She is inviting all Reiki Healers and Reiki Drummers to take part in this sacred ceremony of channelling positive energy into the ground before it is turned into a Wood Henge by landowner Stephen Parsley and Derek Massey the artist.  The project involves erecting Fen Oak trees that are over 10,000 years old in the formation of Stone Henge.  The vision for this project is to provide a sacred place where people can spend time alone and recognise the needs of the earth.   The event will include a blessing, drumming, chanting and healing.  There is no fee for this event, Yasmin on behalf of the Huntingdon Reiki Share Group is hoping as many Reiki people and Reiki Drummers can attend as possible.  This is the opportunity to be at the Inception of this beautiful project which looks like it is going to provide sacred and spiritual solace for many in years to come.

More Info: Media Information on Wood Henge

What to bring:  A drum if you have one, a very small crystal to leave in the earth, something to sit on that you don’t mind getting dirty.  Hot/cold water and toilets will be available but you may want to bring a cup and your own refreshment/snack.

Directions:

Junction 15 Off A1 (between Huntingdon & Peterborough), Follow signs B1043/B1090 to Wood Walton, After 2 miles turn left into Wood Walton, 2^nd Farm on left is Red House Farm.  Drive through wooden gates, car parking available on site.

I feel really privileged to be taking part in this event, which seems like it’s something rather special and am looking forward to it immensely.  I hope to see some familiar faces there.  Sending love, Sarah xx

A lot of my friends and acquaintances found the energy towards the end of last year hugely transformative with many starting completely new ventures in 2013 after the energetic changes of 21.12.12.  I felt around 12.12.12 that there were some changes taking place at the level of our DNA and two of my Reiki and Shamanic Friends verified they were getting the same message during their meditations.  It will be interesting to see how this manifests on a mind/body/spirit level.  The energy of the whole of 2012 to me reinforced the concept of our physical world being illusory, a dream of our imagination, and as we come into our power co-creating with the Universe, we shall start to accept this into our consciousness as a Spiritual Truth. One of my new intentions for 2013 is to run larger group events to consolidate the new energies which we are now working with and to celebrate our Oneness.    On February 4th we move into the Chinese Year of the  Water Snake which bodes well for people coming together for the greater good in community and friendship.  It also is significant for a more peaceful year than has been the past few years (many limped into 2013 licking their wounds from 2012!).  There should be a definate improvement in most people’s lives, which again coincides with the new era which is upon us and the idea of a new beginning.

Our fabulously high energy event, the annual Reiki Drum Share is taking place on March 24^th.  I am waiting to see if we have any places left as the event is as always pretty much full.  If you haven’t yet booked but would like to come, please let me know as we sometimes get last minute cancellations.  This day just gets better year on year and very much reflects the energy of the times.  As we all have so much to look forward to in 2013 and beyond, I am anticipating the energy will be very high spirited and joyous.

One of my ventures for 2013 is a collaboration with those wonderful people Bryan Pummell and Deborah Lewis-Pummell of Bearpaw Therapies.  Bryan and Debs have organised for me to facilitate a one day Introduction to Sound Healing workshop in Weedon, Buckinghamshire on Sunday 14^th April.  If you are curious about sound healing and would like to find out some more, please contact Bryan at bryan@bearpawtherapies.co.uk or on 07971 691356 to reserve your place.  Intro To Sound Healing Workshop Flyer and Booking Form The fee for the day is £55.   The day is both an experiential and practical day using drums, rattles, crystal bowls, percussion, gongs, monochord sound chair and our natural instruments, our voices.

For those of you who are Level II Reiki attuned and above, I’m running an Advanced Training Usui Reiki Kotodama and Buddhist Chant workshop in Sheering, Essex on Sunday 12^th May. The workshop will be a practical and experiential day working with the Usui Reiki Kotodama for deep and insightful personal healing.   Kotodama (the spiritual power of words) are the sacred sounds used with the various different Reiki energies.   The majority of the day will be spent working with the Kotodama in many different ways and there will be other Buddhist chants which will be introduced to during the day which can also be used for personal healing.   Some of you may have already been taught the Kotodama in your training, and this will give you the opportunity to work with a larger group energy and use them for different applications. For those of you who have not worked with Kotodama before, working with these powerful sounds in this way for a whole day along with other sacred chants will be hugely transformational.  As always it will be a bonus to be in the company of like minded. Your investment for the day is £55 and is open to Level II Reiki Students, Masters and Teachers. Please email me should you wish to reserve a place, as spaces are limited and I already have had a great response for this day.

And finally but by no means least, I have a few places left for the Annual Summer Solstice Reiki Retreat in Cornwall June 17^th-21^st.  I must say the venue for this particular retreat is really something very special.  The Bluff Centre is a beautiful centre, lovingly run by Marianne and Charlie Tapper.   The energy of the centre is made up of a very refined energy with a lot of the air element (being at the top of a cliff overlooking the sea has a lot to do with this!) and is perfect for the practises we will be doing.  We will be staying just outside Tintagel overlooking Trebarwith Strand, a marvellous stretch of golden sand overlooking the fabulous Gull Rock.  I have stayed here several times and every time I come back completely rejuvenated and inspired.  We will be visiting Tintagel Castle and St Nectan’s Glen as part of the retreat activities.  Tintagel is reputed to be the birthplace of King Arthur and is a majestic site in its lofty perch overlooking the Atlantic.  Weather permitting we will be visiting Tintagel by way of a stunning coastal walk.    St Nectan’s is one of the ten most important Sacred Sites here in the UK. The excursion to St Nectan’s will involve a beautiful walk through a magical valley leading to the Waterfall which is a place of incredible elemental energy.  People from all over the world visit here to bathe in the water and take photographs to capture the beautiful and amazing orbs which show up.  If the centre and the other locations weren’t enough, we will be celebrating the Summer Solstice and doing wonderful Reiki practises for the entire stay, coupled with the fact we will be amongst like minded Reiki practitioners… I’ve been planning this retreat for over two years, so it is going to be quite some week!  Don’t miss out, there are only a few places left and it will be a very special few days.  You can download a brochure with lots of photos to whet your appetite from the Retreats page of the website.

Besides these large group events, I am running the normal Usui Reiki classes, Reiki Drum Practitioner Workshops and Karuna classes, as well as holding regular sound events.  I hope to see some of you during 2013 and wish you all joy for all of your New Beginnings.

Sending love, Sarah xx

Forthcoming Events & Workshops

February 2/3 – Shoden Reiki First Degree

February 9/10 – Okuden Reiki Second Degree

March 1 – 3 – Karuna Reiki Master Class

March 24^th – Reiki Drum Share, Sheering, Essex

April 14^th – Intro to Sound Healing, Weedon, Buckinghamshire

April 27-28 – Reiki Drum Practitioner Class

May 4/5 – Shoden Reiki First Degree

May 12^th – Kotodama Workshop, Sheering, Essex

May 17-19 – Advanced Practitioner/Master Healer and Master Teacher Training

June 1^st/2^nd – Okuden Reiki Second Degree

June 17-21 – Summer Solstice Reiki Retreat, Tintagel, North Cornwall

June showed immense courage and bravery over the past two years and was blessed to be able to spend those years at home with her family and friends.  She was able to have two extra years to say goodbye to her loved ones and finish things she had wanted to finish.  She did not have to endure countless hospital or doctors visits.  Occasionally a GP would pop out to visit her, out of curiosity I think.  They kept calling her a miracle, which she was.

I spent Christmas Day with June and she was incredibly well, even commenting on the fact that it was two year’s since the diagnosis.  The family were struck with a really virulent flu virus over Christmas, I even sucuumbed, and I never get the flu,   and it was the virus which she died of.  It was just too much for her weakened immune system to cope with.  Over the past six months she had also been slowly weaning herself off the protocol she had been on.  I think she was preparing to die, and her illness was very quick and short lived.

The 21^st December 2012 began a new era for everyone, the adage being “the end of the world as you know it”.  So we are embarking on a new beginning as a family, although June will be sorely missed.  She was one of the most generous, kind hearted ladies I have ever had the privilege to meet and I am extremely grateful to have had her as a mother in law.  I and many others admired her greatly for her courage over the past few years.  Even at the end of her life she refused all pain medication and died peacefully at home with her family.  I know she will be looking down on the family, and she is only on the other side of the veil.

Thank you to those of you who have been sending her Reiki during the past two years.  It was very noticeable when she was having bad days that it picked her up immensely.

I have lots of things to share with you blog wise, but just wanted to acknowledge June and her life in this post.   In gratitude, Sarah x

Gongs and Tam-Tams:  A Guide for Percussionists, Drummers and Sound Healers can be sourced from Sound Travels as well as YPD Books and Waterstones and is highly recommended for those of you who would like to purchase your own gong and are bemused by the different ones available.  This book is a one-stop shop covering all aspects of these fascinating instruments. With information about their construction, history, and playing techniques as well as the paraphernalia needed in terms of beaters, cases and stands, cleaning and care, and a comprehensive listing and description of many of the gongs available today or in the recent past.

This book is intended for anyone interested in gongs, from players through to sound healers, including composers, music arrangers, and students of music, metallurgy and percussion history. It is believed to be the first book of its kind in the World, and would be an excellent Christmas present for anyone who is just about to embark on their gong journey.

Another reminder about the Reiki Drum Share next March 24th in Essex.  As always, it’s booking up fast.  There are about 15 spaces left.  Please let me know should you like to attend and I will reserve you a place.  The same applies for the North Cornwall Reiki retreat which is being held around the Summer Solstice next June 17-21st.  This is going to be the most magical of the retreats I have run over the past few years.  It truly is not to be missed and there are a handful of places remaining.  This retreat will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen your Reiki practise in beautiful, high vibrational surroundings so conducive to self development and healing.  Please let me know if you would like further information.

I have a beautiful three days ahead of me.  Shoden tomorrow, followed by two days of Okuden and a Reiki Share tomorrow night… what bliss!  I am looking forward to seeing some of you at our Sawbridgeworth Yule chant evening on 6th December and of course for the Ascension Evening 12.12.12 which is going to be AMAZING!

With love xxx

Forthcoming Events:

• November 23 – Reiki Share (Students only) 1930 hrs (donation).
• December 6 – Christmas/Yule Sacred Chant Evening, 0730-0930 hrs, Sawbridgeworth. Fee £8 payable on the night
• December 12 – Ascension Evening 12.12.12. A magical evening of sound commencing with sacred drumming, a special group Ascension Ceremony and a hour long gong bath meditation. Sheering Village Hall, Sheering, Essex.  Doors open 07:00 pm, last entry 07:25 pm.  Gong Bath  ends at 10:00 pm.  – Fee £20 payable in advance.  An evening to celebrate our interconnectness with like minded. (Full)
• January 26 & 27 – Reiki Drum Practitioner Class, Sawbridgeworth
• February 2 & 3 – Reiki One Shoden
• February 9 & 10 – Reiki Two Okuden
• Sunday March 24th 2013 – Reiki Drum Share, Sheering, Essex to celebrate the Spring Equinox 10:00-16:30  Fee £20 payable in advance.
• Monday 17th-Friday 21st June 2013 – Reiki Retreat, Tintagel, Cornwall

The recent Samhain Reiki Drum residential in Suffolk was an incredible experience for me as a teacher.  We extended the teachings by two days and fitted lots of new and exciting Reiki Drum techniques into the retreat.  Samhain, the Celtic New Year, is traditionally a time to honour our ancestors, so our practises reflected this theme and included an all night Reiki Drumming Vigil along with a beautiful and very moving Honouring the Ancestors Ceremony.  The Reiki practitioners who attended were lovely souls and we went very deep into the practises and were supported greatly on an energetic level.  The Reiki drumming creating a high energy environment throughout the weekend and we had lots of Orbs show up in many of the photos.  The retreat had several repeaters on it, which shows what a positive and lasting impression Reiki Drumming has on people.  It was a joy to spend time with old friends!   We also managed to get out and about in the beautiful Suffolk countryside and connected with the elements and nature spirits during our coastal walk.  Happy memories.

We also celebrated Samhain when I returned to East Herts with another group of fantastic people and were blessed to have several people with mediumship skills in the group, so the messages we received were very clear and poignant.  We did a drum journey to connect with an Ancestor and everyone in attendance was surprised at the people who they met – Ancestors who had very important messages for them and wanted to be remembered and recognised that night.  We also spent time reflecting on the things we needed to let go of at the end of the Celtic Year so we could embrace the New year without any encumbrances and move forward confidently.  Another beautiful event. In fact, whenever a group of Reiki practitioners get together, the events are always magical and full of joy and healing for those who attend, and when the drum is added… it just takes it to another level, as those of you who practise know.

I am already looking forward to 2013′s events and am now taking bookings for the Reiki Drum practitioner classes scheduled throughout the year.  The Spring Equinox Reiki Drum share is already over half full, so please let me know if you are coming, so as to avoid disappointment.  I have the joy of spending the next three days with two lovely ladies who are doing their Shinpiden Reiki Master Teacher Course and as always I am mindful of the Reiki precept, Be Grateful, as I truly am grateful for having the opportunity to do this work.

If you would like to find out more about this beautiful healing modality, please contact us at info@reikidrum.co.uk for further information.

With love and Reiki blessings, Sarah

2013 Reiki Drum classes and Share

Duration of Course: 2 days •Fee: £250 – Includes drum, workbook and class manual. If you have your own drum, the fee is reduced to £200, please advise at time of booking.

Reiki Drum – Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire
26 & 27 January •27 & 28 April • 6 & 7 July • 5 & 6 October

Annual Reiki Drum Share – Sheering, Essex
Sunday March 24th, 10:00 – 16:30.
Fee: £20 – pre-booking essential.

We’ve had two marvellous retreats so far this year.  The Sound & Light in April which was beautiful and an incredible few days in Glastonbury in July celebrating the return of the Divine Feminine in the beautiful energies of the Abbey, Tor and Chalice Well.  So many wonderful moments (some of which have been captured on our Gallery page which is a new addition to the Reiki Drum Site – please check it out, it gives you a flavour of our work).  I’m now preparing for the forthcoming Samhain Reiki Drum residential in Suffolk coming up at the end of this week which will be another incredible few days supported by Spirit as we honour our Ancestors for the Celtic New Year.  We’re in for an amazing time.  The Phoenix Centre is a very high energy space and we have some magical things planned.

2012 was always going to be a jam packed year here at Reiki Drum.  It is such a monumental year in terms of our civilisation’s spiritual growth and transformation, that all of the events have been marked as a way to commemorate this.  Next year I am at present only planning one retreat and that will be held at the beautiful, inspirational Bluff Centre on the Cornish Coast amongst the myth and mystery of the land near Tintagel.  Already this retreat is filling quickly and there are only five places remaining.  Should you be interested in celebrating the Summer Solstice in a magical place with likeminded immersing yourself in the Reiki energy and visiting Sacred Sites,  then please visit our Retreats page and download the Annual Reiki retreat brochure – you will be in for a real treat!  This retreat has been two years in the planning, so I’m expecting good things from it!

Another development this year was the setting up of different sound healing groups in East Hertfordshire.  I am now running regular Sacred Drumming evenings in Sawbridgeworth, East Herts.  These are open to anyone who has an interest in sacred drumming and are run as a development circle. It allows non Reiki attuned people to experience the power of the drum, as well as our community of Reiki practitioners.   We journey, do group drumming, ceremony, chant and drum healing as routine practise.  The next one is going to be 31^st October, a special Samhain drumming event.  There are four spaces available should anyone wish to join us.

I have also been running sacred chant evenings.  During these evenings we take a particular theme (some of the ones to date have been Solar chants, Goddess chants, Gratitude, Opening the Heart) and we take sacred chants from around the world and concentrate on those themes.  They are beautiful evenings and we often finish by doing some sound healing by using toning and chanting for some of the participants.  The monthly gong bath also continues and is into its second year.  I have added a wind gong and crystal bowls to my sound family which have enhanced the sound baths even further.  I have set up an Events page on the Reiki Drum site which is updated regularly and has all of the sound healing evenings listed.  These evenings tend to book out very soon after advertising, so if you would like to come along, please drop me a line and I’ll add you to the priority mailing list.  In the meantime, you can always check what is going on by visiting the Events page.  You’ll notice we are advertising spaces for next year’s Reiki Drum Share on March 24th.  Half the spaces for this event have already been filled, so if  you are planning to come along, please book early.

I have been inspired by above to recognise 12.12.12 as a day of interconnectedness around our planet and will be holding a special Ascension evening in Sheering, Essex to commemorate the occasion. All the components of the evening have been given to me by Spirit, and we will be holding an evening of sacred drumming, ceremony and gong baths to recognise the powerful transformation we as a race are going through at this time.  The evening is full but if you would like to be notified of further events, then please let me know.

Reiki Drum continues to become more high profile in the public awareness.  I am practising it on a regular basis now from my private clinic, and try and slip it into many of the other treatments I offer, as it is such a wonderful adjunct.    It is a powerful healing modality and I’ve seen such marvellous healings over the past few months (and years) purely through the work of Reiki and the drum.   There are quite a few teachers in different areas of the UK now spreading this wonderful work, and it is just going to keep growing as people start to recognise its efficacy.  It seems like yesterday I was in Arizona practising this wonderful therapy but a lot has happened over the past five years and I feel very privileged to have been there from its infancy here in the UK.

I’ve also trained a lot of new Reiki practitioners this year and am running regular Reiki shares in East Herts.  In the past I have included lots of different things within the Reiki share such as the sound healing, but I am now trying to run more of a traditional Reiki Share concentrating on healing and Japanese and Western Reiki practises.  These evenings are currently open to students only due to space constraints.

It seems a long time since I blogged about my mother-in-law June and her alternative approach to her cancer diagnosis.  It’s over two years since she first became ill, and I’m pleased to say that she is still with us, leading a good quality of life, not having had to endure trips to hospitals and surrounded at home by the love of her friends and family.  It’s been quite some journey for all of us as a family and has definitely been a time of spiritual growth for each one of us.  We have had many occasions when her health has dipped and we’ve thought that she would be making her transition very soon, but this appears to have been when she is going through a cycle of deep healing and she has bounced back to health again, and defied all the odds.  She really is a miracle in action and demonstrates that natural therapies, sound healing, Reiki, and the naturopathic approach can give someone real quality of life when the medical profession can no longer help.  Given only weeks to live in January 2011, she has outlived her prognosis many times over.  She is on no medication and is in no pain.  Thank you to all of you who have enquired about her health and have been sending Reiki to her.  Whenever she does have a dip, I request people send distant healing and she really benefits from the extra energy, it is quite tangible.

So more of a newsletter than a blog post, but I will endeavour to update this blog a little more frequently over the coming months with news and inspirations.  I am aware that the new energies are affecting many Sensitives at this time as we all endeavour to move into higher states of awareness and shift into the space of the heart.    Some inspirational people are passing over at this time, to assist us from the other side in our journey here on Earth.  I was sad to hear today that Gabrielle Roth had made her transition.  She contributed greatly to this world and will be missed by many.  Something I keep hearing myself when I meditate and from what I am hearing from other people’s experiences, is that we are being encouraged to detox  as much as possible to help us with the shift of energies we are experiencing here on Earth.   There are some very dense energies having to be processed and we are all being forced to look our Shadow selves squarely in the face – never an easy process, but a courageous journey on the spiritual path.  Spending quiet time alone in nature, meditating and being gentle with ourselves at this time will also help with the shift.  I do hope it’s an easy process for you all.

Sending love and wishing you all joy, Sarah x

Forthcoming Events

• October 26-29 – Reiki Drum Residential and Samhain Retreat, Suffolk (see Retreats Section) (Full)
• October 31 – Samhain Sacred Drumming Evening, 0730-0930 hrs, Sawbridgeworth. Fee £8 payable on the night
• November 3-4 – Reiki One First Degree Course – Shoden
  
• November 12 – Gong /Sound Bath, 2000 – 2130 hrs, Sawbridgeworth. Fee £16 Paypal, £15 cheque or cash payable in advance. (Full)
• November 9-11 – Usui Reiki Master Teacher (Shinpiden) Class
• November 23 – Reiki Share (Students only) 1930 hrs (donation).
• December 6 – Christmas/Yule Sacred Chant Evening, 0730-0930 hrs, Sawbridgeworth. Fee £8 payable on the night
• December 12 – Ascension Evening 12.12.12. A magical evening of sound commencing with sacred drumming, a special group Ascension Ceremony and a hour long gong bath meditation. Sheering Village Hall, Sheering, Essex.  Doors open 07:00 pm, last entry 07:25 pm.  Gong Bath  ends at 10:00 pm.  – Fee £20 payable in advance.  An evening to celebrate our interconnectness with like minded. (Full)
• January 26 & 27 – Reiki Drum Practitioner Class, Sawbridgeworth
• February 2 & 3 – Reiki One Shoden
• February 9 & 10 – Reiki Two Okuden
• Sunday March 24th 2013 – Reiki Drum Share, Sheering, Essex to celebrate the Spring Equinox 10:00-16:30  Fee £20 payable in advance.

It’s been a while since I last blogged.  2012 is a busy year for me this year with lots of wonderful events being held, so I may not be as prolific on the writing front as previous years, and in fact this blog post is more of an update of what’s taking place this year.    I finally got round yesterday to editing the video footage from the Reiki Drum Share we held last month in Sheering, Essex.  Wow, what a day!  The video has got me buzzing all over again!  Check it out here:  Reiki Drum Share March 2012 It was such a high energy event, with 55 Reiki Drummers all in one space.  We enjoyed sacred ceremony, Reiju, shared drum healing, an amazing community healing for two people, journeying, power animal work and some rhythmic creative drumming and dance.  If you haven’t yet experienced the magic which is Reiki Drum, I’m running a four day Reiki Drumming retreat at the end of October at the wonderful Phoenix Centre in Suffolk.  The earth energies here are very condusive to the work we will be doing and it is being held around the time of Samhain, the Celtic New Year and an auspicious time to be working with Reiki and  the Ancestors.  The two day Reiki Drum practitioner course can be life changing, so to have four days as a residential will be a true blessing for those who join us.  Spaces are limited, so if you would like further details, please email info@reikidrum.co.uk at the earliest opportunity.

In April I started to run chant/mantra and Kirtan evenings in Sawbridgeworth, East Herts.  The first one was a really lovely evening, working with some powerful Goddess energies such as Durga, Kali and Tara.  We made good use of my wonderful new Monochord Sound Chair which arrived in February.   I’m planning on rolling out more of these evenings and the next one is being held on Thursday 7^th June.  Places again are limited, but I have a few spaces remaining.  If you are interested in joining us to use your voice and chant in a group, then please let me know. The evenings cost £8 and run for about two hours.    I am still running regular gong baths in East Herts and have some plans for further evening events which I’ll be rolling out later on in the year, so watch this space!

This weekend I’m blessed to be holding the Sound & Light Beltane Retreat at the very special Dev Aura, Lincolnshire with a fantastic group of people.  We’ll be doing lots of voice work, playing the gongs, drumming, ceremony, meditation, movement and enjoying some silence!  I always feel so lucky when I run events at the very special centres I hold my events at.  Last year when I arrived at Dev Aura, I ran around for about half an hour in raptures and full of gratitude to be able to hold the retreat at such a special place.

I’m no less excited to be holding a Reiki retreat at the Glastonbury Abbey retreat centre in July.  For those who’ve been following my blog, you’ll know how much I love Glastonbury, my spiritual home,  and despite the four hour journey, I try and visit there at least four or five times a year.  This year Sarah Baker has kindly agreed to lead the participants of our retreat on a Tor labyrinth walk.  Sarah and I did the Labyrinth walk back in February this year in preparation,  joined by the wonderful Lucy Baker and Sue Jones.   It’s really a magical and spiritual experience.  The labyrinth is on seven layers to which has been attributed much myth and legend.  One of the beliefs is that each layer corresponds to one of the seven chakras.  As we walked around the specific layer/chakra the environment spoke to us communicating what we needed to see in terms of our own life paths.    For energy centres I know I needed to do some work upon, I found the walk on that particular layer a little challenging, whereas for those centres which I knew were in balance, the walk was easy and no effort at all, as if I was walking completely in the flow!  Sarah has told me today that another belief is that each layer corresponds to the elemental realm, the bottom layer working with the earth elementals such as the gnomes and the dwarves, working with undines, salamanders, sylphs and to the celestial realms culminating in the Archangel at the top of the tor.  Whilst walking the labyrinth, we find ourselves at the Egg Stone, reputed to be the entrance on the Tor to the elemental realm.  We sat there for a while in February and the energy was extremely powerful.   We were also joined by a beautiful blue orb (blue orbs are said to be Archangel Michael energy!).

Besides the tor walk in July,  I have booked the Chalice Well gardens especially for our group so that we can have Reiju blessings and private meditation time, and there are lots of other wonderful things planned.  Just staying at Abbey House on the Michael leyline can be intensely healing in itself.  As I write I have four spaces remaining on this retreat, so if you would like to experience the magic of Glastonbury and immerse yourself in Reiki practises for a few days, then please consider joining us.

I’ve had lots of you enquire after June, my mother-in-law,  whose story I blogged about this time last year.  I’m pleased to say that June is doing well, in fact she is still enjoying an active life both inside and outside of the home.  June was given weeks to live in January 2011 following a cancer diagnosis and was dying.  Her doctors said nothing could be done for her allopathically and for her to put her affairs in order, but she has been following a natural health regime with lots of Reiki and body work over the past 16 months and is proof that the work we do actually DOES work!

So it only remains for me to wish you all a wonderful Beltane and May Day, may the Spring and Summer bring your ideas and inspirations into manifestation.  Sending love xx

Forthcoming Events and Classes

Regular Gong/Sound Bath evenings – please enquire to be put on the mailing list

Evening of Chant/Mantra & Kirtan – June 7th – Open to all, please contact me to reseve a place

Karuna Reiki –  23rd-25th June, 3rd-5th August

Reiki Drum Practitioner –  21/22 July, 8th/9th September

Reiki One (Shoden) – 2/3 June, 1/2 September, 3/4 November

Reiki Two (Okuden) 14/15 July, 24/25 November

Reiki Master Teacher 18-20 May, 9-11 November

Sound & Light Retreat 27th-29th April

Glastonbury Reiki Retreat 5th-8th July

Reiki Drum Residential & Samhain Retreat – 26th-29th October

I have asked Sarah to provide me with some information to share with you as per the following and for those of you who are coming along to March’s Reiki Drum Share, she will have some designs to show you along with order forms should you wish to place an order.  Should you want to order one before March so you can show off your exquisite bags at the Share and carry your prized possessions in style then please contact Sarah at the number and email address below.

Drum Bags designed by Sarah Baker – All reiki’d up

Hand made bags designed to hold frame drums, made to measure for your drum.

The bags come with bespoke appliqué designs to each side. Inspiration for each of the designs comes from people’s interests, power animals, nature, symbols, signs and other sources. Each design starts off as a hand drawn picture designed to fit the size of bag required. The picture is then “line drawn” and cut into jigsaw type pieces, for the appliqué pattern. Materials are chosen for each individual piece of the jigsaw, which is then cut and stitched to complete the picture, often formed in multiple layers. Whatever your inspiration is, it can be turned into a beautiful adornment for an individual bag. Other options for designs can include a fabric printed photograph quilted in a single layer, perhaps a photo of a special place or beautiful visitor to your garden?

Every bag is unique with no two designs ever the same, as the process of building the picture is completely free-hand and “organic”.

The appliqué designed panels are then quilted and made into the front or back panel of a drum bag. The sides of the bags are also quilted to provide some protection for your drum while travelling. Handles can be made from the same material as the bag or from webbing straps. They can be designed as a shoulder bag, hand carry bag or even a back pack to suit your needs.

Bag designs can be altered to cater for personal use or to carry other instruments – singing bowls and shakers etc.

Prices vary depending on design requirements and materials used. Prices for a bag for a 16” frame drum start at £60 for a bag with a single appliqué design.

Contact Sarah Baker on allreikidup@gmail.com or call 07740 701102 to discuss your requirements and pricing.

Reiki Drum has some wonderful things planned to commemorate this year.  Our Reiki Drum Share is coming up in March and is going to be very well attended by many Reiki practitioners from all around the UK.  At the end of April we will be celebrating at beautiful Dev Aura at the Sound & Light Retreat.  In July, Glastonbury beckons and a heart opening Reiki retreat is planned.  I have also recently finalised details for the annual Reiki Drum Residential being held at Dunwich on the Suffolk Coast in October.  Last year’s weekend was enjoyed by everyone who attended, so much so that I have extended the retreat by an extra day this year.  The long weekend retreat is planned for 26^th-29^th October and not only will students study the core syllabus of the Reiki Drum Practitioner training; it will also give us the opportunity to celebrate Samhain, the Celtic New Year in a very conducive environment.  The retreat gives us the opportunity to go so much deeper into the Reiki Drum teachings and if you’ve been considering learning Reiki Drum, this truly is a fabulous weekend to do so. Further details of all the retreats can be found in the Retreats section of the website.

All of these wonderful events are taking up a lot of my time in organisation, but before I sign out for a little while I wanted to share the Reiki technique Genetsu Ho, a technique which possibly may come in handy for some of you at this time of year when people succumb to illness and flu.  Genetsu Ho is a remarkably effective technique both my family and some of my students have used to reduce a high fever.  Several years ago my husband had a fever and high temperature which left him almost delirious.  The weekend prior to this event I had been discussing Genetsu Ho with a group of Okuden students, and had mentioned I did not know how effective it was because I hadn’t had the opportunity to practise it… be careful what you wish for… anyway, the Universe gave me that opportunity literally a few days later.   The following technique brought his temperature down to normal straight away.  One of my recent Okuden students had the same results with a member of her family.  She documented her findings for one of her case studies and measured her daughter’s  temperature both before and after Genetsu Ho.  Before she started the treatment the thermometer registered 37.9 C, and straight after the treatment, it measured 36.9 C!  It’s always nice to have some sort of proof these things we do work!

Genetsu Ho

• Apply Reiki to the following hand positions for a total of around 30 minutes – forehead, temples, back of head, neck/throat, crown of head.  You can do longer if your intuition tells you to, remember Reiki should always be an intuitive process.
• When you feel enough Reiki has been applied to the head and neck area, then apply Reiki to the stomach and intestines for around 15 minutes.
• We know that Reiki should always be applied for the highest good of the recipient, but I tend to set my intention that Reiki will in this instance also help with reducing the high fever.

I hope that you won’t have the near opportunity to use this technique, but if you do, then I’d love to hear if you have any profound healing results.

Forthcoming Events and Classes

Reiki Share to celebrate Imbolc (Students only)

Karuna Reiki – 10th-12th February, 3rd-5th August

Reiki Drum Practitioner – 3/4 March, 5/6 May, 21/22 July

Reiki One (Shoden) – 10/11 March, 2/3 June

Reiki Drum Share – 25th March

Reiki Two (Okuden) 31 March/1 April, 28/29 July

Reiki Master Teacher 18-20 May

Sound & Light Retreat 27th-29th April

Glastonbury Reiki Retreat 5th-8th July

Reiki Drum Residential & Samhain Retreat – 26th-29th October

A few weeks ago I had my aura photo taken, a very healthy shade of green (apparently a must for a healing practitioner) and we conducted a little experiment.  I placed my right hand on my Antahkarana and my left hand on the sensors for the aura machine.  The machine has a programme which shows the condition of one’s chakras at any given time.  I know from the healing work I do that my heart chakra tends to be very open 99.9% of the time.  It was interesting to watch all of my other energy centres enlarge as I held my hand on the Antahkarana, but the heart chakra diminished just slightly, bringing me perhaps back to a normal heart chakra condition.  Many healing practitioners and therapists have their heart centres wide open which can often leave them prone to giving too much in their wish to help others with little time spent for themselves. The Antahkarana was bringing me back to a more balanced place. Despite this, I mentally started repeating the words “I am love” and it was amazing to watch the centre open really wide again.  This is perhaps worth noting when life throws things at us which could potentially close our hearts (anger, distrust, despair).

During this time of year, the festive season is very much a season of the heart.  Our hearts allow us to be generous to others, to be kind, to experience the joy of celebration and the joy of giving and receiving.  Our hearts allow us to bask in the love of our friends and families, as well as allowing us to be compassionate to those less fortunate.    Often people find themselves with family members who challenge them at this time of year, and the energy of the heart also provides tolerance and allows us to forgive those who may have hurt us in the past.

For those of you who have not come across the Antahkarana before, it’s a non-traditional Reiki and Universal Symbol used by Western Reiki Master Teachers and by many different cultures and spiritual disciplines for healing and connecting to one’s Higher Self.  It is said that by simply having the symbol in your presence, it will have a positive effect on the chakras and the aura, as was demonstrated during my aura reading.  I teach this particular symbol on my Usui Reiki Master Teacher course should you be interested in working with this powerful symbol further.  The picture on the left is of one of the Antahkaranas we produce.  Should you wish to purchase a bespoke sculpure of the Antahkarana, please contact us for individual pricing.

I personally tend to always celebrate the Winter Solstice and Yule every year as my major festival and not so much the Christmas experience, shying away from commercialism and over indulgence.  I find this season for me is a time of deep meditation, reflection and insight which allows me to review the experiences of the past year and have vision for the forthcoming one.  Following a lovely weekend at the Open Your Heart retreat which set the tone for my period of reflection, I have started on a two week juice and water fast before the long awaited 2012 dawns.

Next year I’m going to be running several exciting retreats and events  which will for myself and the participants be heart opening events!  We will start off with the Reiki Drum Share in March which is looking like it’s going to be a fabulous day, with lots of people already coming from all around the UK.  We are planning on having the aura photography unit there for people to see their own energy fields.  The Sound & Light Retreat in April will be a joyous occasion, celebrating Beltane and is a wonderful introductory weekend to sound healing and finding your voice in the high vibrational centre, Dev Aura.  In July we are holding the very special Reiki retreat at Glastonbury Abbey Retreat House (Glastonbury being the Heart chakra of our planet), very apt for the heart opening energy of 2012.  I’ve also recently finalised the details of next year’s Reiki Drum Practitioner & Samhain Residential which due to the success of this year’s retreat is going to be extended an extra day so we can enjoy even more drumming.  I would definitely encourage people who are interested in learning the technique to attend that retreat if possible. It’s a marvellous opportunity to learn the Reiki Drum teachings over four days with lots of added extras at the auspicious turn of the Celtic New Year.   Currently all of these events have spaces remaining should you be interested in joining us and details can be found on the Retreats page.

I’m now running twice monthly gong/sound healing evenings in Sawbridgeworth,  East Herts on or around the new and full moons.  The evenings are limited to six people maximum.  We start with meditation and breathing exercises followed by the gong/sound bath which lasts an hour and is followed by light refreshments and time for people to share their experiences or just get to know each other.  Synchronistically people who are meant to be together on these evenings are guided by the Universe to attend, and they are very healing and enlightening.  Cost is £16.  If you would like to be added to the mailing list for this particular event, then please email me at info@reikidrum.co.uk I was fortunate to find a Neptune Gong on the second hand market recently to add to my growing collection.  Neptune is the gong of the Mystic and brings in the energy of the mystical, dreams, art, poetry, music, spiritual devotion, psychic abilities and ESP, compassionate, sacrificial, psychic and cosmic awareness. Whenever a new gong comes into my life, the energy of that gong also arrives and I’m loving this new energy very much, it seems to fit nicely at this period in time.

So all that remains is for me to wish you all Solstice blessings, a joyous Yule and a Happy Christmas.  Let us open our hearts and embrace whatever our earth journeys have in store for us during 2012.

Forthcoming Classes and Events

Gong/Sound Evening – January 9^th (Full), January 23^rd (Full), February 6^th (Full), February 23^rd, March 8th

Reiki One (Shoden) – January 28^th& 29^th

Reiki Two (Okuden) – February 14^th & 15^th

Reiki Drum – January 21^st and 22^nd, March 3^rd & 4^th

Reiki Master Teacher – 18^th -20^th May

Karuna Reiki – 10^th & 12^th February

Reiki Drum Share – 25^th March, Sheering, Essex

Sound & Light Retreat – 27^th-29^th April, Lincolnshire

Reiki Retreat – 5^th-8^th July, Glastonbury

Reiki Drum & Samhain Residential – 26^th-29^th October, Suffolk