The Reiki Plain and Simple On-line
Book, this site and all its contents are Copyright 1998-2001 Ó
by
Vincent Amador. The author of said material allows it to be used For
Free Use only. It is to be shared freely, without cost.
You may print copies of this work for personal use or to be shared with
students, provided that it is given in its entirety, and this copyright
message remains intact with the work. This material is not to be
republished on other webservers, websites, translated, altered or in any
other way used without the express written permission of the author.
This notice supersedes any previous notices. All rights reserved.
The Irony of Elitism
If you practice Reiki for any length of time, you will find it teaches you. Reiki is the intelligent energy of the creator and teaches those who listen to the subtle voice and lessons it gives. In an article in "Reiki News", 1975, Mrs.Takata described Reiki as "....Universal Life Energy, It is not a Religion.....this great source which surrounds us - the Universe. There is endless and enormous energy. It is universal.... Its ultimate source is the Creator....... It is nature, It is God, the power he makes available to His children........
This is a very beautiful and concise definition. In Frank Petter's latest book, "Reiki: The Legacy of Dr. Usui", There is a section containing an interview with Dr. Usui. In it, Usui states that Reiki is for all and that is why it cannot be owned by any one person. For those that think that their lineage or tradition is superior to all others, I strongly encourage you to re-read the section above, and to go buy Petter's excellent book and then reflect on what you read.
If you spend any length of time in the "Reiki Community", either in the real world, or on-line, you will find many different practices, and attitudes prevalent. You will find many many caring professionals and practitioners who love Reiki, and enjoy healing others with reiki, and teaching reiki to others. Sadly, you will also encounter some of the following attitudes:
1. My lineage is more (choose one of the following) "true", "pure", "more direct", (other word for superior).
2. Your teaching is incomplete, you did not learn in the (choose one of the following) "traditional", "non-traditional", "method from Japan", "teachings from Takata", (other word for "my" system).
3. Your teaching/training was of (choose one or more of the following) "insufficient time", "insufficient length", "with an inadequate teacher", "with insufficient time to practice".
4. Your Master class was (choose any of the following) inferior because, "you did it one weekend", "you did it in less than a year", "you did not pay ten thousand dollars", "you did not have enough follow up with your teaching Master", "you were trained free", "you cannot be truly a master because you are not adequately prepared to teach".
5. You are not practicing the Usui System because (choose any of the following) "you received distant attunements", "you trained with Master "X" and everyone knows he/she doesn't practice true Reiki".
6. My system of reiki is superior because (any or
all of the following) "it is more powerful", "more deeply penetrating",
"heals on a deeper level", "is higher vibrational", "has extra secret symbols
revealed only in my style", "has extra secret symbols we discovered in
Japan and Tibet and they increase the power of all the others"...............
(and on and on ad nauseaum)
The above reflect statements made by other reiki practitioners and masters posted all over the web on newsgroups, e-lists and bulletin boards. I am sure, given sufficient time and inclination that I could find more of these. It would seem that those holding these beliefs espouse the "I know better" school of thought and some type of a striving for Superiority. Perhaps I am incorrect in my feeling of the situation here,....perhaps it is possible to be zealous about something without making the implication that the other is less than your practice..... Perhaps even in writing these words I am making the same judgement..... And at the same time, the issue needs to be addressed.... I have seen that when the people, who make statements like those above, are confronted, you might see them profess to be concerned that Reiki should be held to the "highest standards", "minimum requirements", and all sorts of other arguements which in the end are always some form of "I know better, and your practices are insufficient to my higher (and therefore superior) standards". Some others will even try to use the opportunity to point out to you "your insufficiencies" and the need for you to "look at your motivations and beliefs". Yet another irony, i suppose, in people again confusing spirituality and psychotherapy and reiki and using it to beat people up, or down as the case may be. Remember the Usui Reiki Principles...... "Be Kind to all People".
I believe very strongly that all Reiki Practitioners should be properly trained. I also belive that they should practice Reiki and be proficient before they attempt to teach others. However, I do not believe that I am the arbiter of what "good training" is. People need different things and there are masters and styles to fill in all those needs. I am not in any position to judge any other Reiki Channels ability to do, or teach reiki, especially over the web from postings they make on bulletin boards and lists. It is also an acknowledgement that everyone makes or creates their own Karma. If people set out to be dishonest in their credentials, or ability, they create their own problems. The public needs to be able better informed about Reiki, Reiki practice, how to tell who is what they say they are and other consumer information. That is what this site is about. Consumer information.
These days, it seems that the biggest sin in spiritual circles is to be judgemental. There is some irony in the fact that to hold any of the above mentioned beliefs, irrelevant of motivation, is itself judgemental. Some people are proud of their judgemental beliefs, proudly proclaiming, "Our teachers are better prepared and you cannot be a reiki master since you learned your reiki too fast and do not have "x" needed to teach...... making these bold proclaimations over the internet. Other's are quick to judge another's practices of reiki after reading a few select posts or replies on an e-list someone might have made.......... Indeed, how is it that we can be so judgemental of others from reading a few words that they say, without having seen them in person, talked with them, shared with them, discussed issues and even practiced and shared Reiki? In all instances it tells us nothing of the person they are attempting to criticise and everything about them, their attitudes and their beliefs. Perhaps even here again, I am illustrating this concept by demonstrating its use. The great Irony, is that Reiki is a wonderful practice, an intimate connection with others and the Universal LOVE life energy of the creator - of God, and we think that with our finite selves, egos and conditioned beliefs that we know better.............
The beginning of this article talked about what Reiki was, and what Mrs. Takata thought it was. Reiki is a wonderful healing art, and spiritual art, but it is not a religion. It is not enlightenment. It can not even ensure that people who practice it will even hold true to the spiritual systems they tack onto it. If you doubt the veracity of this statement I encourage you very strongly to visit alt.healing.reiki which is a newsgroup about reiki, or any of the many many reiki e-lists, bulletin boards and websites.
My suggestion would be, before you begin "judging" another practitioner's Reiki, Reiki practices, spiritual beliefs, authenticity, legitimacy or any other facet of them, that you go back to the beginning of your own Reiki Training....... to your very first lesson, when your Reiki Master shared these words with you..........
The Reiki Plain and Simple On-line Book, this site and all its contents are Copyright 1998-2001 Ó by Vincent Amador. The author of said material allows it to be used For Free Use only. It is to be shared freely, without cost. You may print copies of this work for personal use or to be shared with students, provided that it is given in its entirety, and this copyright message remains intact with the work. This material is not to be republished on other webservers, websites, translated, altered or in any other way used without the express written permission of the author. This notice supersedes any previous notices. All rights reserved.