Reiki has been around for a century, it was discovered in 1922. Even in the early days, Reiki was never meant to be something that is mystified. But over the years, as with everything that has its moment in the light, it is becoming commercialized and misrepresented in many ways.
As a Reiki Master Teacher who was trained in one lineage, then realizing my first lineage wasn’t as authentic as can be, I repeated my Reiki training in the most original lineage completely (Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki). It allowed me to fill a lot of holes from my first training, and after repeating the training, going through a mentorship program, and practicing Reiki for many years before teaching Reiki, it gives me a much broader perspective around what true Reiki is and what it isn’t – extras that were added in the name of Reiki. So I thought I’d share offer some clarity on a few of these common misconceptions for clarification around real Reiki.
What Reiki Is:
Reiki is a practical and safe type of energy healing.
Reiki is a completely natural and holistic treatment.
Reiki is an effective therapy on its own and is also complementary to all types of.
What Reiki Isn’t:
Reiki isn’t witchery.
Reiki isn’t a psychic power.
Reiki isn’t an equal alternative to western medicine.
LET’S START WITH WHAT REIKI IS
Reiki Is A Type of Energy Healing
Yes, it sure is. It’s the most foundational form of safe channeled energy healing, which means none of my “stuff” passes over to you and none of your “stuff” passes onto me as we are releasing negative energy from your body. So if you’re working with a qualified, trusted Reiki Master or Reiki practitioner (Level 2 or up), you never have to worry about inheriting bad energy from your Reiki practitioner.
Reiki Is Holistic Healing
Reiki works on all levels of a person, mentally, emotionally, energetically, spiritually, and physically. For example, say someone experiences pain in the chest throughout the day for three seconds at a time, medication may be used to address the physical pain and help it subside, but it can’t, or at least very unlikely, address the root cause of the pain. Nor can it heal the emotions such as frustration or anger that come up every time the pain arises, and that person feels stabbing pain. Imagine being poked throughout the day for three seconds at a time, even a monk might start getting annoyed. Reiki is holistic. It heals the body on all levels. What that means is, it heals the emotions that come with that particular pain too, while Reiki is releasing the pain from the physical body and the negative energy from the pain. It calms the mind so it doesn’t get as agitated or attached to the sensation of the pain, thereby also calming our spirit too.
Reiki is Practical On Its Own and Complimentary With Other Treatments
Reiki is an effective source of healing by itself. Just as I mentioned above, it’s a holistic type of healing so it works on all levels, Reiki is a great standalone treatment, but it complements all other types of treatments and therapies, Western, Eastern, natural or science-based. Reiki can be done simultaneously too a well, but it may not be necessary.
AND WHAT REIKI IS NOT
Reiki Isn’t A Form of Witchery
One of the biggest misconceptions is that someone is a witch if they practice Reiki. Reiki has nothing to do with witchery. In fact, I don’t even know what witchery involves, but it sure as heck has nothing to do with Reiki. Could witches practice Reiki? I guess. But so can anyone who decides to get trained in Reiki. An office worker, a banker, a doctor, or a stay-at-home parent could too, just to name a few examples. When I say anyone can learn Reiki, I genuinely mean ANYONE. Anyone can learn a basic level of Reiki for self-healing. It’s just like first-aid but in the form of energy treatment.
Doing Reiki Or Getting Reiki Doesn’t Mean You’re Psychic
One of the biggest misconceptions is that through Reiki, we’re able to receive psychic information. I’ve been in touch with Reiki for over twenty years, and I would never call myself a psychic or offer any psychic services. I can’t channel information between living beings or the deceased. That is not the gold standard of any qualified Reiki practitioner, let alone any Reiki Master Teacher. I’m using myself as an example, but all the other Reiki teachers and students we’ve trained know that there isn’t a Psychic 101 course as part of a Reiki training. They are two very different things. Perhaps the Reiki practitioner or any person may be naturally gifted in that department and can channel such information. Still, I’d like to be clear and say that it’s not a given for every Reiki practitioner to be. Reiki doesn’t equal psychic powers or talent. In fact, it’s quite rare to come across a true psychic.
Instead of a psychic gift, what I have is very strong intuition and it took a lot of years and dedication to cultivating. We all have some level of intuition, it’s just whether we’re willing to work with it, turn it up or not. As I am able to feel the energy move in the body, I am able to feel blockages and resistant points, and what the body is communicating with me during a Reiki session.
If a person has been properly trained in Reiki level two, they would be able to learn how to have basic communication with the person receiving Reiki’s body through a form of biofeedback, a way of communicating with the body and receiving information from it such as if there are extra things a person can do, or drink, eat, do to support the healing of that person and his or her condition. It’s a form of intuition we can learn to develop through this safe and structured training.
Reiki Isn’t An Equal Alternative To Western Medicine
I know some people are very comfortable with pure Western medicine, and there’s also quite a large population of people who prefer to practice natural remedies only. However, there are things limitations to both Reiki and Western medicine on their own.
For example, Reiki treatments alone would not be an equal alternative for someone with a brain aneurysm who needs surgery to remove it. Reiki is unlikely to make the entire aneurysm disappear, however, it may help massively with the side effects of having a brain aneurysm, such as reducing dizzy spells, eye discomfort, and physical pains. It could potentially reduce the swelling, therefore reducing the size of the aneurysm as well.
Alternatively, suppose someone was to go forward with surgery. In that case, Reiki can also help in the post-surgery phase as it effectively speeds up the recovery process as a natural healing tool. Many of the top medical institutions globally, such as Johns Hopkins and Mayo Clinic, offer Reiki to their patients, such as cancer patients, as a form of recovery after receiving chemotherapy, radiation, or treatments or invasive surgeries. Reiki can work alone and with some limitations in certain conditions, or it is a complementary form of healing with any form of therapy or treatment.
How Reiki Sessions Are Offered
Reiki sessions are offered through in-person appointments and remotely. In both sessions, the Reiki practitioner and client typically start with a brief chat to go over your needs or any areas of concern before moving into the Reiki treatment. It may seem odd that Reiki can be done remotely through a long-distance healing session and works just as effectively. Just as we commonly need WIFI to work from home or anywhere, all we need as qualified Reiki practitioners (Level Two or beyond) is to be able to connect via an energy network to facilitate a Distant Reiki session. I’ve often facilitated Distant Reiki sessions for clients going into surgeries, delivering a baby, for people or pets who have been involved in accidents or injuries, or for people during job interviews, during the COVID lockdown, or while in quarantine or other stressful situations. You can learn more about how Distant Reiki healing sessions work here. If you’re planning to give Reiki a try you can also read about how you can best prepare for your session here.
Getting Familiar With Reiki
What we don’t know or don’t know enough about can create some fear or apprehensiveness, as with any new or lesser-known product or service in any industry. I hope this article provides some clarity around the common misconceptions of Reiki because I get it; there are many! Just as many people have been skeptical about Traditional Chinese Medicine before, which has thousands of years of history, it’s only finding its way of becoming more widely accepted in the last few decades. And now, as integrative medicine is growing popular and preferred, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Reiki, or other well-recognized alternative therapies play significant roles in modern medicine. They are services offered at top medical institutions in the US, Europe, and major healthcare systems such as the NHS in the UK. I hope more people become familiar with Reiki eventually, just as Traditional Chinese Medicine has. You can learn more about Reiki sessions and Distant Reiki Healing sessions or schedule your first appointment here.
