When we look around at the society with awareness, we realize that our education teaches us what we should be thinking, not how we should be thinking. We are taught to not really question anything. In spiritual parlance, this is a part of what we call conditioning. Now, a part of this conditioning also is that science is always right, and that what can be measured is greater than what cannot.
As a result, people look up at scientific research and complex medical procedures, while looking down upon what they consider as faith-healing. Funnily enough, all the propaganda has created so much faith in modern medicine that placebo medicines are not only increasingly being prescribed, but also that faith is coming in the way of new drug-trials, as traditionally new drugs are tested against the placebo effect. Sham surgeries are also often shown to be as effective as real ones.
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What is Placebo Anyway?
The placebo effect is when someone has so much faith in a mode of treatment that even when treated with a completely fake drug/ procedure, they heal as if they were given a real medicine. Normally to release a new drug into the market, companies have to test it against placebo, i.e. they give one group of people a placebo and another the real drug, and the group taking the real drug has to fare better for the drug to be approved.
The Magic of Placebo
The body has a tremendous power to heal itself. There is plenty of placebo at play when people visit a doctor, and that is always underplayed. For instance, many people feel better simply after a visit to a doctor. Also, trials have shown that the results that placebo healing brings are in no way inferior to that brought out through authentic treatments.
But that’s Not the Point Here
Yes, it’s not. The point here is that Reiki is not placebo. Almost all alternative therapies that still need years of research to be validated or are simply beyond the scope of science at the moment are passed off as placebo. There’s a fundamental flaw in this thinking.
Consider a recent example. I was traveling in a train, sitting opposite a young woman who was clearly a bit ill, constantly sniffing. Not only was it a bit annoying, but also it was obvious she was in discomfort. We hadn’t spoken at all so I was a bit hesitant. Eventually I lost my patience and simply asked her if I could do something to help. She blinked curiously and asked, ‘like what?’ I asked her to close her eyes for a few seconds as I sent her a little healing from where I was sitting (so I didn’t touch or go near her). When I asked her to open her eyes, she said “thank you. … oh I actually do feel better, what did you do?” She did not sniff for the rest of the journey.
This is just one of many, many such examples. But this isn’t all.
Image by Sponchia
Why Reiki Cannot be Placebo
There are two aspects to placebo healing….
