What is Reiki
Reiki is a spiritual healing art with its roots in Japanese origin. The word Reiki comes from the Japanese word (Rei) which means “Universal Life” and (Ki) which means “Energy”. Reiki is not affiliated with any particular religion or religious practice. It is not massage nor is it based on belief or suggestion. It is a subtle and effective form of energywork using spiritually guided life force energy.
Reiki is the life energy that flows through all living things. Reiki Practitioners understand that everyone has the ability to connect with their own healing energy and use it to strengthen energy in themselves and help others. It is believed that a person’s “ki” or energy should be strong and free flowing. When this is true a person’s body and mind is in a positive state of health. When the energy becomes weak or blocked it could lead to symptoms of physical or emotional imbalance.
A Reiki session can help ease tension and stress and can help support the body to facilitate an environment for healing on all levels – physical, mental, and emotional. A session is pleasant and relaxing and is often utilized for one’s personal wellness.
Reiki, the ancient Tibetan healing art of spiritually guided universal life force energy feels like a wonderful flow of love radiating throughout your body as it clears and balances energy pathways, moving you to a new level of awareness and service.
There is a life force which flows through your physical body through pathways called chakras, meridians and nadis. It is also all around us in an energy field called the aura. It is at the causal level of disease and physical imbalances. It is highly responsive to your thoughts and feelings. It is disrupted when you succumb to negative thoughts, feelings, responses or reactions.
Reiki heals by flowing through the affected parts of the energy field and charging them with positive energy. It raises the vibratory level of the energy field in and around the physical body where the negative thoughts and feelings are attached. This causes the negative energy to break apart and fall away. In so doing, Reiki clears, straightens and heals the energy pathways, thus allowing the life force to flow in a healthy and natural way. This may alleviate the symptoms of disease or disharmony by addressing root cause, revitalizing the chakras and enhancing the flow of life force, “Ki”. This impacts the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual bodies through releasing the blocks to your manifesting the energy of the loving and powerful essence which you are.
The Reiki student learns a natural way of healing which balances energy, re-establishing spiritual equilibrium and mental and physical well-being.
Unimpeded Divine Order
Reiki does not adhere to any particular faith or religion but complements and enhances your path, whatever that may be, because it gives you a direct experience of your Higher Power. Reiki feels magical, spiritual, even mystical, but it is simply unimpeded Divine Order.
History of Reiki
Reiki is believed to have been associated with Mikao Usui who is credited with rediscovering the root system now called Reiki. His tradition and methods were passed through several grandmasters of Reiki. Today, Reiki takes many forms, however, The Usui System of Natural Healing is still the form most widely practiced. Practitioners and Master Teachers are trained through an initiation process where Masters pass on their knowledge and expertise to their students.
Dr. Mikau Usui was a Japanese gentleman of the late 1800’s. He was a devout Buddhist who, for many years, pursued a quest to discover, as both Buddha and Jesus had promised, how we could learn to heal.
As the quest continued, A Buddhist priest in Kyoto gave him access to their archives in which were stored Tibetan Sutras, sacred ancient texts. And there the beginning of the answer began to unfold. This led him to make a pilgrimage to Mount Kuriyama, a Japanese holy mountain. After fasting and meditating for 21 days, his third eye chakra was struck by a powerful overwhelming light. Out of this light came bubbles of light energy in white, blue, purple and gold which contained symbols of the Reiki Ray. And the light had a consciousness; he heard a voice which said to him, “these are the keys to healing; learn them; do not forget them; do not allow them to be lost.” He was then initiated into the path of Reiki.
It soon became apparent that Dr. Usui now had the power to heal; now he needed to learn how to use it. He traveled to the beggars’ quarters in Kyoto to begin healing the sick there. He healed they young and the old, the sick and infirm. However, after about a year, the beggars began to return, once again ill. Out of Dr. Usui’s meditations on this challenge, the precepts and principles of Reiki were born.
Reiki cannot be learned through books or traditional educational techniques. It must be passed on through an attunement and learning process by an ascended Reiki Master Teacher.
Dr. Usui passed it on to Dr. Hayashi who opened the first Reiki clinic in Tokyo in the early 1900’s.
Mrs. Hawayo Takata brought Reiki to the United States just before WW2. She lived in Hawaii on a sugar cane plantation and became very ill with a tumor, gallstones and a stomach ulcer. Immediate surgery was recommended. At this time in her life, circumstances brought her back to Japan, where the diagnosis and prognosis were confirmed.
She chose not to have the recommended surgeries and was put into contact with Dr. Hayashi who healed her completely through intensive Reiki treatments over a period of months. Ultimately, Mrs. Takata was initiated as a Master and brought this elegant healing art form back to Hawaii.
Through a series of events related to WW2, she eventually became the main teaching Reiki Master of this traditional lineage.
Precepts and Principles of Reiki
There are five principles of Reiki:
1) Just for today, do not anger.
2) Just for today, do not worry.
3) Honor your parents, teachers and elders.
4) Earn your living honestly.
5) Show gratitude to every living thing.
There are two simple precepts:
1) Never do healing work without the permission of the recipient. The free will of all human beings is sacred.
2) There must always be an exchange of energy to insure each person’s active involvement in their own healing process.