Attention vs. Intention
By Brian Dean

I again ran into a saying that energy workers use a lot about the focus of energy. It says...

Energy Flows Where Attention Goes

 And as a statement, this is very true. Where we focus our attention is where we send energy. It is why you notice someone staring at you, or why they notice you staring at them. And it does not have to be staring. It can be looking, or glancing. We unintentionally send energy wherever we focus our intention.

 When we notice something, or something catches out attention, we focus on it even if it is just for a moment. Energy is sent to that place, and others can notice because their energies are drawn to it as well. But what happens when you are an energy worker?

 Working with energy takes attention and focus. It also takes visualization, creating the images you want in your mind for what you want to happen knowing that energy will take the form of whatever you are creating. For instance, if I start with my hands together, and then separate them visualizing a ball between my hands, I will create that ball in energy form. And others will be able to feel it.

 When doing energy work, one focusses their attention to where they want the energy to go, and this is true if they are doing work with crystals, magnetic healing, using a healing wand, or most other types of energy work. But this is not always the case.

 Some types of energy, one could say, have a mind of their own. Reiki is one of them. We are taught that Reiki energy goes where it is needed most no matter where it is put into the body. And although we have a specific set of hand positions, we could do the entire session with hands on our subject's shoulders, or feet. And while doing Reiki, we have to focus on being open and clear to let the energy through, but once we have reached that state, we need to just let it go. And that sounds totally strange and different than anything we have ever been taught.

 When we play baseball, we are told to focus on the ball. We watch it so as to hit it with the bat, or catch it in a glove. But with this type of energy work, it is almost like telling someone to just throw the ball and trust that it will go where they intend it. This is even more true when doing trance healing or mediumship healing. In fact, the more one lets go, the more energy is available and the stronger the flow is.

 This is a very different concept. It teaches that relaxing and being more passive makes one's energy stronger. In this instance, the energy is being driven by one's intent, intent to help, intent to heal, intent to supply the energies needed. This is relaxing, letting go, and being stronger. It is like saying, "Let go, and use the Force."

 There is an exercise I show that demonstrates just that. I hold my arm in a certain position, place someone else's hands on it and ask them to bend it. Even when I use all my muscles to resist, they usually can bend it. Then I relax and change slightly. I set my energies, focusing them at a certain point, and then I let go. When the person goes to bend my arm again, they can not. I am using less strength, exerting less muscle, and my attention is elsewhere, yet I am many times stronger. (Don't try this at home without proper instruction.)

 Basically, it is my intention to be stronger by letting the energies do the work. Because of my intent, they do what they can to follow that wish. This is how I am with energy work. I do not need to be totally focused on what is happening, rather just setting it up and pushing it to the back of my mind. I know if something changes, but I am not centering my full attention on it.

 Say you want hot water out of the tap. You turn it on and move the lever to hot. Then while the water is running, you poke around in the fridge. You know the water is running, but you are not standing over it and giving it your full attention demanding that it get hot. Instead, you are doing other things, but are still aware of what is happening at the sink. At some point, you notice that the tone or pitch has changed and that the water is now hot. That is how I do energy work.

 So while energy flows where attention goes, I would prefer to be relaxed and clear, but with my attention not controlling the situation. I set up and clear the pathway, then let it run by itself trusting that the energies I have invited in will come and do what is necessary. I simply let them pass through me and do what they need to do on whatever level they need to do it. Basically, I am saying...

 Energy Flows Where INTENTION Goes