What is Reiki therapy? It can be a complex question to answer. Most people think of the practitioners’ healing hands. However, there is far more to it than that. Even the name hints at it: rei, meaning a higher power or divine spirit, and ki, meaning energy and life.
What is Reiki Therapy?
Essentially, reiki is a form of energy healing that focuses on stress reduction to promote healing.
The practice is based on the premise that all living things are connected by a universal life force — energy. That life force pulses through the body via energy centers, called chakras. When these energy centers become blocked or somehow off balance, energy flow is inhibited and emotional, psychological, spiritual, and physical maladies can arise.
Reiki therapy restores energy balance by sending positive energy from the healer to an individual through the laying on of hands. Physical contact is kept at a minimum and there is no actual physical manipulation that takes place at the targeted area, such as massage.
Practitioners oftentimes work in conjunction with traditional therapeutic and medical treatments. Reiki benefits include:
- pain management
- promotes healing
- boosts immunity
- raises the body’s vibrational frequency
How Reiki Therapy Works
What is Reiki? Reiki is a form of energy healing. It is founded on the belief that every person has a vital energy flowing through them. When this energy is blocked, sickness and emotional turmoil result. The goal of Reiki treatment is to encourage that universal energy to replenish and flow, which creates health and healing.
During a healing session, the Reiki practitioner places her hands in various positions on the client’s body as the client relaxes. The practitioner sends energy through the client’s body, freeing the client’s natural energy. It is an intuitive process that varies in length and intensity for each person.
The practitioner can focus energy in specific areas for known problems by placing her hands on those areas, or use standard positions to open the chakras. Some practitioners prefer not to directly touch the client and instead allow their hands to hover a few inches above the client’s body, while others prefer to gently lay their hands in position. Sometimes, reiki symbols are also used in combination with hand positions.
Where does Reiki therapy come from?
Reiki healing was discovered by Mikao Usui, a Japanese monk, as he meditated on Mount Kurama. However, the energy that Reiki uses is as old as the universe. Usui’s teachings simply allow people to channel it. Since Reiki can only be taught by a Reiki master through a process known as attunement, each Reiki practitioner traces his or her lineage directly back to Mikao Usui. As time has passed, however, the methods used in Reiki therapy have adapted and there are several branches that have minor differences in focus. Each school focuses on healing and harmony above all.
Practitioners are people who have been attuned to Reiki. Attunement is essentially an awakening to the power and energy that flows through the world. In most schools, there are three degrees. The first degree allows practitioners to use hands-on healing to treat themselves and others. The second degree allows practitioners to heal people at a distance, allowing them to treat people anywhere in the world. The third degree allows the practitioner to share Reiki by attuning others.
Who Can Benefit From a Reiki Therapeutic Session?
Since Reiki healing therapy is simply the channeling of beneficial life energy, it is safe for everyone to use. Many people undergo Reiki healing while also receiving medical treatment for their ailments. Some hospitals even have Reiki practitioners on staff to help patients heal, especially from long-term illnesses like cancer. Healing touch can also help those patients’ loved ones, who are often exhausted and emotionally drained.
Energy medicine can be used to treat physical, mental and emotional problems. Many people also use it as a general form of chakra healing to ensure balanced health. Therapeutic touch can even help animals and is commonly used on dogs, cats and even horses. Reiki can bring everyone into better balance and harmony with the world.