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Since many books have Reiki symbols and initiation proceedures, why are Reiki Masters needed ? Why can't spiritual person 'A' just initiate person 'B' and visa versa?We feel that if humanity was truly empowered to create their reality, then then would not really need Reiki or any system for that matter. They would just think and manifest. But, since humanity isn't at that point in collective consciousness, then tools are needed until we evolve to that place/time. Human collective programming limits us from being able to create flawlessly what we desire and disciplines/systems/theosophies help us to get back on track...to remember our co-creatorship with Mother/Father/God. Reiki intiations are designed to awaken levels of consciousness within our beingness, and we perceive that someone has more than we do, then we ask that they bring us to their level of knowing, and then we can help others in the same way. One day, we will fully awaken to the programmed perfection within us, and we will not need tools any longer...in fact, we will not need to have physical bodies/experiences any longer. Until then, I will intiate you, you will initiate Beth, she will intiate Bob, ad infinitum.
Reiki Popularity is GrowingPublished in the January 1998 issue of "The Messenger"
Spending a lot of time on the internet and chatting with a lot of Reiki practitioners, we are asked to answer a lot of questions. One that seems to be on the lips of many nowadays has to do with the Reiki branches. Usually the questions go something like this, "Is there really anything to all the Reiki branches, and the new symbols that are coming forth, or is this just a way to make more money?" We have researched quite a few of the branches/lineage's that are 'non-traditional', looking at their source and intent as told by the founder/originator. It seems that Reiki is extremely popular today, and that perhaps some of the new branches have come into being for monetary reasons; to create yet another class that people just have to take if they truly want to know what Reiki is all about. This seems to be driven by an ego need of some teachers to have their own Reiki branch giving them notoriety and popularity, as well as income. But this is not always the case. We have learned from the many masters that we have talked to and/or trained with, and our own experience, that Reiki is not a static system......it grows, changing with the ever-shifting needs of Humanity. Because of this, there are some branches that are appearing because there is a need for the teachings, the symbols, and the larger understanding that comes directly from the intelligence of Reiki itself. There are some of the newest teachings that deal with compassion, and the opening of the 'heart chakra'; and who doesn't need that today? The main differences that we are able to discern among the more reputable branches are the intent behind the system and the 'higher', more expanded understanding and uses of the symbols channeled from the newer 'contemporary' teachings.
Many of the symbols seem to deal directly with the newer 'dis-eases' that have recently begun to plague Humanity, or to tap into Higher Truths and levels of energy. Not every branch has the same 'feeling' and certainly not the same amount of energy; it seems to depend a lot on what each person/seeker is in need of at that particular time. Remember that Reiki is much more than just a healing system, more a path to spiritual awareness and personal empowerment. Reiki helps one to remember who they are as Spirit, with limitless energy to accomplish tasks that are thought to be 'superhuman' in this physical plane. Healing is but one of the processes that can be accomplished using Reiki daily on oneself. Another benefit to be derived from using the energy of Reiki is to connect to some (and eventually all) of our aspects that exist on dimensions unknown to most of Humanity. Reiki also sharpens our natural abilities to sense energy beyond our normal, physical sensory inputs. Through Reiki, we can let go of the constant focus on our physical identification that we have grown so accustomed to, and begin to explore more important matters like our purpose in being, the lessons that we came to Earth to learn, our inter-dependence and oneness in the Divine plan of The Creator. Yes, Reiki can give each of us a personal experience of these, and more wondrous understandings; all we need to do is to put our hands on ourselves, and allow Reiki to teach us who we are. We think that it is possible to explore the various levels of Reiki without becoming attuned to all of the ever-increasing numbers of branches, but then, by developing a discerning nature, we will know from the heart of who we are, what is in our highest and best good. Blessings on your journey back to Self.
Which Reiki History?Published in the February 1998 issue of "The Messenger"
The second most often asked question asked of us, through our website chat, message board, or mail-lists is "Which history about Usui and his re-discovery of Reiki is the correct one?" To this we say "Most are correct". But, do let me tell you why we would answer this way. In one of our other articles, we wrote that there is value in most of the Reiki branches presented in these modern times; which branch one takes is usually determined by each seeker's personal inner-guidance and what they most need from the vastness of knowledge contained in the system known as Reiki. Most every Reiki practitioner has been taught that their Master's teacher's lineage has evolved from the Usui - Hayashi - Takata line of Reiki teachers. But is this the only one that exists? NO! It is true that many teachers throughout the world have been trained by a Master that has taken classes from someone in the evolving line of teachers directly traceable to one of the Usui/Hayashi/Takata line, but not all practitioners. In Japan, Usui is known to have taught perhaps 2000 students, and some of them continued to call their system by a name that included Usui's name, while others decided to change the name according to their own past training/understanding or just to distinguish their own separate teaching from someone else's. The same goes for Hayashi, Takata, and so forth. So, there are really differing histories, as well as stories that might have been altered to make one's system more attractive than another's. This method continues even today. There has been much research throughout Japan and other continents by some very thorough and dedicated historians; and their findings are just now beginning to come forth - in book print and on the internet. So there seems to be some truth in much of the reported histories of the rediscovery of Reiki.
Most of the world now knows that Mrs. Takata, the person most responsible for introducing the Japanese system of Reiki to the western world, pre-fabricated much of today's well-known history, in order to get the western population to accept the teaching. It must be remembered that when this Hawaiian-born Japanese woman introduced Reiki to the United States, the Americans were still reeling from a war with Japan, and it was well known that the Japanese did not hold much value on women in their society. So, we believe that Mrs. Takata creatively created a 'Christian' version of the Reiki history, so that it would be more acceptable to those in the West. We have come to know that much of the story is not verifiable; Usui, it seems, did not come to America, did not attend divinatory school in Chicago, did not travel the world learning many languages and reading the sutras/scriptures personally, that led to the re-discovery of some ancient healing system. There are some notes that seem to have come from some of Usui's students, and they are acupuncture methods of diagnoses and treatments. And even some of the most recent of Usui's and Hayashi's surviving students, tell that Usui was indeed an ordinary, but dedicated student of healing arts, as well as an ardent seeker that tried to include the 'Spiritual' truths in his 'complementary health' training.
So, does this mean that we should ignore the teachings of Reiki altogether, just because the history is fabricated? Not at all, in fact, we think that should spark the human initiative to search out the "Truth". Practitioners of Reiki already know that the system works, that it is a method of raising the vibrational frequencies of the physical body (and corresponding subtle auric fields), and that expands our psychic awareness and brings us to physical, mental, emotional and spiritual balance; and that equates to better health. Follow your hearts and continue to seek out the knowledge that Reiki is still communicating to serious practitioners. Reiki continues to communicate its wisdom to those that are dedicated to healing and spiritual evolvement. Do more than just an hour treatment each day; practice on yourself and others as if your lives depended on it. Make it a way of being, a response to anything that seems to affect you negatively. Dedicate your life to Reiki, and you will reap the wonders of the mysteries contained within, and be more alive, well-balanced than you ever have been.
Practice Makes Perfect....Reiki Practice, that is.Published in the March 1998 issue of "The Messenger"
As Reiki teachers, we have seen a lot of misunderstanding on the subject of Reiki. And we have answered a lot of questions, and chatted with a lot of practitioners (all levels), and we have come to know that there is no 'one' way to do Reiki; no right way to give attunements, to send absentee treatments, etc. There is only perception, and everyone has a slightly different one on every topic that exists on this plane of experience. We are all growing, and learning, and evolving, and truly none are further up the spiritual ladder than all the rest; if they were, they would cease to be incarnate in their physical vehicles. We are all in the same band of physical vibration because we all are learning the lessons of this level of matter/Spirit simultaneously. Our spiritual growth may be hampered by our judgments of others; any and all judgments place walls of ignorance around us and seem to separate us from the whole. This is the basis for the illusion of separation; if a person thinks that they are more right, or better, or more special than the mass of humanity, they are experiencing devastating aloneness on some level. They have moved in their relationship to others, and that distances us from the other pieces of Self. The same goes for our understanding of concepts, such as Reiki. We all have a piece of the puzzle; it is in sharing that piece that we all grow, and similarly, in being protective of it that we feel distanced from others. This has been very aware to us in our travels, our meetings and discussions with all levels of Reiki practitioners, in the posting to Reiki mail lists and newsgroups, etc. We have heard such ego-centered statements as, "I don't have to do daily Reiki self-treatments....I am a Master now"; or, "Reiki hands-on is for beginners"; or "That practitioner is doing the attunement wrong, I have the correct method". There is no right method; no one way to do Reiki; nothing written in stone. It is to be practiced, to be used, to be open to the wisdom contained within. What each of us needs, at our own level of understanding/growth, is to be found from within the system of Reiki; what Masters teach is only the barest of information. And it is in our understanding that it can only come through direct use of the energy. We must be willing to have a personal relationship with Reiki....to give it the same passion and time that we would a best friend/partner/mate. We must place our ego on the shelf and allow Reiki to communicate with us, to tell us what to do in each situation. That cannot happen if we think that we have all the answers. We know very little of the inner knowledge of this most ancient spirtual system of energy/healing. I implore each practitioner to create the time to practice as much Reiki as is possible, each and every day. Adonea and I have done as many as 11 hours of Reiki on ourselves in one day. And if you think that you feel good when you do only one hour, imagine what you might feel from doing 8, 10, 12 hours. And the understanding/benefit that can come from working longer than one hour, and only for one treatment on someone who is imbalanced, is unlimited. We really get to know what the person needs when we let go of our schedules/agendas, and give our attention to the recipient/client, and to the Spirit of Reiki.
Reiki from a Universal PerspectivePublished in the July 1998 issue of "The Messenger"
Reiki is a spiritual discipline, not unlike yoga or Qi Qong/Ki Gung. The principle of the practice is to pull into our bodies and increase the Chi/Ki/Prana/Odic/Manna/Orgon/etc. energy that exists everywhere in the Universe. The reason(s) that we do not have an abundance of this animating energy is due partly to our lack of consciousness/connection or our neglect of Spirit/Source-of-All-That-Is. Our worldly attention to materialist matters has weakened our connections to Source and hence, to the image of perfection that is our birthright given by the Creator. If you doubt this, then look at the human race; disease is rampant, people lack love and joy, humans perform devastating abuses to one another and to Mother Earth.
Reiki, however, is not usually taught as a spiritual discipline, but rather, a healing technique. We do not see it limited to this purpose; we see healing as a by-product of connecting more strongly and building up the Spiritual energy within our physical dimension and bodies.
Reiki (as it is usually taught) is instructional methods for caring for the 'Self' as well as others. What we have come to realize from practicing the system is that our awareness/consciousness is expanding, the vibrational frequencies of our entire beings is rising, and we have more life-force/energy to help us balance every aspect of our lives. So Reiki is a higher vibrational frequency that we can call into the physical, and it has numerous affects on our many dimensional energy bodies. It breaks through all levels of energy blocks that have starved our bodies into disease, it balances our chakras and fields, it increases our awareness of subtle energy beyond only what we receive through physical sensory organs, it fills us with Love (the God-energy/purpose for being) and more. But, please understand that Reiki is not the only technique/modality that makes and delivers these claims. It is just that Reiki is perhaps the easiest of most spiritual techniques known to humankind at this time. All it takes to learn is a "physical attunement" by someone that understands the principles behind the technique, and the laying on of the hands on one's own or another's body. We are but conduits of these higher frequencies, and as such, we can do very little (if anything) to manipulate this energy to our will and desire. Rather, each person that accepts the energy will use it in a manner that is in their own Highest good. Anyone can learn to tap into this level of higher energy, but most people are not sensitive to subtle energies, and would take perhaps years of practice to achieve consistent results and understanding. The popularity of Reiki is due partially to the ease of learning and to the immediate results that are gleaned from its use. But it is not absolutely necessary to learn, although it is a faster study than many popular spiritual/healing techniques.
There are symbols that are taught in the second level Reiki classes and they are understood as increasing the power of the Reiki as we channel it, as well as tapping us into specific sub-bands of energy that work specifically with mental and emotional issues (all of humanity is working on this) and karmic programming. And although few people can experientially verify this, I can tell you that we have felt the results of the work with the symbols. The symbols are not secret....they are, however, considered sacred. They were not given to the un-initiated, to people who were not working consciously on their spiritual growth. And anyone can find them published in several Reiki books and even on the internet, but we feel that the fullness of their purpose cannot be accessed without the attunement procedure. Another way of saying this is that when the system and its tools are not practiced with discipline and directly felt/experienced, then often the tools are laid aside. What some people do not understand from soul level, they often discard and demean.
A person who has not developed concentrated mind-focusing techniques (resulting in increased awareness) and disciplined practice, will gain little from reading the books on Reiki. Most people (at least in the West) are not self-motivated to learn and practice disciplines on their own, and need to learn and practice with others, or they will lose interest in the technique(s). This is another positive trait of Reiki; it gets stronger with the more people who practice together (Universal Law of Increasing Return -with each additional person holding a similar thought, the stronger the return of energy to the creative agents).
Lessons we have learned through the practice of Reiki: Intent is prime mover of all form throughout the Universe. The combined desire of many manifests more quickly than the one or few. Healing is a result of right-thought, right word and right action. The more people that practice a common system of spiritual work, the stronger the system becomes and the more energy that can be drawn from it by its supporters (lineage). The more one stills the mind, the more their consciousness expands beyond the physical plane. The more energy one puts into a study/practice, the more one receives from its innate intelligence. The more one lets go of ego-will and control, the more one will experience the Source/Creator. Healing is limited by our projected expectations of time, space, and reality. The Universe is in a constant state of flux and change. Everything is cyclic/repetitive, and therefore uncontrollable (from our limited human frame of reference). The Universe is a system of checks and balances. Chaos is the motivator of balance. Everything is impermanent. There is ultimately nothing to do; being is our goal. Thought/imagination is behind all manifested form. All of humanity are either victims or co-creative agents. Discernment is the tool of evolvement. Judgement of any kind limits our energy flow, and if not released, will keep us from growing spiritually. We are all One in Spirit. We are Spirit having a physical experience. What we do to one, we do to all. . We are multi-dimensional beings learning and experiencing on many dimensions simultaneously.
Reiki is not easily explained in the medium of language. It must be experienced. It is not limited; it evolves/grows/changes with the needs of humanity. Each person will experience Reiki differently, according to their beliefs, experience, openness or limitations/filters.
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10-9-2000