In Japanese

The spoken word is a very powerful tool, something which is recognised by many spiritual traditions including Christian, Hindu, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism. Every word we speak out loud has an impact on the universe just as every thought we think has an impact on our personal world. In recognition of this, spiritual traditions have taken ‘Sacred Sounds’, combined them and made them into Mantras which have great impact when spoken or chanted.

As part of it’s Buddhist heritage, Mikao Usui taught the five precepts and a series Kotodamas or Mantras, all of which required the student to chant them repetitively in order to obtain the benefits. The precept meditation was chanted daily, morning and evening, and was thought to be one of the most powerful tools in assisting the student on their spiritual journey. The Kotodamas or Mantras were chanted to assist the student to contact the various levels of Reiki Energy.

During the last two Reiki Shares I have attended, in an attempt to get closer to Mikao Usui’s original practices, we have been learning and chanting the five precepts in Japanese. I found this video on YouTube of Hyakuten Inamoto Sensei teaching the pronunciation of the Japanese words.

These are the words in Japanese:

  Kyo Dake Wa Just for today
  I Ka Ru Na Let Go of Anger
  Shin Pai Suna Let Go of Worry
  Kansha Shite Be Grateful
  Gyoo Hage Me Be Honest in Your Dealings with Others
  Hito Ni Shinsetsui Ni Be Compassionate to Yourself and Others

We found it a very powerful and moving experience. Try it for yourself.

eunice7

By on Thursday December 13th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki, Reiki Shares - No Replies - Leave a Reply

A New Journey!

Just over a week ago, at the end of over a month of home study, I attended a two day Masters Course of my lineage and gained my Masters/Teachers Certificate. It was an amazing weekend. My experience of the Reiki Energy is so much stronger now!

In a way it feels wrong to call myself a Reiki Master. Normally when you get to the end of a course of study you feel as though you have completed something. I’ve come a very long way since I set out on my journey into the world of Reiki, and my life has changed in a multitude of ways, but instead of feeling that I have reached the end of a journey I feel as though I am just at the beginning of one.

The Masters course has made me aware of how little I know, and unlike many conventional courses, to gain more knowledge I must practice and experience things. I can’t just read a book about it. So the learning will be a slow process! As I wrote that, I was reminded that living in mindfulness does slow things down.

I would love for you to travel with me on my new journey while I attempt to share some of the insights I gain along the way.

eunice7

By on Tuesday December 4th, 2012 at 09:00 in Mindfulness, Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Symbol Uses

All traditions agree about the use of Reiki Symbols as a way for the practitioner to connect with the subtle variations of Reiki Energy.

Eastern traditions place a lot of emphasis on the importance of meditating on these energies, either as visualisations or as mantras, to the point where the practitioner feels himself or herself merging with the energy and becoming one with it. This enables the practitioner to make a much stronger connection with the energy when treating clients, but precludes the use of ‘symbol sandwiches’.

Western traditions teach a more formal approach, prescribing set hand positions and symbol combinations for different treatments.

In addition to their use in client treatments, symbols are also used by some practitioners for chakra balancing, space cleansing, protection, and positive affirmations.

eunice7

By on Tuesday November 27th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Symbol Energies

Reiki Symbols are used as a way to connect to the different subtle types of Reiki Energy.

One of the biggest difference of opinion between Eastern Reiki Masters and Western Reiki Masters centres around the question of whether or not students need to be attuned to Reiki Symbols for them to work. Eastern Reiki Masters say it is unnecessary, Western Reiki Masters say it is essential.

Speaking from personal experience, I have not received attunements to any Reiki Symbols – my lineage follows the Eastern tradition of Empowerments – yet I am able to meditate on, experience the energies of and use in treatments all the Reiki Symbols with no problems whatsoever.

Another difference concerns whether Symbols should be used alone or together. Eastern Reiki teaches that they should always be used individually; Western Reiki teaches its students to use them together and make ‘Symbol Sandwiches’.

Traditional Japanese Reiki did not have any symbols. The subtle energies were connected to using Kotodamas or Sacred Mantras. This would make it virtually impossible to mix the energies.

Again speaking from personal experience, I have tried changing symbols for different parts of the body while treating a client and compared it to using a single symbol throughout the treatment. Both my clients and I have experienced far more powerful healings using just one symbol throughout.

Differences aside – both methods work. Reiki energy follows intent. Providing the practitioner intends for the treatment to be for the highest good of the client – it will be! It is up to the student to decide which tradition they wish to follow.

eunice7

By on Thursday November 22nd, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Reiki Meditation

In the Japanese Reiki tradition, meditation was the central practice, considered essential if anyone wanted to progress on the path to spiritual enlightenment. This continual meditation, which comprised the daily practice of mindfulness and a wide range of energy exercises, by balancing and clearing the student’s energy system made it possible for them to carry out self-healing and treatments on others.

Mikao Usui’s students were taught to meditate daily on the five precepts and it was believed that this meditation alone had a greater effect on the students spiritual development than any of the other traditional practices.

When Reiki travelled to the west with Mrs Takata the emphasis changed from spiritual enlightenment and self-treatment to treating others. The use of Formal Hand Positions together with the Reiki Symbols more or less replaced the meditation practices of the original tradition as a means to connect with the Reiki energy.

Today in Western Reiki, although there is a move back towards teaching the original meditations, the main emphasis is on receiving attunements, practising self-healing and using formal hand positions together with the Reiki symbols to treat others.

eunice7

By on Thursday November 15th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Attunements

If you study Reiki with a Western trained Reiki Master you will go through a series of ‘attunements’ as part of your training programme. There are an enormous number of different variations within each tradition.

Attunements are the procedures which Western Reiki masters use to connect their students to Reiki Energy at Level 1, to three Reiki Symbols at Level 2, and to the Master Symbols and various other symbols at Level 3. Each level has a prescribed number of attunements attached to it depending on the tradition being taught.

Attunements are for life. Once you have received the attunements at a given level there is no need for them to ever be repeated. However some students like to have them repeated and there is no problem with this.

eunice7

By on Tuesday November 13th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Empowerments

If you study Reiki with an Eastern or Japanese trained Reiki Master you will experience a series of ’empowerments’ as part of your training programme. You will also be encouraged to receive empowerments as a regular and ongoing part of your daily life subsequent to your connection to the Reiki energy.

Empowerments, or Reiju Empowerments as they are correctly named, consist of Tendai Buddhist Blessings given to the students with the intention that they will receive whatever they need. There are many different variations of the details of the ritual which depend on the lineage and traditions of the Reiki Master performing the Reiju Empowerment. This is the tradition of the course I am following:

First degree focuses on connecting you to the Reiki energy
Second degree focuses on connecting you to the three Reiki symbols – Cho Ku Rei, Sei He Ki and Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen
Third degree (Masters) focuses on connecting you to the two Master symbols

Following the First degree course, students are advised to ‘tune in’ to weekly empowerments. This works on the same principle as distant healing. In addition, teachers are encouraged to hold ‘shares’ where students can get together to share experiences, practice on each other and receive empowerments from their teacher.

eunice7

By on Thursday November 8th, 2012 at 16:35 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

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.

eunice7

By on Tuesday October 30th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki - No Replies - Leave a Reply

Distant…

Distant treatments enable a practitioner to send Reiki energy to clients anywhere in the world without having to be physically present.

Practitioners will normally offer two levels of distant treatment: individual treatments where the practitioner focuses solely on sending Reiki energy to one client, and block treatments where the practitioner has a book or other way of collecting names of clients and focuses on sending Reiki energy to everyone in the book or list at the same time.

Distant treatments usually last for no more than ten to fifteen minutes. It is not essential for the client to be ‘tuned in’ while the practitioner sends the Reiki energy for it to be effective, it is purely a matter of preference between the practitioner and client.

By on Tuesday October 9th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki, Treatments - No Replies - Leave a Reply

In Person…

In person treatments generally take place in a room containing a massage style table. Many practitioners will close the curtains, burn candles and incense, and play soft music to create a soothing relaxed atmosphere for the client. This is not essential and in no way affects the effectiveness of the treatment.

Full Treatments usually last for about an hour, although the first time a client visits a practitioner may last a little longer as the practitioner will want to explain to the client what to expect and ask a few questions for their records.

The treatment itself will normally take place with the client laying on the table fully clothed. The main advantage to the client is one of comfort, as the treatment generally makes them feel very relaxed and they often fall asleep during the course of it.

There are many different styles of treatment, some practitioners will lay their hands actually on the clients body, while others will hover their hands just above the body, working in the auric field. Both forms of treatment are equally as effective. At no time will the practitioner touch the client in an inappropriate manner.

During the treatment the practitioner will channel the Reiki energy through their hands into the client. The client may feel heat flowing from the practitioners hands and be aware of the energy travelling through their body.

Reiki energy works with the body’s energy to balance and align. It takes the dis out of ease!

At the end of the treatment the practitioner will usually ask the client how they are feeling and what they remember of the experience during the treatment. Every persons experience of Reiki is individual, so that although there are many common responses, it is also quite possible for the clients experience to be unique.

By on Thursday October 4th, 2012 at 09:00 in Reiki, Treatments - No Replies - Leave a Reply