Walking the Reiki Master Path

What does it mean to be a Reiki Master?

The term comes from Hawayo Takata, since it was not used in the country of Reiki's birth, Japan. In Japan, one who has received the knowledge that we call Reiki Mastership is said to have reached Shinpiden, the Mystery Level. After they learn to teach, they are simply called Shihan, teacher or instructor.

Only in the West have we used a word like Master, which implies someone who has mastered his or her subject. In practice, Reiki Master simply means that you have been attuned to the Reiki Master energy stream, known in English as the Great Shining Light or Universe. This energy is the "rei' in the word Reiki. The universal, divine, and conscious intelligence.

I did my first Reiki Master training with Marie Ciociola in October 1998. I had huge expectations of that class and what it would teach me. What I realized when I received the attunement at the class's conclusion is that I was not ready to teach right away. While I had the structure of what would be taught, I did not have sufficient experience, in my opinion, to offer a class to people. That began a journey of reading everything I could get my hands on about Reiki. I learned from this research that information about Reiki was diverse and sometimes conflicting. I realized that it would be important to give students a path on which they could walk that would give a context to the variety of schools of Reiki, but also conveying what I felt was important based on my experience as a Reiki Practitioner.

I am still working on this one, but have found some objectives that I think are important in Reiki Mastership or teaching:

• An openness to the student's unique path, even if it diverges from the teacher's experience.
• In-depth knowledge of the subject to be taught, including information, attunements, healing techniques, etc.
• Verification of the students' knowledge throughout the teaching process to make sure they are connecting with the teaching.
• Hands-on experience to the greatest extent possible.
• Connection to source in the process of teaching so that the ego does not lead, but follows.
• Healthy respect for the boundaries of the students to develop trust with them as part of setting a good example.
• Setting healthy boundaries for the class, so that all students feel safe with each other.

There are many more objectives, but the ones above, if followed, will assist in creating a class that your students will want to attend.

There is a link on the title above to our page at http://www.reikicenter.info/ that describes what is included in our center's Reiki classes. I hope you check it out.