Reiki Page Table of Contents

• My Reiki Path
• What is Reiki?
• Reiki History
• Commonly Asked Questions
• Reiki Class and Contact Info

My Reiki Path

I completed my master's degree from Fordham University School of Social Services in May of 2003. After spending three weeks in South Africa with my best friend from high school, I began working for a social service agency in the South Bronx. I absolutely love my job, but with my commute from Brooklyn and my long hours, I find I have little time for my Reiki practice. I still do self-healing and give Reiki to my husband and pets, but haven't done a full session in ages. I look forward to my time opening up a little and getting back into the practice.

I first learned of Reiki when a Buddhist friend of mine invited me to Reiki introduction evening in NYC held by Rowana Shepard. It was my senior year of college and I had been suffering from severe stress headaches. I had a particularly painful one that evening, and thought I would just get through the evening to accompany my friend. The group sat in a circle and Rowana, a statuesque Norwegian blonde, nothing what I would expect a Reiki master to look like (ha!) went around the back of us, and put her hands on each pair of shoulders in turn to give us each a demonstration of the healing.

When she came behind me, I heard her let out a soft exclamation like, "oh!" Her hands went right from my shoulders to the back of my head. It felt as if she were pulling taffy from my head. The pressure lessened and lessened until, when she was done, I felt lighter than I had in years. It felt as if she had worked on me for hours, but actually only minutes had elapsed. Immediately, I knew I wanted to learn Reiki myself.

Rowana was going home to Europe for months and I held onto her number. Months slipped by from me, and it wasn't until meeting a very powerful young Reiki practitioner, Ryan Maluski, that my interest in finding a teacher was rekindled. Working at a vegetarian restaurant at the time, I found Rachele Davis' business card on the bulletin board and called her immediately.

Less than three years later, I completed my master's training with this very sentsitive, enlightened woman and I now have the honor of passing the gift on to others.

What is Reiki?

Reiki energy is all around us. It is the universal, invisible energy that ancient civilizations knew about long before scientific modes of measuring life-force were ever dreamed. This life-force energy has been called many things in many places; in India it is Prana, in China it is Chi and in Japan it is called Ki.

In Reiki healing, the practitioner uses their inner guidance to sense where to direct life-force energy into the client. Reiki is gentle, soothing and non-invasive. The Reiki practitioner acts as a pipeline for universal life-force energy. This energy runs through all living things and nourishes our bodies all the time.

Scientists have discovered that every cell in our body is constantly striving for balance. This is called the "homeostatic tendency." Reiki energy works to amplify this mechanism. Reiki works in accordance with the wisdom of one's own body, to direct healing where it is most needed.

Reiki History

In the mid-1800's, Dr. Mikao Ushui began the quest for the rumored metaphysical healing ability of the Buddha. The legend of the Buddha, or Prince Siddhartha, was that he grew up extremely wealthy and very sheltered. When he finally witnessed and understood the depth of suffering that existed all around him, he forsook all worldly comforts and trappings in order to pursue spiritual enlightenment.

Prince Siddhartha dedicated the rest of his life to living and knowing peace in order to pass the secret onto others and eventually release all beings from all suffering.

Dr. Ushui traveled all over Japan, engaging priests and monks at various monasteries in esoteric conversation about the Buddha. What he learned was that at some point, Buddhism turned completely to the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment and neglected the body as less important. The healing secret seemed lost out of old disuse.

Finally, Dr. Ushui arrived at a Zen monastery where a head monk, intrigued by the search, invited him to stay on and study. There, Dr. Ushui learned Chinese and Sanskrit, so that he could read the ancient texts directly, to realize them in their pure form. After laboring over many old tomes, he found what he was seeking in an ancient Indian Sutra. He found the formula for divining the healing secret of the Buddha.

Dr. Ushui climbed Mt. Kori-yama and for three weeks he fasted, keeping deep in meditation the entire time. At the end of the 21 days, Dr. Ushui received a vision in the form of a bright light. As it came closer from the horizon, he understood that this light had consciousness. He received notification that this light contained the knowledge and healing ability he had been searching for. He then knew that it would first hit him in the third eye chakra and he would either gain enlightenment, or die. Faced with abandoning his quest, the doctor chose to be struck. When the light struck him in the forehead, he immediately lost consciousness. While unconscious, Dr. Ushui received the symbols and the attunements for what has now been called Reiki. Dr. Ushui attuned 16 masters before his death in 1930.

One master, Dr. Chujiro Hayashi, a retired naval officer, was named the keeper of the legacy. He passed his own mark on Reiki. He added the standard hand positions, the 3rd attunement level, and he opened the first Reiki clinic. He also initiated the first women into the tradition: his wife, and Hawayo Takata.

Hawayo Takata was the daughter of Japanese immigrants and was born in Hawaii in 1900. She had a difficult life. Her husband died when she was only 30 and she was left to raise her two children single handedly. In 1935, she began suffering from numerous aliments, including several abdominal pains and a lung condition. Completely overwhelmed, she had a nervous breakdown. Soon after, when her sister died, she was responsible for returning to Japan to notify her parents, who had moved back to Japan. While in Japan, she finally admitted herself into a hospital. The doctors there diagnosed her with gallstones, appendicitis and a tumor.

After resting for a few weeks, Takata finally consented to the operation her doctors deemed necessary. While on the operating table, before given anesthesia, she heard a voice telling her that the operation was not necessary. There was no one in the room with her, and she had never heard voices like that before. After hearing it, she was moved to action. She got off the table and told her doctor she refused to have the operation. She knew she still needed help, so she asked her doctor if there was any other option besides surgery. He suggested she visit Dr. Hayashi at his Reiki clinic in Tokyo.

Dr. Hayashi's staff began treating Takata immediately. Using Reiki guided intuition, they came up with approximately the same diagnosis as her medical doctors. In less than 4 months of daily Reiki treatments, she was completely healed of her ailments. She was thus inspired to learn the Reiki process for herself. At first, she was told the Reiki was only a Japanese tradition, and could not be taught to an outsider. However, Dr. Hayashi realized that the coming war would take most of the men away to battle, and decided to pass the tradition on to Takata so that she may preserve it.

Hawayo Takata and Dr. Hayashi brought Reiki to Hawaii in 1937. Between the years of 1936-1938, Takata received initiation into all three degrees of Reiki and received her Mastership. One of her most important contributions to Reiki history was the fee structure for Reiki training. Her belief was the students and patients in the "Western World" needed money to be exchanged in order to value Reiki as highly as the original masters. She subsequently brought a certain "legitimacy" to Reiki practice in the West.

Today, Reiki is gaining worldwide recognition and acclaim, even within convention medicine. Heart surgeons at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City are deploying Reiki practitioners during open-heart surgeries, and are finding it speeds the healing process. Reiki has been featured in articles in The New York Times Magazine, Life, Self and on various news programs.

From Dr. Ushui's mystical quest on a mountaintop in Japan, into a living room in the United States, Reiki has traveled far and keeps moving. My dream is for Reiki to continue to be learned and shared. With all that Reiki can do for one individually and for the global community, it would be a great tragedy to keep it shrouded in mystery and inaccessible. Spread the word, get a session, and learn it for yourself! Let's keep the tradition alive.

For more information on Reiki, I recommend checking out William Rand's International Center for Reiki Training.

Commonly Asked Questions

1. What will I feel when I receive Reiki?
   

   Everybody feels something different. The most common response someone will give me after receiving Reiki is that they feel completely relaxed and refreshed. Some people go into a deep meditative state, some feel waves of energy washing other them, and others may see colors and images. Everyone agrees they feel heat coming from my hands. One man asked me incredulously, "Are you sure you didn't just touch something hot before you touched me?" I told him I was sure :)

2. What can Reiki do for me?
   

   Reiki goes where it is most needed. If you come to a session hoping to cure an ulcer for example, your ulcer may not be reversed right away, but you may gain valuable insight as to its origin. Perhaps you will gain clarity about the dynamics of a relationship, or release some pain from the past. Soon you may feel lighter and choose to change your reactions to your relationship, or begin to take better care of yourself. Reiki always provides an immediate soothing effect, but it will go where it is most needed, and perhaps somewhere you did not expect.

3. Who should receive Reiki?
   

   Anyone who wants to receive healing in any aspect of their lives. Reiki works wonders for sore muscles, aching bones, emotional upsets, soothing a stressed out mind frame, or for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of themselves and the living energy that unites the universe.

4. How do I find a practitioner?
   

   I encourage you to find the practitioner who is right for you. Every practitioner has their own energy, and a different "vibe" they bring to the Reiki experience. Thankfully, there are enough practitioners around that you should find someone you feel comfortable with. The Internet is a great resource for finding practitioners. A more personal way is to go to the places in your neighborhood you might find a Reiki practitioner hiding: a health food store, a Buddhist zendo, a cozy, unique coffee shop, or a yoga class. Think like the person you want to meet, and they will find you!

5. Does insurance cover Reiki?
   

   Not yet!

6. What does it cost?
   

   Most practitioners charge $45 for 45 minutes, $60 for an hour and $90 for an hour and a half. I have a sliding scale for those in need and I also offer package deals for those who want to make Reiki a regular part of their lives.

7. Can Reiki ever do harm?
   

   No. Reiki can only affect you positively. One thing to remember about Reiki is that it will go where it is most needed and it will accelerate the healing process. Reiki may be confused as the root of discomfort if, for example, one had a condition that was taking a long time to heal. After receiving Reiki, the condition might change, and there may be initial discomfort, but it will always be for the benefit of the overall healing.

8. Does Reiki work on animals?
   

   Very well! Animals are great receivers of the energy. Reiki for pets is very beneficial, especially because they have no skeptical mind watching over their healing. They receive Reiki directly and deeply. Reiki can be given to inanimate objects as well. A very nice gift, for example, is a pair of candles that have been filled with Reiki energy. They will release Reiki into the room as they burn. Or, one can give Reiki to a room to clear negative energy, or to reenergize the space.

Reiki Class and Contact Information

At the time of this update (11/2005), I am not conducting any classes, nor workshops. Healing sessions are still available evenings and weekends in New York City.

You can schedule an appointment, by calling 914-738-0064, or emailing jenariel@infinitywellness.com.

Housecalls and gift certificates are available. I also make housecalls for your furry friends (and ones with feathers, scales, shells...)!

SAS Navigation

Fordham GSSS Navigation