What Is Reiki Healing?

Dr. Rio Kashyap

8 min read

a woman doing a reiki session in the park

What Is Reiki Healing?

Reiki healing is a spiritual healing art with its roots in Japan. “Rei” in Japanese means “Universal Life” and “ki” means “energy”. So the word “Reiki” means “Universal life force energy”. A typical basic Reiki healing treatment involves laying on hands on or over the body at specific positions in order to balance the Ki.

The History Of Reiki Healing.

Mikao Usui was the founder of the Reiki healing practice that is used worldwide today. Though modern Reiki originated in Japan, it was already practiced in ancient cultures of India, China and some other Asian countries in other forms. Reiki healing’s counterpart in India has been practiced as Pranic Healing and the universal life force energy is called “prana shakti” [literal translation: life force]. Mikao Usui treated many people during his lifetime. A deeply researched version of the history of Reiki can be found HERE.

**What Is Chi/Ki? What Is Reiki Healing?**

The energy “ki/chi/qi” is present in all living and non-living things. When talking about Reiki healing, we take the existence of Chi as a fact. Chi is also sometimes called “life force energy”. It is considered the universal ingredient of existence. At present, we know that in living beings it has a specific pattern in which it exists and flows. The knowledge of chakras and meridians has been around for centuries in Vedic texts, Chinese and Japanese traditions. Most people can see or sense these energies with practice. To me, it feels like a magnetic ball of energy. Not just on Humans, Reiki practitioners routinely see the effect of balancing the Ki in animals, plants, and machines as well.

The study of this vital energy is taken up in Chinese traditional medicine and martial arts. Several healing modalities are based on balancing the flow of Ki, including Yoga, Acupuncture, and Qigong.

Being Sensitive To Subtle Energy.

You really have to be an energy sensitive person to understand and feel how Reiki works. For me, most of the time, the energy is so powerful that everyone in the room feels it. Especially when I’m with my teacher.

People who never meditate in any way, never take out time for themselves, never have a moment of silence will have a hard time experiencing the flow. But it’ll still not affect their healing capacity.

Reiki affects our life positively in many spiritual, physical, mental and emotional ways. After a year or so you may not be able to pinpoint the exact areas Reiki worked in your life. But you will definitely see a difference in the quality of life and inner peace you experienced before and right now.

There Are 3 Categories Of People According To The Sensitivity To Reiki:
- Those who can feel the actual energy flow and noticed changes either immediately or afterward.
- Those who can’t feel the energy flow but noticed changes between before and after.
- Those who neither felt the energy, nor any changes.

It still affected them in some way. Since Reiki is universal, it’s hard to map and pinpoint in such cases. Most commonly, it WILL cause some kind of release of negative energy and it WILL happen soon after the session. Usually in the first 24 hours. Whether or not someone notices it and attributes it to Reiki, is another matter.

Based On Subjective Feelings, You’re Energy Sensitive If:
- You feel as if your energy has been drained when you’re in a crowd or in a party.
- You need solitude every now and then.
- You can sense a negative person even before talking to them.
- You choose to talk to a specific person in a room full of strangers and you connect immediately.
- You enter a room and be aware of a negative/positive energy in that room.
My Experience Of Reiki Energy.

I am lucky that I can physically feel the Reiki energy. Otherwise, I also might have considered it a pseudoscience, since I am more left-brained when it comes to things like these.

I got to learn Past Life Regression Therapy (PLRT) before I learned Reiki. HERE is my previous post which has an account of that. It was almost a year after the PLRT workshop that I got to feel those energies again, during my attunements.

Even though I had already learned and experienced PLRT, I was still skeptical until this happened. During my attunement, when my teacher placed her hands on my head for the first time, a waterfall of a love-filled, warm and viscous energy, just like honey, dropped from her palms into the top of my head, entering my brain as if my skull bones were air. The top of my head was covered in sweet warmth. Warm honey-like energy dropped from the sides of my head and fell on to my shoulders. I was physically feeling the “tap-tap” – energy drops falling. The “drops” that entered my brain, were now flowing into my spine. Slowly, flowing down and disappearing near my heart chakra. It was one of the most blissful experiences of my life.

This is how Reiki energy felt to me! I am VERY sensitive to any small changes in energy in my body. That’s why I could also tell the exact moment when the blockage in my throat chakra opened! My life has been completely different after that moment.

Who Can Practice Reiki Healing?

Anyone! In fact, everybody has 10-20% of their Reiki flowing. All you need is a loving soul, loving hands and good intentions! Never think negative about anybody and always give your love and blessings.

On a professional level, healing using Reiki is done by anybody who has been attuned by a Reiki Master. The Reiki channels are opened to 100%. It’s like you’re a radio device and the Reiki master tunes you into the correct station.

Reiki teachers also pass on their knowledge to their students. The 7 chakras, palm chakras, and the sole chakras are opened to the flow and sealed to remain open for a lifetime. Reiki never wears off. It’s your choice whether you want to use it for family and friends or more professionally. Even children can get attuned. Babies in utero are the best to get attuned. They have amazing abilities! The results can be seen in every area of their lives.

Self-Protection While Performing A Reiki Healing.

Reiki is all-positive energy. It does no harm by itself but the negative energies that a person possesses might get impressed on a practitioner’s aura. To protect oneself from any kind of negative energy, a self-protection affirmation is said before starting with any kind of healing. A level 2 and higher practitioner may use the power symbol to draw a box of protection around oneself and repeat the affirmation, “only the best energies are coming to me”. One may also ask the God, guardian angels, ascended masters, deities or anyone they believe in, for protection.

Levels In Reiki:

In the modern western system, Reiki is taught at 3-4 levels.

Level 1:

The student is attuned to the Reiki flow. Basic knowledge of Reiki is taught. The process of healing is taught including self-protection, hands-on healing another person and self-healing.

The student is then tested.

They have to undertake self-healing for at least the first 21 days continuously. They can perform self-healing on a regular basis after that. It should always be a priority. They can go on healing themselves and others for as long as they want before going for level 2. A level 1 certificate is awarded.

Level 2:

The student is attuned to the sacred symbols in this level. Some practitioners believe that the symbols should not be seen by anyone other than Reiki practitioners so that they can’t be used for bad intentions. But in my opinion, the symbols are only full of love and protection, nothing else. So how can anybody use them for something bad? The Reiki healing symbols don’t have the potential to cause anything bad to anyone. They work for the highest good.

The Cho Ku Rei symbol Increases the flow and power of Reiki.
The Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen symbol bridges the gap between distance and time, such that one can heal events in the past, present, future and perform distance healings.
The Sei Hei Ki symbol removes subconscious mental blocks. This is a powerful tool as it helps in changing thought patterns and bringing about a positive mindset.

Usually, these 3 symbols for the above 3 purposes are taught but the Master may teach more symbols based upon his will, knowledge, judgment, and experience.

A student is free to use more symbols even if they’re not “given” to him.

The student is asked to practice the symbols and then tested. A level 2 certificate is awarded. The student can now perform distance healings, past, present, future healing, and mental healing.

Reiki masters may also teach their students more skills such as psychic surgery, chakra balancing, pendulum dowsing, etc., based on the spiritual development and interest of the student.

One should wait at least a week before going for level 3, for the energies to settle in. Some practitioners have set their own timeline for when the student can go for the next level. It’s all fine until it’s only based on their experience and not on something selfish.

Level 3:

Some Masters teach level 3 and teacher level (3b or level 4) separately. Others provide the teacher training along with level 3 itself.

The student is attuned to the symbol of Dai K Mio that enables the student to further attune other people. The student is taught how to attune other people. All 3 levels are deeply discussed from the point of view of a teacher. The student is then tested and asked to perform the attunements on other students or the Master him/herself.

A Master level certificate is awarded.

Energy Exchange In Reiki

Whenever you interact with someone, energy exchange takes place, whether positive or negative. When a doctor treats a patient, the patient pays the fee. Money is nothing but energy. Upon payment, the energy gets balanced and the patient no longer remains “officially” indebted towards the doctor. There has to be some kind of energy exchange in order to achieve this balance.

Similarly, when you give a Reiki healing treatment to someone, they have to balance the energy somehow. If it’s family or friends, they can pay you back with gifts or by taking you out for lunch or dinner. They can also pay money if they want. To one’s parents, one is always indebted, so can do for free if you want. It all depends on how your relationships are and how the understanding between you is. As long as there is energy exchange it is all fine.

For all other people, one must state a fee beforehand. Preferably, an agreement cum informed consent may be signed since there is laying on of hands is involved. If you or the client isn’t comfortable with touch, Reiki can be given with hovering of the hands. Always take permission and make sure no misunderstandings arise later on.

Myths About Reiki.

There are some common myths about Reiki healing. People don’t know much and usually arrive in the office with doubts. You must clear them before starting with treatment or teaching so that they can make an informed choice. I have clarified them here.

That is all for now! Hope you enjoyed this post.

I’m available for all levels of Reiki Classes. Click for details.

If you're practicing self-healing, I highly recommend "The power of pain-body healing meditation."