What is Reiki?
Reiki (pronounced Rey-key) means Universal Life Force Energy. Rei meaning “universal, all knowing, inner self or higher power” and Ki meaning “life force.”
Ki is the energy that runs through every living thing at all times. In Chinese it is known as Chi. One could call it a spiritual energy system, but not a religion. Reiki utilizes symbols to activate this Universal Life Force Energy and to help it to flow through your hands and body as a healing modality.
Who is Interested?
Reiki has a way of reaching out to those who are ready for it. Many Reiki Masters I have known told me they felt that Reiki found them, not that they found Reiki. It can come to us as a result of spiritual awareness, or asking to be shown your next steps for being of service to the greater good. Or the want to be a healer for yourself and others.
We can utilize Reiki as a way to create more beauty, joy, harmony and peace in our own lives. In current times it is not always as much about healing others as it is about raising your own vibration and holding a steady clear light. By doing this you will become a healing presence for yourself and others. As you raise your vibration, you contribute to the light and peace on the planet.
A Brief History
Reiki was translated and brought through in a form available to us as the Reiki symbols in the early 1900’s by a Japanese man named Mikao Usui. He was on a mission to discover the healing power that was used by Jesus Christ and other great healers. As he was meditating he discovered this healing modality and called it Reiki.
After Usui awakened to the healing light of Reiki, he was able to help heal people. He traveled throughout Japan and China healing and teaching. Usui taught approximately sixteen teachers or Reiki Masters. One of the men was a retired military man, Dr. Chujiro Hayashi. He then taught a woman named Mrs. Hawaya Takata. She became a powerful healer and teacher initiating many Reiki Masters in Hawaii.
Unfortunately, in 1970 Mrs. Takata would charge $10,000 for a Reiki Masters initiation, a price that was common into the 1980’s. The cost prevented many from learning Reiki, creating a lot of secrecy around the topic. Yet today, it is because of Mrs. Takata, an organization called Alliance Reiki and others that there are now thousands of Reiki Masters throughout the world.
In 1995 a Reiki expansion occurred with Diane Stein’s book Essential Reiki. In the book she shared the symbols and the secrecy around Reiki. Many Reiki Masters were upset, but she felt the information was needed in order to awaken healers to do their work.
Shortly after this many Reiki Masters published the symbols on the internet, along with all the Reiki teachings. Learning Reiki through distance healing became popular and people were able to receive the teaching and initiations at a more reasonable cost.
Remote learning opened up Reiki to a new audience, helping it to become a healing tool for people throughout the world. And it continues to grow and evolve – there are now many different types of Reiki available, all based on the teachings of Mikao Usui.
Reiki is similar to religions in that it provides principles to follow, however it doesn’t make a claim to being a religion or the only way to reach enlightened states of consciousness. The reiki symbols are simply tools to use whatever your beliefs, are available to all.
Attunement
The attunement distinguishes Reiki from other healing modalities. In the attunement the Reiki Master gives the symbols to the student and anchors them into the student’s subtle energy field. Attunements assist in the opening the central meridian channel, i.e, the energetic column inside your body that runs in front of and behind your spinal column from head to perineal. It is a passageway for the energy field.
The attunement instantly creates a pathway for the Reiki energy and the symbols so that they can enter the crown chakra (located at the top of the head), and flow through the spinal column (chakra channel), exit through the hands and down through the feet. It is a ceremonial process.
Attunements strengthen one’s connection to the Reiki energy and are necessary to receive the advanced levels of Reiki, or to become a Certified Reiki Master. The attuning concept is effective as we humans are meant to assist each other, to know giving and receiving, to produce and open energy with each other in a way we cannot on our own.
Reiki Levels
There are three Reiki levels – physical, mental/emotional and spiritual.
Level 1: in the first degree class, the student receives an attunement that starts to open the central meridian, allowing the energy to start flowing through the body and the hands. This assists a Reiki recipient on the physical level.
Level 2: the second degree, the student is taught how to activate the first three Reiki symbols. These symbols assist a Reiki recipient on the mental emotional level.
Level 3: or Reiki Mastery, the Master Symbols are given and the student is then able to give Reiki attunements and initiate others to become Reiki Practitioners. These symbols assist a Reiki recipient on the spiritual level.
Learning & Using Reiki
There are now many ways of teaching Reiki, either through home study, a live class, or in a weeklong immersion class. All methods work and all are useful ways of learning. It is best to follow what feels like the right fit for you.
Reiki can be used in person, remotely, on others and on yourself. It is a great tool in your healing toolbox if it feels like a fit.
~ Ginger
Photo image: Image by Peter Lomas from Pixabay