The knowledge of bodily healing, harmonizing the soul and gaining the experience of unity within with the understanding of the nature of spirit, energy and matter existed for thousands of years. Now it has been rediscovered by many cultures in their own modified ways and can be found to be used in various forms by Japanese, Chinese, Indians and many more.

What is Reiki?

The word Reiki means Universal Life Force Energy. It is a source of power which lives in all living matter. It is the life force energy which flows through all living beings. It is natural, spiritual healing modality which is completely independent of, and at the same time complimentary to any religion, belief or faith system. It is non-physical and an unconditionally loving energy.

The word has two syllables rei and ki, the syllable rei means the universe, whereas ki is the vital force energy which flows through living beings. We all have this flowing energy in us otherwise we would have not survived. The day a new born baby is born he starts using the energy to be alive. The energy is used to build body and mind and other functions of all the body organs.

Reiki is taken by the people who receive healing as per their needs and desire to the openness of the receiving. Reiki masters or healers are only the channel or the connection for the Reiki energy which is not their own energy.

Reiki is a holistic system of healing for mind, body and soul. A Reiki channel is opened to a person assisting to unclog the inner energy channels permanently and allows the person to enjoy the openness for rest of the life. Once this level of openness is obtained it obtained for lifelong practice. The Reiki master gets control of his life and his situations and is empowered to control of his life situation.

Reiki is the most simple and natural way of healing method known to human kind and once understood it is the effective way which opens the door to the new better world for the rest of the life.

History Of Reiki

Reiki is a natural healing method that which is like a high flow of energy into a practitioner, and out the hands traveled into another person practitioner.

The system of Usui Reiki was re-discovered by Dr. Mikao Usui, a Japanese man, in the middle of the nineteenth century. Dr. Mikao Usui was born in Japan and studied the healing art Kiko, the Japanese version of Qi Gong, at the Tendai Templeon mount Kurama near Kyoto. Kiko is a meditation consists of breathing techniques and movements which help in self-healing. His thirst for something more powerful drove him to develop the intellectual way to answer many of his quests in forms of mantras and symbols too.

He had called his system "My Method" or Usui-Do. He was influenced by the power Buddha or Jesus Christ possessed which made them so powerful that simply by putting their hands on some person were healed of what ailed them. However we now know that Dr. Usui had a very spiritual experience or vision in which the meaning of his life was made clear to him. He then set out on a 3 year quest to discover how he could attain this.

During his life's mission he devoted himself in studying old religions and ancient teachings including the Japanese forms of Taoism. He was a dedicated student of martial arts and knew the founder of Judo, Jigoro Kano, and very well. He tried very hard to find answers to all his questions and decided to fast for 21 days on Mount Kurama. He meditated all this time at the place which is considered to be holy by the Japanese.

At the end of the 21 days of fasting and meditating he received a powerful form of energy while in meditation and was knocked unconscious for hours. That night on the mountain he had an overpowering experience of initiation, a powerful light entered into him and he realized that he had discovered the energy which would enable him and others through him, to heal.

He named it "Reiki", which means Universal life Force Energy. He left for home and tested his newly gained gift on his family members and friends. Later, he became deeply involved in healing needy people on the large scale. He found he could easily transfer the ability to access and use this energy, to anyone.

He was attributing the source of this energy and inspiration to his ancestors. Usui's teaching was a great change at a time for the Japanese people. In April 1922 Mikao Usui opened his first learning school 'Seat of Learning' in Harajuku, Tokyo, and he used a small manual which had come into use about 1920. It did not contain any hand positions for healing others: it contained the Precepts, Meditations and the Waka poetry.

The Usui teachings included teaching people how to heal themselves which is one of the two basic principles of Reiki. Reiki, which is considered to be the divine healing method cannot be imposed, it must be asked for or desired for by the receiver of it. It is very important that the receiver of the healing is free willed while receiving healing from the healing giver. It is Reiki itself which does the healing and the giver or the healer is just the channel of it.

It is also to be kept in mind that the flow of energy must complete full circle. If the healer wants to receive healing then the receiver should also give some form of energy too, which results in free flow of energy by making space for the Reiki to flow.

He adopted five principles from the Meiji Emperor, for the living of healthy body and mind. According to Dr. Usui if these five principles are applied with Reiki they can be a reason of happiness in life. These principles affect our attitude into healthy paths, thus having a domino effect into our physical and the way we express external feelings.

Reiki was introduced to the West by many of his followers. He wished Reiki to be a means by which people throughout the world could work together to create a better world.