Amadeus along with his sibling Artemis landed on my doorstep on a cold winter night demanding that they be allowed to adopt me. Can’t say ‘No’ to a couple of starving kittens. And so our journey started.
Our shared journey included a rather expensive sofa being shred by kitty claws, a couple of vases broken because Amadeus wanted to find out what happened when you push things off a table, torn curtains because he loved climbing. I switched from Iron Maiden to Beethoven and Mozart, which all three of us loved (Iron Maiden made them miserable). After toying with Bertrand Russell, Apollo & Odin, we reached an agreement on how the name ‘Amadeus’ was a perfect fit for him.
Both Artemis and Amadeus had a lot to teach and in 2010 came a dark hour when we lost Artemis. Amadeus went into the depths of depression and refused to eat, drink or sleep. The vet had given up on his chances of survival. One day while glancing at the newspaper I came across an ad for someone who did Reiki for animals. I had vaguely heard about Reiki and was not quite sure what it was about – but I was desperate. So Amadeus and I decided to experience it.
Within 30 minutes of the first session, Amadeus visibly relaxed and went off to sleep. He slept like a baby for more than 12 hours. And when he woke up, he was quite back to his old Amadeus-self. I was hooked onto Reiki and found in his healer, my first Reiki teacher and mentor – Priya Rajagopalan. And this was how Amadeus initiated me into Reiki.
Time flew by. We still grieved Artemis but from a place of being slightly more centered than before. Amadeus relaxed into his life. He loved sitting out in the sun for hours without moving and conversed with the pigeons and the finches and the kites and other neighbouring animals that would come by.
He did not show a keen inclination towards more Reiki though. And when I tried to practice with him – he would get up and walk away leaving me quite heart-broken. Instead he loved sitting next to me and staring at the sky and doing nothing. Much later, I realized that it was his way of teaching me that Reiki does not need much doing but rather I was to practice Reiki as a state of being without getting carried away by techniques and reactions. In his own way, Amadeus showed me Stillness and taught me about the sacred healing space of Silence. He taught me the art of Animal Reiki.
More time flew by and that day came when Amadeus too had to leave. He was diagnosed with a form of cancer caused by the chemicals used in vaccines. It was a lesson on the growing opinions on over-vaccination and how vaccines can be fatal. Along with his diagnosis, came his next big teaching for me. Amadeus returned to Reiki and dragged me along to meet my next Reiki teacher – Rose De Dan, the founder of Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing. I had been dabbling in Shamanism for a while and here was someone who did both and was a cat-person on top of all that. Rose held the space for Amadeus throughout the illness. Instead of conventional painkillers, I took refuge in homeopathy.
The power of Wild Reiki and homeopathy helped Amadeus live his last months in relative comfort and ease, without much pain. Despite the growing tumour, he gleefully continued jumping onto kitchen counters and cupboards and anywhere else he could explore. He continued to sit in the sun and talk to his animal allies. The sessions also allowed him to convey when he was ready to make the transition. He left with his final teaching – a profound sacred experience of transition.
A few days after the transition, I was watching the blue skies on my way to work and I felt these words come to me as a parting message from Amadeus – Teacher & Guide:
"Beloved, why do you mourn this illusory loss?
Watch the blue skies and you will see me.
Listen to the silence and you will hear me.
Know the rainbow lights and you will know me.
As you always have so many times before."Amadeus
I hope you enjoyed reading this post. If you want me to help you with your animal companion, just book a discovery call.
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