by Joyce M. Jackson
Despite the prevalence of many people who can attest to the effectiveness of Reiki, it still has its share of skeptics. Unfortunately a portion of the disbelief or the apprehension is due to the growing spread of myths. Here are some of the more, ahem, “popular” ones:
Consistent Healing
One of the biggest misconceptions in Reiki is that it should generate healing. Otherwise, it’s a scam. There are a lot of issues with this thinking. First, a lot of those who opt for Reiki are people who are already in the final stages of their life. In other words, they run to Reiki because conventional medicine cannot do anything for them anymore. Second, like any type of healing process, Reiki doesn’t guarantee complete treatment. However, it provides more than just physical healing; it gives peace of mind, comfort, and spirituality, which only improve the quality of life. Patients can also use Reiki as a conjunctive therapy to drugs and other traditional treatments.
Reiki Is A Religion
A lot of people also mistakenly believe that Reiki is just another type of religion. The founder of the practice is a Buddhist, and the majority of those who decide to become a practitioner also follow Buddhism. But one has to remember that Buddhism is not a religion at all since Buddha is not a deity but rather a prince who had achieved enlightenment. In other words, Buddhism is a philosophy. And Reiki, on the other hand, isn’t based on any kind of religion or belief, and it doesn’t discriminate any patient or practitioner.
Guaranteed To Open Your Spirit
As Reiki has spread across every corner of the world over the years, different types of the practice have been found, including Tibetan, crystal, and angelic Reiki. Yet none of them ever profess nor guarantee you will be more open to the spirit world and you can already start communicating with the dead and various heavenly beings. Sometimes by opening blockages the spirit becomes more cleansed and the mind becomes more receptive. It is possible for some individuals to experience these effects, but again it does not nor cannot guarantee this. Besides, Reiki is just one of the many things you can do to improve your spiritual journey.
Exclusivity
Can anyone practice Reiki? The answer is yes since every person is made up of energy, which he or she can also give to someone who is sick. Nevertheless, the transfer of such life force doesn’t make the practitioner or the giver weak. Like the sun, life energy is renewable and infinite as long as the person is alive.
Image Credit: Tomas Sobek at http://www.flickr.com/photos/45273580@N04/4335495077
