Suzie: A channel for positive energy?

Today Tanja brought me along to a level I Reiki course taught by the mother of a coworker. Reiki is a Japanese healing practice by which universal energy is channeled through the body of the healer into the patient through 25 energy points in the body.

Every level I Reiki class includes a spiritual 'attunement' where you sit in a chair with your eyes closed and the master performs Reiki on you to put your spirit into balance. I have to say, for all my skepticism about things, the attunement was an intense experience. It felt like I had a magnet inside of me that was being pulled upwards by the Reiki master. Maybe there is something to all of this energy stuff.

Next, we went through a 1 hour 20 minute meditative process where we practiced feeling grateful about our lives and concentrating on channeling energy through our hands into our 25 energy points for 3 minutes each.


If I want to proceed to level II Reiki, I have to repeat this ritual every day for the next 21 days. It's kind of exhausting, but I'm tempted to try for 3 reasons:

1) It's basically like meditation and self-awareness building, and I read that meditating 40 minutes per day leads to a larger and more active cerebral cortex. So 80 minutes could make me into the smartest person in the world.

2) Taking time out every day to feel grateful for my life would go along with all Alissa's scientific evidence on the benefits of positive psychology.

3) It's supposed to make you worry less.

OK, I'm off to strengthen my aura...