A major revelation came to me recently from the book “Karma: A Yogi’s Guide to Crafting Your Destiny” by Sadhguru:
Energy healing systems have grown very popular in the world today. My own take on them is unambiguous. While the intention to help others is a laudable one, it is juvenile to think that you can heal someone else because you have learned to harness a little energy in your hands.
Sadhguru
Given the emphasis I’ve been placing on my remote Reiki techniques lately, this understanding is quite significant to me!
Sadhguru explains that energy healing only deals with the effects without clearing up the causes. Later the karmic causes of an illness just surface as some other problem in the client’s life. The subsequent challenge may not be another illness, it could be any other form of problem.
I see now that if a karmic cause surfaces as a minor illness or pain and the person does nothing to work through this karma, it remains to be reinforced with their new thoughts and actions. They can always do that regardless of clearing up an effect, of course, but if the illness might inspire spiritual practice, using Reiki to provide temporary relief can be seen as a hindrance to their spiritual life.
Not only are there significant challenging consequences for the client, he says the healer will also have their own “calamities” to deal with after attempting to heal others. He says it could be 9 months or more later for either client or healer, but that the suffering will invariably come in one form or another.
Sadhguru recommends offering people solace in the fact that their suffering is avoidable, when it is seen to be triggered by pain, not caused by it. We suffer attachments and the loss of that with which we identify. For example when the tendency to identify with your body is reduced or eliminated, pain can be witnessed as a symptom of a problem rather than a problem itself. It is welcomed and accepted, rather than suffered and/or suppressed with drugs. That way your intention can be brought to investigating and clearing the root cause(s) through spiritual practice.
Sadhguru ends his section on energy healing with:
Do not try to become a franchise for cosmic energy. And do not try to become a miracle worker. My only aim is to help you recognize the miracle of life that you are. Everything else is a distraction.
Sadhguru
He couldn’t be any clearer, and it feels like the section was written with me in mind, because I was envisioning ways to help people connect with others (franchise) to do remote Reiki and yet I certainly don’t want to get distracted from my practice, any more than I already do!
In fact, one of my ongoing challenges since I retired from computer programming in 2012, has been discerning the relative importance of engaging with the world (to encourage spiritual practice, use and teach Reiki) and my spiritual practice. I’ve been clear that they are not necessarily mutually exclusive, yet identifying as a teacher entails goals and attachments that certainly are distractions from practice.
This revelation from Sadhguru pushes me over, quite firmly, in the direction of fully retiring.
As I write this it has been several days since I made the decision to retire and I already feel a subtle yet significant difference in my practice. It’s easier to stay with my moment to moment practices, with fewer thoughts of scheduling in time for work, setting goals for task completion, etc.. Lately my work has required a lot of time on the computer, for marketing, writing educational emails, etc. and that kind of work has always been the most difficult for me to integrate with my practice.
When opportunities to support people in their practice present themselves organically, I’ll certainly do so. But I will no longer seek them out, nor actively advertise my availability.
I am going to finish creating the sowandgrowmeditation.org website and email series to support new small meditation group hosts. This project will not require a lot of time from me, once it’s launched. The idea is that I’d only “sow” my own two small groups and encourage them to do the same once they have established their weekly groups. Then I’d let the nature of the intention create the growth that it will, without any attachment to the outcome. It’s really an experiment so just witnessing it feels right, at least in this moment!
At this point I’m planning on doing at least one more foil windsurfing blog, since the footage is in the can and it is just fun! I won’t bother with any encouragement to practice embedded in the video(s), but I do have some ideas to help people learn to foil!