Energy Exercises

Many of the meditations taught in traditional Japanese Reiki took the form of energy exercises. They focused on channeling through the use of a mixture of visualisations and mantras.

Reiki courses following the Japanese tradition place great emphasis on these exercises and encourage students to create their own daily space to practice a regular routine.

The first of these exercises to be taught is generally Hatsurei Ho. This cleanses the student’s aura, connects them to the Reiki energy, and opens up and balances the channels for the energy to flow correctly. By practicing it on a daily basis the student gradually increases the strength of their connection to the energy.

Next in order of importance are daily self-healing meditations. These can take a number of different forms depending on the student’s individual stage of development.

Once the students reach 2nd degree they are encouraged to meditate on the Reiki Symbols either using visualisations or the kotadamas (mantras) associated with them.

There are many other energy exercises which students are encouraged to practice including alternative self-healing exercises such as Makoto No Kokyu.

Different Traditions

Studying for the masters level of Reiki is helping me to better understand the differences between traditional Japanese Reiki and Western Reiki.

One of the biggest difference I see between them is that of focus. Where traditional Reiki focuses on the practitioner and experiencing the energy, Western Reiki Focuses primarily on the client using predefined procedures for channelling the energy. This creates a number of fundamental differences which can be very confusing.

Over the next few posts I will be covering the following different approaches in an attempt to make things clearer.

Empowerments
Attunements
Meditations
Energy exercises and Reiju
Precise Hand positions and timings
Experiencing symbol energies
Ritual use of symbols

Although there are so many different approaches to Reiki, amazingly all of them work, making it a matter of personal preference which tradition you train under.

Why All the Hard Work?

Reiki for me is as much about self-development as it is about healing others. I have always believed that you need to heal yourself before you can help others effectively. This is echoed very strongly by the Japanese Reiki training programme which originally focused almost exclusively on self healing.

I have been practising energy exercises and meditations virtually every day since the completion of my Reiki l course. During this time a number of changes have been taking place. I have become much calmer and more able to cope with difficult situations. The flow of Reiki energy during my treatment of others has got much stronger and more consistent.

Would this have happened without the exercises and meditations? Definitely not. I have been experiencing and experimenting with different kinds of energy on and off for the last thirty years. I learned a lot about the energies, but it never had any lasting effect on me or my life.

Is it worth the effort? For me the answer is a resounding, Yes!

A way of Life!

Studying Reiki in the lineage I have chosen is not just a case of reading a book or learning symbols and hand positions, it is about making it into a way of life! My teacher, Irene, doesn’t just show us how to do things then leave us to get on with it, she offers us ongoing encouragement and support as we continue to develop ourselves and our practice.

One of the first things we learned about was Reiki energy, what it is, how to experience it, and how to channel it. The energy is also known by other names – chi, prana, ki – but it is more easily understood in the west when it is referred to as ‘Life Energy’ or ‘Universal Energy’. It is that magical substance which animates all living things.

Since I began my Reiki studies I have learned the importance of making time in my life for daily meditations and energy exercises. Each successive course has necessitated changes to my routines as I have learned to deepen my connection to the Reiki energy firstly through the use of symbols and subsequently through additional symbols and sounds.

It may sound like a lot of hard work, but the benefits are enormous.

Change of Voice

When I started out with this blog at the end of August I wasn’t really sure where I was ultimately going with it, I just knew I wanted to impart some fundamental information so that anyone visiting the site could gain a basic understanding of Reiki.

Since I wrote the last post about Study, I have been accepted to study Level lll – Shinpiden. I thought it might be interesting to document my progress.

The course of study I am following comes complete with a 200+ page manual which I have to read and study before I attend the ‘in person’ part of the training. I have symbols and sacred sounds to learn, energy exercises to practise, and meditations to incorporate into my daily routine. I have Western attunement procedures to learn as well as Eastern empowerment practices to master. It’s going to be a very busy month!

Reiki in Japan

Most of Mikao Usui’s students started out as his patients. As part of the treatment he would give them empowerments so that they were permanently connected to the energy source and could treat themselves until their next appointment with him.

His first manual contained the Precepts, Meditations and Waka poetry. His teachings were given one to one and were varied to each student’s need. The teachings comprised three levels: Life teachings, Mystery teachings, and Deep mystery teachings and focused on meditation, chanting sacred sounds and self-treatment.

In 1923 Usui was approached by the Japanese military and asked to teach them a simple hands-on healing system to supplement their shortage of medically trained officers. This changed the focus of his system from healing self to healing others. Usui together with one of his advanced students, Eguchi, devised the symbols we use today as a quick way for the officers to learn to use the energies, allowing them to achieve in a short space of time what had taken his former students months of meditation and chanting.