The Usui System of Natural Healing Reiki (Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki)
Reiki’s teaching history is one of oral tradition. Training is passed, in person, from Reiki Master to each student. An important aspect of the training is the development of a personal relationship between the student and a Master. This relationship offers the student support in their Reiki practice for as long as they remain a student of that Master.
Each student’s Reiki practice is a personal one and, by its nature, is functional. Reiki is not abstract or academic; nor is it a belief system. Reiki itself, and the experience of the student’s practice of it, becomes the teacher.
Reiki Levels and Attunements
There are three levels of Reiki training. Each level serves different functions in Reiki practice, so there is no validity in thinking the higher the training level the “better.” Each level is achieved through an attunement process that involves initiations during classes, allowing a student to automatically “attune” with the healing vibration of Reiki energy. These initiations are given in ceremonial acts by the Master to each student. Each initiation has its own meaning, and each initiation is necessary to be attuned to the energy in an everlasting way.
Currently, because there are no state-mandated requirements or licensing, Reiki classes and certification differ among Reiki branches and teachers. Usui System of Natural Healing Reiki students do receive a certificate from their Teaching Master, stating that the necessary training for each Reiki level has been successfully completed.
Reiki I Level (First Degree Reiki)
The function of Level I training is in the physical realm. Reiki is presented simply: Hands on, Reiki on…Hands off, Reiki off. The Reiki hand positions are taught and practiced, first on self and then on others, following the form of a full Reiki treatment.
During the first session of class the Teaching Master relays the oral history of Reiki as told to by her master. Next, the Teaching Master demonstrates the hand positions for self-treatment as the students practice along with her. Students begin their training with self-healing because it is considered central to all Reiki practice – first use Reiki for yourself, and then for others.
In the second session of the class, focus switches to treating others and the Teaching Master demonstrates the hand positions on the head area and discusses them, allowing time for questions. Each student then practices giving and receiving Reiki with the head positions. Using the same format, the third session covers the chest/stomach/torso area; and the fourth session covers the back positions. As the hand positions correspond to most of the major organs, glands and systems of the body, the Teaching Master briefly reviews those basic functions. By the end of the first level training, students have both given and received a full Reiki treatment.
Instruction usually takes place in a two to four day period, presented in four three-hour sections, each section followed by an initiation to attune students, reconnecting them with their own natural healing ability.
My students receive a copy of my Teaching Master Penelope Jewell’s book Reiki, A Guide to Your Practice of Reiki Healing Energy. At the end of the training class, each student receives a certificate of training. The fee for Reiki Level I training is $225
Reiki II Level (Second Degree Reiki)
While after Level I training Reiki occurs automatically when placing the hands on the body, Level II training involves learning a conscious use of Reiki. Students receive in-depth instruction and generous time for practice with Reiki symbols. Learning to use these three Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki symbols includes committing them to memory and holding them with respect by not writing them again nor showing them to others.
One of the functions of Level II training is to increase and focus the flow of Reiki in a physical, hands-on treatment. Students also learn to use the symbols to work beyond the physical and to send Reiki energy in a focused way to a person or situation in any time or space, as if a physical treatment were being given.
The student needs to have developed a strong self-practice of Reiki for a minimum of three months and have given and received at least three full Reiki treatments.
The second level of training is usually taught in three sections over a span of several days and includes a deeper initiation by the Reiki Master. At the end of the training class, each student receives a certificate of training. The fee for the second level of training is $500.
Reiki Master Level (Third Degree Reiki)
One of the functions of the Master level is to transfer to another the ability to access Reiki energy This is accomplished through the initiation process at a training class. In addition to teaching classes, a Reiki Master maintains a strong personal self-practice, and if so called, trains other Masters.
Typically, Master Training in the Usui System of Natural Healing is conducted over a minimum three-year period of time. During that time, the student studies in an apprenticeship to a Teaching Master. The Master Candidate will both sponsor and attend as many Reiki classes with the Teaching Master as possible, learning to integrate the teachings and oral tradition.
The Reiki Master’s path involves developing personal mastery, i.e., being in integrity by living congruently with one’s personal values. It is a commitment to that goal that must be acknowledged before a student advances in Master training. Being a Master is a way of life, a path chosen in answer to a call to share the ability to share Reiki with others. Masters commit their personal and professional lives to the healing art of Reiki and the lifestyle in engenders.
My Teaching Master Penelope Jewell writes that for a Reiki Master, “What is the Masterful thing to do? is a constant question, until the concept is internalized and becomes the approach for all decisions dealing with the world. This practice is a life-long path, a daily attitude (as in trajectory), not a goal that is reached at any particular time. We all do the best we can from wherever we are, and if we fall short of our own expectations, we begin again.”
The Teaching Master and the Master Candidate agree to a lifetime commitment to their relationship. The fee for the Usui System of Natural Healing Reiki’s Master level of training is $10,000.
For currently scheduled Reiki Level I or II training workshops, see Anne’s blog on this website. To host a Reiki training workshop, email Anne@ReikiTexas.info or phone (830)739-5828.
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