Pine Mountain Reiki

Written with great appreciation for the teachings and love of Virginia Samdahl, Dr. Vijay Rao, Ellen Sokolow, Aileen Meares, Maria Ortega Murphy and my whole family.

The Real Article

This painting, called "Madonna of the Streets" tells

a story simply.


This classic artwork reminds me that we cannot measure the value of a person by the outward appearances of their life. .

My grandmother used to set a place at the table for the unknown visitor.

In case a stranger were to come hungry, we would be ready.

She reminded me that a 'hobo', as she said, might just be an angel in disguise.

There is documentation measuring the effects of love and happiness on the immune system.

Both for the giver and the receiver, love truly heals.

The power referred to as "love" in physics is energy which is created when an atom is split. I think that's how it goes.

There is a perceivable force around all living things. This energetic field is effected by light, vibration, color, thought, time of day, regional factors and interactions with others.

There is reason to believe that prayers effect this field.

To Thine Own Self Be True

In this busy world, it is good to remember who we really are.
There is a part of each of us that is always safe. We all have a healthy core within each of us that always whole.

It is possible that the paths we walk are laid carefully before we are born. I think it is how we walk those paths that shapes our destiny.

Could it be that Grace alters our paths and gives us strength and a will to go on past the point of 'too tired'?

I think we are given Grace, when we open our heart to others. And the song that comes to our imaginations to sing is so perfect that no angel could deny playing our piece before Divinity.

A good agent is priceless.

Sometimes what happens in life seems unexplainable.
Often the circumstances that arise seem unjust.

It is like tuning an instrument for the first time. Not many peoople are born with perfect pitch.

When we simplify our lives and begin to see with the single eye that is the heart,

(I read that expression in a book about His Crazy Horse, referring to a Native American expression)

things look a lot different.

When I first became aware of reverence for life, and the joy of it, the goal became the method. Love is the only thing that lasts.

Are we really we all connected? I believe so.

There is a phenonenon called a "Shaman's Death".
A transformation experience through which a person receives the experience of knowing 'the other side of the veil. And from this knowing, can facilitate the 'knowing' in others.

In what I have read of true shamanism, the rigors of a true shaman's death reportedly can involve the recovery from bona fide near-death state

The analogy I draw using the idea of a 'shaman's death' is about transformation.

To demonstrate, the resilience of the spirit for the encouragement of the people;

to search within for the primal spark that wills us to revel in life,

even when we're seemingly defeated, is about fostering hope.

Hope makes the difference in pressing on or giving up. It's that simple.

Having profound respect for life is an integral part of becoming a whole, healthy person. Respect for life, I think, is the cornerstone upon which all systems of compassionate law and morality are built.

It is reported that Russian shamans

and the medicine people of many aboriginal cultures undergo tests of their strength, will and endurance to get to the truth of themselves. And to grow stronger.

So that 'knowing' is so rock solid, that they can teach by example, and uplift by their presence.

So, if in your way, you are going through such a transformation, I wish you sweet music on the wind.

and feel the ancient drum beat as the elders keep perfect time for you .



There is an old saying that I read about in Caldwell College during a class on Eastern Religions offered by Father Behrans is that

"The purpose of life on earth is to learn to turn poison into medicine".

The poison of the past can truly be transformed to
become the medicine of the present.

And the wreckage of our past can be set aflame, like a bon fire on a frozen lake

to light the way for those not yet through their own shaman's death.


The wild creatures of the woods have no words; without words, it is impossible to lie.


Our howls and growls can encourage;they set boundaries of territory. They identify us setting up defense strategies to protect our pack in the sparring of our natural selves.

Sacred is the song that calls home our young, brings to us our mate and protects our elders.

I think that song, dance and music are the body's way of expressing the beauty and power of our spirits.

All that has form, has movement; all aspects of creation are connected.

The vibrant harmonics that Pythagoras deciphered to uplift us;

to further our realization that all life is our family,

are all present in the most mundane howl in the moonlight.


That is why it is often better to listen than to be noisy;


To listen for the songs on the wind.
To love shamelessly; to protect the helpless fiercely;
this is our instinct, our natural inclination, to protect our own.
It is a wild hope of mine that someday all people will regard one another as 'my own'.

To separate instinct from intellect entirely is to become divorced from one's self.

We dance on this earth plane with all our senses, the five and the subtle sixth.

Thinking without feeling is only for emergencies.

On a lighter note,

there is a lot of medicine in music. Music is a powerful tool for healing, both in listenting and in the creative activity playing, singing and writing.

The beat of music has a distinct and measurable effect on living things. For instance, a waltz beat will strengthen the muscle response in a human being.

Traditional blues drum cadence will also strengthen the muscle response.

A repetitive drum beat without variation, however, will effectively weaken both the muscles and the will.

And the actual vibration of strings, reeds and the human voice can, and does, change the actual chemistry of the brain.

Lyrics can also effect immediate changes in the strength of our reflexes and also in our immune systems.

We are so much more effected by the sounds and sights around us than we realize.

Music therapy is a modality which is gaining acceptance and popularity with the traditional medical communtiy.

The ear may think that a sythesizer is a piano for a couple of seconds,

but the brain and body register it as something to interpret to something real. Which actually adds stress to the body and puzzles the brain, where sounds are registered and from where delivered to the rest of the body.


Our senses will serve us well if we honor them as reflections of the gift of life on earth.

The primal substance of our souls is just as holy as the refined; we are the offspring of Divinity; there are no mistakes in the realm of sacred creation.

The aspects of our manifest being are there for a reason;

though the brutal need be transmuted to make way for compassion, the essence of the powerful primal energy cannot be denied.

To think only and feel nothing is the beginning of despair.

To defeat despair while still looking with your eyes open is the beginning of wisdom; and the consumate strength.