In Search of the Healing Energy

That's the title of a book by Mary Coddington (1978).

I am always in search of the interrelatedness, the connections between ideas across time, across disciplines, across cultures. I am always in search.

As a person who believes in the eternity of spirit and the fallacies of time as a purely linear construct, I was certain that Reiki was neither new nor a gift only available due to some chance occurrence of Usui's search. If it existed now, if it existed when Usui realigned with it, it existed before and will exist long into the future. Energy is eternal. Healing, the very nature of our universe. What other cultures harnessed this force for better health?

Exactly which string of queries lead me to Coddington's book, I can't recall. I'm just grateful I stumbled upon it. If there were ever a list of books that every healer should own, just as a reference, not as absolute truth, this has to be on such a list.

Coddington offers researched insights on the energy that is at the heart of energy healing. she has put forth a great effort in demonstrating the commonality in energy healing across cultures and time. I found it enlightening. That's not to say that the book is perfect, or that her conclusions should be taken without question or discussion, but they are so delicious to chew on.

In Search of the Healing Energy is what made the connections between energy healing systems real for me. Here are a few examples from work with their corresponding page numbers:
Chi (Chinese)
Ki (Japanese)
Orenda (Native American)
Mana (Kahuna, Polynesians, dating to 10,000BC--page 30)
Prana (Sanskrit)
Pneuma (Pythagoras of Pythagorean Theorem fame--page 45)
Vis medicatrix naturae (Hippocrates--as in MD's Hippocratic Oath--page 48)
Elan Vitale (Bergson)
archaeus (Paracelsus--page 55)
vital force (Hahnemann, founder of homeopathy)

If you are looking for a comprehensive, cross-cultural look into the energy that heals, I highly recommend this book. If anyone can recommend other books that show the interconnectedness of all our strategies, our modalities, of supporting the unobstructed and balanced flow of chi through our bodies, please share with us.

Masterrabin