I've always liked the physicality of Reiki. Of bringing mind and body together through hands-on healing, chanting, or the breath. I've been reading an excellent book about body awareness. I wanted to share a few insights about kinetic sense, feelings of being embodied, and wellbeing that really felt relevant for Reiki practice.
In the simplest explanation, your kinetic sense allows you to feel where your body is and to manage movement. That implies vast amounts of data being processed. For example, if you are walking on an incline, the brain will sense through the body all the necessary adjustments to be made for walking efficiently. Your kinetic sense also allows you to feel muscle pain, tension, and relaxation.
Your kinetic sense, however, goes beyond sensing your body. When you are stressed out about something, you notice your abdomen tightening. A kinesthetic experience is, therefore, an emotional experience. People who can't listen to their bodies are not fully connected to their emotions. And by being less in touch with their bodies, they may also suffer from a lack of muscle flexibility, which in turn can affect their perspective in life.
"Kinesthetic awareness affects your physical and emotional flexibility. These two types of flexibility are not separate; they support one another. When your kinesthetic sense is clear, you can experience your feelings as they occur. Essentially, this means you know yourself. As a result, you are more flexible in dealing with stress and better able to make choices about your life circumstances," explains Craig Williamson in his book Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living. "We would need to understand the importance of kinesthetic awareness, to stop being disembodied people, and to become embodied people."
Many times we believe that the hand-positions order or sequence is one of the most relevant variables in a Reiki treatment. But when you read this, it points towards awareness as the crucial element of this practice. To use our hands to listen to both our bodies and our emotions. To soften our muscles, and make us more flexible in every sense. To be fully present, to detect worry and anger so we can let them go, to connect with gratitude and compassion. In a few words, to literally embody the precepts.