Reiki

We are all made up of energy. Ancient cultures all believed that all living things carried a life force energy within them.

Traditional Chinese medicine refers to it as Chi, which means vital life force 

Ayurvedic medicine refers to it as Prana

The Japanese have something called Reiki-  Rei  means universal Ki means energy.

A Reiki practitioner harnesses and channels the universal lifeforce healing energy through a holistic hands-on healing technique that helps the body to heal itself.

The origin of Reiki can be traced back to ancient Tibet, thousands of years ago. It was then re-discovered in the mid 1800’s by Dr. Mikao Usui , a Japanese Buddhist Monk in a cave on Mount Karuma, Japan. In a search for enlightenment, he decided to meditate and go on a fast for 21 days. On the 21st day he had visions of Sanskrit healing symbols come to him giving him the inspiration to develop his practice and teachings of Reiki based on these symbols.

Dr. Usui believed (and so I), that we are all responsible for healing ourselves and that being well and in balance is a matter of attitude and receptivity.

He realized that people worry, hold on to anger and resentment and focus on what they don’t have and don’t appreciate what they do have. So as a result, a Reiki treatment is only as effective as an individual’s willingness to be healed.

 It’s a gentle, non-invasive technique that promotes relaxation and stress reduction. The practitioner guides their hands along the body, sometime a few inches off of the body, to scan for any feeling of blockages in the body. The practitioner is very in tune to this and can feel heat or sometimes coolness and will just hold their hands in that spot as long as their intuition tells them it is needed. The hands become hot as the energy flows through the practitioner’s hands.  

A treatment usually last between 30 and 60 minutes. It can be a deeply transformative experience as it puts you into a meditative state and some people feel as if they are floating or see all kinds of colors. Everyone’s experience is unique.

It brings your body into balance, harmony and wholeness, which is necessary to achieve optimal health and wellness. It also provides a sense of emotional well-being as well as physical.

When a person’s Chi or energy is out of balance and blocked, it creates disease, pain and even emotional suffering.  Performing Reiki on the energy blockage helps the energy to start flowing properly again.  Reiki works with the body’s natural system to enhance healing and regenerative capabilities and to strengthen the immune system by gently re-aligning the person’s energetic function.

5 Effects of Reiki

• Brings deep relaxation
• Dissolves energy blockages and vitalizes the Chakra centers
• Detoxifies
• Supplies healing universal life-force energy
• Increases the vibrational frequency of the body

Dr. Usui came up with Five Principles of Reiki to help people learn to open themselves up to the healing and to integrate the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual healing as well.

Reiki Principles

Just for today….do not worry

Just for today…..do not anger

Just for today…earn your living honestly

Just for today….be kind to every living thing

Recently, the International Association of Reiki Professionals adopted a new, updated version of the principles to have a more positive affirmation kind of feel to it.

The modified principles are as follows.

Just For Today:

I release angry thoughts and feelings

I release thoughts of worry

I’m grateful for my many blessings

I practice expanding my consciousness

I’m gentle with all beings including myself

Chakras

“Chakra” is a Sanskrit word that means wheel. It is believed that we all have 7 chakras, or wheels, of energy centers spinning within us at all times, starting at the base of the spine all the way up to the top of the head. Each possessing its own color and vibrational frequency.

The Chakras were first discovered by Indian yoga practitioners over 3000 years ago and the beliefs and understanding of them have evolved over the years.

The first book to be written in the English language about the chakras was by a British man named Sir John Woodroffe in 1918, called “The Serpent Power” (he used Arthur Avalon as a pen name), He wrote about a 6-chakra system.

Then in 1927 another British writer and clairvoyant, C.W. Leadbeater published “The Chakras”. He wrote a out a 7 chakra system and referred to them as “force centers that are points of connection at which energy flows from one vehicle or body of a man to another”.

As a clairvoyant, he had the rare ability to see the chakras as “saucer-like depressions or vortices in its surface.”

Judith Anodea was a young American yoga practitioner in the 70’s and she wrote “Wheels of Life” and more recently, “Chakra Yoga” .

I have become very interested in learning about the chakra systems in our bodies. Learning about how each one pertains to different aspects of our lives, affecting each organ, every emotion and belief and how they affect the way we act and feel has been an amazing process for me. Learning how to balance each chakra is a therapeutic process. It is always changing and evolving, because we are always developing and adapting to new experiences. I believe chakra balancing is the best form of therapy!

1st is the Root Chakra –  Red – deals with being grounded, security, survival, prosperity

2nd – Sacral – Orange – Sexuality, Open Expression, Creativity,Intimacy, Friendships

3rd – Solar Plexus – Yellow – Will Power, Self-Esteem, Confidence, Ability to Accept Others

4th – Heart – Green – Unconditional love, Compassion, Healing, Trust, Harmony

5th – Throat – Blue – Communication, Expression, Independence, Ability to speak your truth

6th- Third Eye – Indigo- Higher Mind, Conscious Perception, Dreams, Intuition and Intellect

7th – Crown – Violet – Self-Realization, Human Perfection, Awareness of Eternal Self, Spirituality

Assessing The Chakras

A great way to measure or assess someone’s chakras to see if they are over-active or under-active is by using a pendulum as a tool to observe their energetic spin. Each chakra has a vortex of energy above your body. Have them lay flat on their back with their eyes closed and relaxed and hold the chain of the pendulum draped over the side of your forefinger, with your other fingers folded closed. Dangle the pendulum 2-3 inches above the body over each chakra. If the pendulum rotates clockwise, this means that chakra is open and functioning optimally. If it rotates counterclockwise the chakra is blocked.

Sometimes it will rotate in a elliptical shape – when the ellipse is slanted to the right (looking down on the person from overhead) this means that chakra has a more masculine energy, toward the left is feminine.

I love using this rainbow chakra stone pendulum.

You can purchase a similar one from Amazon here

Reiki Meditation

If you’re feeling out of balance, low energy, lack of motivation, anxious and stressed out or seem to always be getting sick, try balancing your Chakras with a guided meditation. Put on your headphones and take a listen to my guided Reiki Healing Chakra Meditation :

Follow me on Instagram @Holisticlivingwithkaren to sign up for my free Distant Reiki healing sessions!

Disclaimer – This guide is in no way a replacement of medical advice. It is not intended to treat any medical conditions. 

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