Reiki: The Usui System of natural healing is a Japanese Healing Art practised and taught at The Holistic Wellness School
The Usui System of Natural Healing is a Japanese Healing Art which was founded in Japan a little over 100 years ago by Mikao Usui. He began a personal search that ended with his having contact with the energy ‘Reiki’. Eventually Reiki was introduced out of Japan via Hawaii in 1937 by Hawayo Takata Sensei and it is passed on from one person to another through a specific initiation, teachings and a defined form of practice.
The Japanese word ‘reiki’ can be translated as ‘universal life energy’ and the Usui System is a way of working with reiki for healing of self and others. The word healing is used in the sense of regaining harmony and wholeness. Usui Shiki Ryoho is a holistic practice and addresses the whole person on the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual levels.
Usui Shiki Ryoho as defined by Phyllis Lei Furumoto, former lineage bearer, has four Aspects which accompany a central core of practice and philosophy referred to as the Nine Elements.
Four Aspects
- Healing Practice
- Personal Development
- Spiritual Discipline
- Mystic Order
Nine Elements
- Oral Tradition
- Spiritual Lineage
- History
- Initiation
- Symbols
- Treatment
- Form of Teaching
- Monetary Exchange
- Precepts
The combination of these Elements and Aspects and how they inter-relate creates this system of healing which has a predictable and proven ability to take people along a profound path of healing, growth and spiritual deepening. If any part is changed or left out, the form is no longer recognized and is another form of Reiki practice.
What can I expect?
In some ways, there is no typical Reiki session, no set protocol or length of time, however a full healing session typically takes from 50 minutes to an hour after you reason for seeking healing has been discussed and recorded. There is no typical setting: a quiet place is preferable, but Reiki can be done anywhere, no matter what else is happening either around or directly to the recipient. Reiki is also equally powerful and can be given by distance healing also. I personally find that I receive stronger psychic messages for and about the individual in absence of their physical self.
During a complete Reiki session, the client is fully clothed, lying on a treatment table or sitting comfortably supported in a chair, usually with relaxing music in a comfortable environment if the circumstances permit. It can be used in an emergency also in any set of circumstances, but here we are discussing a pre-booked healing session.
Reiki can be offered through light, non-invasive touch with the practitioner's hands placed and held on a series of locations on the head and front and back of the torso and legs. The placement of the hands is never intrusive or inappropriate, and there is no pressure to the body. This is equally effective without touch where the practitioner places their hands above these areas of the body instead of on them. Additional placements on the limbs can be done as needed (for example, if there is an injury or surgical scar).
What does the experience feel like?
Reiki is a highly individual experience. Often people say how comforting they find their experience of Reiki is. Recipients often feel that they are hovering in a threshold state of consciousness, aware of their surroundings yet simultaneously deeply indrawn. Some fall into a deep, sleep like meditative state. The experience can sometimes be dramatic, yet for some the first session in particular may be uneventful, later followed by feelings of wellbeing. The most dominant initial feelings are of an almost immediate release of stress and a feeling of deep relaxation.
"I feel very refreshed”, "My headache has gone”, “I can think more clearly" "Did I fall asleep?" "I could feel heat coming from your hands!", "I feel more relaxed than even after a massage", “I could feel different sensations in my body”, are some of things people typically say after a Reiki session.
Reiki is cumulative and the experiences of it become deeper with subsequent sessions. Besides the immediate experience of Reiki, a person may notice other changes unfolding as the day goes on, for instance a sense of being more centred, grounded, and less reactive. Usually there are reports of improved sleep, especially the night following the healing.
What happens after the session?
The Reiki practitioner will not give a diagnosis as they are not a Doctor or General Practitioner. However, they will give you practical guidance for self-care after the session, such as drinking water and taking a time to adjust to the healing. I find often I have intuitive insights about the person with a regard to their healing and wellbeing and may offer suggestions about moving forward with this.
I will also ensure you have taken a time to become grounded again after your session.
People typically leave a Reiki session feeling refreshed, sometimes they notice feeling more tired in the evening than usual, this is not an adverse reaction, it’s simply the body's natural healing response.