Ancient Practices: Historical Roots of Energy Healing
Energy healing is more than a modern wellness trend or something to be stared at and then forgotten. These practices have a high history in different cultures. Most of these practices date back thousands of years in the history of civilizations that recognized that the energy within the body creates balance and good health. From Chinese medicine and Indian Ayurveda to the spiritual practices of ancient Egypt, the theme of energy healing spans all ages and locations. In this blog, you will travel to the very first times of energy healing outlining its culture, attitudes, and tools that formed the basis of those practices in use today. How Did Energy Healing Originate? The practice of energy healing started way back thousands of years ago in ancient civilizations such as Ancient China, India, and Egypt in which health was considered an intricate equilibrium of the energy in the body. In these early civilizations for health there was not just a physical aspect rather it has always been related to the inter-connectivity of various energies in the body. It was often said by the more ancient healing practitioners that a person would become ill due to the weakening or addressing of some energy levels or channels in the body. The Chinese school treated these energy carriers as ‘Qi’ and claimed that there are invisible lines called meridians through which the energy flows. Likewise “Prana” the air and life sustaining energy directed throughout the body through chakras and nadis (energy pathways) was the adam nadhi of Indian Ayurveda. At the same time in ancient Egypt, energetic healers were performing rituals, using symbols, sacred geometries to modify human energy structures. These early concepts served as the foundations for many of the energy therapeutics practiced today such as acupuncture, Reiki, chakra balancing and many other. The ancient approach towards healing the sick was a holistic one which means treating the mind body and spirit as a whole. This ancient concept understood that ensuring equilibrium is maintained in the energy systems of the body was essential in averting the occurrence of diseases or boosting health. These ideas, of course, are ancient but they are still with us in the present world of alternative or integrative medicine. What Are the Key Principles Behind Energy Healing? Energy healing consists of a universally accepted principle that states, all medical problems have some underlying cause– energy. Every person has energy fields surrounding their bodies, which can sometimes be obstructed or even flow too much, thus making them sick. A way of rejuvenating these fields enhances the healing process. The human body’s biological structures and energy fields transform constantly and dynamically carry and interact with different entities in the internal and external reality. But when those energy fields are interrupted because of stress, trauma, unwholesome living, and other self/environmental factors, it causes some problems either physical or psychological. So, energy healers apply a variety of methods to bring the body’s energy fields back to normal, enhancing the natural healing abilities of the organism’s body. Energy healing is based on the fact that the body has self-healing abilities that can be unleashed through directed energy. If it involves inserting needles into the body to cure or balancing the body through the understatement of moves associated with hands, or the use of meditative balance of the chakra, the goal of these therapies is to allow energy to push through. Hence, the active principles that cause the body to heal itself are stimulated. This way of looking at the process of healing is that instead of mending a body that is treated as a broken machine, energy and balance are the aspects where the body is looked upon as a living system that is always in motion. What Role Did Ancient China Play in the History of Energy Healing? China was amongst the first countries to practice energy healing techniques which in contemporary terms can be referred to as acupuncture and Qigong which aim to moderate ‘qi’. According to historians, energy healing can trace its roots back to traditional Chinese medicine or TCM, thanks to the incorporation of Chinese medicine principles and practices. Quite the opposite, while originating the modern Chinese medicine acupuncture, which involves the restoration of Qi balance, the manipulation of Qi is vitally important. The philosophy of organizing energy into systems and allowing light to pass through this energy has been traced back many decades in Ancient China. Nonetheless, a definition was provided by Mero-Linodzh in the early twentieth century: “although acupuncture, massage, and herbal medicine help illness, ache, and inflammation through adjustment or removal of physical factors or tissues, the therapeutic effective factor of Chinese medicine does not belong to these external use instruments”. Chinese traditional medicine emphasizes the manipulation of Chi’s flow, through different techniques such as acupressure, moxibustion, and more needles which have specific energy healing-focused needles. Other techniques include qigong acupuncture where the patient himself uses his mind to heal or direct his Chi energy into more productive channels. Thus, mainstream medicine, driven by the constant search for healthier people, absorbed qi and incorporated energy therapies in one form or another into standard medical practice. Most likely the Chinese practitioners, acupuncturists, and specialists of Chinese medicine believe just like that. Nowadays, a part of the energy treatment is performed with the assistance of equipment, particularly a laser, but still, energetic principles of such procedures as laser acupuncture and its effects remain. The arguments presented are based on available historical trends in concepts related to the topic. How Is Reiki Connected to the Historical Roots of Energy Healing? Reiki is a good example of how various techniques that are centuries old have been employed in energy healing techniques, which are comparatively new. Although it was discovered by the Japanese Mikao Usui in the early twentieth century, Reiki is founded on the principle of the transfer of energy, or Ki, from the healer to the sick person in order to bring balance. Touch or close hand placement is