06/19/2026
Healing is both an individual and a collective effort. We must individually take responsibility for our own healing journey, while recognizing that we also bear a responsibility to lift up and affirm those of us who were born into and live under oppression and systemic injustice.
Today, the Black and African-American community in the United States celebrates Juneteenth, just as their ancestors have since slavery was abolished in this country. Although it is now formally recognized as a federal holiday, the work of achieving full liberation and freedom for Black people - and other communities of color - is still ongoing.
The Reiki community should also be equally committed to the work of healing these deep social, systemic, and ancestral wounds that keep so many from realizing their fullest potential and purpose.
The system of Reiki originated in Japan, and its very existence and survival here was precarious until the end of the last century, due to anti-Japanese sentiment and racism. Hawayo Takata, the Japanese-American woman who worked on a sugar cane plantation in Hawai'i and later brought this practice over from Japan, intentionally made changes to the system to make it more appealing to a white, American audience.
We no longer have to "whitewash" our Reiki practice.
As practitioners of this spiritual healing art, we should feel called to honor our Reiki ancestors and elders by committing ourselves to the path of healing, freedom, and liberation for all people in our lives and in our work.
As a Reiki Teacher/Master, I am also aware of the overall lack of diversity I see in our Reiki communities here in the United States. It's one thing to say, "All are welcome." It's another thing to intentionally cultivate a practice or community where people DO feel welcome and safe.
If you are a Reiki practitioner or teacher, I urge you to join me in being explicitly anti-racist and anti-colonialist in your own practices. This is an evolving and ongoing process, because it is a form of heart-mind healing. We are actively replacing subconscious and harmful beliefs, thoughts, and actions with ones that are more empathetic, inclusive, diverse, and compassionate.
Becoming anti-racist and anti-colonial is a spiritual practice too, because spiritual practices are at their core, about recognizing and living into our interconnected, unbounded freedom that is the birthright of everyone and everything in the universe.
May every day be a Juneteenth celebration of liberation for our Black and African-American siblings, family, and community. Freedom is not a day; it is a way of life. It is what healing looks and feels like.
