How do you learn Reiki?

The ability to 'do' Reiki is not something that is learned in the normal sense. Rather it is something that is activated or awakened within the individual through a process of Initiation (also referred to as an 'Attunement') by a Reiki Master. It is a relatively simple process, a bit like being given the keys to a door, or tuning in a radio that gives the ability to access & use Reiki. The learning begins after the attunement… it’s a bit like downloading a computer program; you can switch it on & use it…. But it takes a while to get used to & learn to use it fully!

The Reiki attunement is special… a sacred, spiritual initiation that connects with higher levels of consciousness & the unlimited Source of healing energy. It is a powerful spiritual experience enabling Reiki to be channelled by the initiate. There are no requirements for spiritual purification necessary in order for it to work or for a person to receive attunements. This includes the Reiki III attunement where one can go on to become a Reiki Master/Teacher. Thus the term ‘Master” in Reiki does not carry the same meaning as “Spiritual Master” or imply any level of enlightenment.

Anyone, regardless of the level of spiritual development can receive the ability to pass Reiki on to others. The level of spirituality may vary from person to person, but the quality of Reiki Energy remains the same. All Reiki Masters/Teachers may be equal in that they all have the ability to pass Reiki on to others. However the level of understanding & ability to teach varies greatly, depending on how a person has been taught & upon their own personally developed skills & experience.

This then is the unique value of Reiki; anyone can receive the ability and if they wish, progress to become a qualified teacher. This makes Reiki a healing technique of special importance for the period of development in which we presently find ourselves on earth. The collective consciousness of the planet is advancing so quickly that there is a greatly increased interest in spiritual healing.

In addition to the healing benefits to yourself & others, Reiki often helps to develop your psychic senses too.

SO… What is Reiki anyway??

Reiki is a system for healing & self- development created in Japan by Dr Mikao Usui in the early part of the 20th century. ‘Rei’ is often translated as ‘Universal’, referring to something sacred or spiritual. ‘Ki’ is often translated as ‘Life-force energy’ and implies spiritedness or feelings. So, the generally accepted definition of Reiki is “Universal Energy”. Although the emphasis is more often placed on the healing aspect of Reiki nowadays, it was also intended as a method for spiritual self-development.

'Universal energy'... from the universe, for everyone... regardless of religion or belief system... it works in harmony with your beliefs & with other treatments & medicines. How it works defies explanation, it just does. But because it is 'universal' it fits alongside so many ways of thinking, so that people blend their way of thinking with it & adapt it to suit them. Remember you too are an individual that can take or leave what you hear, to use, or discard, or file 'til later if relevant. We all learn & grow & change…

A Reiki Treatment is such a relaxing experience…. A client remains fully clothed & may sit or lie down as the practitioner lays their hands on or just above the clients body… all you need to do is relax & be open to the healing energy of Reiki. Reiki can also be “sent” over a distance too.

Some people may experience heat or cold, or become aware of tingling or pulsing sensations, some ‘see’ colour or light- at the very least you feel incredibly relaxed, which in itself provides the climate for healing- as the healing Reiki energy radiates from the therapist's hands. The energy immediately begins to effect positive change, and restore balance, throughout the recipient's whole being & continues to manifest for some time after the session ends.

Most descriptions include something like “Reiki is a gentle, yet profound, non-invasive therapy, which can facilitate stress-reduction and relaxation, support effective immune-system function, enhance the body's self-healing mechanisms, and replenish and nurture vitality. Rather than acting solely on a physical level, Reiki is holistic in its effect - eliciting a healing response across the entire spectrum of ones being - physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.”

‘A wave of loving, healing energy…. Gently lapping on the shore of your being… soothing the hurt and pain…. Connecting to universal healing energy, helping you to re-build and strengthen and heal…”

It is something that can not really be described… it must be experienced, and even then it is only a beginning.

The Violet Flame

The Violet Flame of transmutation.... transmutes negativity into positive.... connected with the Ascended Master St Germaine.

If you think about it energy can not be destroyed, but often we try to get rid of pain, illness, negativity, banish spirits etc etc. If we just get rid of it, take it away or deflect it, where does it go? What happens to it? It just carries on bouncing around the universe, moving on to someone else or waiting to come back for another attack. Plus there's the chance it merges with other similar energies, joins forces & becomes stronger.

Some people ask angels, guides, spirit, god to take it away... but they still have the task of dealing with it & they're pretty busy already! The idea of using the violet flame is to visualise negative energy, hurts, anger, etc being consumed by the flame & being converted into positive loving energy. At the end of the day it is good practice to review the days events & recall any negative thoughts or actions & imagine placing them within the flame to burn & be converted into loving, positive energy…. handy for bad habits & behaviour patterns too.

You could use any colour or fire in general, but the colour violet is associated with transformation, transmutation & higher energies.

I use this technique regularly- dealing with a particularly nasty toothache it dawned on me about not being able to destroy energy, the pain was energy & it needed converting etc. Dissolving it away wasn't strong enough & i found myself imagining it burning away & changing to loving energy rising from the flames on the smoke into the ethers. It was after that i kept 'hearing the term 'violet flame' in my mind & searched for more information.

I had a tooth abscess & was 200 miles from my dentist. I started working on it thinking bout removing the pain & the infection. Usually I can do this easily, but it beat my usual 'willing it away'/ignoring & decided to use Reiki rather than just myself-
Anyway, could get the pain to go, but came straight back. Clicked that pain, like anything else is a form of energy, so can't be destroyed & must be converted to something else. So worked on transforming to loving healing energy- that worked for longer periods, but still returned. Knew it may take a while to calm the infection but it was 2nd bout in a year & the last tooth got pulled. I realised there was more to it- i felt even if the dentist sorted this, it wasn't dealing with the cause, just the symptom.

I looked around in books/internet for clues on the energetic causes of tooth ache, but found nothing that felt applied. Another round of healing- this time with the intention of going to where it started- the root cause, that was it. I saw myself diving into the pain itself, swimming, swirling with it to go back to where it sprang from... I saw myself in a past life with my partner & father. It was quite an ugly scene, which i was able to follow & progress to see what happened. It explained a hell of a lot to do with the relationships we have had, & some "irrational" actions & thought patterns that cropped up frequently between the 3 of us that wern't there before Steve & I were together. It was quite a heavy session & I spent more time then & later pouring healing energy into that situation.

It is not something I have discussed with either of them for a variety of reasons, but certain things have eased... & so did the abscess.

The Reiki Precepts- The Gokai

While Reiki is spiritual in nature, it is not a religion. It has no dogma, and there is nothing you must believe in order to learn and use Reiki. In fact, Reiki is not dependent on belief at all and will work whether you believe in it or not. While Reiki is not a religion, it is still important to live and act in a way that promotes harmony with others & Dr Usui (who founded Reiki) recommended that one practice certain simple ethical ideals to promote peace and harmony, which are nearly universal across all cultures.

The ‘Gokai’ are a set of five principles that Sensei Usui considered to be at the heart of Reiki. I have seen/heard several variations, but it is the sense of the words that is important rather than the exact translation.
Here is a translation that is pretty close to the original…

The Gokai
"The secret method of inviting blessings,
the spiritual medicine of many illnesses
(Shôfuku no hihô, Manbyo no rei yaku)

Just for today (Kyo dake wa):
Don't get angry (Okoru na)
Don't worry (Shinpai su na)
Be grateful (Kansha shite)
Work hard (Gyo wo hage me)
Be kind to others (Hito ni shinsetsu ni)

Mornings and evenings sit in the gassho [prayer] position
and repeat these words out loud and in your heart
(Asa you gassho shite kokoro ni neji kuchi ni tonaeyo)
For the improvement of mind and body
(Shin shin kaizen)

Usui Spiritual Healing Method (Usui Reiki Ryoho)
The founder, Mikao Usui (Chossô, Usui Mikao)"

This is a page from a journal I made for a young girl after her first attunement. You can see more pages over at Spirit Whispers in the post entitled "A Reiki Journal"

These words are from earlier texts of the Meiji Emperor, and are not exclusive to Reiki- to me, they are principles for everyone to live by. Even if you don’t repeat them morning & evening, I think it is important to run the words through your mind often… preferably everyday.

The act of sitting silently in prayer or meditation daily, even for a short while can be so beneficial... calming, healing, inspiring, uplifting... I like to use the Gokai as a meditation. Make yourself comfortable and take long, slow, deep breaths.... as you breathe in say/think "Just for today..." as you breathe out say "I will not be angry..." continue through, breathe in...Just for today... breathe out... I will not worry... go through the whole thing.

Repeat a few times until really relaxed, then visualise energising white light pouring down & filling your body.... every, bone, muscle, vein... everywhere through you... feel it filling you with healing energy. Imagine it spreading out from your body into your aura.... into the room... if you want keep it going through the house, down the road... to the village, town, whole country... the world if you like.... spreading pure white healing light for the benefit of everyone it touches.

When you are ready, pull the light that is in your aura back into your body, take deep breaths until you feel 'back to normal' & give thanks.... that energy will stay with you.

Where did I Start?

I truly believe that everyone has the ability to heal… I think it’s something that we have ‘forgotten’. It’s there within our psyche, but for many it is laying there, dormant, unrecognised- just waiting for the conditions to be right in order to flourish.

Luckily, throughout time, there have always been people with that gift… a natural ability to help people heal. Depending on the society in which they have lived that gift may have been encouraged or quashed, respected or feared, used or abused… but it has always been there, a spark of light, an inspiration that has eventually given rise to a world-wide increase in people actively seeking a healing path.

For me, that path gradually opened up… there was no particular event or book that set me on my way. I can’t say that I’ve always been interested or had ability, but equally I can’t say that I had no interest or inkling. Looking back, I can remember situations or conversations that show maybe I did ‘know’, but not consciously & I certainly did not pursue it. Having said that I have always been able to “will-away” pain, and I know many people can, even though they would not consider ‘healing’ in any form or fashion.

Sometimes when someone was ill or in pain, I’d automatically put my hands or rub where it hurt, & often they felt better…. But this was an unconscious action- when I consciously thought about it or offered to see if I could help, nothing happened! It was that instinctive action, like a mother soothing a baby or rubbing better some knock or scrape to her child.

I met a Reiki Master in the course of my business & ‘knew’ it was something I was going to do. It didn’t happen straight away & with a different Master, but as often seems to happen with me, the opportunity presented itself & I took it.

Receiving that first attunement to Reiki was like receiving permission to heal. As much as learning about a technique, it gave me that key to access a latent ability. Like I said at the beginning of this post, I think everyone has that ability; it is just a matter of finding the right key. For me it was Reiki, for others it may be as simple as giving themselves permission.

It is all about intention, & I think this applies to many of us in many areas of our lives… Setting an intention, being clear about what we want to achieve, and then giving ourselves permission to realise it are important aspects, whether it is something physical, mental or emotional.