The Hidden Influence of Subtle Energy

The more you become familiar with energy, the more you realize what a significant role it plays in daily life. When I say familiar, I don’t mean intellectual familiarity, but rather familiarity based on repetitive, conscious experiences of energy.

There was a time when many people were deeply familiar with their body and mind. They could feel energy within and around them. With this sensitivity and devoted practice to understanding, experiencing, harnessing, and channeling energy came profound realizations.

Among these realizations, first and foremost, is that energy is all-pervasive. It exists in and around us and has always been present. Energy can also be transferred from one thing or person to another. With this transference, whether between people or things, energy always has an effect—sometimes positive, sometimes negative.

With this understanding, the wisest among us realized that guidelines must be established to protect one’s energy, knowing how easily it can be influenced by the environment (defined here as the people and things around us).

What are some real-world examples of energy exchange? Hugging is one. When you hug, you allow someone’s energy to enter you and vice versa. Hugging someone you know and trust is one thing, but hugging a stranger permits their energy to enter you without knowing who they truly are.

None of this matters if managing your energy isn’t a priority. An amateur violinist might casually toss their instrument onto the couch to answer the door, but a master treats their violin with far greater care, placing it in a well-crafted case, knowing that even the slightest external influence could affect the quality of the sound.

The mystic is no different from the master violinist. His goal is to protect the energy within his body as part of gaining mastery over it. One way of doing this, as I mentioned earlier, is by creating guidelines. Here’s an example: Growing up in a Hindu community, I became familiar with the ancient tradition of greeting by holding the palms together in front of the heart, a gesture commonly known in the West as “namaste.”

This simple practice prevents one’s energy from entangling with that of a stranger. The person being greeted is still met with reverence and kindness, but no physical energy is exchanged. Another form of greeting is the handshake, which allows two individuals to sense each other’s energy through touch, offering insight into the person they’re meeting—sometimes a beneficial thing. For me, someone’s energy speaks louder than their words. You can easily con your way through a conversation, but you can’t fake your energy.

The more you wish to experience the depths of yourself, the more you must understand energy—especially your own. It’s essential to protect your energy from external influences. This is why monks on an intense spiritual path isolate themselves in monasteries and avoid physical contact.

I’m not saying to avoid hugs, handshakes, or physical contact. My point is that your energy can be influenced by another person’s energy, with physical contact being one way this happens. If their energy is strong enough, it can shift your awareness to positive or negative areas of the mind, affecting how you act and react to your experiences. Their energy can linger within you for up to three days. 

For those who prioritize energy, the COVID fist bump is a wise choice. Hug your energy by wrapping your fingers around your palm, then fist bump gently the person you’re greeting.

Guarding the energy within you is no different from not allowing strangers into your home. If you wouldn’t let a stranger into your home, why would you allow a stranger’s energy into your body—or, more precisely, your energetic body?

The more you understand your energy, the more you can do with it. With greater understanding comes a greater need to care for it.