An Introduction to Reiki

If you have never experienced Reiki, the following is an explanation of what you might expect from a treatment. A Reiki treatment usually lasts between sixty  and ninety minutes. The Reiki practitioner places his/her hands gently and  passively on different locations on the body, usually beginning at the head.  Each position is held for at least five minutes. Reiki is different from  traditional massage because the person may remain fully clothed. Unlike massage,  Reiki does not require any form of manipulation of tissue or muscles so the  hands remain still. Reiki will even flow through a plaster cast.

It is common for the person being treated to experience sensations such as  warmth or tingling flowing from the Reiki practitioner's hands. Most people  report entering a very deep state of relaxation. Those familiar with meditation  say they enter a deep meditative state. The mind calms, the breathing slows  down, and a feeling of well-being and centredness and a better sense of  perspective is attained.

By receiving a one-hour session of Reiki, one physiologically attains many of  the benefits equivalent to three to four hours sleep, such as increased oxygen  supply to the blood and cells. This clinical observation, combined with the  meditative state, makes Reiki a most effective natural stress reliever.

Regular use of Reiki leads to an increase in general vitality and well-being  and a sense of inner peace. It greatly accelerates and promotes the healing  process and regeneration of tissue, and is capable of improving the quality of  one's life to an amazing degree.

Reiki cannot be learned from a book or by instruction. It is one of the  ancient mysteries of the world and the activation of Reiki in your hands occurs  only through a process referred to as an `attunement' or `initiation' which is  given by a Reiki Master.

An important difference between Reiki and other effective energy therapies is  that, once it has been activated in your hands, you have it for life and you are  able to treat yourself. Most other energy healing systems do not extend beyond  the ability to treat others.

In many other natural energy healing systems the practitioner is limited by  his/her own physical and spiritual development and is often in danger of  depleting his/her own energy in the process of treating others. As you will soon  understand, this difference is one of Reiki's primary benefits.

Reiki can be explained in many ways. It can be considered an energy science  which makes sense from the perspective of some theories within the field of  quantum physics. This is discussed in chapter two. It can also be seen as a  state of manifesting consciousness, which is discussed in the second part of  this book. Whatever the explanation, it is an ancient healing/harmonizing  therapy rapidly becoming recognized among health practitioners as a safe and  highly effective complementary therapy to all other forms of health care.

Since the 1970s, when Reiki first began to spread significantly in the  Western World, clinical observation has enabled the establishment of a more  scientific understanding of Reiki. Although many Masters still prefer to teach  Reiki in the traditional manner, others are now adding to the traditional  teachings the added insight provided by modern science. There are forces in the  universe that have been around for many thousands of years such as anti-matter,  curved space, subatomic energy, etc.. Now that such phenomena are being  explained in scientific terms, we are beginning to have a deeper understanding  of the implications of these discoveries in our daily lives.

As human beings, most of us require more than just spiritual catch words or  blind faith before we can accept the validity of such techniques as Reiki. To  many people it constitutes the use of an energy outside the normal realms of  human experience and credibility.

There are those who have personal beliefs as to the origins and dynamics of  Reiki and prefer to impart these impressions to their students. In the following  chapters we hope to move outside the sphere of individual or personal belief  systems. We will endeavor to present those scientific and philosophical  properties that make Reiki what it is.

Ashley was three years old and spending two or three days a week in hospital  with serious asthma attacks. She was frail, weak, pale and had difficulty even  walking a few hundred yards. We initiated Ashley and her parents to Reiki.  Ashley immediately understood the significance of that incredible energy in her  magic hands, as she called them. She found that whenever she lay quietly and  placed her hands on her body, they switched on and became warm and nurturing.  Her energy levels increased daily and the trips to the hospital decreased. Mom  and Dad did not need to give her Reiki treatments. Ashley took full  responsibility for her own recovery by treating herself daily with Reiki.

Three months later Ashley had her last asthma attack. One year later Ashley  was a strong, robust little girl off all medication and with a zest for life.  She has successfully treated the next door neighbor's arthritic dog and  spontaneously places her magic hands on anyone she meets who is sick or in  pain with outstanding results.

Ashley is one of our many initiates who have inspired our book Reiki -  the science, metaphysics, and philosophy.

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