I'll be listing answers to common reiki questions on this page as they come up, whether by my experience as I heal, teach, or as I receive them from hopeful present and/or future students.


1. What about reiki symbols in Usui Shiki Ryoho?


I personally DO NOT use any symbols, and Dr. Usui did not use them either. Symbols were added later on (people like to complicate things, don't they?). I have deleted all symbols from my manuals.

2. Do I really need to spend much time, even hours on a client?

No. It's better to spend 5-6 minutes (no more than 8 minutes) per problematic area, totaling no more than 12-15 minutes on the whole body. This is because it WILL deplete your energy and the recipient (the person receiving the healing) becomes overly saturated with energy. Also, a healer may have more than one gifting (may have other spiritual gifts besides healing) and by depleting your energy, you are taking energy away that would normally go into the exercising of your other gifts. If the gift of healing is the only gifting that you have (that you know of), then it's possible for you to spend more time on healing your client.

It's also a good idea to not perform daily healings on a single individual for the same reason (over saturation of the problem area). An accumulation of energy can cause pain rather than alleviating it. I've had this experience with some clients. Healings can be done every other day or in three (3) day intervals.


It's also better to not hold more than 2 healing sessions per day (again, unless healing is your ONLY spiritual gift. If so, then you're free to do a couple more sessions on other clients).

3. How much time should be spent on distance healings?

The same time as stated in Question #2, but add a couple of more minutes. You're adding more time because some energy IS lost during a distance healing as it travels to the recipient, so you need to add some minutes to compensate for the loss.

4. Are reiki and/or other spiritual or energy healing techniques different from each other?

No, all healings are spiritual or energy based. The only difference is the technique used. Learning one type of energy healing modality over another WILL NOT give you an added advantage, nor will learning more than one energy healing modality. You are only learning different techniques in using the same energy.

5. How many healers can be used at a time to work on a client?

No more than two healers at a time is recommended. The same goes for distance healings. This is also due to the over saturation of energy in the recipient's body. It's better to add healing sessions at 2-3 day intervals than to add healers to the sessions.

6. Is it true that a healer can absorb the client's pain or discomfort?



Yes, this is possible. To avoid this, you can "flick" it off your hands after a healing session or rub it off and flick your hands as if getting something off. I also "command" the negative energy, dis-ease or discomfort I may have picked up from the client off my hands as I do the above. I also do the same to the client. I flick off any negative or blocked energy that may remain on the client and command it out. It's like putting intention into words and action. Intention is very powerful in performing a healing.



7. How long has Energy Healing of any kind been around?



Energy Healing has existed since the beginning of Mankind. It was widely used by most people, including children, in all cultures of the world. It's use came to an almost complete halt at the time of Abraham (of the Old Testament), when most people forgot about using their healing abilities. This was due to the fact that people moved on to other parts of the world, separating themselves from their tribe elders, so the knowledge of healing could not be passed down to the younger generations. It was then reawakened a little over 100 years ago by Dr. Mikao Usui (Usui Sensei), when he was "enlightened" to the fact that this form of healing did, in fact, exist, and that it was available for ALL of Mankind to learn and use, not only for a special select group.



8. What about using crystals to aide in healing?



Crystals, though beautiful and do retain some energy, they really don't aid in healing. The use of crystals adds more of a "mystical," New Age quality to a session, but they really don't work to heal nor to amplify energies. Reiki is complete in itself and needs no help.



9. Does reiki REALLY attract money?



Reiki is used for HEALING the physical, mental and spiritual; NOT for healing the pocket or purse.



10. What about reiki "guides?"



I know of only ONE reiki Guide, and it's the actual Creator and Source of the energy who guides me, and it's the same Guide that Dr. Usui followed. There should also be NO "channeling" nor "medium work" with traditional Usui reiki of any sort. Any other guides or entities other than the Original Creator and Source of traditional Usui reiki were added later on by either one of Dr. Usui's (or his students') students, or by creators of other modern branches of reiki.



11. What about the Gassho Meditation or doing Gassho before and after a treatment?



Gassho does NOT have to be done before, during, nor after a reiki treatment nor attunement. This is just a Japanese custom to show reverance to one another, and since Dr. Usui was Japanese he would, of course, have done this. Gassho is when you place your hands together in prayer form and bow. One greets another person this way.



12. I've heard that Dr. Usui would also tap or blow air from his mouth on the areas he was treating. Is this so?


Not so. Dr. Usui would only lay hands on people. He was so full of the Spirit that many times all he had to do was merely touch a person and they would almost immediately become healed. We don't see much of this kind of almost instantaneous healing in modern times, but it still does exist. There are a few healers (including some genuine faith healers) who are able to do this.


13. Can the suffering in the world be decreased by sending out our reiki energy?


Though it's a beautiful and noble idea to send out reiki for world peace and to decrease suffering, it doesn't do anything at all. Reiki IS an intelligent energy, BUT it MUST be sent directly to a recipient. It cannot be sent out indiscriminately into the air and expect it to fall where it's needed. That's not the way reiki works!!! People who do this are just depleting their own energy and the energy is floating around the Earth being wasted.


One good thing that CAN come out of this is if ALL of the people in the world who did reiki sent out in unison reiki into the air, a beautiful aurora borealis would be created, but peoples' energy would still be depleted.

My opinion is that the best way we can help with world suffering is to teach others around the world (especially in war-torn and starving countries) reiki, preferably free. Then we will really be loving our neighbors around the world and helping them to help themselves heal.



14. Does my attitude as a healer interfere with my reiki healing session?



OMG, yes!!! If one comes with an egotistical attitude (like, "look at me!"), don't expect a great healing session. You may feel "performance-related anxiety" which will just leave you feeling tired and icky. Always try to work with an "attitude of gratitude" for the gift you have been so graciously given and that now you can share with others who are suffering. A humble attitude can work miracles!



15. Can things like Feng Shui and similar techniques help me with reiki?



Let's see ..., except for rearranging your office furniture and getting better lighting, I'll have to go with NO for that. As stated before, reiki is an intelligent energy and it's Creator and Source is the most intelligent being in the universe (and beyond). He needs no help. Nothing can be added to reiki to make it more than what it is. Just practice reiki as much as possible, and if you're a teacher, pass on your knowledge to as many people as possible. Then you will become better and have a more rewarding life.



16. What about performing a reiki room cleansing?



I personally think that this is a great idea, especially if you have an office with much traffic, or if you're using or renting someone else's room to heal or teach reiki. Since you never really can tell what kind of energies may be attached to a person before you do a healing on them; nor what kind of energies the people who use a rented area have clinging on them, I believe that it would be good to clear the room with reiki before AND after using it. This can clear the area of negative energies and also balances them before and after the healing session(s).



17. Can anyone be too young or too old to receive reiki?



I'll tell you what the Creator and Source of the energy told me when I asked Him the same question, "never think that anyone is too young nor too old to receive reiki." Even people who are upon their deathbed can leave this earthly realm more peacefully after receiving a good old dose of reiki.



18. What other things can reiki do, besides healing?



Besides healing, reiki can also balance energies in our bodies and in a room. That's all. It WILL NOT help you see auras nor past lives nor anything else. Any claims of this is not so! They are using some other method. Again, reiki is only meant for healing, balancing and clearing negative energies.



19. I'm a Christian, but my church is against reiki healing. What can I do in this case?



In this case, I suggest you follow the voice of your conscience and go where you are accepted. If God created the sun, the stars, and other things in the world so that all of mankind, Christian or not, could enjoy it, He also created spiritual healing so that all could enjoy health. It's very prideful for a small group to think that the practice of certain gifts are for them only. Jesus WAS the Master and example of reiki-style healing! He laid his hands on people and they became healed immediately (and almost immediately).

Reiki is NOT a "New Age" teaching, as many Christians suppose. God, in his love and mercy for all mankind, had given this gift to all humanity after the Fall of Adam and Eve so humans of all cultures could heal each other.



20. Some have told me (especially my Christian brothers) that if I'm charging to teach healing or to heal somebody, I sin because I'm selling a gift that God gave me. Is this true?



Anything that is a gift from our Creator, God, should not have a price attached to it, unless He allows us to charge temporarily for it until we find other gainful employment. A pastor is paid a salary, or from the congregation's tithes, to preach and to shepherd his flock, and they shouldn't be receiving a salary. Missionaries are sent money to preach the gospel in other lands and to care for their families. When a pastor or evangelist goes from place to place to preach, an offering is gathered to pay them for their work and/or time. In some churches some Sunday School teachers are paid a small salary. All these ministries should only receive donations to make their work possible, but not as salaries. Everyone in Christian ministry should have other gainful employment. They need to follow the example of the Apostle Paul. He was a tentmaker and received a salary or payment from his trade. He did not want people to say that he was making money off his ministry. This will be very difficult to change now, since the great majority of ministry workers are already receiving a salary, but it's not God's preference. Donations are allowed, as long as we are not setting a donation amount. The giver should always have the choice of what amount they desire to give.


21. Is it true that I'll lose my healing power if I don't perform self-healings?


False. You may get tired if you perform too many healings without resting between healings, but you will not lose your healing power.


22. I was told that I need or can get "booster" attunements for Usui reiki.


This is a wide misconception. Boosters for reiki are totally unnecessary! Once you are a reiki healer, you don't need to be reattuned (unless you weren't properly attuned in the first place) nor do you need a booster. Once you're attuned, it's for life. If you feel that your reiki isn't working, maybe you have overdone it and need a rest. Don't perform any healings or attunements for a few days to give yourself a chance to "recharge your batteries." Everything in excess is bad.