An Experiment in Teaching Reiki (Part 1 of 5)
I’ve written here before about my Reiki Journey with Frans Stiene.
I had originally started teaching Usui Tibetan Reiki in late 2004. In early 2005, I received Komyo Reiki training, and within a month of practicing it, I stopped teaching Reiki altogether. For me, the miraculous life experiences with the practice of Reiki were proceeding way ahead of my intellectual understanding of the same, and I felt that I couldn’t really teach anyone the system of Reiki with integrity, as I myself didn’t know what the heck was going on with me.
In an earlier article (The Confusion Around Reiju), we wrote that reiju is a spiritual blessing or initiation that facilitates direct experiencing of your true nature. We also described how the practices within the system of Reiki — precepts, symbols, mantras, meditation, and hands-on healing — play a role in deepening your reiju experience, whether you are a student or a teacher.
In many spiritual traditions the 5 elements of earth, water, fire, air and space are taught and used. This 5 week teleclass by Frans Stiene will explore the Japanese aspects of these elements - an excellent understanding for any Reiki practitioner and teacher interested in the Japanese influences of their practice.
How my recent shugendo training has informed my understanding of the system of Reiki. As some of you might know I recently went to Japan to train with a Japanese Shingon priest, Takeda Hakusai Ajari, who was once a Tendai monk as a disciple of the great Sakai Dai Ajari, learning about Shinto, Shugendo, Tendai and Shingon. This training has brought me different insights into the system of Reiki and Mikao Usui.
As some of you know I just spent a week in Japan deepening my own personal spiritual practice with a Japanese Shingon priest, Takeda Hakusai Ajari, who was once a Tendai monk as a disciple of the great Sakai Dai Ajari, learning about Shinto, Shugendo, Tendai and Shingon.
Lately, there has been some discussion in the Reiki community questioning whether the founder of the system, Mikao Usui, actually taught the DKM mantra/symbol in the system of Reiki. DKM is encountered in the system’s final teachings of Shinpiden Reiki Level III. Most Reiki practitioners know of DKM through the teachings of Mrs Takata who, in the late 1930s, brought the system from Japan to the West. Mrs Takata taught the DKM mantra/symbol as the last of the system’s four mantras and symbols. Those questioning the DKM’s origins stem from the lineage of Mrs Yamaguchi.
