By which I mean that many people who have been attuned to Reiki have Reiki in the palms of their hands, but because they are missing some information about how to use it they don’t find it effective and don’t know why. This prevents them from accessing the power of Reiki to help them relax completely.
I hold a regular Reiki circle. The circle is a bit unusual in that I didn’t attune the people who attend, it is more of a drop-in group. So each time someone comes I ask them how they came to be attuned to Reiki and they tell their stories. As they talk I am really aware of how the method for transmitting Reiki – the oral tradition can leave important gaps. What I notice is that while some details are common from person to person, they are not the most important ones. Often there are nods of agreement over specific points, but no two people ever have exactly the same set of information.
This lack of common ground is completely understandable. I have spoken with people attuned in France, New Zealand, Japan, Australia and Iraq. When you consider it mathematically, that Master Usui attuned so many people and they attuned so many others and then the spread geographically and over time, it makes perfect sense that the information has changed or been changed.
Add to that the fact that Reiki is frequently experienced as a class or weekend experience with no follow-up and it is very understandable that the information either isn’t transmitted in the first place or that it is garbled and not completely understood.
If a Reiki attunement were just another weekend class to be taken and then filed away, this wouldn’t matter so much. However, it is much more than that, Reiki is such an essential tool and sadly, the gaps in the information received can prevent someone from getting the full joy and benefit out of using Reiki for themselves and others.
So what I mean by important information is not Master Usui’s birthdate or how many people on their lineage, but there are certain points I listen for. Of these I would say the most important is how to hold your hands – in the cupped position to activate Reiki.
So when people talk about this or I prompt them to show me what they were taught, what I see is that people have not been taught to cup their hands when giving Reiki. This is crucial because it is the ‘on’ switch for Reiki and without this piece of information you may still be sharing some form of healing with your hands but you are not accessing the Reiki vibration with all its benefits. And the attunement you received can never deliver its potential as a healing tool for yourself and others.
So as a human you have a need to relax completely and thus activate your natural healing processes. Reiki can do that so you can literally have the solution in the palm of your hands, but because of one small missing step you can’t access it!
This underlines for me the importance of an ongoing relationship with your Reiki Master Teacher because it is also possible that students were shown the correct position but did not see the significance of it at the time. With an ongoing relationship there is the possibility to discuss and correct misunderstandings in practice.
Each time I hear these stories I walk away grateful for the dedication of the Reiki Master Teachers I have learned from, all of whom have done their best to make sure I get the best from using Reiki.
Bio:
Sue McCormack is a contributing writer for Healing for People, an Energy Medicine clinic in Marin County, California. An Australian Reiki Master Teacher with a gentle, inquisitive approach to learning, she has made many trips to California to seek treatments and advanced training from Healing for People and Chyna Honey. She’s travelled extensively, owned a clinic and run Reiki circles. Sue is passionate about making sure people are able to get the best information possible about Reiki and get the most benefit from their experiences with Reiki.