Professional Documents
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Step by Step Reiki
Step by Step Reiki
Raku
This symbol is used in certain branches of Reiki in order to eliminate the gap between student and
teacher following attunements.
Zonar
Zonar is believed to work across time in order to heal issues from past lives.
Harth
Used as a symbol for the heart, this symbol helps issues pertaining to love and compassion.
Halu
Halu is an amplification of the Zonar symbol, which is used for balance and love.
Antakharana
Various branches of Reiki healing use this symbol as a tool for meditation and healing.
Om
Om is a sanskrit symbol that is well known for its use in many Eastern practices, including yoga. It
represents the sound of the universe and is often chanted. Some branches of Reiki use this symbol for
initiations.
Chapter 4: Western / Traditional Reiki -
Difference?
There are two main schools of Reiki healing practice. These are the Western Reiki style, and
Traditional Japanese Reiki. In this chapter, we will discuss the differences and similarities between
the two.
Western Reiki
This is the most common form of Reiki practice today. Its origin comes from Hawayo Takato, who
learned Reiki from Chujiro Hayashi, a direct student of Mikao Usui. Hawayo Takata’s style of Reiki
has become very successful, helping millions of people across the globe. She focuses mainly on the
healing element of Reiki. In fact, her first line of experience with Reiki came from being able to heal
herself after falling victim to some potentially fatal health problems. Naturally, then, as a Reiki
practicioner, she would focus on healing potential.
Over time, there has been many additions to western Reiki practice. It first had its significant shift
from traditional Reiki when it became adopted as a Tibetan healing practice. The practice was
passed on by the cousin of Takata, Iris Ishikuro, who made the path to becoming a Reiki master much
more accessible. This caused Takata’s style of Reiki to spread all over the rest of the world.
Presently, western Reiki still focuses more on the process of healing as well as one’s hand positions
and attunement. There is also a focus on the chakras, the concept of which is Indian in origin. Western
Reiki also makes use of guided meditation. This is the style of Reiki that is familiar to most.
Traditional Japanese Reiki
Mikao Usui, the original father of Reiki arrived at his discovery after spending his life in meditation,
practicing martial arts and Tendai Buddhism. His main goal in creating Reiki was to use it as a path to
enlightement. He was believed to be a descendant of Samurais, and his practice of Reiki was more
synonymous with being a life style. A Reiki practitioner would be expected to change his or her life
and begin to live in a balanced way. In fact, Mikao is quoted as saying, “If you cannot heal yourself,
how can you heal others.”
Traditional Reiki uses a Japanese system of energy, which focuses on the Hara. It also includes five
components, which are intertwined. In this form om Reiki practice, the meditations are traditional and
often include the use of breathing techniques which help you to access energy directly from the Hara,
which is its source. Practitioners of this style of Reiki often feel the energy channeling through
themselves at once.
In traditional Japanese Reiki, the symbols and mantras represent two different things. The symbols
are perceived as training wheels, so to speak. Once you have been able to form a connection with the
energy that they represent, you do not nee to use them anymore. Mantras in Japanese Reiki are
practiced in the style of Buddhism. They are chanted in order to create a vibration or sound that has
healing properties.
Whereas in western Reiki, attunement is commonly practiced once, in traditional Japanese Reiki, it is
done as many times as needed in order strengthen the energy of the practitioners. The five principles
of Reiki are very important in this practice style and a Reiki practitioner is expected to meditate on
them and live according to them from day to day.
The style of Reiki that you choose to practice depends on what you think fits your lifestyle and which
your are drawn to.
Chapter 5: The 3 Pillars of Modern Reiki
There are three pillars of Modern Reiki. These are usually presented as a ritual before treatment
which helps to enhance the Reiki session. The three pillars allow the Reiki practitioner to connect
with their higher self as well as the Reiki source. The three pillars are Gassho, Reiji-ho and Chiryo.
Each pillar has its own individual attributes, and when harmonized as one, there is a deeper
connection to intent. In this chapter, we will briefly discuss each pillar.
Gassho
Gassho is used to center the Reiki pracittioner before giving a treatment. It is a form of meditation that
an be done by bring one’s palms together in front of the chest and keeping the eyes closed. The
attention should be focused on the tops of the fingers while the mind is cleared of everything else so
that the energy can flow.
Gassho has several parts. These include breath, centering, meditation and asking for the Reiki energy
to flow through you. As one takes the Gassho position, they must apply the appropriate breathing
techniques as well as set their intention to prepare for the session.
Reiji-ho
“Reiji” stands for the indication of Reiki Power. “Ho” means methods. This is a request for the
energy to be turned on. In order to do this, three steps must be taken. First, the Gassho position must
be assumed, and one should ask that the Reiki energy flows through them. Then one must request that
the energy be used for the good of the client, by stating “I ask that the Reiki be used for the highest
good of [name of client].”
The final step involves holding one’s hand in front of the third eye, located just above and between
the eyebrows, and asking that the hands be guided to where the energy is called for. One can also ask
Reiki Spirit Guides to assist at this stage. The statements can be said in one’s mind rather than out
loud, as well. Connecting with oneself and one’s guides can probe to be the hardest step for many
Reiki practitioners, because it requires trust in oneself and Reiki.
Chiryo
The meaning of Chiryo is treatment. This is the pillar in which the treatment is given to the patient.
Treatment can be done in a preferred setting, either on a couch or a chair. It normally begins at the
client’s head on their crown chakra. The processes of moving through the three pillars put the Reiki
practitioner into a centered state of mind, in which they are better able to connect to the Universal
energy. One must accept that it is the energy that does the healing and not the practitioner. Once a
practitioner enters Chiryo, the ego should be abandoned as the Reiki is allowed to guide their
movements.
When the three pillars are used effectively, the practitioner and the client can both receive guidance
and healing from the treatment.
Chapter 6: Chakras in the Context of Reiki
The hand placements used in Reiki healing usually target the seven major chakras as well as the
secondary chakras, which are also important. The secondary chakras are often dysfunctional and
discolored, and sometimes even completely closed, due to problems in the mind, body or spirit.
Being able to keep the chakras functioning properly is very important to one’s health because
disruptions in energy flow cause illness. In this chapter, we will discuss the concept of the chakra in
Reiki, as well as the different chakras and what they have an effect on.
What is the Chakra?
The term Chakra originated in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit. It literally means vortex,
spinning wheel, or circle. The chakras turn in a clockwise direction and resemble a spinning fan.
Each individual chakra spins at its own frequency, which allows the ki, or the universal life force, to
be drawn into the body, keeping the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual elements of the body
healthy and balanced. When releasing unwanted ki or dealing with other people or situations, the
chakras spin outwards.
Chakras are the channels through which energy enters and leaves our bodies, both physically and of
the aura. They are found within every level of our aura, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual, so
they affect every part of the being. This means that when we have good feelings, such as relaxation
and happiness, our chakras are spinning openly and evenly, which creates a balanced aura that is well
protected. However, when we are feeling depresion, anxiety, stress, and other similar emotions, then
the chakras will be depleted and this will also affect our aura. Over time, these negative emotions can
drain the chakra completely and begin to affect one’s well being, and this is where Reiki healing
comes in.
The worry and stress that come naturally as a part of our daily lives causes blockages in our energy
centers. Holding on to negative thoughts causes our chakras to become tainted with dense energy and
this in turn has a constricting effect on the flow of energy through our chakras, which is the root of the
sluggish, or unbalanced feeling that people often get. A block is a place where energy has become
trapped due to this, and Reki gets the energy moving in order to deal with a block. As the energy
flows through the whole body, it replaces dissonance and imbalance with harmony, and helping to
bring the chakras into alignment and balance them.
Each chakra is a part of the entire energy system, so no one chakra works independently of the others.
An individual chakra can only work fully when the others are also fully engaged. Each of them as a
role that balances an aspect of our life, whether it is physical, emotional, mental or spiritual. Thus it
is essential in maintaining good health to know whether or not our chakras are balanced and if not,
how unbalanced they are.
The Seven Chakras
There are seven main chakras. The first three deal with physical and material issues, and are often
termed the lower chakras. the other four, from the heart chakra up, have to do with spiritual issues,
and are called upper chakras.