I’m Kandi Leigh, a newly minted Reiki Master Teacher answering the call through the Holistic Institute of Wellness.
In 2017, I was ready to reconnect to the healing energy. I didn’t realize that’s what I was doing. I thought I was getting help to understand and heal my relationship issues. The life I had been building for the past 12 years was unraveling and I was quickly walking through a spiritual awakening. I knew I needed help staying balanced and grounded, so when Carolyn A. Jones, HIW co-founder and my RMT practitioner, suggested I get a re-attunement, I listened.
I have to confess that I didn’t understand what it meant to “get an attunement.” I thought Reiki was a certification. I kept wondering, “What’s an attunement?” This was my first sign that the journey I was about to embark on was more than a “Reiki class.”
I took Reiki I in February 2018. My re-introduction to working with the healing energy was an immediate bond. I still wasn’t really sure what “attunement” meant (instead of certification), but I knew I wanted to keep working with the energy and better understand my intuitive gifts that were rapidly expanding. I immediately signed up for Reiki II. At the completion of this class, I knew I wasn’t just receiving certifications. I understood that I was being connected to high vibrational energy that was allowing me to expand (attunements!). I was also receiving in-depth instruction to help me understand the energies I was channeling and how to consciously work with them.
By the end of 2018, I was newly divorced. I had spent the past 12 years living the identity of Kandi Hodges, and I was ready to shed her. I didn’t always know who I was becoming, but I was quickly identifying who I was releasing. I also recognized that Reiki wasn’t something I was just practicing. It felt more like my life’s calling.
So, I applied to the HIW Reiki Master program. I was aware there were easier pathways available, but for me, this wasn’t about quick certifications. It was about mastering the energies and, most importantly, mastering my energy.
HIW Mastership required daily self-practice as well as several in-person, distance and animal sessions. This pushed me to practice working in the energies of different people, begin finding my voice in Reiki, and start putting myself out there as a practitioner.
The biggest gift I received through my mastership was self-discovery. As I shed the layers of who I was not, I recognized that mastership was not my destination. It was the beginning of my journey to living more fully as Kandi Leigh, someone who wanted to exemplify Reiki as a way of life.
Soon after my mastership, COVID hit. This gave me a lot of time to practice distance Reiki, which I had identified as my “Reiki zone.” I grew connections online and found myself continually calling in clients who were awakening through relationship issues.
As I worked with the healing energy and found my calling more and more, I knew my journey with Reiki was not complete. I felt like I was being called to teach. This was quickly reinforced by clients who were asking if I could teach them to work with Reiki.
I was also shown that it was time to leave my corporate career and step fully into entrepreneurship. While I wasn’t sure if I would specifically teach Reiki, I knew I needed the Reiki Master Teacher journey to keep me grounded and keep me connected to my truth as I navigated a new pathway in life.
I loved the Reiki Master Teacher Intern process. (I am going to miss that big, long title!) Again, I knew there were easier pathways to get the RMT credentials. But, for me, this journey was about the process – honoring the truth of who I am and honoring the sacred practice of Reiki. As a teacher intern, I got to participate in Reiki I and Reiki II classes as well as a Master retreat. I was also required to continue practicing self-Reiki and complete in-person and distance sessions. I also got to lead community meetings on intuition and nutrition, which I am extremely grateful for. During the internship year, I found my gifts and confidence expanding, which I expected.
What I did not expect was the power of re-connection to the foundations of Reiki. Through mastership, my intuitive gifts started taking over the process. That’s allowed me to work with people’s energies in very beautiful ways. But, there is also beauty in remembering the foundations of Reiki and understanding how and why classes are taught the way they are. There is something very beautiful about going back to the beginning – like watching a movie and discovering new things you didn’t see before.
Before RMT Internship, I had a hard time vocalizing what Reiki is and how it works. I feel like I have now mastered that part. I also appreciated that my HIW teachers were able to see my strengths and weaknesses, allowing me to lead in areas I am passionate about and pushing me off the proverbial cliff at other times to help me grow my confidence.
As I began the internship, I couldn’t fully see why my soul was guiding me here. I just knew I needed to follow the calling. I still don’t fully see what is in store for me, but it feels powerful, even if it’s just honoring the growth within myself.
I do have a vision, in addition to getting to teach with HIW, of getting to attune the couples I work with to Reiki energy. I see a powerful opportunity for creating new foundations in the family unit, and I look forward to continuing to answer the call and seeing how that grows.
Written by: Kandi V. Leigh