Science and Reiki
As a society, we privilege science to prove or disprove, say what is real or not real, possible or impossible.
By granting this privilege to science, we empower blind obedience to scientific declarations that claim objectivity is good and subjectivity is bad.
Unfortunately, orthodox, empirical science may even be blind to its own limitations in pursuit of "pure, rational science.
" Such a perspective, while effective in some fields, also qualifies as "pure, narrow limitation.
" Why do we so often defer to science rather than trust personal intuition and experience? Empirical, objective science may be great for certain geological matters, but in the human realm, it may contribute to personal disempowerment.
It makes as much sense to defer to scientists to explain the meta-physical world as it does to allow the government to set standards of honesty.
For centuries, scientists and the general population have believed in a set of natural laws, gravity, linear causation and rational thought.
Quantum physics comes along in the early 1900s and informs us that a photon can be in two places at the same time.
We learn that a photon can be either a wave or a particle, depending on the observer's expectations and system of measurement.
We also learn that space and time are relative perceptions rather than absolute measurements.
All protons are linked together throughout the universe.
Experiments have proven that probing one proton affects an intertwined proton anywhere in the universe.
These innovations in physics have ignited innovations in other realms of human thought.
We are no longer earth-bound to our little mechanical bodies.
We are something much more than that.
Quantum physics is every bit as revolutionary, and disturbing to our understanding of ourselves and the universe, as the Copernican Revolution 500 years ago that presented a radically different world view shifting away from an Earth-centered cosmology.
Similarly, as you progress in your Reiki and meditation practice, you discover amazing perspectives of life.
All things in the universe are one.
We are all connected, like one being with billions of fingers, all part of one universal mind, one collective consciousness.
So, what does all this science have to do with me? When thoughts of "me" and "I" intrude, we are severed from the unity of life.
This egoist experience damages our holistic experience of life and perpetuates our industrialized feelings of alienation.
Our modern society is painfully out of time and out of tune with nature, as if we are objectively separate from nature.
As environmentalist Joanna Macy describes in World as Lover, World as Self, the human body is more like the surface of a pond constantly interfacing with the natural world, rather than a being isolated within the confines of our skin.
Reducing the ego and relaxing the "I" perspective empowers a person to become whole in universal awareness and connectedness.
This reduces alienation and leads to awareness described in Buddhism as Anatta, the impersonal non-self.
The mind/universe has a capacity far beyond narrow linear perception.
Perceiving and experiencing life holistically opens up vastly different dimensions.
We learn to see that our beliefs and patterns of thought severely limit us.
Our human brains and consciousness are trapped in old, rational thought.
It's like our minds are using computer software written in the seventeenth century while trying to understand phenomena occurring in the twenty first century.
OK, so don't worry too much if quantum physics boggles your mind.
Just because we understand that atoms are not solid, time and space are relative and everything is entangled with everything else, you still need to get up tomorrow morning, eat breakfast and go to work.
So, life goes on.
At the same time, we gain awareness that nothing is quite what it seems and we can in fact overcome limits to our thoughts and consciousness.
You might want to read further into quantum physics, but I suggest that your time might be used more effectively meditating in non-discursive thought than trying to disentangle the mysteries of the sub-atomic universe.
Rest assured, Reiki works just as well whether you understand quantum physics or not! You do not need to privilege the scientists, physicists or doctors to figure out if Reiki is real or not.
It would be much more effective to simply receive a healing and discover it for yourself.
If you are favorably impressed by the results from your healing session, it may be time to join a Reiki course.
Be sure to read my other article concerning quantum physics and Reiki called "What is the Source of Reiki?"
By granting this privilege to science, we empower blind obedience to scientific declarations that claim objectivity is good and subjectivity is bad.
Unfortunately, orthodox, empirical science may even be blind to its own limitations in pursuit of "pure, rational science.
" Such a perspective, while effective in some fields, also qualifies as "pure, narrow limitation.
" Why do we so often defer to science rather than trust personal intuition and experience? Empirical, objective science may be great for certain geological matters, but in the human realm, it may contribute to personal disempowerment.
It makes as much sense to defer to scientists to explain the meta-physical world as it does to allow the government to set standards of honesty.
For centuries, scientists and the general population have believed in a set of natural laws, gravity, linear causation and rational thought.
Quantum physics comes along in the early 1900s and informs us that a photon can be in two places at the same time.
We learn that a photon can be either a wave or a particle, depending on the observer's expectations and system of measurement.
We also learn that space and time are relative perceptions rather than absolute measurements.
All protons are linked together throughout the universe.
Experiments have proven that probing one proton affects an intertwined proton anywhere in the universe.
These innovations in physics have ignited innovations in other realms of human thought.
We are no longer earth-bound to our little mechanical bodies.
We are something much more than that.
Quantum physics is every bit as revolutionary, and disturbing to our understanding of ourselves and the universe, as the Copernican Revolution 500 years ago that presented a radically different world view shifting away from an Earth-centered cosmology.
Similarly, as you progress in your Reiki and meditation practice, you discover amazing perspectives of life.
All things in the universe are one.
We are all connected, like one being with billions of fingers, all part of one universal mind, one collective consciousness.
So, what does all this science have to do with me? When thoughts of "me" and "I" intrude, we are severed from the unity of life.
This egoist experience damages our holistic experience of life and perpetuates our industrialized feelings of alienation.
Our modern society is painfully out of time and out of tune with nature, as if we are objectively separate from nature.
As environmentalist Joanna Macy describes in World as Lover, World as Self, the human body is more like the surface of a pond constantly interfacing with the natural world, rather than a being isolated within the confines of our skin.
Reducing the ego and relaxing the "I" perspective empowers a person to become whole in universal awareness and connectedness.
This reduces alienation and leads to awareness described in Buddhism as Anatta, the impersonal non-self.
The mind/universe has a capacity far beyond narrow linear perception.
Perceiving and experiencing life holistically opens up vastly different dimensions.
We learn to see that our beliefs and patterns of thought severely limit us.
Our human brains and consciousness are trapped in old, rational thought.
It's like our minds are using computer software written in the seventeenth century while trying to understand phenomena occurring in the twenty first century.
OK, so don't worry too much if quantum physics boggles your mind.
Just because we understand that atoms are not solid, time and space are relative and everything is entangled with everything else, you still need to get up tomorrow morning, eat breakfast and go to work.
So, life goes on.
At the same time, we gain awareness that nothing is quite what it seems and we can in fact overcome limits to our thoughts and consciousness.
You might want to read further into quantum physics, but I suggest that your time might be used more effectively meditating in non-discursive thought than trying to disentangle the mysteries of the sub-atomic universe.
Rest assured, Reiki works just as well whether you understand quantum physics or not! You do not need to privilege the scientists, physicists or doctors to figure out if Reiki is real or not.
It would be much more effective to simply receive a healing and discover it for yourself.
If you are favorably impressed by the results from your healing session, it may be time to join a Reiki course.
Be sure to read my other article concerning quantum physics and Reiki called "What is the Source of Reiki?"