Moving into October, I can’t help but feel the pull towards connection with ancestors and others across the veil. It does seem that this year that quality of proximity began a bit earlier than usual. Maybe that’s because I’ve been writing more about mediumship and ancestry.
I’ve been drawn to therapeutic work around death and dying for quite a long time, beginning with many years of facilitating grief counseling and groups as a psychotherapist, and the uncanny intersections of Reiki, Death, and Dying revealed themselves almost immediately after my own Level 2 certification. But as I sought to extend this interest in a broader way there have been many false starts, opportunities that appeared and disappeared in close succession. I’m excited to report that this current has shifted and I’ll be announcing some interesting developments in that area soon.
So as I dive into this short essay about ancestral healing, you might be wondering what else could I have to say that I haven’t already said? A bit more, as it turns out…
Ancestral healing is no different than any other spiritual practice, it continues to unfurl and grow alongside you.
Patterns have a way of repeating themselves until interrupted, and when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, anything is possible.
We are living in a time of collapse, of ecological degradation, and perhaps the closing of certain cycles. There is so much grief, injustice, and violence, it sometimes feels like too much to bear. But we are also living in the eve before new cycles begin. I believe that what we are doing now paves the way for our futures, and it is an ideal time to think seriously about where our energy has been as we contemplate our next steps forward (or perhaps backward).
How do we birth new worlds? How do we dream when we cannot see what is ahead, and we fear what it may be? What is within our power to change, where do we best direct our energy and efforts?
My history with ancestral connection began in 2018, the first time I encountered an ancestral guide (spirit presence) in a Breathwork group with Jordan Deer Heart Ix Mazatl Ol-Si. But the relationship to ancestral connection developed through my personal Reiki practice.
In my view, spirits are energy. I’ll emphasize that I do not intend to diminish ancestral presence as merely energy, or somehow less real than us. I would say that we (the living) are also essentially constellations of individual, personal, universal, and lineage energy embodied in a physical form. Energy always exists in relationship to matter, and to other currents of energy. Reiki can tell us a lot about how to cultivate such relationships and ultimately take part in a healing collaboration.
Reiki is lifeforce energy, which means that it inherently has relationship to death and dying.
Reiki follows all the same laws and principles as energy: Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed. Energy flows freely through time, which is ultimately circular rather than linear. When we connect with universal energy as it exists within our bodies, we create a conscious dialogue between the energy within and around us. As we develop this capacity, we are able to connect more easily to the energy present in all beings, which leads the way to connecting with ancestral patterns and guidance beyond epigenetics, relational patterns, and emotions held in the body.
When we begin to explore healing on this level, we can reach past the genogram, the memories, and the relationships we had with family, chosen and biological, that we knew when they were alive. For those of us who do not know many details of lineage, or can only trace it back through our living relatives, we can find fertile ground for healing without needing to know all of the details.
For most, this work begins with developing a relationship to the vibrant, healthy ancestors who are invested in our healing. And this might mean connecting to those much further back in our lineage. This is especially important when our relationships to living relatives are strained or unhealthy. Probably this is a main draw for ancestral healing, to work through intergenerational trauma.
In ancestral healing there is a reputation for heaviness, which is not wholly undeserved. It can be intense or heavy at times. But when done thoughtfully and with intention, it can also be deeply nourishing and clarifying. It can guide us towards finding unconditional love, intergenerational gifts, and the compassion to confront what needs to change without sinking into shame.
Something that surprised me is how much people we once knew can change between the time they died and when we may encounter their energy in ancestral healing work. It may have only been ten years from our perspective but they may have lived lifetimes since we last connected with them.
Actually this work is full of surprises— it has the potential to completely change the way you think about certain relationships and patterns. Sometimes it leads to an unprecedented ability to lay down burdens that have been carried through generations, or finally summon the courage to acknowledge truths that have been denied.
Any practice that involves cultivating energy can be used to deepen ancestral healing, but Reiki offers something special. Reiki can be a conduit for healing to flow. Reiki can help steady us and keep us resourced as we move through emotions or experiences that would otherwise be too overwhelming. It gives us something we can offer to to whose healing is bound with ours, without necessarily giving of ourselves. Reiki can help us to feel protected and secure, cocooned in a layer of loving energy when we face what frightens us.
I’m no stranger to more insight-based analysis of intergeneration patterns. After all, the mind is where many patterns play out and working directly with that material is important. But just as emotions can drive behaviors and thoughts, so can energetic patterns. Working with Reiki means that we can explore those patterns on a non-verbal level, without any concrete “information.” Some people do see images, feel emotions, remember or hear things, but this isn’t necessary. The body is wise and speaks its own language. Movement can occur unconsciously in ways that aren’t always possible when we’re watching.
From 2020-2022, as a part of the long-running Restorative Reiki weekly series, I offered a four week flow in October of each year called “Reiki and Ancestral Connection.” And last year I hosted an in-person Past Life and Ancestral Healing circle, which was a beautiful and intimate experience especially after so many years of virtual work. But as I felt into the energy of this Fall I was called back to a reboot of the four-week group.
There’s a couple reasons I’m shifting back to this format.
The first is that four weeks offers the time to develop a practice that can build on itself, to begin a relationship in a supportive container that can carry you through the season. We will create a rich, detailed psychic space that will hold us through the month of October. Thoughtful guided visualization will be crafted throughout each of the four weeks, creating a thread of continuity.
The second is that this will utilize the Restorative Reiki style which begins with a guided practice as preparation and then flows into 20-30 mins of Reiki practice with music, and no verbal intrusion from me. Reiki is such a powerful medium for developing ancestral connection, and ultimately a conduit for healing. It doesn’t require all that much of the “bells and whistles,” the energy itself does the work and that work happens in the quite spaces within. So if you’re new to ancestral healing, the guidance will offer some initial structure AND time for you to explore what this work might mean for you. And if you’ve attended these groups during the pandemic there will be plenty of time uninterrupted to engage in your own practice with added energetic support.
Ancestral healing need not be frightening, and for those who are new I recommend focusing on working with your ancestors who are well in spirit. But if you’re at the stage where you are starting to work more deeply with ancestral trauma, this will be a supportive space to help hold you as you navigate what healing is available at this time.
This series offers sliding scale, you can use the codes in the registration page description. If you wish to attend this group but the lowest sliding scale is still beyond your reach, just send me an email.
By request, the experiential portion of this series WILL be recorded (audio only) and Reiki will be sent to all who sign up.
Inward Vision 