Reiki and Grief

We all carry grief.

At some time. At some point. We suffer loss. Loss of Identity and Self. Loss of Hope. Loss of Love. Loss of Relationship. Loss of Expectations. Loss of Health. Loss of Work. Loss of Meaning. Loss of Vision. Loss of Life. Loss. Loss of whatever it is we thought we had, or we had and did not know until it was gone, or loss of what we felt we deserved and did not get.

We all carry grief. It is the gentle accompaniment to life we have learned to live with, and ignore, almost every day. We carry the little losses as they build up an unknown momentum until a big wave of one comes along and we are washed away with all that grief.

Personal Grief

Interestingly enough, spirit is telling me to ask you to look at your anger – take a peek underneath it. Is it related to a loss? What have you lost? Anger is the second stage of grief – the one that comes after denial. Once you have, even in some unconscious way, acknowledged a loss, there will very likely be anger.

If you are battling with anger, go looking for loss underneath it. Anger is how we cover it up, make ourselves think we are strong and try to appear strong to others. It is exactly the opposite. This kind of festering, persistent anger is our own weakness, pain, and loss, pushed down, smoldering, and causing emotional infection.

Collective Grief

Recently, a lovely friend passed very suddenly and unexpectedly. I was sad, but knew she was in a beautiful place. Had a gorgeous vision of her sinking into a restful pillow of light filled with peace and delight, from a life well lived and done. The Fae were with her and took her away home. I was not so close to her that I suffered intense personal loss, yet I found myself overly emotional, easily overcome and crying whenever I opened my mouth.

Whatever is going on, I asked. And the answer came right away. You are being washed away in the collective grief. All of those shocked and saddened by her passing, on every level of relationship, are filling you with their tears.

What to do? Just the recognition that this was not my own grief allowed me to take a breath and gently separate out from the ocean of grief, extricating myself emotionally from a place I did not belong, to resume my space of openness, gratitude, peacefulness, and clarity.

Some of our grief and anger is not ours, it is flowing in the currents of the collective. Only by doing our own internal work can we develop the ability to perceive what is ours and what is not and cultivate the spiritual strength to step away into light from the darkness of our own blindness.

So how do we cope with grief?

Spirit gave me a beautiful and simple remedy this morning as I went into my practice and meditation that I am sharing with you here. Those of us with Reiki practice and training have the life tools we need to deal with these tides and currents of grief flowing through the lives we live each day.

A Simple Reiki Technique for Working with Grief.

Grief and loss produce emotional turbulence. The waters are no longer calm, they are troubled.

Re-establishing a deep abiding link to inner calm is essential in any storm.

In my litany of self-reiki care and practice – I will attach the full set of blessings below – there is a place at which I put my hands gently covering my face, and with my heart activated, intone May I Be at Peace.

This is so simple, yet so powerful.

Start like this:

1. Recognize you are in emotional turmoil and that grief is tearing at your heart. (This comes from regularly spending time with yourself in loving meditation and self-practice. Your inner awareness becomes alert and sensitive to monitoring your spiritual state of being for equanimity and balance, this is the goal of self-practice.)
2. Take a moment and place your hands on your heart setting your intention to release your grief. Let your heart absorb the loving intention of your spirit.
3. Move your hands up to your face and bow into them offering the blessing of self-reiki and repeating May I Be at Peace.
4. Exhale.

This is not a one-time miracle cure.

Grief runs deep. Be sensitive to the flow of it in your life and ready to repeat whenever the next wave comes.

Grief is like being in labor. In world parlance we talk of labor contractions – grief is a kind of contraction of the heart coming at unpredictable intervals, prompted by uncontrollable circumstances, accompanied by pain and discomfort. In birth healing we do away with the concept of pain and acknowledge that what we call contractions are actually energy surges flowing through the body, prompted by instinctual body wisdom, that offer us the opportunity to ride the wave and expand with the energy of the creation of new life. Contractions are really about expansion. Loss is about change, turning corners and new, deeper growth. When you redirect your focus and understanding, when you work with the energy that is moving rather than fight or avoid it, you change your experience.

Using the simple technique above allows you to transform the contractions of grief into the expanding energy surges of love and release, the calm of balance and the openness to new possibilities. Use gently and repeatedly as needed.

Live well.

Find your downloadable version of Reiki Self-Practice Blessings