It is the greatest blessing to have the attendance of a birth, postpartum or death doula at any of these sacred transitions. When a doula has been attuned to any level of Reiki and is asked to serve, there is often an added visceral experience of having a truly heart-centered support person in attendance.
It feels important to me that we return to acknowledging and reclaiming the sacredness of the experiences of pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and death. On a whole our society has put aside this way of experiencing our most important life passages. We are living in an age of efficiency, speed, detachment, and mechanics while seldom slowing down enough to feel and be present as deep movements of life are taking place. In many cultures these times are held in reverence and acknowledged ceremoniously or ritualistically. This is especially true for the profound transitions of birth and death. Everyone present is holding space for the “rite of passage” of the birth of the new spirit into life as a human being or the human being’s transition into its spirit life.
As birth, postpartum and death doulas we are trained or experienced in sharing comfort measures and awareness of the stages of birth and death. As Reiki Doulas who are invited to participate in sacred transitions, we are aligning ourselves with those space holders who honor these experiences. The presence that we bring into these spaces is invaluable. Because we are grounded in daily practices that support our capacity to show up in peace, calm, gratitude, assuredness, and compassion in addition to the skills that our training has given us, our contribution to the overall experience of the person in transition can make such a big difference. What a gift to be able to refrain from focusing on any specific outcome and remain in or return to our hearts and haras.
We are aware of the obvious gift of offering hands-on Reiki to mothers, those who are dying, family members, staff, and caregivers. We have experienced the relief from stress, fear and pain that the recipients have felt, and the sense of comfort and ease that resulted. And even more significantly we have brought the added gifts of presence, heart, and strong intuition which are the result of our own self-Reiki practices. Daily meditation practices, Reiki self-healing sessions, and the five Reiki Precepts are foundational for bringing this heart-centered presence to these sacred transitions.
Remembering to return to connection with our hara or lower dantian through meditation or breathwork practices serves to anchor and ground us steadily during stressful and ecstatic times. When we enter a space with this grounded energy a sense of calm assuredness comes with us and we radiate this assuredness and calm into the room. Others in attendance or witnessing will often remark on the peaceful energy that they experienced in the space.
Sharing Reiki with ourselves and receiving Reiki regularly supports our own physical, emotional, mental and spiritual healing. We address our physical conditions and weaknesses which might prevent us from being able to remain present throughout our time of support. We increase our strength and stamina. We have begun or continue to eliminate emotional triggers and trauma, thus allowing us to bring even more reliable presence to these times of sacred transition.
A daily practice of contemplating or mindfully reciting the five Reiki Precepts brings deep healing and balance to our mental and spiritual selves. We embody more and more the intentions of the Precepts……for today only, I will not feed anger, I will not feed worry, I will be grateful, I will be true to my path and truth, and I will hold compassion for myself and others. The cumulative effects of this practice prepare us to witness, access, offer comfort, and speak from a place of non-reactivity free of anger or worry and fear, and from a space of integrity, deep intuition, compassion and gratitude.
This energy in us will naturally be palpable by those present whether hands-on Reiki is shared or not. The mother and baby will energetically know that you are holding a strong, grounded, quiet space for the best possible outcome for their birth experience. The dying person will sense this same strong, grounded, quiet presence supporting as peaceful and easeful a transition as possible.
The blessings of Reiki are so needed in our world right now. May the blessings of healing peace, oneness, compassion, and joy live in you through and in the world through your Reiki presence.