Hi Copper,
This is one debate that never really ends depending on your vantage point :)
Personally I don't see what the problem is with asking for permission first. In most cases it is fairly straight forward to ask someone if they want Reiki before sending it. Why would we need to just send Reiki anyway.... I still think that it comes down to our ego and not wanting to be rejected or being on some kind of mission to heal the world, because we think we know what's best for everyone. What I mean is if someone rejects the Reiki that we offer, perhaps we feel that they are rejecting us in some way....just a thought. To use an example, how would we feel if highly religious people of some denomination or another tried to brainwash us into converting to their religion, because they felt that it was best for us and they knew best ? Isn't that kind of what we're doing by just sending healing without asking for permission...saying hey we know what's best for you? What happened to respect and freedom of choice here?
The problem is that not everyone wants to be healed and there are some situations where sending Reiki might just be harmful e.g to those with severe mental illness.
In my mind it is violating someone's energy space to send energy without someone's permission and prior knowledge. I don't buy the 'if their higher self doesn't want it, it won't take it' because I think it's a bit of a cop out and saves taking responsibility for our own conscious actions.
Anyhow, I'll get off my soap box now and burn it! :)
Gentle Blessings
Helen
