The first level of Reiki is a straightforward hands on modality. The practitioner places his hands on the client's body at prescribed positions.

1. On the head: eyes, temples, ears & back of the head.

2. On the body: at the diaphragm, the stomach, the abdomen, on the pubic bone (in a V), and the creases of the legs, and finally on the Sternum (Heart).

3. On the back: at the shoulders, midback, lower back and coccyx. These are the usual positions used by Chuyjiro Hayashi, his student Hawayo Takata and most Reiki channels.

According to some recent information, these may not have been the positions that Mikao Usui used. There are, in any case, a number of variations on these hand positions. Sometimes the joints of the arms and legs are Reiki'd, as well as the collarbone area.

I have been taught to avoid the top of the head, the spine, and the throat area so as not to interfere with the flow of Qi in the body.

Both client and channel may feel certain sensations that indicate that energy is flowing, although both may not feel it in quite the same way. You may feel a sensation of strong heat, a tingling, a sensation of electricity, or cold. It is also possible you may feel a wave of emotion at some point, like anger, sadness, or you may even get the giggles. I usually recommend that clients allow these emotions to come out as this means the energy is working. Many clients report a feeling of bliss, or of deep relaxation.

If you feel nothing at all, and this is possible, it doesn't mean the Reiki isn't working. It just means it isn't manifesting physically. You probably will get something later. Not everyone needs physical healing or physical proof that the energy is working. Remember, Reiki energy goes to its highest level. Your healing may not have anything at all to do with the body, or even your emotions. It may be your job, your relationship, your lifestyle, your habits, or even your car that needs to change for healing.

Reiki honours the body's own homeostatic tendency to heal itself. The body, in fact, is extremely wise about its own healing. It invariably heals things in priority order, like an emergency room. What you and your own body think are usually two different things. If you and your body were in sync, you probably wouldn't be getting sick in the first place, or even stressed. Most often, we ignore our own body and feelings until it's too late and we need help.

It is not the practitioner who projects the energy, it is the client who draws the energy through relying on the wisdom of both the Reiki energy and the body's innate ability to heal itself. Even if the practitioner wanted to, he could not project or direct the energy to go anywhere or do anything.

We are taught to 'listen' to our hands. After many treatments practitioners become sensitive to how the energy feels as it flows through and can tell when it switches off. This is the signal to move on to the next position. There is no time limit. At each position the commitment is made to stay as long as there is need. After all, it is the client who draws the energy and who knows best what is needed for healing. Sometimes one can get stuck on a position. This is perfectly OK.

In most cases, a Reiki treatment, done by a single Channel, takes about an hour. In our classes we are taught to honour the practice as it was taught to our teacher and as she has taught it to us. We do the hand positions, in order, not skipping any. We are taught to resist the impulse to follow our 'intuition' and divert from the 'journey'. Reiki energy goes to the root cause of any disharmony. Physical ailments almost always have an emotional or mental root. According to Wholistic Medical practice, all physical ailments occur in the energetic bodies before they descend into the physical body.

According to Reiki principals, when the emotional, mental, or spiritual disharmony is resolved, the physical symptom disappears. In our classes we spend a fair amount of time discussing the metaphysics of disease and disharmony. Everything in the physical and seen world, the theory goes, has its counterpart in the metaphysical and unseen world. The reverse is also true.

Reiki is a genuine wholistic practice in that the energy flows upward through all the energetic bodies bringing harmony and balance to the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels of our being. This is why we refer to it as an 'energy of wholeness.'

In this context, physical diagnosis is mostly irrelevant. Reiki practitioners rarely diagnose and in fact are forbidden to do so by the Canadian Reiki Association. This makes sense, since the point of diagnosis in most practices is for the purpose of designing a treatment. Reiki practitioners only have one basic treatment. Even so, some practitioners have in fact designed particular hand positions to deal with specific conditions. The recent publishing of the notebooks of Mikao Usui, and Chujiro Hayashi, show that they did, in fact, diagnose and treat specific physical conditions.

Since the view is that physical symptoms are simply manifestations of higher energetic disharmonies, the general practice is to balance the flow of energy to activate the body's own innate healing ability regardless what the actual physical symptom is. When in doubt, a Reiki practitioner can always cover all the bases and give the full body treatment.

In most cases you will experience a deep feeling of relaxation and peace while the energy is flowing through you. It is not necessary for you to believe that Reiki will work for it to do so. But it is always a good idea to be open to the possibility. In my experience, Reiki works even on those who believe strongly that it is nonsense. I know some people who continue to deny its effect, even after their symptoms have disappeared. Reiki is not placebo medicine.

Reiki produces healing in a wholistic and natural way. If you have had or are planning to have a Reiki treatment, I recommend that you check out the 'Healing Crisis' page. You may have that experience.

Most recently, I have begun to ask my clients to give themselves and me permission to heal. Even in wholistic practice, no one heals against their will. This was one of Usui's clear lessons. Not everyone wishes to heal. For this reason he established the principal that Reiki should not be given away for free, but must be paid for in some manner by an exchange of energies. In the West, this usually means money, since money is one physical expression of energy which is also a method by which we measure value. But it is not the only measure, or the only physical manifestation. At Compassionate Dragon Healing, no one will be turned away for lack of money, but some commitment and some exchange of energy must be made.

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Happiness has nothing to do with wealth and status, but it is a matter of balance and harmony - Lao Tzu.

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