Healing Circles: Good or Bad?
The Richness and the Hazards of Group Energy and Consciousness
Healing circles, prayer or meditation groups offer the chance to connect with others with similar spiritual beliefs - but there are risks and pitfalls of group energy.
There's really something to be said for the powerful healing that can happen in a group: when the energy is good, real synergy can emerge and powerful change can take place. Circles can also be one of the most hurtful kinds of energy work. Good boundaries, awareness, and trusting your instincts are paramount if you are considering working with a coven, energy medicine circle, or other healing group.
Why Do Energy Work With a Group?
The benefits of doing reiki, energy medicine, prayer or other energy work in a group are twofold:
1. The feeling of connection, community and shared consciousness that is created in a purposeful group is like nothing else. There is power and beauty in working prayer, meditation, or energy work with other people – but keep in mind that this is only true in a balanced, healthy group of like-minded people.
2. A synergistic group can raise more energy and affect change on a larger area – like a whole city - or on a greater scale, such as having a noticeable impact on a tumor, illness, or other health problem. Dowsers and meditation groups often find that their influence is expanded by working together. Likewise, those who practice reiki or energy medicine may have greater results when working as a team or as part of a healing circle.
The Hazards of an Imbalanced Group
The trouble is that not all energy groups or prayer circles are healthy or effective. The healing arts attract not only those who wish to heal themselves and others in the best way they can; many spiritual seekers strive for a balance they haven't yet achieved, and this can manifest in messy or harmful ways in groups.
People working out their own issues with power and control, or with traumatic experiences in their past, may try to latch on to members of a coven, healing circle, or prayer group and act out their own problems on others. This can distract others from the circle, or it may feel like an imposition, an annoyance, or a sense of threatening energy during rituals or prayer.
For this reason, there are some sensible precautions to take when choosing or working with any kind of healing circle.
Three Things to Look For When Choosing a Circle or Healing Group
1. Get a recommendation from another light worker, a teacher or a like-minded friend. If a particular coven, circle, or meditation group comes recommended by someone you trust, you stand a better chance of finding a safe space to learn, heal, and grow.
2. Larger groups, in general, mean messier power dynamics. Small, intimate circles are usually the most balanced. They also offer the greatest opportunity to get to know fellow members and create bonds of trust and caring that will strengthen any energetic or spiritual connection made as part of a ritual, prayer, or energy raising.
3. Trust your instincts! If you don't feel safe or comfortable in the group, chances are that you're not. Even if your concerns are all in your imagination, they can affect your experience and hinder your ability to open up. The experience has to feel right to you, or it won't be right. Don't let anyone convince you to do anything unless you're completely comfortable with it. Trust your gut, that little voice in your head, and your emotions: the heart of your spiritual life.
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