Reiki

Traditional Reiki originated in Japan in the mid 1800's with Mikao Usui. It is said that Usui was a Christian minister who could not find enough information on the ways of the healing that was carried out by Jesus, so he moved on in his search by looking at Buddhism. 

 It is administered by the "laying on of hands" and is based on the idea that an unseen "life force energy" flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one's "life force energy" is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy.

The word Reiki is made of two Japanese words - Rei which means "Spiritual Power" and Ki which is "life force energy". So Reiki is actually "spiritually guided life force energy."

The act of laying hands is to comfort and relieve pain, and it is as old as instinct itself. The human instinct is to place a hand on an area where there is pain as the warmth conveyed aids the healing process.

Reiki practitioners have to be attuned to allow them to offer healing to others. The Reiki healer experiences a heat radiating through her/his hands to the client who receives the healing. The attunement simply opens channels that were always there.