Of Reiki and reinvention: An inquiry into energy healing

A new decade has arrived; more people are looking to reinvent themselves with a fresh slate. But with every social media post of embarking on a journey toward a “new year, new me”, how many of these people are truly taking action to change and heal themselves for the better?

Reinventing oneself takes more than just words—it requires actions and a step in the right direction—and through Reiki, the opportunity to start anew manifests itself. Considered an art form of wellness, Reiki deals with energy healing and seeks to channel positive energy into the body, as conducted by certified Reiki Practitioners and Masters—the only ones allowed to perform this type of healing on clients. As Reiki seeks to promote mindfulness and self-care, Reiki Master Eisel Laygo aspires to increase awareness about this practice and hopes to aid others on their journey to reinvention.

A purpose-driven life

Laygo first heard about Reiki while studying under an online mentor for another certification as a tarot reader. But she reveals that it was only when her aunt had been diagnosed with stage four breast cancer that she became convinced to study and master Reiki. As she shares, “Because of the shock and depression [the incident] caused me and the family, that’s when I finally caved in and looked for a Reiki Master who could teach and attune me.”

Having obtained her certification from the Natural Healer Society in Australia, Laygo adds that she has always resonated with alternative healing techniques. Further, her yearning to find her true purpose in life ultimately pushed her to reinvent herself through Reiki.

Nowadays, Laygo also considers herself as a “soulpreneur”: a soulful entrepreneur following a career path that helps her to live out her purpose—to inspire growth, to empower others, and to remind people of the importance of reinvention and self-care.

The core of Chakra

The practice of Reiki promises to grant an overwhelming feeling of renewal and a purportedly profound experience of internalization through cleansing and meditation. By practicing Reiki, an individual is said to be able to channel positive energies via opening pathways, called “Chakras”, subsequently allowing light to enter the body.

Literally meaning “wheel”, Chakras can be categorized into seven different centers—Crown Chakra, Third Eye Chakra, Throat Chakra, Heart Chakra, Solar Plexus Chakra, Sacral Chakra, and Root Chakra—all of which act as “primary energy centers [that] spin harmoniously together when balanced,” as Laygo puts it. This delicate balance of energy, however, is susceptible to going awry when disrupted by external factors—life’s challenges.

Laygo shares that a Reiki Practitioner has three responsibilities, the first being to the self. Laygo puts emphasis on the belief that “you cannot pour from an empty cup,” arguing that one should learn to care for oneself before teaching and healing another. As she furthers, “Living out the Reiki Principles we learned from the founder, [Mikao Usui, we need to] heal ourselves [first] before we heal others.” 

The second responsibility is toward others, which involves clarifying the essence of Reiki to the people who come forward for help. “It is our responsibility to explain that Reiki is a type of holistic and energy healing and not in any way a substitute for medical or psychological diagnosis and treatment,”
she stresses.

The last responsibility is toward the environment, as Laygo notes that Reiki Practitioners should “as much as possible…opt to purchase or choose environment-friendly products for personal use or even for client recommendations.”.

The healing process

Before conducting a Reiki session, Laygo’s personal approach is to require her clients to refrain from smoking, drinking caffeine, and eating red meat at least 24 hours beforehand; she believes that this kind of abstinence will help the client enter the session in a more “purified” state.

In beginning the actual session, the Reiki Master or Practitioner will first interview the client regarding their personal details, including health and medical history, as well as the type of attunement—be it an in-person or distance healing—that they want to receive. Laygo explains that this interviewing step is an important prerequisite as it enables the Reiki Master or Practitioner to assess how best to address the client’s needs.

To further ensure the effectiveness of the approach, the Reiki Master or Practitioner also scans the Chakra points of the client, who is asked to sit or lie down comfortably with their eyes closed, allotting them a peaceful space free from any external distractions. As Laygo explains, “I scan their energies to help me know where I should focus, to check for any imbalances. After the scanning, that is where I will set the healing intention, which is something I get from the interview or from scanning.”

Once all these preliminaries have been accomplished, the actual healing process can then be carried out, involving the opening and cleansing of Chakras, activation of the Reiki symbols, and closing of the Chakras. “We accelerate or decelerate your Chakra wheels. When everything is perfectly balanced, we close your Crown Chakra and then we let go of the energy to disconnect ourselves from you,” describes Laygo.

After the session, the Reiki Master or Practitioner will then give their client an assessment of what happened during the session, providing recommendations in order to further the clients’ healing outside of Reiki.

However, undergoing one Reiki session does not mean that one will remain healed for life or that one has completely reinvented themselves. ”Healing is a path, a journey, and a process,” Laygo expresses, and these same sentiments can be said for the pursuit of reinvention and personal growth as a whole.

More than meets the eye

Reiki Practitioners only act as facilitators to their clients’ own spiritual healing, Laygo clarifies, stressing that “You can only heal yourself.” She emphasizes that the road to spiritual emancipation and the development of one’s inner life can only be found within the self.

As the new decade rises on the horizon, there is a renewed vigor for us to better ourselves. Energy healing might not be something that is too well-known in the Philippines, but Laygo hopes that in the future, Reiki can be taken as an earnest form of healing—urging the public to recognize its potential effects to one’s emotional, spiritual, physical, and mental condition. There are certainly various valid ways by which individuals can choose to change and reinvent themselves, and Reiki may just emerge as a viable option.

The philosophy of Reiki simply encourages us to have a more active role in our self-development, urging us to find peace in our inner energies, so it translates better to how we behave in the physical world. In our present context, where self-care and mindfulness are now being recognized as critical to our health and well-being, the odds of Reiki becoming a newfound way of healing one’s scars are not so far-fetched.