The Healing Touch

An ancient therapy called Reiki is teaching how to find peace within

by: Jennifer LaLima

Stop.  Look inward.  Breathe deeply, breathe slowly.  In a society that turns so quickly to pills and outside sources for quick fixes, one ancient form of healing has crept back into popularity. 

A man with 20 years of experience in Manhattan ’s corporate world, Gary Spolansky, 47, of Westbury, never would have predicted he would find his future in the alternative healing therapy known as Reiki.

“I was dragged kicking and screaming,” Spolansky said of his first encounter with Reiki, a method of healing that relies on laying hands on the body to promote positive energy flow.

The unexpected comfort Spolansky experienced after his first session led to an immediate desire to learn more about Reiki. In May 2000, he left a corporate career to become a full-time Reiki practitioner. During his ten years of experience with Reiki, he has earned the title of Reiki Master.

“It’s not a fad,” said Spolansky.  “As acceptance of Reiki grows and the benefits are seen more fully to complement traditional medicine and all related fields, more and more [people] will embrace this energetic, healing therapy.”

Reiki is also performed as a meditation.  A Reiki receiver can sit or lie flat with his eyes closed and limbs uncrossed to generate a smooth flow of energy.  The Reiki practicioner lays hands over what are known as the centers of energy, or chakras, of the body.  The term chakra comes from Sanskrit, meaning ‘wheel of light.’  Reiki focuses on the seven chakras, which include the crown, third eye or intuition, throat, lower abdomen, solar plexus, root and heart.  Carl Jung describes the chakras as the “gateways of consciousness.”

Alana Elias Kornfeld, a Hofstra senior, went to Gary Spolansky during a particularly stressful time in her life.  Kornfeld said Reiki brought her a sense of clarity and a peaceful feeling. 

“Having the Reiki session with Gary was really amazing,” said Kornfeld.  “I didn’t know what to expect, but he assured me that all he was doing was balancing my energy and that I would feel lighter at the end of the session.”

Spolansky has observed the negative reactions to Reiki, including feelings of doubt and fear from those who view it as something more mystical than it actually is.  He has also seen people experience it in the way they would a massage, for stress relief of the mind and body.  Spolansky believes that many physical problems have emotional stress as a component, and that Reiki can be used to heal them.

Reiki has grown in in popularity at local yoga studios and even hospitals.  Good Samaritan Hospital of West Islip, N.Y., has a Reiki practitioner to whom they refer patients upon request.  Sister Betty Keegan, FMM, is a Master in The Usui System of Reiki Healing, and is associated with Good Samaritan Hospital.

“Mini-sessions in The Usui System of Reiki Healing are offered during health fairs for both employees and for the surrounding community,” Keegan said.  “If patients come in and request Reiki, they can receive five to 10 minute sessions.”

Toni Xenos, of the American Medical Association, said the AMA has not taken a formal stand on the issue of Reiki.  Those who practice Reiki should be aware that it is not necessarily a replacement for medical healing.

According to the International Center for Reiki Training, the origins of Reiki are unclear.  “The system of Reiki was created by Dr. Usui about 1917 in Japan ,” said William Lee Rand, President of Reiki News Magazine.  “However, the laying on of hands has been practiced for thousands of years and it is hard to say when it actually started.”

 Dr. Mikao Usui, a nineteenth-century Japanese healer and philosopher, is credited with the structure of Reiki as it is used today.  An avid learner, he traveled to China and Europe to gain knowledge about psychology and medicine.  His teachings were renowned, and centered upon the belief that one can use positive energy to heal, without depleting one’s own energy in the process.

The belief behind Reiki is that the emotional self can affect the well-being of the physical body. Reiki can be used to restore spirit, peacefulness and balance, both physical and emotional. 

There are three levels of Reiki instruction: those who complete instruction in all three can practice and teach Reiki.  Level three practitioners are referred to as Reiki Masters.

Reiki Master Rosemary Rubino, of East Islip , said Reiki can be traced back to ancient healing beliefs.  Some Native American customs used the process of laying hands over the body to call upon a divine or universal energy to promote healing.

“Ancients believed that they were not out to heal the body,” Rubino said.  “It was the soul that was on a journey.”  Physical problems were often considered a reflection of the stress, or turmoil within the soul. 

Many people enjoy Reiki because it is not confined to a particular religious belief system.  Reiki practitioners are trained to view every receiver as a pure and unique individual. 

Rubino learned Reiki after battling breast cancer in her 30’s. She perceived many  cancer treatments to be very aggressive.  Though she came across different alternative therapies, Reiki spoke to her interest in energy healing. She compares Reiki to the use of rituals throughout history.

“People seem to respond to the structure and tradition of using ritual in order to understand the self,” Rubino said. “Reiki is meant to bring only positive energy, as well as self-reflection.” 

Kerry Hosek, 24, of Bay Shore , N.Y. , sought out Reiki to relieve stress. “The Reiki Master [Rubino] meditated upon the gift of patience,” she said.  “Upon leaving the session, I felt regenerated and very at peace.  The calmness from the mediation in turn brought me patience.” 

As a preschool teacher, Hosek was able to bring her newly aquired ability, to meditate on patience, into her work.  She said everyone should experience the inner reflection brought about by Reiki at least once in a lifetime.