Dear Friends of Wisechoices and Mari Hall,
I hope this finds you happy and well in this last few months of this year. In this Wisechoices Newsletter I share the last quarter of my 2004 travels. I have flown over 49,000 miles this year and have been around the world. There are also two articles to read at the end of this letter.
After arriving back in the USA from Australia and New Zealand in late September and repacking, I started travelling… destination Europe. On my way out of the USA I first made a visit to two states. The first stop was Utah where I taught a ONE Plus course. Thanks to the photography work of Julie, Christine and myself of the 20 new touchpoints when I was in New Zealand and Kimberly's computer skills in Utah we had the new ONE Plus course manual to use in the Utah. Kimberly is presently working on the production of the treatment of specific illness which include photographs of the touchpoints for ONE Plus. She is absolutely brilliant in this work and we will all benefit from her dedication. Thanks Kimberly! All of this work contiues to be an International effort.
When I was in Utah my organizer Connie Barnes took me to Moab located in the Southern part of Utah. It is the home of the red rocks and beautiful canyons. What a difference to Salt Lake City. We drove through the desert to get there. It was absolutely breathtaking. I felt as if I was standing at the edge of the world…I was filled with awe at the vastness and sheer size of the formations, mountains and canyons.
While standing at a lookout point at Dead Horse Point I wondered out loud just what day God made this miracle of nature. I heard laughter and then agreement from a couple standing near me. They had the same thought and at the same time. Connie is a terrific woman filled with light and love, she continues to teach me to open and receive. I have enjoyed our times together and look forward to returning there soon. I hope you will also have the privilege of meeting her in the future.
Next, I was off to stay with my brother Scott and his family in Connecticut see the fall colours of New England. They live in Norwalk on a beautiful tree lined street. Deer and Wild Turkeys run through the back garden of their house. It is a very nice place to sit and reconnect to nature. We took a drive up to a winery in the north and besides having a lovely afternoon as a family I had the pleasure of taking so many beautiful pictures. It was a welcome rest stop in the journey….and then I was off to Thessaloniki, Greece and my friends there.
I look forward to seeing old friends in the countries I visit. Over time I have been part of their lives; a witness to their weddings, the birth of their children, the passing of life and all the ups and downs to be experienced living life. This visit was poignant to me because my original organizer in Thessalonica, Rosie Horsfall discovered she had breast cancer a few days after I arrived. Being with Rosie, her husband Dimos and holding Julietta, their 13-month-old daughter who was born when I was there in October 2003 and working with them energetically deepened the existing bond between us. They are part of my spiritual family. They welcome your prayers, energy and love. Please add Rosie to your healing lists and your individual distance healing work.
While I was in Thessaloniki I taught the first and second levels of Reiki and we spent time looking ahead for next year’s program. There is a request that I teach a series of weekend self-development workshops when I return in March. I am excited for the opportunity to develop this program for them.
I travelled to London to teach the first and second levels of Reiki and travelled on up to Edinburgh, Scotland for a reunion of people who had been together at the Atsitsa centre in Skyros, Greece last summer. What fun to see how different we looked with normal clothing on. Most of us wore much less in the hot Greek sun. After the weekend I took a quick train ride to the Highlands of Scotland to visit a friend who also was one of my first Reiki students in Scotland in 1990. I always enjoy Trish and her world of wild gardens and rocks walls and complementary medicine. She is an excellent cook and hostess besides being a dedicated Chiropractor. She introduced me to the concept of lower glucose level eating and cooking. I have ordered the book and recipes to use once I am home. It is easy and quite healthy.
Now I am in the Netherlands staying with my dear Dutch friends Ria and Jan van Staveren till the 15th of December. I enjoy all the various trips we take, their family and the interesting conversations we have. This is my home away from home in Europe. My next stop is Cypress, Texas to be with my family for the holidays. My grandchildren are counting the days until I get back. My health continues to get better thanks to Dr. Whitley in Utah, Dr. Alba, a wonderful Naturopath in Denver, Colorado, my Greek doctors and you my friends who send me energy and support me to continue this meaningful work in the world. I am truly blessed in my life. Thank you so much. I am taking a few months off after the holidays to write, meditate and ride my bicycle and of course enjoy my family! The schedule as it is now for 2005 is up on the web pages. Yes, I am coming back to Australia and New Zealand in the fall of 2005 and will also be working in the USA more.
The next 21 day Usui Virtual Retreat will start the 21st of December. I will be sending out notices when I am back in the USA.
And as promised here are two articles for you. One on Reiki Ryoho as a Spiritual Path by Hyakuten Inamoto and an article on a Journey to Forgiveness by Carol Bonura. I have realised over time how important it is to forgive others and ourselves even when we feel we have every reason not to. I hope you will enjoy them.
Love and Blessings,
Mari
Reiki Ryoho as a Spiritual Path
Hyakuten Inamoto
REIKI:
This Japanese word literally means “the mysterious energy of the universe.”
RYOHO:
RYO is …treatment or healing and HO is….. method or technique
Reiki Ryoho, to be exact ”Usui Reiki Ryoho”, is intended for improvement in mind and body. Here we need to take notice of “improvement in MIND and BODY”, not BODY and MIND.
Usui Sensei says, “First and foremost, the mind is to be healed, and secondly the body should be made sound. If the mind answers for a path of sincerity, and is healthy, the body shall naturally be sturdy. “ (Mind precedes physical body. Mind is a master, and body is a servant.)
Reiki Ryoho (Reiki Healing Method) is apparently a simple form of hands-on healing, and It is easy to learn and simple to use. Placement of the hands is just the outer aspect of Reiki Ryoho, and there is, of course, the inner aspect of it, which is a spiritual approach/path.
Reiki Ryoho appears to be so simple, however, the truth is, it is so deep. It is a means to an end. The end (goal) is to attain “Satori” or enlightenment, or “An-shin Ritsu-mei” as in terms of Usui Sensei. “Anshin Ritsu-mei” signifies “a state of an absolute INNER PEACE”, after having surrendered to Heaven’s will or to await Heaven’s dispensation calmly after having done one’s utmost.
There are many means to unfold and uplift one’s spirituality, and Reiki Ryoho is one useful and helpful means. It is a simple and yet powerful tool to unfold and develop one’s inner growth.
Reiki hands-on practice embodies one’s loving-kindness in action. We can safely say that to practice Reiki Ryoho is to perform acts of loving-kindness.
Since practice of Reiki Ryoho is an act or embodiment of one’s loving-kindness, calm, harmony and balance within, through practice one gradually and naturally becomes full of loving-kindness, caring, calm and peaceful,
When we do Reiki Ryoho, “to heal and to be healed” takes place at the same time, and a sense of “oneness” or “interconnectedness” can be felt by the two people, giver and recipient. This enables both to feel happy together, and this sense of “oneness” or “interconnectedness” will trigger a personal spiritual transformation or will give us a nudge into new directions of spirituality.
Our job as a Reiki practitioner is to manifest Reiki Ryoho Principles (Precepts) in our every day life; Do not anger, Do not worry, With thankfulness, Work diligently, Be kind to others.
And we are to strive for fulfilling our lives of “good health and happiness ” by walking on a spiritual path of Reiki Ryoho under the guidance of REIKI, the energy of the universe, the source of all things, the Divine Spirit, One Great, or whatever you want to call it. As we manifest Reiki Ryoho Principles in our daily life, we can be supported and guided by REIKI at all times. In other words, we resonate with REIKI. We become one with REIKI. We live Reiki Ryoho in our day-to-day life.
Reiki Ryoho is a wonder-full spiritual path available to everyone.
Enjoy!
A Journey to Forgiveness
By Carol Bonura
“We must learn to move through life with a more open attitude toward what life has given us to work with, lovingly accepting ourselves with all of our little flaws. Love and forgiveness are the healing forces that release the energy blocks to the heart chakra created by bitterness, resentment, anger, and even grief.” This is how we grow spiritually and to heal mentally, emotionally, as well as physically and to experience greater joy in our lives. “from A Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine” written by Dr. Richard Gerber
Over the past few months God has been gently reminding me to forgive the person that committed a horrendous act of betrayal and violence against a person I love dearly, my precious daughter Jackie.
When Jackie reached puberty, she started to exhibit strange behaviour. What seemed to present itself as an attention deficit disorder turned into a full-blown depression with a psychotic break after she was placed on medication to treat her. The next few years she spent going from doctor to doctor attempting to get to the bottom of her physiological problems. She was then diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. Because I am a healthcare worker; it seemed feasible from what I knew of the disease that this could be possible however something in deepest part of me just didn’t agree..
About a year and a half ago her therapist became convinced that Jackie appeared to be a victim of child molestation but she couldn’t be sure who committed the act. When Jackie was first asked all she could say was she didn’t remember. Months later she finally remembered that she had been molested and also who had molested her. We were devastated, I had no idea that the molestation had been taking place or for how long. In some way I felt as if I had failed her.
It took me months to be able to sleep at night without the aide of medication. I was convinced that this was the most horrendous crime to commit against a child and I would never forgive the offender, or myself for not protecting her. My heart and soul was tortured for Jackie and the guilt I felt at times over not recognizing what was going on was eating me alive.
Jackie was responding to her therapy and I also entered into a therapeutic relationship to help deal with the guilt I was feeling. It did help and in order to handle my situation I made the decision that I would just spend the rest of my life avoiding this person. I would never look or speak to him unless I absolutely had no other choice. I realize now that avoiding a person doesn’t take away the problem it just prolongs the pain and eventually the pressure builds up
Then I believe that God started to plant his little seeds. “A voice’’ inside my head kept telling me to let it go because the weight is too much to carry, being the stubborn, Irish-German that I am I first refused to forgive. I began to notice I was getting wrinkles around my mouth because I hadn’t smiled for a very long time. I started to see that I was being shown myself in the mirror of life and that it was time to let the pain and judgement go.
I hadn’t been using my Reiki for a long time. It is remarkable how in times of distress we often forget to use what we need the most. Everything took to much effort except my anger. I decided to wear a rose quartz crystal around my neck and over my heart to help me to heal. I cleared and recharged it daily with Reiki. Lo and behold before long my heart didn’t feel as heavy. I didn’t feel like I had to drag myself thru each day anymore. I was sleeping a little better and could actually enjoy speaking to people and being with them again. I went to a Reiki retreat with Jackie and everyone was so kind and patient with us. As we shared Jackie’s story we were given different points of view as possibilities why we were going thru this at this time in our lives and offered healings. I came away from the retreat with my anger still in my heart but the hard shell around it was definitely cracking. God was at work.
So here I was beginning to accept the fact that I needed to move towards forgiveness but I had no idea how. One afternoon I was watching a show on TV that had families who had forgiven people in their lives. One woman had been shot once in the abdomen by a total stranger and later found out he was a hired hit man. She was able to work through it over the years after and has even become friends with this man over time. Another family involved a grandmother and her granddaughter. The young girl’s Mom had been brutally raped and murdered. These two women joined a program at a prison so they could meet the attacker face to face. Over time they also made their way to forgiveness. How could I not learn to forgive if these people were able to and they don’t even have their loved one with them any longer?
I started to pray and asked for help. I was lead to a book, which has helped to get the ball rolling. The title is “A Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine” by Richard Gerber. In the book it discusses how we plan our life prior to coming to this lifetime. We plan who our family will be, who our friends will be and also who will come into our lives as teachers. It states: “Souls often pursue relationships from lifetime to lifetime within a grouping of souls, sometimes reversing roles between parent and child, teacher and student, the tormentor and the tormented, in order to experience both sides of relationships with greater clarity and compassion.” It goes on to discuss how we make sacred contracts prior to each lifetime. “If we assume that this is true, it brings up an interesting point. If for example, each soul has a choice in deciding who its parents will be, wouldn’t we all want to incarnate into families with wealth, privilege, and status, where we wouldn’t have to struggle to make a living? The idea of someone’s consciously choosing to incarnate into a family where there are conflicts or abusive parents or a lack of financial wealth suggests that the soul does not always choose the path of least resistance.” I realized then that Jackie and yes, even I had chosen this path for specific reasons I could not see or understand.
I had already heard from a friend that this was another way of looking at the situation. Seeing it in writing just cemented it in my mind. The knowledge rang true in my soul and it helped to ease the burden. I know someday I will see this person on the street and it will raise the old feelings again. I pray that each encounter will be less and less painful and true forgiveness will be reached. As the old saying goes, time heals all wounds. I feel like now I have the strength to help Jackie work towards forgiveness when she is ready to start.
To those of you reading this if you have people in your life that need to be forgiven, or you have had a problem forgiving yourself I would recommend working on the fourth Chakra to begin with; Reiki is a wonderful answer as well as rose quartz crystals when working in this area. Once you have cleared them they hold Reiki energy and begin to work with us to soften our hearts quickly.
As Dr. Gerber says “Love and forgiveness are the healing forces that release the energy blocks to the heart chakra created by bitterness, resentment, anger, and even grief.” Forgiving myself for not being aware of Jackie’s problem and thus not protecting her, and also forgiving the person for hurting Jackie is helping me to grow spiritually and to heal mentally, emotionally, as well as physically. And I am experiencing greater joy in my life one day at a time. I pray this will also be the case for Jackie.
I look forward to seeing old friends in the countries I visit. Over time I have been part of their lives; a witness to their weddings, the birth of their children, the passing of life and all the ups and downs to be experienced living life. This visit was poignant to me because my original organizer in Thessalonica, Rosie Horsfall discovered she had breast cancer a few days after I arrived. Being with Rosie, her husband Dimos and holding Julietta, their 13-month-old daughter who was born when I was there in October 2003 and working with them energetically deepened the existing bond between us. They are part of my spiritual family. They welcome your prayers, energy and love. Please add Rosie to your healing lists and your individual distance healing work.
While I was in Thessaloniki I taught the first and second levels of Reiki and we spent time looking ahead for next year’s program. There is a request that I teach a series of weekend self-development workshops when I return in March. I am excited for the opportunity to develop this program for them.
I travelled to London to teach the first and second levels of Reiki and travelled on up to Edinburgh, Scotland for a reunion of people who had been together at the Atsitsa centre in Skyros, Greece last summer. What fun to see how different we looked with normal clothing on. Most of us wore much less in the hot Greek sun. After the weekend I took a quick train ride to the Highlands of Scotland to visit a friend who also was one of my first Reiki students in Scotland in 1990. I always enjoy Trish and her world of wild gardens and rocks walls and complementary medicine. She is an excellent cook and hostess besides being a dedicated Chiropractor. She introduced me to the concept of lower glucose level eating and cooking. I have ordered the book and recipes to use once I am home. It is easy and quite healthy.
Now I am in the Netherlands staying with my dear Dutch friends Ria and Jan van Staveren till the 15th of December. I enjoy all the various trips we take, their family and the interesting conversations we have. This is my home away from home in Europe. My next stop is Cypress, Texas to be with my family for the holidays. My grandchildren are counting the days until I get back. My health continues to get better thanks to Dr. Whitley in Utah, Dr. Alba, a wonderful Naturopath in Denver, Colorado, my Greek doctors and you my friends who send me energy and support me to continue this meaningful work in the world. I am truly blessed in my life. Thank you so much. I am taking a few months off after the holidays to write, meditate and ride my bicycle and of course enjoy my family! The schedule as it is now for 2005 is up on the web pages. Yes, I am coming back to Australia and New Zealand in the fall of 2005 and will also be working in the USA more.
The next 21 day Usui Virtual Retreat will start the 21st of December. I will be sending out notices when I am back in the USA.
And as promised here are two articles for you. One on Reiki Ryoho as a Spiritual Path by Hyakuten Inamoto and an article on a Journey to Forgiveness by Carol Bonura. I have realised over time how important it is to forgive others and ourselves even when we feel we have every reason not to. I hope you will enjoy them.
Love and Blessings,
Mari
Reiki Ryoho as a Spiritual Path
Hyakuten Inamoto
REIKI:
This Japanese word literally means “the mysterious energy of the universe.”
RYOHO:
RYO is …treatment or healing and HO is….. method or technique
Reiki Ryoho, to be exact ”Usui Reiki Ryoho”, is intended for improvement in mind and body. Here we need to take notice of “improvement in MIND and BODY”, not BODY and MIND.
Usui Sensei says, “First and foremost, the mind is to be healed, and secondly the body should be made sound. If the mind answers for a path of sincerity, and is healthy, the body shall naturally be sturdy. “ (Mind precedes physical body. Mind is a master, and body is a servant.)
Reiki Ryoho (Reiki Healing Method) is apparently a simple form of hands-on healing, and It is easy to learn and simple to use. Placement of the hands is just the outer aspect of Reiki Ryoho, and there is, of course, the inner aspect of it, which is a spiritual approach/path.
Reiki Ryoho appears to be so simple, however, the truth is, it is so deep. It is a means to an end. The end (goal) is to attain “Satori” or enlightenment, or “An-shin Ritsu-mei” as in terms of Usui Sensei. “Anshin Ritsu-mei” signifies “a state of an absolute INNER PEACE”, after having surrendered to Heaven’s will or to await Heaven’s dispensation calmly after having done one’s utmost.
There are many means to unfold and uplift one’s spirituality, and Reiki Ryoho is one useful and helpful means. It is a simple and yet powerful tool to unfold and develop one’s inner growth.
Reiki hands-on practice embodies one’s loving-kindness in action. We can safely say that to practice Reiki Ryoho is to perform acts of loving-kindness.
Since practice of Reiki Ryoho is an act or embodiment of one’s loving-kindness, calm, harmony and balance within, through practice one gradually and naturally becomes full of loving-kindness, caring, calm and peaceful,
When we do Reiki Ryoho, “to heal and to be healed” takes place at the same time, and a sense of “oneness” or “interconnectedness” can be felt by the two people, giver and recipient. This enables both to feel happy together, and this sense of “oneness” or “interconnectedness” will trigger a personal spiritual transformation or will give us a nudge into new directions of spirituality.
Our job as a Reiki practitioner is to manifest Reiki Ryoho Principles (Precepts) in our every day life; Do not anger, Do not worry, With thankfulness, Work diligently, Be kind to others.
And we are to strive for fulfilling our lives of “good health and happiness ” by walking on a spiritual path of Reiki Ryoho under the guidance of REIKI, the energy of the universe, the source of all things, the Divine Spirit, One Great, or whatever you want to call it. As we manifest Reiki Ryoho Principles in our daily life, we can be supported and guided by REIKI at all times. In other words, we resonate with REIKI. We become one with REIKI. We live Reiki Ryoho in our day-to-day life.
Reiki Ryoho is a wonder-full spiritual path available to everyone.
Enjoy!
A Journey to Forgiveness
By Carol Bonura
“We must learn to move through life with a more open attitude toward what life has given us to work with, lovingly accepting ourselves with all of our little flaws. Love and forgiveness are the healing forces that release the energy blocks to the heart chakra created by bitterness, resentment, anger, and even grief.” This is how we grow spiritually and to heal mentally, emotionally, as well as physically and to experience greater joy in our lives. “from A Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine” written by Dr. Richard Gerber
Over the past few months God has been gently reminding me to forgive the person that committed a horrendous act of betrayal and violence against a person I love dearly, my precious daughter Jackie.
When Jackie reached puberty, she started to exhibit strange behaviour. What seemed to present itself as an attention deficit disorder turned into a full-blown depression with a psychotic break after she was placed on medication to treat her. The next few years she spent going from doctor to doctor attempting to get to the bottom of her physiological problems. She was then diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. Because I am a healthcare worker; it seemed feasible from what I knew of the disease that this could be possible however something in deepest part of me just didn’t agree..
About a year and a half ago her therapist became convinced that Jackie appeared to be a victim of child molestation but she couldn’t be sure who committed the act. When Jackie was first asked all she could say was she didn’t remember. Months later she finally remembered that she had been molested and also who had molested her. We were devastated, I had no idea that the molestation had been taking place or for how long. In some way I felt as if I had failed her.
It took me months to be able to sleep at night without the aide of medication. I was convinced that this was the most horrendous crime to commit against a child and I would never forgive the offender, or myself for not protecting her. My heart and soul was tortured for Jackie and the guilt I felt at times over not recognizing what was going on was eating me alive.
Jackie was responding to her therapy and I also entered into a therapeutic relationship to help deal with the guilt I was feeling. It did help and in order to handle my situation I made the decision that I would just spend the rest of my life avoiding this person. I would never look or speak to him unless I absolutely had no other choice. I realize now that avoiding a person doesn’t take away the problem it just prolongs the pain and eventually the pressure builds up
Then I believe that God started to plant his little seeds. “A voice’’ inside my head kept telling me to let it go because the weight is too much to carry, being the stubborn, Irish-German that I am I first refused to forgive. I began to notice I was getting wrinkles around my mouth because I hadn’t smiled for a very long time. I started to see that I was being shown myself in the mirror of life and that it was time to let the pain and judgement go.
I hadn’t been using my Reiki for a long time. It is remarkable how in times of distress we often forget to use what we need the most. Everything took to much effort except my anger. I decided to wear a rose quartz crystal around my neck and over my heart to help me to heal. I cleared and recharged it daily with Reiki. Lo and behold before long my heart didn’t feel as heavy. I didn’t feel like I had to drag myself thru each day anymore. I was sleeping a little better and could actually enjoy speaking to people and being with them again. I went to a Reiki retreat with Jackie and everyone was so kind and patient with us. As we shared Jackie’s story we were given different points of view as possibilities why we were going thru this at this time in our lives and offered healings. I came away from the retreat with my anger still in my heart but the hard shell around it was definitely cracking. God was at work.
So here I was beginning to accept the fact that I needed to move towards forgiveness but I had no idea how. One afternoon I was watching a show on TV that had families who had forgiven people in their lives. One woman had been shot once in the abdomen by a total stranger and later found out he was a hired hit man. She was able to work through it over the years after and has even become friends with this man over time. Another family involved a grandmother and her granddaughter. The young girl’s Mom had been brutally raped and murdered. These two women joined a program at a prison so they could meet the attacker face to face. Over time they also made their way to forgiveness. How could I not learn to forgive if these people were able to and they don’t even have their loved one with them any longer?
I started to pray and asked for help. I was lead to a book, which has helped to get the ball rolling. The title is “A Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine” by Richard Gerber. In the book it discusses how we plan our life prior to coming to this lifetime. We plan who our family will be, who our friends will be and also who will come into our lives as teachers. It states: “Souls often pursue relationships from lifetime to lifetime within a grouping of souls, sometimes reversing roles between parent and child, teacher and student, the tormentor and the tormented, in order to experience both sides of relationships with greater clarity and compassion.” It goes on to discuss how we make sacred contracts prior to each lifetime. “If we assume that this is true, it brings up an interesting point. If for example, each soul has a choice in deciding who its parents will be, wouldn’t we all want to incarnate into families with wealth, privilege, and status, where we wouldn’t have to struggle to make a living? The idea of someone’s consciously choosing to incarnate into a family where there are conflicts or abusive parents or a lack of financial wealth suggests that the soul does not always choose the path of least resistance.” I realized then that Jackie and yes, even I had chosen this path for specific reasons I could not see or understand.
I had already heard from a friend that this was another way of looking at the situation. Seeing it in writing just cemented it in my mind. The knowledge rang true in my soul and it helped to ease the burden. I know someday I will see this person on the street and it will raise the old feelings again. I pray that each encounter will be less and less painful and true forgiveness will be reached. As the old saying goes, time heals all wounds. I feel like now I have the strength to help Jackie work towards forgiveness when she is ready to start.
To those of you reading this if you have people in your life that need to be forgiven, or you have had a problem forgiving yourself I would recommend working on the fourth Chakra to begin with; Reiki is a wonderful answer as well as rose quartz crystals when working in this area. Once you have cleared them they hold Reiki energy and begin to work with us to soften our hearts quickly.
As Dr. Gerber says “Love and forgiveness are the healing forces that release the energy blocks to the heart chakra created by bitterness, resentment, anger, and even grief.” Forgiving myself for not being aware of Jackie’s problem and thus not protecting her, and also forgiving the person for hurting Jackie is helping me to grow spiritually and to heal mentally, emotionally, as well as physically. And I am experiencing greater joy in my life one day at a time. I pray this will also be the case for Jackie.
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