MANY PEOPLE PRAY, but not all people know how to receive the answers to their prayers. Reiki is a tool that can help. When you receive your Reiki attunements, your inner guidance wakes up and connects to your divine guidance. In This is Reiki, Arjava Petter says, “In Usui’s days, the Japanese word Reiki meant “soul energy… This soul, or rather the soul energy, is being reactivated during a Reiki attunement, and the one being attuned to Reiki remembers his original nature, his essential Being.”

1 When our “soul energy” is awakened within us, we are more likely to be in a state of receiving and listening. We can hear the answers to our prayers more easily. We are likely to let go of the fears, ego and obstacles to hearing accurate answers from our inner guidance and the external source of divine guidance. Reiki also activates the soul energy in our Reiki clients during their Reiki sessions, and many clients report that they receive inspiration, clarity and solutions to their current situation.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you.

Reiki began actively teaching me about receiving the answers to prayers during a session with a Reiki client in the summer of 2013. This client had spiritual ties to Nelson Mandela, and his Reiki session was during the time that Mandela was in the hospital in intensive care. During the session, I was shown the vast array of Illumined Beings that had gathered around the earth to welcome Mandela home. He is still here on the earth with a great purpose. They said that he is a powerful spiritual leader of our time and that his life has been spent in teaching the principles and actions of “peaceful revolution.”

Also during this time, Syria used chemical weapons on their people. The Illumined Beings showed me people all over the world praying for a peaceful solution. The guides said they were here to answer our prayers, but that they needed us to receive their answers. They gave me a variety of examples that illustrated the truth that while many people pray, few know how to receive answers. My guides have been very insistent that I write about this to the Reiki community, because Reiki gives us specific tools that help us receive answers to our prayers and our questions, and we are mostly a group of people who are interested in our ability to receive divine guidance.
During the following months, these same Illumined Beings showed me why many people struggle to receive the answers to their prayers. Mainly, we have a powerful belief system that has been taught to us for centuries. Most commonly, the belief is that only a few people are able to communicate with the Divine and that God only talks to certain people who are worthy enough to be in His presence in order to hear from him. We can talk to God through prayer, but he only speaks with certain people at certain times.

I watched this belief begin to form within my granddaughter Eva when she was four years old. One day she was sitting on my lap and said, “Grandma, can you talk to God when you are not praying?” I said, “Yes, I talk to God all the time, and guess what, he talks to me too.” She then told me that she couldn’t hear God anymore. I put my hand over her heart and belly and the rest of her chakras, and told her that she needed to listen from those places, that that is where she would hear God speak. She thought about it for a minute, then put her hand above her head and began to turn it as if she were twisting a jar open. As she turned her hand she said, “Wait a minute, hold on, I have had my school brain on.” After she opened her head, she said, “There he is, now I can hear him!” Now, she tells us what God says about all kinds of important issues in her life! So, now we use the phrase “Hold on, I have my school brain on” in our house when we need to shift our attention. It is a simple, uncomplicated example of forgetting our connection to God, spoken by a five-year-old. It is also an uncomplicated solution and tool that we can use to shift our mind so that we can hear our divine guidance, the answer to our prayers.

Consider inviting in Reiki and using this simple hand gesture to help you connect to the divine guidance that is all around you. Activate Reiki in your hands. Invite HSZSN, which means “The divine in me sees the divine in you,” and the “Origin of all is Divine Consciousness” to connect to your origin and to awaken your divine consciousness. Invite SHK to awaken your divine mind. Then make the hand motion over your head to open your crown chakra. Invoke CKR to release the school brain and open your connection to the Divine all around you and within you. Invite the Usui DKM, which means, “Great Being of the Universe, shine on me and be my friend.”

I was also shown that fear of God and not being worthy are common reasons that we are uncertain of our ability to be answered. The fear that we are not worthy can stop us from even trying to pray. Sometimes we believe that God answers other people’s prayers but not ours. Or we believe that we are not allowed to ask for too much or that we are greedy or it is not okay to pray for what we need.

I researched this topic and found many articles that reflect the common beliefs we have about prayer. Many of them tell us that prayers are only answered if you pray perfectly, follow the teachings of an outside authority and are worthy of God’s direct response. According to the admonitions in these articles, in my view, only a few of us could meet the requirements.

Here are a few examples of what I found:
•“It is absolutely vital that you pray to the very real God of the Bible if you expect genuine answers to your prayers.”2

• “Communication with our Father in Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in response to faith, obedience, and the prop-er use of agency.”3
• “If you have any outstanding sins that you haven’t repented for, this will block prayers from getting answered.”4
  • “Expect consequences now and later for “wrongs and bad desires” (being unfair, selfish, abusive) especially if these offenses are not confessed and not repented, God knows and is just. Justice is coming and “you shall receive the desires of your heart,” so watch the bad attitudes or your “rewards” can be opposite of your desires whether in the short or long run.”5

Reiki is a spiritual healing method that can heal our beliefs of unworthiness, that God is a vengeful God and that we have to be perfect in order to pray and receive answers directly and person ally. Reiki is not a religion and has no required belief system. Its goal is to return us to our true self, our spirit. There are no requirements to be in touch with the divine.

Anyone can learn Reiki. In an interview long ago, Usui Sensei said, “All the beings who have received the breath of life have been given the spiritual ability to heal as a gift (from nature, god, whatever you call it).”6
In his book, Reiki, The Healing Touch, William Rand says, “The ability to learn Reiki is not dependent on intellectual understanding, nor does one have to be able to meditate. It does not take years of practice. It is simply passed on through the teacher to the student during the attunement process. As soon as this happens, one has Reiki and can use it. Because of this, it is easily learned by anyone… The feeling of being connected directly to God’s healing love and protection is clearly apparent.”

Rand also says, “While Reiki is not religious, many who practice Reiki are being inspired by their religious beliefs, add prayer to their treatments and feel this is beneficial. They feel that prayers strengthen their Reiki energy and also add additional beneficial factors to the healing process including receiving help from spiritual beings and God.”7

To receive answers to our prayers, all we really need to do is make ourselves available. Reiki gives us a spiritual practice that gives us the ability to focus our attention on our intentions, so we can actually hear the divine guidance. It connects us to the beautiful Illumined Beings who are in relationship with us, and it gives them access to us.

In a previous article, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” I wrote, “Reiki is a vehicle for our prayers to manifest. When we are healing with Reiki, our prayers and spiritual helpers have access to our physical body, mind, emotions and spirit. We have asked for help and made ourselves available to receive healing. When we combine Reiki and prayer, we create a powerful opportunity for miracles to happen.”8
2 “Twelve Keys to Answered Prayers,” http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/booklets/twelve-keys-to-answered-prayer.
3 “Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer,” Richard Scott, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/10/learning-to-recognize-answers-to-prayer?lang=eng.
4 “Miracle Prayer Requests,” http://prayerpower.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Get-Immediate-Answers-to-Your-Prayers.
5 http://www.wikihow.com/Pray-and-Receive-the-Desires-of-Your-Heart.
6 This is Reiki, 71.
7 William Rand, “Reiki and Prayer,” http://www.reikiwebstore.com/Pro-ductPage.cfm?ProductID=408&CategoryID=16.
8 Colleen Benelli, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” Reiki News Magazine, Spring 2008, 19–20.

And here is what my Reiki guides said, “There are as many styles of prayer as there are people, beliefs and cultures. Who you pray to is who will answer you. Perhaps your intention will call a particular enlightened being that specializes in your healing needs. We see your prayers as beams of light. Reiki adds radiance and power to the light of prayer and makes them more visible to us. All prayers are answered, whether or not you understand. Perhaps they are not answered in this world, but they are answered in another portion of your soul. We love your prayers; they give us permission to help you because you have asked. When you use Reiki with your prayers, you make yourself available to receive from the Divine. Reiki empowers us to help because it is a very high vibration like ours and gives us better access to you. Please pray often. It does not matter your style or your words. Just talk to us through the light of prayer.”

9 The idea that we can receive the answers to our prayers through all styles and words is very important. Divine answers and assistance are available to us in every moment—in our stillness and in our busyness. Many traditions teach that you will hear the answers to your prayers through meditation and quiet reflection. Of course, this is true, and stillness is always beneficial; I spend a lot of time with self-Reiki and meditation. How-ever, I find that Reiki helps me focus on answers and see them anywhere, anytime, doing anything in my daily life. I have learned not to evaluate how I listen for my divine and inner guidance. Divine guidance and help is here for us in every circumstance. I have received the answers to prayers while driving here and there, and while doing all the things I do, as often as I receive them in my quiet time. I am really busy. If I only received my answers in complete stillness, there would be a lot less opportunity for me to hear them.

I simply invite Reiki and ask for spiritual assistance to guide me. Then I listen. It may take a while for the answers to come, and I pay attention, because they may come in an unexpected way. I have received my answers on a bumper sticker, TV pro-grams and conversations with friends, cleaning the house, in the shower, racing to and from someplace, as well as in my meditations. Reiki helps me listen and gives me a practice that can help me keep my mind focused on what I want to think about and listen for.

Self-Reiki is another opportunity to listen. I wrote an article for Reiki News Magazine called “Listen with Reiki,” in which I said, “I practice active listening in my meditations and self-Reiki sessions. I close my eyes, heighten my senses and perceptions and activate my chakras. I listen to my heart and inner dialogue. I ask questions and listen for the answers. Sometimes they come right away, and sometimes I listen for days, weeks or even years. I just keep asking and listening until I hear the answers. I can hear my body and my inner self. I can hear Spirit and my Reiki guides talk to me. I can focus and really feel Reiki flow through me.”1
Sometimes my prayers are delayed or not answered, or they are answered in ways I didn’t know I asked for. Often, they are revealed over time, and occasionally, I thank God for unanswered prayers! Sometimes, I don’t recognize the answers because I am too intent on wanting confirmation of my own desires.

Most often, I find that my complex prayers are answered a piece at time, without an end in sight, and I just have to trust and follow the light of the guidance.

I believe that God is available to me at all times; I just have to give him access. I do that through my practices of all kinds. Reiki is my spiritual pathway, so my Reiki practices are what help me listen and hear my answers. I have begun a new practice that I am excited about. William Rand has created a new Reiki Grid. It uses an image of the World Peace Crystal Grid. William says, “By using it for your Reiki Grid you’ll be tapping into the energy of all the peace grids, and this will add to the energy that is sent to all those whose names or photos you place in the grid, making the Reiki more effective and adding wonderful feelings of peace and harmony. And each time you charge your grid, you’ll be charging the peace grids for world peace!”11 So far, this grid has been a powerful centerpiece for my prayers. I also believe that I can contribute to the collective Reiki community and all others who participate with the World Peace Grids in praying for peace and receiving the answers to my prayers for peace in my life too.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you. Reiki will adapt to you. Ask and you shall receive.

10 Colleen Benelli, “Listen with Reiki,” Reiki News Magazine, Winter 2007, 39.

11 http://www.reiki.org/Download/NPGridLetterSizeRGB.pdf.

Colleen Benelli can be reached by email at colleen@reikilifestyle.com, by phone at 503.912.0664, on her website at www.reikilifestyle.wpengine.com, or on her Facebook page, Reiki Lifestyle-Colleen Benelli. Join Colleen’s monthly ReikiChat™ conversation, www.reikichat.com.

MANY PEOPLE PRAY, but not all people know how to receive the answers to their prayers. Reiki is a tool that can help. When you receive your Reiki attunements, your inner guidance wakes up and connects to your divine guidance. In This is Reiki, Arjava Petter says, “In Usui’s days, the Japanese word Reiki meant “soul energy… This soul, or rather the soul energy, is being reactivated during a Reiki attunement, and the one being attuned to Reiki remembers his original nature, his essential Being.”

1 When our “soul energy” is awakened within us, we are more likely to be in a state of receiving and listening. We can hear the answers to our prayers more easily. We are likely to let go of the fears, ego and obstacles to hearing accurate answers from our inner guidance and the external source of divine guidance. Reiki also activates the soul energy in our Reiki clients during their Reiki sessions, and many clients report that they receive inspiration, clarity and solutions to their current situation.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you.

Reiki began actively teaching me about receiving the answers to prayers during a session with a Reiki client in the summer of 2013. This client had spiritual ties to Nelson Mandela, and his Reiki session was during the time that Mandela was in the hospital in intensive care. During the session, I was shown the vast array of Illumined Beings that had gathered around the earth to welcome Mandela home. He is still here on the earth with a great purpose. They said that he is a powerful spiritual leader of our time and that his life has been spent in teaching the principles and actions of “peaceful revolution.”

Also during this time, Syria used chemical weapons on their people. The Illumined Beings showed me people all over the world praying for a peaceful solution. The guides said they were here to answer our prayers, but that they needed us to receive their answers. They gave me a variety of examples that illustrated the truth that while many people pray, few know how to receive answers. My guides have been very insistent that I write about this to the Reiki community, because Reiki gives us specific tools that help us receive answers to our prayers and our questions, and we are mostly a group of people who are interested in our ability to receive divine guidance.
During the following months, these same Illumined Beings showed me why many people struggle to receive the answers to their prayers. Mainly, we have a powerful belief system that has been taught to us for centuries. Most commonly, the belief is that only a few people are able to communicate with the Divine and that God only talks to certain people who are worthy enough to be in His presence in order to hear from him. We can talk to God through prayer, but he only speaks with certain people at certain times.

I watched this belief begin to form within my granddaughter Eva when she was four years old. One day she was sitting on my lap and said, “Grandma, can you talk to God when you are not praying?” I said, “Yes, I talk to God all the time, and guess what, he talks to me too.” She then told me that she couldn’t hear God anymore. I put my hand over her heart and belly and the rest of her chakras, and told her that she needed to listen from those places, that that is where she would hear God speak. She thought about it for a minute, then put her hand above her head and began to turn it as if she were twisting a jar open. As she turned her hand she said, “Wait a minute, hold on, I have had my school brain on.” After she opened her head, she said, “There he is, now I can hear him!” Now, she tells us what God says about all kinds of important issues in her life! So, now we use the phrase “Hold on, I have my school brain on” in our house when we need to shift our attention. It is a simple, uncomplicated example of forgetting our connection to God, spoken by a five-year-old. It is also an uncomplicated solution and tool that we can use to shift our mind so that we can hear our divine guidance, the answer to our prayers.

Consider inviting in Reiki and using this simple hand gesture to help you connect to the divine guidance that is all around you. Activate Reiki in your hands. Invite HSZSN, which means “The divine in me sees the divine in you,” and the “Origin of all is Divine Consciousness” to connect to your origin and to awaken your divine consciousness. Invite SHK to awaken your divine mind. Then make the hand motion over your head to open your crown chakra. Invoke CKR to release the school brain and open your connection to the Divine all around you and within you. Invite the Usui DKM, which means, “Great Being of the Universe, shine on me and be my friend.”

I was also shown that fear of God and not being worthy are common reasons that we are uncertain of our ability to be answered. The fear that we are not worthy can stop us from even trying to pray. Sometimes we believe that God answers other people’s prayers but not ours. Or we believe that we are not allowed to ask for too much or that we are greedy or it is not okay to pray for what we need.

I researched this topic and found many articles that reflect the common beliefs we have about prayer. Many of them tell us that prayers are only answered if you pray perfectly, follow the teachings of an outside authority and are worthy of God’s direct response. According to the admonitions in these articles, in my view, only a few of us could meet the requirements.

Here are a few examples of what I found:
•“It is absolutely vital that you pray to the very real God of the Bible if you expect genuine answers to your prayers.”2

• “Communication with our Father in Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in response to faith, obedience, and the prop-er use of agency.”3
• “If you have any outstanding sins that you haven’t repented for, this will block prayers from getting answered.”4
  • “Expect consequences now and later for “wrongs and bad desires” (being unfair, selfish, abusive) especially if these offenses are not confessed and not repented, God knows and is just. Justice is coming and “you shall receive the desires of your heart,” so watch the bad attitudes or your “rewards” can be opposite of your desires whether in the short or long run.”5

Reiki is a spiritual healing method that can heal our beliefs of unworthiness, that God is a vengeful God and that we have to be perfect in order to pray and receive answers directly and person ally. Reiki is not a religion and has no required belief system. Its goal is to return us to our true self, our spirit. There are no requirements to be in touch with the divine.

Anyone can learn Reiki. In an interview long ago, Usui Sensei said, “All the beings who have received the breath of life have been given the spiritual ability to heal as a gift (from nature, god, whatever you call it).”6
In his book, Reiki, The Healing Touch, William Rand says, “The ability to learn Reiki is not dependent on intellectual understanding, nor does one have to be able to meditate. It does not take years of practice. It is simply passed on through the teacher to the student during the attunement process. As soon as this happens, one has Reiki and can use it. Because of this, it is easily learned by anyone… The feeling of being connected directly to God’s healing love and protection is clearly apparent.”

Rand also says, “While Reiki is not religious, many who practice Reiki are being inspired by their religious beliefs, add prayer to their treatments and feel this is beneficial. They feel that prayers strengthen their Reiki energy and also add additional beneficial factors to the healing process including receiving help from spiritual beings and God.”7

To receive answers to our prayers, all we really need to do is make ourselves available. Reiki gives us a spiritual practice that gives us the ability to focus our attention on our intentions, so we can actually hear the divine guidance. It connects us to the beautiful Illumined Beings who are in relationship with us, and it gives them access to us.

In a previous article, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” I wrote, “Reiki is a vehicle for our prayers to manifest. When we are healing with Reiki, our prayers and spiritual helpers have access to our physical body, mind, emotions and spirit. We have asked for help and made ourselves available to receive healing. When we combine Reiki and prayer, we create a powerful opportunity for miracles to happen.”8
2 “Twelve Keys to Answered Prayers,” http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/booklets/twelve-keys-to-answered-prayer.
3 “Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer,” Richard Scott, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/10/learning-to-recognize-answers-to-prayer?lang=eng.
4 “Miracle Prayer Requests,” http://prayerpower.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Get-Immediate-Answers-to-Your-Prayers.
5 http://www.wikihow.com/Pray-and-Receive-the-Desires-of-Your-Heart.
6 This is Reiki, 71.
7 William Rand, “Reiki and Prayer,” http://www.reikiwebstore.com/Pro-ductPage.cfm?ProductID=408&CategoryID=16.
8 Colleen Benelli, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” Reiki News Magazine, Spring 2008, 19–20.

And here is what my Reiki guides said, “There are as many styles of prayer as there are people, beliefs and cultures. Who you pray to is who will answer you. Perhaps your intention will call a particular enlightened being that specializes in your healing needs. We see your prayers as beams of light. Reiki adds radiance and power to the light of prayer and makes them more visible to us. All prayers are answered, whether or not you understand. Perhaps they are not answered in this world, but they are answered in another portion of your soul. We love your prayers; they give us permission to help you because you have asked. When you use Reiki with your prayers, you make yourself available to receive from the Divine. Reiki empowers us to help because it is a very high vibration like ours and gives us better access to you. Please pray often. It does not matter your style or your words. Just talk to us through the light of prayer.”

9 The idea that we can receive the answers to our prayers through all styles and words is very important. Divine answers and assistance are available to us in every moment—in our stillness and in our busyness. Many traditions teach that you will hear the answers to your prayers through meditation and quiet reflection. Of course, this is true, and stillness is always beneficial; I spend a lot of time with self-Reiki and meditation. How-ever, I find that Reiki helps me focus on answers and see them anywhere, anytime, doing anything in my daily life. I have learned not to evaluate how I listen for my divine and inner guidance. Divine guidance and help is here for us in every circumstance. I have received the answers to prayers while driving here and there, and while doing all the things I do, as often as I receive them in my quiet time. I am really busy. If I only received my answers in complete stillness, there would be a lot less opportunity for me to hear them.

I simply invite Reiki and ask for spiritual assistance to guide me. Then I listen. It may take a while for the answers to come, and I pay attention, because they may come in an unexpected way. I have received my answers on a bumper sticker, TV pro-grams and conversations with friends, cleaning the house, in the shower, racing to and from someplace, as well as in my meditations. Reiki helps me listen and gives me a practice that can help me keep my mind focused on what I want to think about and listen for.

Self-Reiki is another opportunity to listen. I wrote an article for Reiki News Magazine called “Listen with Reiki,” in which I said, “I practice active listening in my meditations and self-Reiki sessions. I close my eyes, heighten my senses and perceptions and activate my chakras. I listen to my heart and inner dialogue. I ask questions and listen for the answers. Sometimes they come right away, and sometimes I listen for days, weeks or even years. I just keep asking and listening until I hear the answers. I can hear my body and my inner self. I can hear Spirit and my Reiki guides talk to me. I can focus and really feel Reiki flow through me.”1
Sometimes my prayers are delayed or not answered, or they are answered in ways I didn’t know I asked for. Often, they are revealed over time, and occasionally, I thank God for unanswered prayers! Sometimes, I don’t recognize the answers because I am too intent on wanting confirmation of my own desires.

Most often, I find that my complex prayers are answered a piece at time, without an end in sight, and I just have to trust and follow the light of the guidance.

I believe that God is available to me at all times; I just have to give him access. I do that through my practices of all kinds. Reiki is my spiritual pathway, so my Reiki practices are what help me listen and hear my answers. I have begun a new practice that I am excited about. William Rand has created a new Reiki Grid. It uses an image of the World Peace Crystal Grid. William says, “By using it for your Reiki Grid you’ll be tapping into the energy of all the peace grids, and this will add to the energy that is sent to all those whose names or photos you place in the grid, making the Reiki more effective and adding wonderful feelings of peace and harmony. And each time you charge your grid, you’ll be charging the peace grids for world peace!”11 So far, this grid has been a powerful centerpiece for my prayers. I also believe that I can contribute to the collective Reiki community and all others who participate with the World Peace Grids in praying for peace and receiving the answers to my prayers for peace in my life too.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you. Reiki will adapt to you. Ask and you shall receive.

10 Colleen Benelli, “Listen with Reiki,” Reiki News Magazine, Winter 2007, 39.

11 http://www.reiki.org/Download/NPGridLetterSizeRGB.pdf.

Colleen Benelli can be reached by email at colleen@reikilifestyle.com, by phone at 503.912.0664, on her website at www.reikilifestyle.wpengine.com, or on her Facebook page, Reiki Lifestyle-Colleen Benelli. Join Colleen’s monthly ReikiChat™ conversation, www.reikichat.com.

MANY PEOPLE PRAY, but not all people know how to receive the answers to their prayers. Reiki is a tool that can help. When you receive your Reiki attunements, your inner guidance wakes up and connects to your divine guidance. In This is Reiki, Arjava Petter says, “In Usui’s days, the Japanese word Reiki meant “soul energy… This soul, or rather the soul energy, is being reactivated during a Reiki attunement, and the one being attuned to Reiki remembers his original nature, his essential Being.”

1 When our “soul energy” is awakened within us, we are more likely to be in a state of receiving and listening. We can hear the answers to our prayers more easily. We are likely to let go of the fears, ego and obstacles to hearing accurate answers from our inner guidance and the external source of divine guidance. Reiki also activates the soul energy in our Reiki clients during their Reiki sessions, and many clients report that they receive inspiration, clarity and solutions to their current situation.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you.

Reiki began actively teaching me about receiving the answers to prayers during a session with a Reiki client in the summer of 2013. This client had spiritual ties to Nelson Mandela, and his Reiki session was during the time that Mandela was in the hospital in intensive care. During the session, I was shown the vast array of Illumined Beings that had gathered around the earth to welcome Mandela home. He is still here on the earth with a great purpose. They said that he is a powerful spiritual leader of our time and that his life has been spent in teaching the principles and actions of “peaceful revolution.”

Also during this time, Syria used chemical weapons on their people. The Illumined Beings showed me people all over the world praying for a peaceful solution. The guides said they were here to answer our prayers, but that they needed us to receive their answers. They gave me a variety of examples that illustrated the truth that while many people pray, few know how to receive answers. My guides have been very insistent that I write about this to the Reiki community, because Reiki gives us specific tools that help us receive answers to our prayers and our questions, and we are mostly a group of people who are interested in our ability to receive divine guidance.
During the following months, these same Illumined Beings showed me why many people struggle to receive the answers to their prayers. Mainly, we have a powerful belief system that has been taught to us for centuries. Most commonly, the belief is that only a few people are able to communicate with the Divine and that God only talks to certain people who are worthy enough to be in His presence in order to hear from him. We can talk to God through prayer, but he only speaks with certain people at certain times.

I watched this belief begin to form within my granddaughter Eva when she was four years old. One day she was sitting on my lap and said, “Grandma, can you talk to God when you are not praying?” I said, “Yes, I talk to God all the time, and guess what, he talks to me too.” She then told me that she couldn’t hear God anymore. I put my hand over her heart and belly and the rest of her chakras, and told her that she needed to listen from those places, that that is where she would hear God speak. She thought about it for a minute, then put her hand above her head and began to turn it as if she were twisting a jar open. As she turned her hand she said, “Wait a minute, hold on, I have had my school brain on.” After she opened her head, she said, “There he is, now I can hear him!” Now, she tells us what God says about all kinds of important issues in her life! So, now we use the phrase “Hold on, I have my school brain on” in our house when we need to shift our attention. It is a simple, uncomplicated example of forgetting our connection to God, spoken by a five-year-old. It is also an uncomplicated solution and tool that we can use to shift our mind so that we can hear our divine guidance, the answer to our prayers.

Consider inviting in Reiki and using this simple hand gesture to help you connect to the divine guidance that is all around you. Activate Reiki in your hands. Invite HSZSN, which means “The divine in me sees the divine in you,” and the “Origin of all is Divine Consciousness” to connect to your origin and to awaken your divine consciousness. Invite SHK to awaken your divine mind. Then make the hand motion over your head to open your crown chakra. Invoke CKR to release the school brain and open your connection to the Divine all around you and within you. Invite the Usui DKM, which means, “Great Being of the Universe, shine on me and be my friend.”

I was also shown that fear of God and not being worthy are common reasons that we are uncertain of our ability to be answered. The fear that we are not worthy can stop us from even trying to pray. Sometimes we believe that God answers other people’s prayers but not ours. Or we believe that we are not allowed to ask for too much or that we are greedy or it is not okay to pray for what we need.

I researched this topic and found many articles that reflect the common beliefs we have about prayer. Many of them tell us that prayers are only answered if you pray perfectly, follow the teachings of an outside authority and are worthy of God’s direct response. According to the admonitions in these articles, in my view, only a few of us could meet the requirements.

Here are a few examples of what I found:
•“It is absolutely vital that you pray to the very real God of the Bible if you expect genuine answers to your prayers.”2

• “Communication with our Father in Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in response to faith, obedience, and the prop-er use of agency.”3
• “If you have any outstanding sins that you haven’t repented for, this will block prayers from getting answered.”4
  • “Expect consequences now and later for “wrongs and bad desires” (being unfair, selfish, abusive) especially if these offenses are not confessed and not repented, God knows and is just. Justice is coming and “you shall receive the desires of your heart,” so watch the bad attitudes or your “rewards” can be opposite of your desires whether in the short or long run.”5

Reiki is a spiritual healing method that can heal our beliefs of unworthiness, that God is a vengeful God and that we have to be perfect in order to pray and receive answers directly and person ally. Reiki is not a religion and has no required belief system. Its goal is to return us to our true self, our spirit. There are no requirements to be in touch with the divine.

Anyone can learn Reiki. In an interview long ago, Usui Sensei said, “All the beings who have received the breath of life have been given the spiritual ability to heal as a gift (from nature, god, whatever you call it).”6
In his book, Reiki, The Healing Touch, William Rand says, “The ability to learn Reiki is not dependent on intellectual understanding, nor does one have to be able to meditate. It does not take years of practice. It is simply passed on through the teacher to the student during the attunement process. As soon as this happens, one has Reiki and can use it. Because of this, it is easily learned by anyone… The feeling of being connected directly to God’s healing love and protection is clearly apparent.”

Rand also says, “While Reiki is not religious, many who practice Reiki are being inspired by their religious beliefs, add prayer to their treatments and feel this is beneficial. They feel that prayers strengthen their Reiki energy and also add additional beneficial factors to the healing process including receiving help from spiritual beings and God.”7

To receive answers to our prayers, all we really need to do is make ourselves available. Reiki gives us a spiritual practice that gives us the ability to focus our attention on our intentions, so we can actually hear the divine guidance. It connects us to the beautiful Illumined Beings who are in relationship with us, and it gives them access to us.

In a previous article, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” I wrote, “Reiki is a vehicle for our prayers to manifest. When we are healing with Reiki, our prayers and spiritual helpers have access to our physical body, mind, emotions and spirit. We have asked for help and made ourselves available to receive healing. When we combine Reiki and prayer, we create a powerful opportunity for miracles to happen.”8
2 “Twelve Keys to Answered Prayers,” http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/booklets/twelve-keys-to-answered-prayer.
3 “Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer,” Richard Scott, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/10/learning-to-recognize-answers-to-prayer?lang=eng.
4 “Miracle Prayer Requests,” http://prayerpower.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Get-Immediate-Answers-to-Your-Prayers.
5 http://www.wikihow.com/Pray-and-Receive-the-Desires-of-Your-Heart.
6 This is Reiki, 71.
7 William Rand, “Reiki and Prayer,” http://www.reikiwebstore.com/Pro-ductPage.cfm?ProductID=408&CategoryID=16.
8 Colleen Benelli, “Reiki and The Light of Prayer,” Reiki News Magazine, Spring 2008, 19–20.

And here is what my Reiki guides said, “There are as many styles of prayer as there are people, beliefs and cultures. Who you pray to is who will answer you. Perhaps your intention will call a particular enlightened being that specializes in your healing needs. We see your prayers as beams of light. Reiki adds radiance and power to the light of prayer and makes them more visible to us. All prayers are answered, whether or not you understand. Perhaps they are not answered in this world, but they are answered in another portion of your soul. We love your prayers; they give us permission to help you because you have asked. When you use Reiki with your prayers, you make yourself available to receive from the Divine. Reiki empowers us to help because it is a very high vibration like ours and gives us better access to you. Please pray often. It does not matter your style or your words. Just talk to us through the light of prayer.”

9 The idea that we can receive the answers to our prayers through all styles and words is very important. Divine answers and assistance are available to us in every moment—in our stillness and in our busyness. Many traditions teach that you will hear the answers to your prayers through meditation and quiet reflection. Of course, this is true, and stillness is always beneficial; I spend a lot of time with self-Reiki and meditation. How-ever, I find that Reiki helps me focus on answers and see them anywhere, anytime, doing anything in my daily life. I have learned not to evaluate how I listen for my divine and inner guidance. Divine guidance and help is here for us in every circumstance. I have received the answers to prayers while driving here and there, and while doing all the things I do, as often as I receive them in my quiet time. I am really busy. If I only received my answers in complete stillness, there would be a lot less opportunity for me to hear them.

I simply invite Reiki and ask for spiritual assistance to guide me. Then I listen. It may take a while for the answers to come, and I pay attention, because they may come in an unexpected way. I have received my answers on a bumper sticker, TV pro-grams and conversations with friends, cleaning the house, in the shower, racing to and from someplace, as well as in my meditations. Reiki helps me listen and gives me a practice that can help me keep my mind focused on what I want to think about and listen for.

Self-Reiki is another opportunity to listen. I wrote an article for Reiki News Magazine called “Listen with Reiki,” in which I said, “I practice active listening in my meditations and self-Reiki sessions. I close my eyes, heighten my senses and perceptions and activate my chakras. I listen to my heart and inner dialogue. I ask questions and listen for the answers. Sometimes they come right away, and sometimes I listen for days, weeks or even years. I just keep asking and listening until I hear the answers. I can hear my body and my inner self. I can hear Spirit and my Reiki guides talk to me. I can focus and really feel Reiki flow through me.”1
Sometimes my prayers are delayed or not answered, or they are answered in ways I didn’t know I asked for. Often, they are revealed over time, and occasionally, I thank God for unanswered prayers! Sometimes, I don’t recognize the answers because I am too intent on wanting confirmation of my own desires.

Most often, I find that my complex prayers are answered a piece at time, without an end in sight, and I just have to trust and follow the light of the guidance.

I believe that God is available to me at all times; I just have to give him access. I do that through my practices of all kinds. Reiki is my spiritual pathway, so my Reiki practices are what help me listen and hear my answers. I have begun a new practice that I am excited about. William Rand has created a new Reiki Grid. It uses an image of the World Peace Crystal Grid. William says, “By using it for your Reiki Grid you’ll be tapping into the energy of all the peace grids, and this will add to the energy that is sent to all those whose names or photos you place in the grid, making the Reiki more effective and adding wonderful feelings of peace and harmony. And each time you charge your grid, you’ll be charging the peace grids for world peace!”11 So far, this grid has been a powerful centerpiece for my prayers. I also believe that I can contribute to the collective Reiki community and all others who participate with the World Peace Grids in praying for peace and receiving the answers to my prayers for peace in my life too.

Invite Reiki to assist you in receiving the answers to your prayers. Ask in the way that is personal to you. Every way that you ask is as valuable as any other way. Reiki can help you heal old beliefs that get in your way, and then it can empower you to hear the answers in just the right way for you. Reiki will adapt to you. Ask and you shall receive.

10 Colleen Benelli, “Listen with Reiki,” Reiki News Magazine, Winter 2007, 39.

11 http://www.reiki.org/Download/NPGridLetterSizeRGB.pdf.

Colleen Benelli can be reached by email at colleen@reikilifestyle.com, by phone at 503.912.0664, on her website at www.reikilifestyle.wpengine.com, or on her Facebook page, Reiki Lifestyle-Colleen Benelli. Join Colleen’s monthly ReikiChat™ conversation, www.reikichat.com.