First, here's a look at what Reiki is ... Reiki is a Japanese spiritual and healing practice that supports you in feeling more connected to life. You can either experience a Reiki treatment or study how to practice Reiki for yourself. A Reiki treatment is one-hour long and is useful for specific healing or general relaxation. The client remains fully clothed at all times as the practitioner goes through a set healing process placing hands on or just off the body as agreed with the client prior to the treatment. Sex, age and condition are of no concern as the client's own body controls this energetic process. During the treatment the body will only take the amount of energy that it requires. A Reiki treatment is not intrusive and clients do not remove clothing and no private parts of the body are touched. If a client is wishing to work on a specific issue or health problem it is advisable to book for three one-hour treatments. A 2-day Reiki course (called Shoden) will teach you: * meditation techniques to strengthen and clear your energy * to gain a clearer understanding of the working of energy in your life and its benefits * to find a spiritual connection to life helping you to feel happier and healthier * to heal the self and others using hand positions on or near the body Most importantly, remember that the system of Reiki is about you and your spiritual journey. Reiki The Word Two kanji (pictographs from Japan) make the word Reiki. Previously these 2 kanji have been translated as 'Universal Energy' (or Universal Life Force Energy) in the West. This is obviously a translation of the 2nd kanji, ki, only. Ki is naturally the energy of everything including heaven and earth, the entire universe. The first kanji, rei, may have been left out of English translations due to the fact that the term 'spiritual' was not the focus of the Western practice in the 20th century. Modern Japanese also find the kanji for Reiki to be 'spooky' therefore in Japan these kanji are not used. Instead a different script that is phonetical and does not contain meaning (katakana) is used. In Chinese, the same 2 kanji used to represent Reiki are pronounced differently but have a similar meaning. In Chinese, Reiki is called Ling chi. Ling chi is the subtlest and most highly refined of all the energies in the human system and the product of the most advanced stages of practice, whereby the ordinary energies of the body are transformed into pure spiritual vitality. This type of highly refined energy enhances spiritual awareness, improves all cerebral functions, and constitutes the basic fuel for the highest level of spiritual work. Excerpt from Chi-gung: Harnessing the Power of the Universe by Daniel Reid Pronunciation To pronounce the word 'Reiki' in Japanese it is necessary to forego any preconceptions about language. The first sound in 'rei' is neither an R nor an L, as some Westerners believe. In Japanese the sound is in fact somewhere in between the two letters. The Japanese language has no correlation with English or its pronunciations. The first time that the government initiated a standardized system and romaji (English letters used to translate kanji) were introduced was in 1885. The kanji for 'rei' 'is officially spelt with an R when translating into English and is therefore pronounced with an R (even though the Japanese pronunciation might sound similar to what is understood as an L in English). |
