Living the Reiki Way With Gratitude: 30+ Reiki Tips

How hard is it for you to say, “thank-you,” and mean it?

Taking things for granted or living with regret are no ways to live. However, we can show appreciation for the things we do have, the people in our lives now, in the present moment, rather than the ones who have left us or the ones who aren’t yet. By living with Gratitude, we raise our consciousness where toxic anger and worry have no standing.

We already have hundreds of things to be thankful for in this very moment.

If you are reading this you may wish to take a moment to be thankful for the technology to even be able to read these very words. For the electricity, for the designers of the computer screen, for your teachers that guided you how to comprehend the written word.

For the air that you are breathing, for the never failing pulse and rhythm of your heart. For the clothes on your back, and for the structure keeping you warm and happy tonight. (it’s currently quite cold here in Albany, NY.)

For allowing yourself to delve into the realm of Reiki, and for the synchronicity of how the Universe brought it into your life.

See? Right there we have TEN things to be grateful for. Simple but true.

In the words of Siddhartha Buddha, “Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so let us all be thankful.”

This Gokai principle shows us that we already have quite a bit, and smacks us awake from our materialistic lifestyle and reminds us of our simpler senses. It also smacks us out of our sometimes selfish and ego-based personalities. We humans have always has a penchant for wanting more, but there is a very big difference between the things we need and the things we want. There is a difference between the things that feed our souls and the things that only feed and pleasure us for a moment or two.

I love this Precept because it really does get us thinking about what truly matters in our lives. It keeps me in a positive, light, and optimistic mindset away from fear and anger. It keeps me humble too, because it shows us to also be thankful for the unpleasantries of life as well. It teaches us that everything is a lesson, and that problems can actually be opportunities.

This Principle is a good segue into the Kindness precept, because to be grateful is also to be kind, and vice versa. It teaches us to see the magic that is around us, and to also be selfless and giving. Giving of our time, energy, and love.

See, as with all the Gokai, each go so much deeper than the surface. Reiki is so much more than healing with our hands. It goes way beyond that. Reiki is the creative use of anger; the transformation and acceptance of fear; the random acts of kindness that we do every day; the gratitude we show others and how we show that gratitude; the passion to work on ourselves; and the time, even if it is a second, to stop and be in the present moment.

30+ Reiki Tips for Showing Gratitude

• Develop an attitude of gratitude.Stop complaining!
  
• Keep a daily Gratitude Journal.
• Send out prayers and Reiki blessings to all your friends, family, and the planet every morning and night.
• Make everyday a day for thanksgiving.
• Take time for the little things, the little moments. They are the most important.
• Consider your place in the web of life.
• Show up. Be present. Gift others with your presence.
• Just say it. In person, via text, letter, email, or on the phone.
• Just do it. Acts of kindness, and simple gifts are most appreciated. 
• Sincerity is key. People like to be appreciated.
  
• Do some Random Acts of Kindness.
• Bake Reiki cookies or soup. Cook a favourite meal with Reiki.
• Leave random thank-yous at police/fire stations, churches, shelters, emergency rooms, and hospices.
• Look into the 5 Love Languages and see how you like to be shown appreciation.
• Share how you like to be loved and shown appreciation with others.
• Show yourself gratitude for all of things you do for yourself on a daily business.
• Meditate or journey to your Higher Self and Guides and thank them for all their hard work. Listen to Josh Groban’s “Thankful.”
  
• Write a letter to your past and future self thanking them for X, Y, and Z.
• Buy a gift that the person is unwilling to buy for themselves and bless it with Reiki.
• Truly know who you are truly gifting and showing gratitude to.
• Go with a favourite flower, a card with a quote by a favourite poet/ book/ tv show.
• Bless any and every gift with Reiki.
• Be specific as possible for what you are thanking them for
• Let your feelings show.
• Thank them, without any ulterior motive.
• Consider different ways to say thank-you
• Use photos or write the thank you in an unusual way.
• Create a thank you note card with a photo of the flower arrangement to show the sender how beautiful it was or write a note in the sand if near a beach. Take a photo and use it to create a digital thank you note.
• Teachers are good with thank you notes from students…sending a guest speaker drawings made by the class or a card signed by all the students.
• Send “follow-up” thank-yous. Sending a card or email, even a phone call months or years later to express continued joy a gift has given is greatly appreciated. Every time I dust items that were given to me, I think of the person who gave it to me. It’s nice to let them know.
• Be unique, personal, engaging, and CREATIVE! Check out Shanon’s 22 unique messages below.

22 Creative Ways to Say Thank You! by Shanon Doolittle

1. If it wasn’t weird, I would have sent you a picture of myself. Because I look totally grateful.
2. Great googly gratitude. Thanks so much for your gift!
3. Thank you (not sent from my iPhone).
4. Next time, I’m sending you a cape. Thanks for your superhero-sized gift.
5. Two words: Endless gratitude. Thank you.
6. You score phenomenally high in the kind-o-meter. Seriously, I checked.
7. Your version of shine is a search light. Thanks for spreading so much good.
8. Thanks so much for putting up with our direct mail. But even more, thank you for responding.
9. You’re kind of a big deal. Don’t believe me? Ask our clients.
10. You = awesome. Me = grateful.
11. Move over Gates and Buffett, there’s a new philanthropist in town.
12. Our clients have started an unofficial fan club. You should start practicing your autograph.
13. Do you practice being so wonderful? Thank you kindly for your gift.
14. Amazed. Inspired. Grateful. That’s how your generosity makes me feel.
15. When it comes to making an impact, you rule. (Note: Draw a ruler. You can do it.)
16. You’re a spark plug for good. Thanks for igniting something amazing.
17. a) A peach b) Bee’s knees c) Cat’s pajamas. You’re d) All of the above. Thanks for your bigheartedness.
18. You’re what making a difference looks like. (Note: Draw a mirror. Up the fun factor.)
19. You’re a lifesaver. Literally. And thanks for believing in someone you don’t even know.
20. Is there no limit to your awesomeness? Thank you!
21. You can’t see me but I’m totally doing a happy dance.
22. I’m beginning to think you’re serious about this whole humanitarian thing.

Remember, your job is to delight people. That boring, vanilla, and yawner of a thank you note? It doesn’t reinforce the happiness they felt when they made their gift. Rather, it sends a message that you can’t be bothered to send a unique, personal, and engaging message—that you care more about the gift than the person behind it.

THANK-YOU IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES

• Arabic – chokrane
• Azeri – çox sag olun / tesekkur edirem
• Cherokee – wado
• Chinese/Mandarin – xièxie (simplified: 谢谢 – écriture traditional: 謝謝)
• French – merci
• German – danke
• Greek – ευχαριστώ (efharisto)
• Hawaiian – mahalo
• Hebrew – toda
• Hindi – dhanyavad
• Italian – grazie
• Japanese – arigatô
• Korean – 감사합니다 (gamsa hamnida)
• Maori – kia ora
• Portuguese – obrigado (M speaking) / obrigada (F speaking)
• Spanish – gracias
• Thai – ขอบคุณค่ะ (kop khun kha) – woman speaking
• Thai – ขอบคุณครับ (kop khun krap) – man speaking
• Urdu – shukriya
• Zulu – ngiyabonga (literally means : I give thanks)
• Zulu – siyabonga (= we give thanks)
• Zulu – ngiyabonga kakhulu (thanks very much)

REFERENCES

• Deep gratitude to Creative Commons Photographers BK and Trey Ratcliff
• “Living The Reiki Way: Reiki Principles for Everyday Living” by Penelope Quest (2013 Edition)
• http://jezebel.com/5796639/how-to-say-thank-you-when-you-really-really-mean-it
• http://razoofoundation.org/2012/07/22-delightful-ways-to-say-thank-you/
• http://www.freelang.net/expressions/thankyou.php

Living The Reiki Way Just For Today

Shoufuku no hihoo
The secret method of inviting happiness.

Manbyo no ley-yaku
The wonderful medicine for all diseases of the body and soul.

Kyo dake wa, okoru-na. Shinpai suna. Kansha shite. Goo hage me. Hito ni shinsetsu ni.
Just today, don’t get angry. Don’t worry. Be grateful and show appreciation. Work hard on yourself. Be kind to others.

Asa yuu gassho shite, koko-ro ni nenji, Kuchi ni tonaeyo.
Morning and evenings, sit in Gassho and repeat these words aloud and in your heart.

Shin shin kaizen.
For the improvement of body and soul.

– Usui Reiki Ryoho. Chosso, Usui Mikao.
-Usui Spiritual Energy Healing Method. The Founder, Mikao Usui.  

Living the Reiki Way is all about living in the present moment with compassion in your heart, and we only have to try one day at a time. 

Each of these principles seem so esoteric and foreign, yet simple. Everyone knows that anger and worry only lead to unhappiness. We know we are supposed to thank people for things. We know we should work hard. We know we should be nice. But all the time? In every moment? Regardless of traffic, and deadlines, and PTA meetings.

Regardless of heartbreak and accidents. Regardless of past or future obsession.

Now how do we manage that?

We can honour and respect everyone, everything, and every moment. It is possible. We can choose to invite people into our happiness rather than getting swept up in their storm. We can choose how to react to certain situations with nothing but compassion. But that means we will have to let go of a lot of stuff. A lot of previous conditioning. It’ll take a lot of work. But, hey, thank goodness it’s one of the principles, eh? And thank goodness we can always begin again and try harder in the next moment, the next day. Every morning is a new beginning, and wherever we are, we can be there totally. We can be present, completely and utterly present in all that we are doing. We can choose to be present and be alive, in this moment, right now, this very second. So, just for today, we can embrace pure mindfulness and pay attention to what has heart and meaning right Now because “there is no more joyful place in the world than exactly where you are, right now- because you cannot experience real joy when your mind is elsewhere, thinking of what has happened int eh past, or what might happen in the future. In this way, being more in touch with your experiences helps you to realize that you are living, rather than just existing.” 

 

Dr. Usui Sensei asked his students to live the Reiki Way by following the Gokai: the Principles. In this way we all can grow towards enlightenment in so many areas of our life. By following these precepts we can incorporate a higher vibration to our environments, to our clients, to our families and planet. 

According to the American Psychological Association, anger is an emotion characterized by “antagonism toward someone or something you feel has deliberately done you wrong.” Anger can be a good thing. It can give you a way to express negative feelings, for example, or motivate you to find solutions to problems. However, we can choose to just for today, not allow toxic-anger to control our lives. 

In positive psychology, worry is described as a response to a moderate challenge for which the subject has inadequate skills. Worry can also be a good thing. It can show us that we care about others’ safety and our own and can help us to be constructive to change our situations. It is like anger, a survival mechanism. It reminds us to put on our seat belts and to use preventative measures against dis-ease. However, toxic-worry in the form of extreme anxiety can paralyze us and prevent us from achieving our highest good. 

Taking things for granted or living with regret are no ways to live. So we can show appreciation the things we do have, the people in our lives now, in the present moment, rather than the ones who have left us or the ones who aren’t yet. By living with Gratitude, we raise our consciousness where toxic anger and worry have no standing. 

In this way we can devote our lives to this way of life. We devote ourselves to the Reiki Way because we value it. We value ourselves, our lives, our practice. We value our connection and our ability to heal ourselves and others. With enough experience and Diligence, we can work towards personal growth and development of our entire planet. We are the sum of our experiences, in every moment we can choose to make them be nourishing rather than debilitating. 

If we are diligent enough in our own practice, think how much easier it will be to be so with others. After all, we cannot love or take care of others without loving and caring for ourselves first. Loving Kindness is more than just being nice. It’s being kind to everyone we meet, under any circumstances, in any situation, in the present moment. We need not always judge people based upon what they wear or what they smell like. We can be kind and respect all peoples regardless of age, gender, creed, tribe, nationality, language, culture, religion, or orientation.  Everyone we meet is ultimately trying to help us along, Higher Self to Higher Self, and we have a duty to meet all of creation where they are, in the Now.

In the words of Penelope Quest, “remember that living the Reiki Way doesn’t mean you have to be solemn and serious- life is meant to be enjoyed, so have fun, live life to the fullest, share happy times with people you love and bless Reiki for the gift it is in your life.”

REFERENCES

• Gratitude to Creative Commons Photographers derek raugh, Celestine Chua, BK, 

Expanding Your Happiness Day 13: Living Gratitude

“If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.”  —Meister Eckhart

Today we explore the role of gratitude in expanding our happiness. It’s obvious how feeling thankful for the good things in one’s life powerfully contributes to a greater sense of happiness and wellbeing, but this version of gratitude still depends on our mood at the time. It also is limited by our beliefs about what is positive, and our understanding of what is good.

There is a deeper kind of gratitude that goes beyond our conceptions and beliefs of good and bad. This expanded sense of gratitude rejoices in life exactly as it is, right now . . . life is perfect in spite of its imperfections. We find ourselves grateful to simply breathe and greet the sunrise. We feel privileged to engage in the full range of human experiences: busy traffic, strong coffee, and missing a loved one. Our heart is big enough to embrace and appreciate life as a whole, just as it is, without worrying about whether it is “good” or “bad.”

This gratitude has reverence and appreciation for the entire dance of creation right now. This is the perspective that today’s meditation will help foster in our life.

Our centering thought for today is:

I am thankful for all I have.

Our Sanskrit mantra for today is:

“Shreem Namah.” I am thankful. 

Today’s Notes

Shreem is the goddess of joy, abundance and beauty. Namah means respect, by bringing our full conscious being into appreciation or gratitude. This mantra cultivates a feeling of appreciation and gratitude for the abundance in life.

My Thoughts & Experience

Taking simple moments and showing our appreciation or gratefulness for not only the many conveniences we take for granted such as running water, indoor plumbing, unpolluted drinking water, and Central Air; but for the simpler things like a loving partner, a warm Spring day, or the laughter of children; this is what it means to be on a spiritual path, especially that of Reiki.

In Reiki we have a key principle of gratitude, to “Just for today, be thankful for your many blessings.” 

Because no matter how bad it might seem, Beloved, it can always be worse. 

These moments of humility show us that there are many “good” and “bad” aspects to everything in life, and shows us that we can even be grateful for things that we ourselves may not have but that others do. This teaches us to let go of envy and jealousy and see that there are already so many things to be happy and grateful for in our world.

When we catch ourselves in moments where our minds are running rampant, we can calm them with our awareness alone, and sink into a deeper more focused mindset or higher state of consciousness to access spiritual growth, and truly jump in away from petty concerns to do “The Work” as my friend Debbie would say, or “Finish the Important Shit First” as Leonie Dawson teaches at her Amazing Biz, Amazing Life Academy.

Being grateful expands our consciousness and vibration, and it truly shows. You needn’t fain actual gratitude, but when you do feel it, when you feel that happiness, let others know. Share your gratitude. Be gratitude. Live gratitude. 

Namaste

BONUS: Desire and Destiny Day 22: Abundant World

“World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.”  —His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Welcome to the bonus day of our 21-Day Meditation Experience. Today we offer a special guided meditation to ignite a ripple of peace and abundance out into the world.

We are all connected through pure consciousness, and the ebb and flow of pure potentiality envelops all of us. In today’s meditation, we will focus on that flow of giving and receiving, sharing our gifts and offering gratitude in return to enable everyone in the world an opportunity to benefit from this amazing journey.

Our centering thought for today is:

“Love and abundance for all.”

Our Sanskrit mantra for today is:

“Yum.” (Opens the heart chakra–activating peace, harmony, and love.)

MINDFUL MOMENT

Today as you enter the stillness and silence of meditation, hold the intention that everyone in the world will realize abundance. Consider the many gifts you have to offer and do so freely while accepting gifts from others with gratitude, love, and joy. In this way, we enter the dynamic flow of the universe and share the experience of pure Spirit with our fellow human beings around the globe.

World Peace. 

The collective unconscious is growing in beauty, love, and light. In peace, unity, and harmony for this world and the universe. We have a shared destiny of kindness and unconditional love.

By setting intentions such as the ones above, we can create a healthier world and ourselves at the same time.

We can meditate, but not just meditate and with intent, share love and abundance for all.

We can share our gifts with others, and also receive their gifts as well with honour, respect, and appreciation.

Awaken light, love, laughter in all who pass you by and all who you have not met yet.

Together, we can create a better world filled with healing and peace.

Namaste. Friends, we are all one.

 

Giving Thanks Meditation

Words cannot capture my deep deep gratitude to all who have impacted my life, my heart, and my soul over the past year and beyond.

For all of my spiritual teachers, especially Joanna Powell Colbert whose love and teachings have made me who I am today.

For all of my clients who have helped to create a blossoming business come to reality.

For all of you here, on WordPress, reading this. I am so thankful for the community we have created!

To my friends who have been my guardians, soul brothers & sisters, and keepers of the flame.

A huge hug to you all, especially Kristen and Therese, without whom my tea cup would always seem empty.

And lastly, to my sister Michaela who has always been my best friend, personal cheerleader, and partner in crime.

I am so blessed, and I love you all.

So, as you sit here listening to this song, what places, people, and things are you most thankful for?

Good night and sweet sweet dreams…

The Science of Being Thankful

“The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth” (1914) by Jennie A. Brownscombe/Wikimedia Commons

Many of you know that I am BIG on gratitude.

Whether it is working on my 365grateful Project, or just my habit of simply saying thank-you, you may realize that I did not grow up in a very “thank-you” centered family.

They were down-right self-absorbed and thankless. Every day was an act of service which was never to the highest standing, where nothing was done well enough.

So, with that being said. I cannot stress enough to you parents out there, say thank-you to your kids. Say it to each other. Say it to strangers. Say it, say it, say it! Show your appreciation. Because children are not meant to be indentured servants.

Living a life filled with gratitude is to live a life filled with love.

You don’t want your children either feeling that they are worthless with low self-esteem, nor do you want your kids to become ungrateful, self-absorbed, or egomaniacs.

So, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, here is an article from Mother Nature Network.

Gratitude can do wonders for the human brain, according to researchers at UC-Berkeley, as long as it doesn’t fade away when Thanksgiving ends.

“Thanksgiving was never meant to be shut up in a single day.” — Robert Caspar Lintner, early 20th-century writer

That quote gets bounced around a lot every Thanksgiving, serving as a reminder that gratitude shouldn’t be limited to 24 hours in November. It may sound like a sappy sentiment, but researchers at the University of California-Berkeley report mounting scientific evidence that thankfulness also has concrete health benefits, such as lower blood pressure, stronger disease immunity and fewer symptoms of depression.

Their research is a product of UC-Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center, which recently launched a three-year, $5.6 million project to “expand the scientific database of gratitude, particularly in the key areas of human health, personal and relational well-being, and developmental science.” As part of this project, the GGSC has also createdThnx4.org, a “sharable gratitude journal” that aims to teach people the tangible power of thankfulness while also helping scientists better understand it.

GGSC research on this topic began several years ago, as an assignment for Berkeley students to keep gratitude journals in spiral-bound notebooks. By writing down everything for which they were grateful, the students boosted their “overall resilience,” according to a university news release, and reportedly grew less susceptible to daily stresses as well as minor maladies like rashes and headaches.

“Thnx4.org wanted to make this spiral notebook very accessible, and to make the research a little more specific than it has been historically,” GGSC science director Emiliana Simon-Thomas says in a statement about the site.

People who sign up with Thnx4.org are asked to submit daily posts for two weeks about whatever makes them grateful, which they can then share via social media or email. They receive a tip about gratitude each time they post, and the whole interaction is meant to take just five to 10 minutes. Before and after the 14-day span, participants also fill out surveys to measure traits like resilience, attachment tendencies and happiness — information that will let researchers see how posting and sharing, known as a “gratitude intervention,” might influence people’s overall temperament as well as their emotional and physical health.

The goal is to create a bank of gratitude data from at least 1,000 volunteers, Simon-Thomas says, that will let researchers study not just why people feel grateful, but also how those feelings correlate with things like demographics and social sharing. They hope this will help them answer an array of research questions, such as:

• Which gender is more willing to spread gratitude?
• Do men tend to feel grateful for different things than women?
• Does a moment of gratitude predict the likelihood of a pay-it-forward response?
• Is there a regional geography of the more- and less-grateful?
• Does personal gratitude differ from gratitude for, say, a new iPad mini?

Thnx4.org is just one piece in the fast-growing field of gratitude science. In one recent study, for example, scientists found that teenagers who reported the most gratitude after a four-year research period became “17 percent more happy and more hopeful about their lives” while experiencing “a 13 percent drop in negative emotions and a 15 percent drop in depressive symptoms.”

Gratitude may come easily when you’re surrounded by family and friends at the holidays, but Simon-Thomas suggests it’s especially helpful in less tranquil times: “Studies show that people who have gone through trauma have a greater resilience against post-traumatic stress disorder if they have a biological predisposition to be grateful — or if they go through gratitude intervention.”

Humans are social animals, and according to UC-Davis psychologist Robert Emmons, a leader of the GGSC’s gratitude initiative, feeling thankful is a key part of our psyche that deserves more attention. “Because so much of human life is about giving, receiving and repaying, gratitude is a pivotal concept for our social interactions,” Emmons writes on the GGSC website. “Despite the fact that it forms the foundation of social life in many other cultures, in America, we usually don’t give it much thought — with a notable exception of one day, Thanksgiving.”

Christine Carter: Why Gratitude Works

#1. Gratitude is assocaited with increased self worth.

#2. Gratitude is a really social emotion.

#3. We start to only take in the information that is a blessing and not the hastles.

Desire and Destiny Day 14: Grateful Me

“Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer.”  —Maya Angelou

Congratulations on completing the first two weeks of our 21-Day Meditation Experience! Spending time in silence is an act of powerful self-nurturance. Through meditation, you are connecting more deeply with your heart, understanding its desires, and clearing a path to realize your dreams.

Today’s meditation focuses on gratitude. When we appreciate all that we have in life, our egos step out of the way, inviting even greater abundance into our lives.

Practicing gratitude for our lives as human beings – for the air we breathe, for our magnificent bodies, and the beauty of being alive – is a wonderful place to start. From this point of view, we can expand our gratitude outward, like ripples in a still pond, appreciating everything and everyone we encounter and those who touch our lives as well.

Our centering thought for today is:

“Gratitude is my prayer.”

Our Sanskrit mantra for today is:

“So Hum.” I am.

MINDFUL MOMENT

Set the intention to greet each moment of the day in gratitude. As each encounter and situation crosses your path take time to pay attention to all of the things that you can be grateful for in the moment. May you cultivate the spirit of gratitude with effortless ease and enthusiasm, for as you do so you transform your world.

Gratitude.

We have so much to be grateful for not only the past two weeks, but for life in general.

So so many things.

Our realization of our intentions, desires, hopes, dreams, and intuitions. To be grateful for the Divine Design of the Universe.

Let us say “thank-you.” It is time.

Thank-you is such a simple little phrase, but it means so much. Some people go their whole lives not showing appreciation for the things in their lives and take them for granted. I know it sounds silly, but the simple act of saying “thank-you” for running water and in-door plumbing is an act of miraculous ingenuity within itself.

“If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.” – Meister Eckhart

Gratitude carries us. Being thankful for our breath, the constant beating of our heart, and for the love that it expresses and receives to and from our loved ones.

“Being grateful is the by far the single most powerful thing you can do to change your life. When you allow yourself to feel gratitude in the present moment, in the now, the spiritual dimension of your life will change and expand and you will grow with it. Gratitude transforms us and welcomes and invites even more greatness into our lives.” – Oprah 

Consider today’s centering thought,

“Gratitude is my prayer.”

Find a comfortable position with your hands gently in your lap and close your eyes. In this moment go within. Go to that inner place of quiet where we experience our connection to the higher Self. Let go of all thoughts and begin to observe the inflow and outflow of your breathe. With each breath allow yourself to become more relaxed, more comfortable and more at peace. Now gently introduce today’s mantra.

“So hum.” I am.

Repeat the mantra silently to yourself. Whenever you find yourself distracted by thoughts, feelings in your body, or noises around you; simply repeat the mantra until you are finished.

What were your impressions of today’s meditation? Thursday is Thanksgiving, how will you show your gratitude?

Gratitude is my prayer.
Gratitude can be your prayer too.
I am.
You are.
Namaste.
We are all one.

Blessings for “The Earth Path” by Starhawk

After finishing The Earth Path by Starhawk, I cannot tell you what a vital resource those pages are. Starhawk fuses thealogy, science, practicality, and ecology every step of the way.

Here are the Blessings for which she has one at the end of each of her corresponding chapters. May we all be blessed.

Blessing for Air

Praise and gratitude to the air, the breath of the living earth. We give thanks to you for our lives, for our breath, for the literal inspiration that keeps us alive. Praise and gratitude for those ancient ancestors, the first magicians, that learned to use sunlight to make food, and so gave us the gift of oxygen. Praise and gratitude to those who learned to burn food for energy, and to the great exchange, the world breath that passes from the green lung to the red and back again. Praise for the sun that sets the cauldron of the winds in motion, and to the great winds that soar over the face of the earth. Praise to the storm that brings the rains, the water of life to the land. Gratitude to the creatures of the air, the birds that lift up our hearts with their songs, the insects in their erotic caress of the flowers—a caress that brings the fruit and the seed.

May our minds be as clear and open as the air; may we learn from the wild winds how to soar across barriers and sweep away obstacles. May the air and the winds of the world be cleansed. May we learn to be good guardians and friends and allies of the air that is our life; may we make the right decisions that can restore the balance. Blessed be the air.

Blessing for Fire

We give praise and gratitude to the fire, the sun’s fire that fuels all life on earth, the radiant heat and light that is the source of energy for all beings, from the tiniest alga to the towering redwood, from the grass to the buffalo, from the worm to the hawk. We give thanks for the wildfire that cleanses the land, and we acknowledge its awesome power to destroy and to renew. We ask help in living with the power of fire, that we learn once again how to be in balance with fire on the land. We give thanks for the hearth fire, which warms us in the cold and gives our homes and communities a heart-center. We ask that our hearts be open to learn the teachings of fire, that we understand how to feed the creative sparks that arise in each of us, and that we feed the flames of passion and love for the earth. May the flames teach us how to dance, how to transform our rage into radiant action. Blessed be the fire.

Blessing for Water

Praise and gratitude to the sacred waters of the world, to the oceans, the mother of life, the womb of the plant life that freshens our air with oxygen, the brew that is stirred by sunlight and the moon’s gravity into the great currents and tides that move across the earth, circulating the means of life, bringing warmth to the frozen Arctic and cool, fresh winds to the tropics. We give thanks for the blessed clouds and the rain that brings the gift of life to the land, that eases the thirst of roots, that grows the trees and sustains life even in the dry desert. We give thanks for the springs that bring life-giving water up from the ground, for the small streams and creeks, for the mighty rivers. We praise the beauty of water, the sparkle of the sunlight on a blue lake, the shimmer of moonlight on the ocean’s waves, the white spray of the waterfall. We take delight in the sweet singing of the dancing stream and the roar of the river in flood.

We ask help to know within ourselves all the powers of water: to wear down and to build up, to ebb and to flow, to nurture and to destroy, to merge and to separate. We know that water has great powers of healing and cleansing, and we also know that water is vulnerable to contamination and pollution. We ask help in our work as healers, in our efforts to ensure that the waters of the world run clean and run free, that all the earth’s children have the water they need to sustain abundance of life. Blessed be the water.

Blessing for Earth

We give gratitude to the earth, to the dust of stars that congealed into the body of this planet, our home, and that still gives form and solidity to our bones and flesh. We honor the rocks, our sisters and brothers, and their long, slow cycles of transformation into life and back to seabed, mountain, stone. We give thanks to the living soil, the mother’s flesh, and the billion creatures that haunt her caves and pores and chasms, to the beetles and the ants and the termites, to the soil bacteria swimming in the slick of water that clings to her mineral archways, to the worms, wriggling, eating, coupling, and transforming within her. We bless the plants, the roots and stems and boughs, the great trees reaching upward and the deep-rooted herbs pushing down, all who contribute to the cycles of birth and growth and death and decay that lead to fertility and new growth. For all that feeds and sustains life, for all that grows, runs, leaps, and flies, we give thanks. Blessed be the earth.

Blessing for Center

We give thanks and gratitude for the center, the heart and the hearth, and for the complex and beautiful patterns of life. We give thanks for the flow of sap through branches, water through rivers, blood through our veins. Thanks for the spiral vine and the sunflower, the daisy and the dandelion, the sunburst and the star. We bless the random element that brings freedom into the pattern, and thank the weaver of the web of life for teaching us that all is interconnected. May we be aware of our patterns, able to change those that do not serve us and to cherish and strengthen those that do. May the cycles of the moon’s and the sun’s journeys through the year help us remember that light arises from dark, rebirth from death. Blessings on the cycles, the patterns, and the center.

Blessing for Earth-Healers

We give thanks for all those who are moved, in their lives, to heal and protect the earth, in small ways and in large. Blessings on the composters, the gardeners, the breeders of worms and mushrooms, the soil-builders, those who cleanse the waters and purify the air, all those who clean up the messes others have made. Blessings on those who defend trees and who plant trees, who guard the forests and who renew the forests. Blessings on those who learn to heal the grasslands and renew the streams, on those who prevent erosion, who restore the salmon and the fisheries, who guard the healing herbs and who know the lore of the wild plants. Blessings on those who heal the cities and bring them alive again with excitement and creativity and love. Gratitude and blessings to all who stand against greed, who risk themselves, to those who have bled and been wounded, and to those who have given their lives in service of the earth.

May all the healers of the earth find their own healing. May they be fueled by passionate love for the earth. May they know their fear but not be stopped by fear. May they feel their anger and yet not be ruled by rage. May they honor their grief but not be paralyzed by sorrow. May they transform fear, rage, and grief into compassion and the inspiration to act in service of what they love. May they find the help, the resources, the courage, the luck, the strength, the love, the health, the joy that they need to do the work. May they be in the right place, at the right time, in the right way. May they bring alive a great awakening, open a listening ear to hear the earth’s voice, transform imbalance to balance, hate and greed to love. Blessed be the healers of the earth.

REFERENCE

Starhawk, The Earth Path: Grounding Your Spirit in the Rhythms of Nature (San Francisco, CA: Harper, 2004)

Equinox Thanksgiving 2013

So Grateful. The juice of Tempranillo vines and quenched thirsts.

So Grateful. The play of light and shadow on the horizon.

So Grateful. The comfort of shelter amongst the trees.

So Grateful. The ability to find the beauty in the imperfect.

So Grateful. The smell of dampness in the wetlands.

So Grateful. The warmth of firelight.

So Grateful. The Feasting of Kings.

So Grateful. The hillside curves of a changing coloured palate.

So Grateful. The containers of Love and Friendship.

So Grateful. The spiral dance of the wild spirit.

So Grateful. The chill of the crisp mountain winds.

So Grateful. The gentle gaze of the Green, the Man in the Leaves.

May you never hunger. May you never thirst. Blessed Equinox. Namaste.