual. What kind of image would you use as your guiding light through this next day, week, or series of months? Take some time to imagine, visualize, draw, or sketch. Or spend some time searching images on the internet, digital museums, or in books. Maybe find a scene on your next walk, run, or hike. Take a pic with your phone or just let it imprint in your mind. It might be something that offers you a sense of uplift, encouragement, inspiration, or awe.

The Wrap Up

My meditation teacher speaks of the ways we might sometimes “origami” ourselves and other people into different packaging so that we, and they, are “more palatable.” I know that I have done this (for a looooong time!) and practicing ease & allowing has made this impulse less intense. It’s no wonder, then, that my new word is revealing itself to be Unfolding even as I write this post!

Some things to try:

Spend time in meditation, contemplation, centering prayer, some combination, or any other inner listening practice, and be open to whatever arises. Spend time walking, running, hiking, or any other meditative movement practice and be open to whatever arises.
When something arises, words, concepts, images, textures, sounds, colors, look beneath them asking what else wants to be seen or heard.
If something strange or unsettling arises, make a choice as to whether you feel resourced enough to engage with that. If so, inquire what might be underneath, what else wants to be seen or heard.
Be open to your unique guiding light or north star. You might have a word, an image, or even an sound.
Take steps to distill, concentrate, and saturate. If you start out with a sentence or series of phrases, distill down to one word. If you start with a series of images, concentrate on one aspect. If you start with a symphony, choose one tone.
Post it everywhere so that you see it. Repeat it constantly so that you can hear it, feel it, and maybe even taste it. Find ways to act it out once each day. Record it and play it back so that you can resonate with it. (Not sure how this works for an image, but maybe it’s a spoken description.)
Have Fun!

Unfolding, for me, feels like allowing space for people to stretch out, and maybe even blossom. This is true for myself, as well. Unfolding might feel uncomfortable. It’ll take time to allow the creases to smooth out. I might need to bend the other way for a little counter-balance. But that’s okay. I’ve got resources to lean on and dip into (yoga, family, God). Plus, the days keep coming, whether we like it or not, so there’s always more time for practice.

Wishing you many amazing, crazy blessings right now and then also the next right now,

Amy

The Universal Yogi

PS. Feel free to get in touch and share your word, image, or sound. It’s fun to share! Email amy@thecatholicyogi.com.

Honoring & Releasing

Hello, Yoga Friends, Happy today!

Here’s an offering of practices for you.

This class is Yoga for Body-Mind & Heart: Practices for Honoring & Releasing. It was inspired by my teacher, and begins with seated centering, followed by a meditation of honoring and releasing. And then gentle moving, stretching, and opening the front body using the floor as a yoga prop.

Gather some pillows, blankets, or towels and a yoga strap or scarf. These items are not necessary but might make things feel more supportive.

To the casual observers, it might look like we’re just rolling around on the ground, but we’ll know the good playwork taking place. Expect opportunities to stretch the shoulders, chest, hips, abdomen, back, & sides. When you feel like something’s missing. Just add it in!

May you be covered in the blessings you most need right now,

Amy

The Universal Yogi