Children Giving Reiki

by Kylie Holmes

I live in a village called Abbotsley, which is near Cambridge in England. I teach children meditation, and I am also a writer and Intuitive Angel Therapist. As a Reiki Master and Karuna Reiki® Master, I use Reiki everyday in bringing up my three spiritually aware children, Jade (eight), Amba (six), and Leo, who is two. The two older children have discovered for themselves creative ways to use Reiki.

I first introduced Reiki to my children during pregnancy. I did daily treatments throughout the nine months to connect with the unborn child. Then using my intuition, I attuned them to Reiki whilst they where still in the womb. So you could say that my children are “Natural Born Reiki Practitioners.”

As parents we want the best for our children and go to great lengths to achieve that. For my children, I wanted to make certain that they felt self-assured in what they set out to achieve. It is very important to my husband and me that our children feel balanced and grounded, and that they know they can come and talk to us about anything that troubles them.

I wanted my children to be able to help themselves when they are hurt, sad, or afraid. I knew that Reiki would act as a self-empowerment tool, which would serve them throughout their lives. Feeling that they are safe and protected with Reiki would empower them to live life to the fullest.

Some would argue that I should have waited until they were old enough to understand and allowed them to have a choice in whether they wished to be attuned. Others suggest that I’ve taken away the Children’s free will.I do not feel that this is the case. I believe that before we re-enter each lifetime, our soul lessons are agreed, sometimes with many different souls aware of our experiences. As souls we come into this life to experience certain opportunities for growth and certain soul lessons. I believe that, as a family, one of our soul contracts was to incorporate Reiki into our everyday lives. I really do sense that they gave me permission for initiation to Reiki while in the womb so it would always play a part in their lives.

Raising spiritually aware children can sometimes be challenging. Questioning everything around them and asserting their point of view can sometimes leave me flummoxed as to where to go next. I have found that adopting the Reiki Principles and entwining them into their upbringing has helped us as a family and helped each individual child to strive and find their greatest assets.

When they are challenged, the Principles remind them to express how they feel. If something is disconcerting the children—being bullied at school, for example—we sit down together and talk about what is troubling them. We also discuss what is the best way forward in dealing with the bullying. Growing up with Reiki creates a greater world for them. They are learning to love and respect themselves, the people they come into contact with, and the environment they live in.

I would like to make it very clear that my husband and I do not force the children to do Reiki; it is their choice. They make it freely. Jade and Amba use their intuition in finding new ways to use Reiki to help with family life, their friends and themselves. All three children can do Reiki anytime, anywhere. For example when they watch television, they often give each other effective Reiki sessions. Or when they are reading a book quietly on their own, they may do a self-treatment.

Jade and Amba like to give Reiki to their Dad when he has a headache. Theyfeel the Reiki energy as a tingling sensation as it leaves their hands. My husband Eric remarks that their energy is at all times strong even when they move their hands to different positions . Amba also likes to give Reiki to our kitten, Bracken, who just purrs away with contentment. Jade informs me that when she is giving Reiki to her guinea pig, Poppy squeaks and squawks in a happy way.

Both of the girls use Reiki to help their friends at school. Jade, the eight-year-old, describes a school experience with Reiki:

When my best friend Georgina fell over in the playground, she hurt herself. Her knee was bleeding and I put my hand over Georgina ’s knee and she stoppedcrying. I said that I was doing Reiki and Georgina asked what Reiki was. I told that Reiki helps people to feel better when they are sad. Georgina said that she felt heat and warmth from my hands and that her knee stopped bleeding. Georgina told a few friends from our class that I was doing Reiki. They then pretended to do Reiki themselves on each other.

Amba regularly gives Reiki to her best friend. In her words:

My best friend is called Jack. Jack comes to school in a wheelchair and I like to help him whenever I can. I place my hand on Jack’s back so that the Reiki can help him learn. Reiki also helps Jack to stay at school all day so he can play with us at playtime. When Jack is sad I like to give him a ‘Reiki Hug’ to make him feel better.

When Jade and Amba feel unsure of a new project at school, they place their hands on their hearts to give them courage and confidence to move forward without fear so they can accomplish their tasks to the best of their ability. They also do Reiki on themselves before they do their homework. Amba likes to give herself Reiki when she is learning her spelling words. When bedtime comes, Amba says if she cannot sleep, she will give one of her favourite toys Reiki. She then cuddles the toy, which helps her go to sleep.

This is just part of the article which appears in the Summer 2007 issue of Reiki News Magazine.