When it comes to making choices for myself, however, I also try to employ at least a little common sense and logic. But if something looks good but feels bad…that’s when intuition trumps logic. There have been times when I tried to make the intelligent decision and lay aside my doubts and fears, only to discover that my doubts and fears were correct. Intuition can warn you off of making horrible mistakes. A term that I’ve heard of in regards to business decisions is you “swallow the deal” and if it makes you feel queezy, it’s best to pass this one by.

Sometimes I run into people who make all their decisions with their intuition, and appear to have made some foolish choices. I find it best to weigh the consequences when my first instict says to go for it. There have been times when I just see what I want to see, or my ego gets involved and I confuse that for intuition. I try to get a second opinion from a trusted friend and intuitive in these cases now. All of us have our blinders on sometimes, even Reiki Masters, and knowing when to ask for help comes in very handy. Ultimately, the TANSTAAFL principle really does apply in most situations.

There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch

I do believe that the Universe wants what’s best for us, and our narrow viewpoints can limit what is possible. At the same time, I don’t trust everything that is written on the internet, especially when it involves some kind of monetary investments or business decisions. As an artist, I was often approached by licensors to use my artwork in manufacturing different products. In one instance, I signed a contract that I regretted later. My friend gave me a reading and warned me against it, and I ignored her advice to my peril.

The truth is that while the Universe wants what’s best for you, many people out there do not. They may say that they love you and stroke your ego. It feels good to hear those things, and it’s easy to get caught up in a bad situation as a result. I’m learning as I go in this life, as we all are.

I have given readings to people who have already made up their minds about something, and they ignore or argue with the advice that I have to offer. Having done the same myself, I have compassion for them, and I do my best to impart the information and let them know how the situation appears on an energy level. Some people get readings to validate their decisions, and when the reading disagrees with that, they really don’t want to hear it. 

Emotions are often confused with intuition, and it’s taken a lot of practice and meditation on my part to differentiate between the two. One thing that I’ve learned about my intuition is that it operates outside of my emotions. A strong intuition tends to give me goosebumps, while a strong emotion can overwhelm my common sense.  It’s a balancing act, and I use logic and intellect to detect fraud and deceit. They are very handy for that.

Recently I had my intuition and intellect tested in regards to a new healing modality someone introduced in my Reiki Share. I approached it with an open mind, though ultimately I didn’t care for the results. I developed a mild headache after receiving the treatment and didn’t feel the energy that I normally do during my Reiki Shares. I later did some research on the Internet and was not able to confirm the claims that were proposed as to the effectiveness and science behind the modality.

All practitioners of complimentary therapies like Reiki have to be well educated in their modality, and have the documentation to back up any claims. Intuition does not count as documentation. Many of these modalities use scientific lingo in order to promote expensive products, and we must be very wary when dealing with this. We all end up looking like Flaky New Agers when we buy into what is essentially a marketing gimmick. High cost for classes, retreats and products really should be a big red flag for us. We need to use all of our brains, not just the creative intuitive side, in testing for the  truth.

Please see the Center for Reiki Research for evidence based research of Reiki as a modality for improving wellness.

Today I learned to align my spine with the world tree, or Yggdrasil in Norse Traditions. Tonight I will be working on my staff to bring it into my healing work. Here’s more about Staving from Kari’s website:

Völva is a reclaimed word from Old Norse which means literaly, staff carrier. The women who were Völva carried their healing, far-seeing, ceremonial, and magical practice from farmstead to farmstead. We have learned about them from the medieval texts, sagas and eddas, the folk stories and songs. Today, many women in the United States and abroad are reclaiming the title and practices of the Völva.

Here in Minnesota, Kari Tauring has developed Völva Stav. It’s a way to use the staff to create rythm for chant and song to journey and do energy work. In Ms. Tauring’s classes you will learn the history and vocabulary of the Northern pre-Christian mystical tradition. You will learn to use your body as the tool for your spiritual work — carrying your spine as the great stav and freeing your voice to call the ancestors. In group work, you will feel the fabric of the web of wyrd that holds all life together, you will hear it in the rhythm of other Völva as we shift and change and journey together.

Kari is an excellent teacher, and part of the workshop was doing a journey while we Staved. It was a wonderful experience for me, and it was the beginning of a journey from my heritage of Finnish and Norwegian to my love of the Celtic ways. So tonight I take the branch I staved with and I will be stripping the bark to what lies beneath, and then I will adorn it with symbols that mean a great deal to me in my personal journey. When I am done with the project I will definitely post it here! But here is a small sample of what I’m learning from Kari:

There were massage therapists, other Reiki practitioners, and other energy healers there. Our conversation started with the nitty gritty details of marketing and managing a small business, but moved on from there. One of my favorite conversations of the night was how to clear the energy in your neighborhood.

1. Buy White Sage in bulk – about a pound
2. Add in chunks of Dragon’s Blood or sprigs of dried lavendar
3. Light a fire in your backyard fire pit at midnight and allow it to burn down so it’s just hot coals
4. Start sprinkling on your Sage or other aromatic herbs or incense with the intention of sending positive energy throughout the neighborhood

So you are basically smudgeing the whole neighborhood!  It’s best to do this at night after midnight so you won’t be bothering any of the neighbors with your smoke. This is definitely something I want to try, as I do have a fire-pit in the backyard. It sounds like fun doesn’t it?

After that we also talked a bit about aromatherapy, psychic experiences, communicating with our guardians and guides…you know, all the cool stuff. I left before it was finished because I wanted to get home at a reasonable hour. It was definitely time well spent and I hope to be able to attend again.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot! I mentioned that I wanted to host a Meet-up of my own, so my Friday Night Reiki Share is now an official event of the TCEHW Meet-up Group.