July 2008

Email Address: Newsletter@reiki.org

It is my pleasure to send you the July 2008 edition of our Reiki online newsletter. Clicking on the links in the table of contents takes you directly to each article. To return just click on the "Return to Contents" link at the end of each section. I would enjoy your input so we can make this newsletter even more informative and valuable. Feel free use the input form toward the end of the newsletter to send any comments, questions, information or Reiki Stories that you would like to share with other Reiki people. http://www.spiritualone.com/Online/Jul08/JulNL08.htm

William Lee Rand Editor

Note: Only small portions of the hard copy Reiki News magazine appears in this online newsletter. To get all the information, you need to subscribe.

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Is Reiki Recession Proof?
by William Lee Rand

As the country deals with mortgage and other financial problems that have recently developed including the increase in gasoline prices, food and other commodities, and unemployment for some, it’s important to consider the role Reiki can play to provide solutions for these difficulties.

When difficult situations arise, it’s important that we remain in touch with our personal resources including our ability to think clearly, create effective plans and our ability to accomplish our goals. Flexibility in our thinking and the ability to see our situation from different perspectives and create unique solutions can be important assets when faced with challenging events. However, when difficulties arise, many allow stress to develop as they worry over how they’re going to solve their problems. Stress can make it difficult to think clearly and can isolate us from the skills and personal resources we need to solve our problems.

Fortunately the central feature of Reiki is its ability to release stress and create a healthy mental and emotional atmosphere from which we can more easily create the solutions we need. It’s much easier to solve our problems when we’re relaxed and have a sense of optimism and confidence within ourselves; which are results that Reiki can provide. Reiki is also able to enhance our creative skills and help us function in a more efficient and productive way. In addition, Reiki can be used to improve our intuition and sense of inner guidance which in turn can lead us to the right people and situations we need at the right time to help us solve our problems and achieve our goals.

It is during times of difficulty that Reiki is needed the most. During the recession of the early 1990’s I had just started my Reiki teaching practice, yet it expanded in spite of the difficult financial times most were experiencing. Currently many Reiki practitioners and teachers are experiencing the same thing as increasing numbers of people come for sessions to release stress and improve their ability to solve problems that come from difficult economic times. People are also taking more Reiki classes so they can give themselves treatments along with family and friends, or even create a new source of income by starting their own professional Reiki practice. Not only can Reiki provide a solution to our own problems, we can also use it to help others do the same!

The economic issues we’re currently experiencing are not a transient trend, but part of a much larger change that will result in a major shift in society. Many experts indicate that we’re beginning an economic cycle that will last 10-20 years as we end our use of fossil fuels and convert to a sustainable economy. During this time, high prices for fuel, food and other basic commodities are likely to persist.

Now more than any other time, Reiki can be of great value to us and others as well as to society as a whole. In fact it’s most important contribution may be helping people deal in a healthier way with the global transformation that’s taking place as we shift to a sustainable planetary system.

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Reiki: A Working Definition
by William Lee Rand

Our research indicates that there are at least ninty different kinds of healing now being practiced that use the word Reiki as part of their name, with more being developed all the time. This has caused confusion for some, and others have wondered just what qualifies a healing system to be Reiki. On the other hand, many think that the only kind of healing that the word Reiki should refer to is the Usui healing system. However, it must be kept in mind that the word Reiki had been part of the Japanese language for hundreds or even thousands of years before Dr. Usui used it to describe his healing system. In fact, in Japan, the word Reiki is not commonly associated with Dr. Usui’s healing system at all, but is simply a generic word that refers to the occult, to healing, or to things relating to spirit. Perhaps this is why he did not refer to his healing system as Reiki, but referred to it as Usui Reiki Ryoho to make sure people understood that his was a unique kind of Reiki.

With this in mind, how can one tell what qualifies as a Reiki healing system; and since we state that we honor all Reiki lineages and schools, what is the working definition used by the ICRT? When thinking about Usui Reiki and its unique qualities, it is possible to note a number of features that one can use in defining Reiki healing. Below is a list of four that we use as our working definition. We consider any healing system that has these four qualities to be a Reiki healing method:

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Auras and Chakras
How to detect, sense and see them.
by Penelope Quest

Reiki And Energy
Although it certainly isn’t essential to know a lot about the human energy field (auras and chakras) in order to use Reiki effectively, I find that it helps my students enormously if they first gain an understanding of thebody’s natural energy system before I begin to explain about Reiki. Of course we know that Reiki is an energy—the word means spiritual energy or universal life-force energy—and when we use it in healing, it acts holistically, affecting all of the energies which comprise the human body, or animals, or anything else in the natural world.

Einstein and later quantum physicists have explained that at an atomic level everything that exists in the universe is energy, vibrating and oscillating at different rates, and that physical matter and energy are just two forms of the same thing. Some of these energetic vibrations are very familiar to us, such as sound, light, radio waves, or
X-rays. These are all part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and from a scientific perspective the only difference between these various forms of energy is that each oscillates at a different frequency or rate of vibration. The human body, and the energy field which surrounds and interpenetrates it, is also made up of electromagnetic energy, and every person has a unique vibrational energy signature, or frequency, in the same way as we all have unique fingerprints or DNA.

The electrical output of a person’s whole body can actually be measured using an electromyograph, and some interesting research was carried out on a variety of people a few years ago by Dr Valerie Hunt, author of Infinite Mind: The Science of Human Vibrations. She recorded the output at the high-energy sites on the body known as chakras, and some fascinating results were obtained. Most people in the study registered within the normal range, around 250 cps (cycles per second). But when the tests were carried out on people who used healing energies (such as Reiki) and others who actively used their psychic ability, it was found that their frequencies registered in a band between 400 and 800 cps. Even higher frequencies–more than 900 cps - were found in people who were not only healers and psychics, but also followed a very spiritual path, regularly practising deep meditation. So when we talk about Reiki raising your vibrations there is now scientific evidence to prove that is true! *Editor’s note: Please see the interview with James Oschman in this issue.

The Human Energy Body
The physical body is something we all know about—we can see it and feel it—yet every cell within it is actually energy or light, vibrating at a slow enough rate to make it into visible physical matter. However, surrounding and interpenetrating our physical body is another body of energy made up of much finer, lighter, and higher vibrations, which is usually called the aura, the auric field, or the human energy body. This auric field is as much a part of you as your physical body–indeed your physical body is really just the densest inner layer of this flowing energy field. However, the higher frequencies of the energies that make up the aura mean it is harder to see with the naked eye, although it can be detected by some scientific equipment and a representation of the aura can also be photographed using a specially developed Kirlian camera.

In addition to the aura, our energy body contains some active energy centres known as chakras, and a range of energy channels flowing through the body called meridians and nadis. Perhaps the easiest way of understanding this is to think of the energy body in similar terms to your physical body. The aura is the energy equivalent of your whole physical body, the chakras correspond to your brain and major organs, and the meridians and nadis are similar to your veins and arteries, but instead of blood, they carry energy—Ki—all over the body.

The aura is a field of energy or light that completely surrounds the physical body above, below, and on all sides. It is made up of seven layers, with the inner layers closest to the physical body comprised of the densest energy, and each succeeding layer being of finer and higher vibrations. Most people have an oval (elliptical) aura, which is slightly larger at the back than at the front and fairly narrow at the sides, and it also stretches above the head and below the feet. Your aura is not always the same size, however, as it can expand or contract depending upon a variety of factors such as how healthy you are, how you are feeling emotionally or psychologically at any given moment, or how comfortable you feel with the people in your immediate surroundings.

This aura is spiritual energy, or life-force, which is present around each of us from birth (and before birth, as the foetus develops) until around the time of our death. (Usually just before death only a narrow band of spiritual energy remains, linking all the chakras in the centre of the body, and shortly after physical death, no aura can be detected, because the life-force no longer exists.) In a living person the outer edges and the individual layers of the aura can be detected using dowsing rods or a pendulum, and they can also be sensed with the hands. The densest layers, nearest the body, can also be seen with the naked eye by most people with a little practice, and some very psychic people can see the whole energy body quite clearly. Painters over the centuries have depicted the aura around the heads of angels, saints, and prophets as a bright golden halo, indicating their pure and spiritual energy.

Detecting The Aura
Detecting auras is the first thing I teach in my Reiki classes. Apart from being great fun, it also allows people to gain a real understanding of the concept of energy and life-force before they learn to use the higher vibrations of Reiki healing energy to permeate, clear, balance, and energise the whole energy body.

The biggest shock for most people is finding out how large the aura can be! Of course it varies from person to person and it changes from day to day, but the outer layer of the aura can be anywhere from about two metres (six feet) to twenty metres (sixty-six feet) or even further away from the person’s physical body. This means that whenever we are with other people our auras are intermingling, and whether or not we are mindful of it we are picking up signals from other people’s auras all the time.

Although we may not be consciously aware of the fact, we all use our auras as sensing devices—what you might call the eyes in the back of your head. Maybe you have experienced a strange prickling sensation at the back of your neck when someone has been looking at you from behind? Or have you ever felt particularly drawn to sit next to someone, or alternatively, felt a sense of discomfort when standing next to someone else, even though you do not know that person? This could be because your aura has already picked up either complementary or disturbing energies within the other person’s aura. Perhaps you have even been able to sense the atmosphere within a room before you have opened the door? This isn’t surprising, really, when you consider that your aura may extend far ahead of you. It is made up of finer and lighter vibrations, and it can pass through the denser energy of physical matter, so it is already in the room picking up the vibrations of other people’s auric fields.

You don’t need expensive equipment to detect the aura—as I have stated, it can be done with dowsing rods or a pendulum, and it can also be sensed or felt with the hands.

Most people have heard of dowsing only in relation to finding sources of water, but dowsing is actually much more useful than that; it can be used to find virtually anything from minerals, metals, and oil to ley(?) lines, prehistoric earthworks, magnetic north, or even lost purses! Also, most people seem to think that dowsing is difficult, or that only certain people can do it, but it’s really very easy and takes only a few minutes to learn. I know, having shown hundreds of people how to do it.

The theory behind dowsing is also simple. Dowsing rods are usually made of a Y-shaped piece of hazel wood or from pieces of metal, and the ones I use in my classes are made of old metal coat-hangers, the type you often get with your dry-cleaning garments. I imagine you would agree with me that, as far as we know, there is no intelligent life in a coat-hanger, or even in a piece of long-dead wood! So that must mean that it is the person holding the rod who is actually doing the divining, not the rod itself.

The reason for this is that we are all electromagnetic beings, and as such are excellent receivers for an enormous range of vibrations of energy—and everything in the Universe is energy, as I have already described. Everything has a unique vibrational frequency or signature, and if we tune our thoughts into the specific frequency of an object or a particular person, then that is what we find. Just as our intention is what switches on the flow of Reiki when we want to use it, our intention is all that is needed to switch on this innate skill, which is why dowsers who are looking for water find water, not precious metals or coal. The reason the dowsing rods (or pendulums) move is minute energetic oscillations in the hands of the person holding them, which the dowsing rods then amplify into a signal which can be seen—the rods moving to the left or right, crossing over each other, or opening out.

	Coat hangers can be used to dowse the Aura

Making And Using Dowsing Rods
Dowsing rods are used in pairs, and are easy to make. First, cut the hooked part off a wire coat-hanger, then cut the remaining metal in two and straighten it out, and finally make a bend of 90 degrees about a third of the length from one end of each rod. As an alternative you can buy short metal rods from plumbing or welding suppliers (bronze is good); these are often easier to cut and bend into shape. You may find it useful to put the shorter end into a free-flowing handle such as a piece of bamboo, or the plastic cover from an old ball-point pen, or better still short lengths of quarter-inch copper tubing. However, it is just as effective if you hold the metal in your hands, but you do have to hold it loosely, because if you grip it tightly it can’t move. If you prefer, you can just use a pair of coat-hangers without making them into rods. By holding the straight sides in each hand with the hooks facing away from you, the hooks can swing back and forth, although they don’t seem to provide quite the same sensitivity as rods, as they are a bit more limited in movement.

Hold the rods at about mid-chest height, about thirty cms (twelve inches) apart and fairly close to your body so that the longer edge is pointing forward horizontally. Do try to keep the rods straight out in front of you, as they don’t work well if they are dipping downward. Make sure your shoulders are really relaxed—tense shoulders inhibit the flow of energy and will stop the rods from moving.

Next you need to establish how the dowsing rods are going to demonstrate (by amplifying the signals in your hands) the energetic polarities of positive and negative. To do this you simply tune in to the energetic vibration of “positive” by either saying aloud or thinking “What is positive?” And later, “What is negative?” Just wait for the rods to react, because it is your intention that guides the flow of energy. When I'm teaching people how to dowse my favourite part is seeing the astonished expressions on people’s faces when their rods actually move!

Most people find that the rods cross over for positive, and open out for negative, but if yours don’t do that don’t worry—it's perfectly normal! They may open out for positive and cross for negative, or both rods may go to the left and then the right, or one may move and the other stay still. Sometimes they even go round and round like helicopter blades, either clockwise or anti-clockwise, although you have to move your hands further out from your body for this to happen or the rods will simply come to a stop when they hit your body or your arm. Whichever way the rods move is fine. The rods are simply amplifying the signals in your own hands. So even if they move the same way for both positive and negative this doesn’t really matter; although do persevere for a little while, as it is helpful if you can identify the differences. Once you have established how your rods demonstrate positive and negative you are ready to start dowsing for auras.

Dowsing the Aura
Holding the rods comfortably and loosely at mid-chest height, stand some distance away from the person whose aura you want to detect. Seven to ten metres (twenty to thirty feet) away would be good, but it will still work in a more restricted space, although you may not find the outer layer. Then tune in to the person’s unique energy vibrations by saying aloud or silently “I am looking for this person’s aura” (insert the name of the person). Providing you are far enough away from the person, as you walk very slowly and evenly towards them, when the rods react by crossing or opening out (or whatever reaction is normal for you) you will have found the outer edge of their aura. If you are already within that person’s aura when you start, the rods may begin to move immediately. You can stop when the rods react. Then slowly walk forward again until you reach the next area where the rods change their reaction. It is not necessary to continually reaffirm that you are looking for the person’s aura—saying it once at the beginning is enough. And so on, until you get very close to the person. But do stop before the dowsing rods crash into the person! Remember the innermost layer(s) may be only a few centimetres from the body, so you may only be able to detect five or six of the seven layers.

For the majority of people, the layers of their auras seem to be alternately positive and negative energy—not meaning good or bad, but simply indicating a different set of vibrations, similar to positive and negative polarities in magnetism. However, some people’s auric layers are all the same—all positive, or all negative—and others have the first three layers positive, and the next four negative, and so on. Occasionally I find that a person has a few particularly active layers in their aura which don’t register as positive or negative, but which when detected with dowsing rods cause the rods to circulate like helicopter blades, as I have mentioned above. Technically these layers might be neutral energy, but I prefer to call them “curly”! However, each person is individual, so there is no right or wrong in this—just as there is no right or wrong about having dark hair instead of blonde. That’s just the way it is!

Dowsing the Aura

What you may find interesting is to try detecting someone’s aura before a Reiki attunement, and then again afterwards, and compare the results. I sometimes have my students do this. To their amazement, they find that their auras have expanded to two or three times the size they were before the attunement. You need a very large space to check this out and usually will have to go outside to get enough space! It also works if you try it before and after a Reiki treatment, although the expansion isn’t usually quite so great. Another fun thing to try is detecting the auras around plants. One of my students was quite freaked out when detecting the aura of a large houseplant when he felt himself being pushed back by the plant’s aura—which I guess indicated that the plant didn’t particularly like its energy field being interfered with in that way! Plants are living beings, so if you try this, remember to ask permission first (even if you feel silly doing so); if you sense any discomfort, or even get a “no” in your head, then choose another plant.

Sensing The Aura With Your Hands
Something else you might like to try is sensing the aura directly with your hands. The easiest way is to sense your own aura between the palms of your hands. Hold your hands out in front of you with the palms facing each other, about sixty cms (two feet) apart, and intend to detect your auric energy. Remember, it is your intention that switches on the ability. Now close your eyes, so you have fewer distractions and can concentrate on any sensations in your hands and fingers, and then slowly bring your hands closer together. You may find that your palms get warm, or your fingers begin to tingle, and as your hands get quite close together you may feel a resistance between them, almost as though you have a balloon between your hands. That’s your auric energy!

	Sensing the Aura

Another exercise I use with my Reiki students is to ask them to work in pairs, with one sitting in a chair and the other standing behind them, about an arm’s length away. The one standing then puts their arms out to their sides with the palms of their hands facing forward, fingers together, at about the height of the seated person’s ears. I advise them not to hold their hands above the person’s head, or crown chakra, as this can sometimes feel quite disturbing. Then tune in to the seated person by mentally asking to detect the layers of that person’s aura. Slowly and steadily bring the hands in towards the seated person’s ears whilst being as aware as possible of any subtle sensations in their hands—warmth, tingling, a buzzing sensation, a sense of a cool breeze on their palms, a gentle pressure, or even the sense that they cannot move their hands any further because of an invisible barrier. The seated person is also asked to be aware of any sensations around their head—this is often easiest with their eyes closed—and also reassure that if it becomes uncomfortable in any way they can ask their partner to stop at once.

Why might it become uncomfortable? Because this is a much more intrusive exercise than detecting the aura with rods— although occasionally some people do feel some odd sensations when someone is deliberately walking into layers of their aura with rods, too. However, when someone is trying to detect the aura around your head it can feel quite strange, and may even cause mild—or very occasionally severe—feelings of nausea, so this exercise should never be carried out without the person’s permission. So please, no sneaking up on people from behind for a quick feel of their auras!

Obviously you should stop when your hands are very close to the person’s ears, or whenever the seated person asks you to take your hands away. Sometimes the seated person will feel a pressure around their head or considerable warmth building up; or it may make their ears feel tingly or hot. When you have completed this exercise, do share with each other what you felt, and then swap positions so you can experience it from the other perspective. I wouldn’t advise doing this more than a couple of times with the same person during a single session. The sensitivity of the aura becomes greater the more you do this, and subconsciously the seated person will try to put up greater barriers to push away the person infringing their space—sometimes enough to almost knock them off their feet! Whilst this might be seen as a fun thing to achieve, it can leave the seated person with a bit of a headache, or feeling slightly sick for a while, if it goes on too long.

Seeing Auras
The third stage of detecting auras is to learn to see them, and the easiest way is to start by seeing your own. This is accomplished most easily by holding one or both of your hands out in front of you with your fingers spread as wide apart as possible, and then gazing softly at the spaces between the fingers. The innermost layer of the aura is the densest, so this is the one most people spot first as a pale bluish, greyish, or yellowish mist around each finger, perhaps only one or two centimetres thick (about a quarter of an inch). With lots of practice you may start to see other soft colors, occasionally flashes of brighter color. Looking for other people’s auras is also fun, but please remember not to stare! Apart from being rather rude, an intensive gaze is not the best way to see auras anyway—a soft gaze, perhaps with the eyes slightly closed, is better.

Some people find it very easy to see auras. For instance, one of my students, introduced for the first time to the concept of seeing auras, realised he’d always been able to see them, but had thought it was something wrong with his sight! Others find it more difficult, but if you persevere it can be quite illuminating. You might be able to guess your partner’s mood from the colors in their aura, for instance. Or, use your skill to ascertain the feelings of other people to a suggestion you make at a business meeting. I have one friend who is particularly successful at this, and even the most practised artificial calm will not fool him—so he’s definitely not a person to play poker with!

The Chakras
Chakra is a Sanskrit word meaning wheel or vortex. There are seven major chakras in the human body located at (1) the base of the spine, (2) near the navel, (3) at the solar plexus, (4) in the middle of the chest, (5) in the throat, (6) the centre of the brow and (7) the crown of the head. In addition, there are more than twenty minor chakras, such as in the palms of the hands, on the knees, and on the soles of the feet. A healthy chakra vibrates evenly in a circular motion, resembling a funnel which is fairly narrow close to the body, but which becomes wider as it gets further out.

	The chakras can be located and measured with a pendulum

Detecting Chakras
Many people who do Reiki find it quite easy to detect and locate each of the chakras when they are scanning someone’s body before a Reiki treatment. You can also use a pendulum, which can be a crystal or a ring or some other suitable object at the end of a fine chain or length of embroidery silk or similar. In the same way as with the dowsing rods you need to tune in to the vibrations you are seeking, in this case chakras. So first, hold the pendulum still. This is easiest if your arm is supported. Silently or aloud ask “What is positive?” And then, “What is negative?” For me, the pendulum rotates in a circle in a clockwise direction for positive, and anti-clockwise for negative, but you may find that it circles the opposite way, or swings from left to right for one, and backward and forward for another.

For this exercise it is probably best to ask a friend or partner to lie down, and then hold the pendulum about five to ten cms (two to four inches) above the body. Start either above the head or above the feet, and slowly move it along an imaginary line running down the centre of the body (i.e., as if the line runs through the nose and navel). When you reach the location of a chakra the pendulum should begin to rotate or swing, although rotation is more common because the energy of the chakra is swirling like a vortex, and the pendulum tends to follow the energy. Some chakras may rotate in a clockwise direction, and some in an anti-clockwise direction, or they may all appear to be the same. However you will probably find that if you raise the pendulum to about thirty cms (twelve inches) above the body, it will rotate in a wider arc, echoing the funnel shape of the chakra’s energy which is narrower near the body and wider further away from the body.

Sometimes the chakra’s outer edge is only a few inches from the body, but it can extend up to a metre (three feet) away, depending upon the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual state of the person. A really healthy, balanced, and open chakra will make a pendulum swing vigorously. Whereas, one which is unhealthy, unbalanced, or blocked will hardly move the pendulum at all. But don’t panic if when you first start dowsing for chakras the pendulum doesn’t move much! This may simply be that you are too tense for your body’s electromagnetic energy to flow easily, which can interfere with the accuracy of the result. Again, if you try this exercise before and after a Reiki attunement or treatment, you will usually find a greater reaction from the pendulum afterwards, as the flow of energy in the chakras becomes more balanced after Reiki.

I hope this article will inspire you to have a go at detecting auras and chakras. Apart from being a really interesting thing to do, it can help to build up your sensitivity to subtle energies so that when you are using Reiki you will find it easier to be guided to those areas most in need. So have fun and enjoy!

This article first appeared in the Winter 2002 issue of the Reiki News Magazine. 

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"No" Is A Complete Sentance
by Suzanna Drozd-Kowalski

If you are a light worker of some type you have probably taken self-improvement courses. For years I had journeyed to LilyDale, NY each summer for what I would term food for the development of the soul. Then one year my step-daughter, Deanna Kowalski-Archer, surprised me with a weekend at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, NY for a Debbie Ford seminar, “Dark Side of the Light Chasers.” It was a silent weekend, except when you were in the class, and then it was an intense, knockdown, drag-out experience that left me spent, but wonderfully cleansed. I thought I had unearthed every part of my shadow self that weekend.

Well all that changed a few weekends ago when I took Karuna Reiki® Master training with William Lee Rand. During the training we were led in a deep Shadow Self meditation. A little girl appeared to me during the meditation and said, “No is a complete sentence.”

This surprising statement was the catalyst for my contemplating life in a new way. Prior to the class I was having experiences I really didn’t want to attract. At one point the tension in my office was so great that co-workers asked me if there was a way to clear the area and get rid of negative energy. It’s a fast paced office, and I think of myself as a Radar O’Reilly from “M*A*S*H.” A number of bosses funnel work down to me, and I often feel pulled in many different directions at once. At times I have needed all of the arms of Avalokitesvara to manage everything I needed to do. Stress was always the word of the day. Every morning I would do the following rituals, hoping to reduce my level of stress:

Nothing seemed to help. With hindsight, I know it was because I was focusing on stress and not on peace. Then during that Shadow Selfmeditation I had a profound experience. I was given a key to unlock a secret door to reclaiming a part of myself. A part that I had willingly handed over to other people. I had a vision of a bear, a lion, and then the girl. Having worked with shamanic ways I knew that bear is the keeper of the West and is powerful healing medicine. Karuna Reiki® is also powerful for “fine tuning” Reiki. This was to me a validation of the path I was on. So was the lion, which symbolizes the sun, courage, strength, healing, protection, and life energy. The lion also represents the mandala, a circular mystic symbol representing the universe.

The girl represented the part of me that had been trying to be heard since I was little. I asked what she needed. The reply was for me “to set boundaries and to say no. To be able to tell people what I needed from them to make things work more efficiently.” She wanted me to be able “to speak up for myself and to say no.” And here is the clincher: “not to worry if people don’t like it. That is their issue and not yours. This is what she needs. Not to be the one to solve others’ problems or to enable them to continue an unhealthy pattern of action. No is a complete sentence. It doesn’t need an explanation! It’s okay to say no when your limits are stretched to the max or less for that matter. It’s okay! You need to put you first. Your needs, then others will follow suit.”

This was profound for me. I was born under the sign of Libra during the solstice at dawn and was raised in a military family. I worry about what everyone thinks and try to keep the peace no matter what, even if it means sacrificing a piece of me. When someone would say, “Jump,” I would say, “How high?” You get the picture. So this was a whole new concept for me to digest. Wow, take care of me first. An empty nester with a blended family of eight, humm… this was definitely something for me to ponder. I imparted this newfound wisdom to my step-daughter, Deanna, my Shadow Training buddy. Her response was that I should deal head-on with my troubles; if I didn’t it wouldn’t matter what the next situation was, it would repeat itself.

It took her to remind me that the Universe will keep giving you lessons until you learn them. What I really needed was to learn this lesson. I could see that it had been easier for me to show people things than to have them experiment and learn on their own and then call me if things went awry. I was actually depriving them of their own learning experiences. No matter how time consuming it might be to learn how to un-jam a copy machine, learn where things are kept, or the alphabet in conjunction with filing and mail-drawers, it was information others needed to have. I could now see where I had enabled co-workers, my family, and others to continue habits and patterns of action that were not useful to their success in life. Why count on themselves when they could rely on me to do it better or quicker?

It occurred to me that my throat issues, including laryngitis, strep throat, swollen glands, and asthma may be somehow tied to my inability to say no. I remember at a Crystal Conference in 2004 I purchased what I thought was a Heart Chakra Crystal Singing Bowl, only to discover later that it was a Throat Chakra Singing Bowl in G. The Universe had arranged for me to get the bowl I needed.

I began to apply what I had learned from my Shadow Self meditation at home and at work. When I used the word “no,” I noticed that people in general expected me to elaborate on it. Here it was a neat little sentence all by itself. When there was nothing else to follow, it threw them for a loop. They would inevitably come back with a “Why?” I would shrug my shoulders and continue what I was doing. It left them stumped. They would walk away shaking their heads. It was all right that I didn’t have an answer for them—or one that they liked. Co-workers would still talk to me, the world didn’t come crashing down, my family didn’t disown me, and life continued. I began telling others what I needed from them and why, explaining the reasoning behind my requests. They would then try to comply with my wishes. Go figure. Imagine all this profound wisdom from one small, complete sentence. “No.”

Try it sometime. You just might be surprised at what happens.

This is an excerpt from the complete article that appears in the Summer edition of the Reiki News Magazine.

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The Reiki Touch
Tool Kit for Reiki Practitioners
by William Lee Rand

The Best Value in the Reiki World Today!

Kit contains all new material not previously available

DVD with 1 hour of Reiki instruction including hand positions, Byosen Scanning, Gyoshi Ho, Seeing Auras and Past lives and more.

CD1 with 3 guided Reiki meditations to strengthen your Reiki energy, help solve problems and enhance creativity, protect you from negative influences and connect you to an enlightened being.

CD2 with background music to play during Reiki treatments.

Workbook with 100 pages of instruction and information.

Reiki Cards containing all the hand positions, symbols (but not the glyphs) and Reiki techniques that can be used for memorization or to do readings that will direct you in the best way to use Reiki to heal.

The Reiki Touch kit has been professionally produced and is easily worth over $100.00.
But we’re making it available for only:

Regular price $39.95
Actual cost after web discount $35.95 or $25.17 if you buy 5 or more.

Limited Time Offer Receive a Free Copy of the 2 hr. Reiki Presentation DVD and a Free copy of the first edition of the Reiki News Magazine (otherwise out of print) with each copy of The Reiki Touch you order! A $16 value!

Note: The free Reiki News Magazine is in pdf format and
requires a computer with a DVD drive to read or print it.

Details

Reiki Teachers
Buy 5 or more, get the 30% discount and resell them to your Reiki students.
or
Charge a little more for your class and offer them
as part of your class materials!
This will add value to your class and attract additional students!

Remember, every kit you buy comes with the additional
2 hour Reiki Presentation DVD and first edition of the Reiki News Magazine - free!

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New Reiki CDs

We've got four new CDs available.

Reiki Meditation
Past Life Healing
Healing the Shadow Self
Chanting Reiki Masters

Also available

The Reiki CD Kit

Kit includes the following CDs:
Meet Your Reiki Guides
Past Life Regression Therapy
Spiritual Protection and Healing
Chanting Reiki Masters
Reiki Meditation 1&2
Healing the Shadow Self

Details

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Honoring All Reiki Schools and Lineages

The Reiki News Magazine is a 72-page full color glossy magazine containing articles on every aspect of Reiki practice written by some of the most knowledgeable and experienced Reiki people on the planet. Below is a synopsis of the current issue.

Subscribe

Summer Issue

Welcome . . .
to the Summer issue of the Reiki News Magazine. Our purpose in publishing the magazine is to provide you with inspiration as well as new ideas and techniques so your practice of Reiki can be more fulfilling and beneficial - to you as well as those you treat. By calling on Reiki to guide this process and by continually searching for the very best writers and giving them the freedom and encouragement to produce their best work, we remain focused on fulfilling that purpose. Check the amazing list of articles below. This issue is both exciting and practical!

Here is a list of the articles in this issue:

 

Gardening the Reiki Way
by Vicki Perkins

Practicing Reiki while gardening is good for both the garden and the gardener. Reiki teaches us not only to value all living things but also to recognize our kinship with them. In this article Vicki shows how Reiki can benefit every aspect of gardening from soil preparation to harvest.

 

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Giving Reiki to Trees
by Michael Allen

Trees love Reiki and thrive on it. They also give back by sharing their love, peace and healing. Drawing on his expert knowledge of trees, Michael explains how Reiki can improve the well-being of trees and those who care for them.

 

 

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Creating a Reiki Ceremony
by Colleen Benelli

Creating Reiki ceremonies can be a wonderful extension of your Reiki practice. It allows the practitioner to plumb spiritual depths in search of ritual that resonates with the group one is working with. Ceremonies give participants an opportunity to connect with each other in meaningful ways and to draw on their combined inner strength to empower important events in their lives.

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The Origin of All Is Pure Consciousness
by William Lee Rand

Science says that everything that exists came from the Big Bang, but can't tell us what caused the Big Bang or what came before it. In this article, William offers an explanation that links the creation of the Universe to the most meaningful part of who we are.

 

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Reiki and Mudra Meditation
by Greg Westlake

Hand mudras to strengthen and seal in spiritual power have been in use for thousands of years. Used in combination with Reiki they can enhance one's healing energy and promote refined states of balance and peace. In this article Greg explains mudras and shows how to combine two important mudras with the Japanese Reiki Technique Hatsu Rei Ho.

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Clearing the Channel
by Patricia Mahaffey

Life carries with it the opportunity of continually opening to an ever-greater flow of well-being, abundance and happiness.If we are to experience this possibility, we must become aware of blocks we may have and allow them to be washed away. Patricia describes some potential blocks and shows how to let go of them.

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"No" Is a Complete Sentence
by Suzanna Dozd-Kowalski

Sometimes we need to say no to the demands of others, yet we may not do so for fear of their response. Knowing we have the right to say no without an explanation is a powerful truth. When claimed and used appropriately, saying no can release us from the unhealthy demands of others.

 

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Healthy Boundaries, Healthy Reiki Practice
by Dawn Fleming

Establishing guidelines to govern interactions with clients helps to ensure that the needs of both the practitioner and the client are met in a healthy way. In this article Dawn shows how healthy professional boundaries can create the foundation for a successful Reiki practice and what may happen if the practitioner fails to create them.

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Reiki and Conflict Resolution
by Susan Bradford, Claudia Fischer, and Catherine Roche

Conflict is an inescapable part of our daily lives, but it is possible to deal with it in a healthy, loving and effective way. The authors explain various methods of conflict resolution, including an approach they have developed, and show how Reiki can enhance the process.

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Waking up to the Wonder of Life with Reiki
by Mari Hall

With so many demands on our time, it is easy to lose touch with our ability to enjoy the beauty and wonder in life. Reiki can help us to slow down and value each moment. Mari gives us ideas and describes methods we can use to make sure we get the Reiki we need to stay in touch with our reason for being.

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Reiki Stories
Read the stories of people who have experienced the miracle-working power of Reiki.

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This is an exciting and valuable issue that will supply you with entertainment as well as quality information and instruction. If you have any suggestions on how the magazine could be improved, I'd be very happy to hear them.

The world is a wonderful place, filled with continual changes which bring with them a never ending supply of opportunities. May you grow in the ability to allow the wisdom of Reiki to guide how you create your life.

Love and peace to you and the world.

William Lee Rand,
Editor

Contributors
Read about the people who write for the
Reiki News Magazine

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Back Issues

Summer 02	Fall 02	Winter 02	Spring 03	Summer 03
Fall 03	Winter 03	Spring 04	Summer 04	Fall 04
Winter 04	Spring 05	Summer 05	Fall 05	Winter 05
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Back Issues
Click Here

Writers Guidelines
If you would like to write an article for the Reiki News Magazine,
please see our Writers Guidelines by clicking here

Advertising
We are accepting some advertising in our new magazine. To learn more about how to advertise in the Reiki News Magazine, please click here.

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Back Issue Binders

Reiki News Magazine Binder
A Binder Full of Back Issues at a Great Price.
Includes 12 Issues, Spring 2003—Winter 2005.
12 Issues and a binder for only $50
Details

Reiki News Magazine Binder II
Another Binder Full of Back Issues at a Great Price.
Includes 8 Issues, Spring 2006—Winter 2007.
8 Issues and a binder for only $35
Details

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Reiki Stories

Reiki and Cancer
For the last 20 months I have been treating 2 ladies who both had cancer. They both went through all the normal medical treatments and followed the specialist advice. Each one attended a weekly session of Reiki healing and I treated them both in the same way. The first lady showed remarkable results as my visualizations, prayers and work began to slice, snip and unwind a large lump in the cancerous area. Initially her scan showed that it had become ‘see through' and less dense and this type of work continued for 3 months each time getting smaller. All of this work happened prior to my reading of how to perform psychic surgery. After Christmas of that year I studied the Reiki Master Manual and asked permission to practice. The client agreed that anything was worth a try. I read and re-read and prepared my own shortlist of what to do. I then followed the procedure very closely and gradually the 'growth' began to reveal a shape, color, name, size etc and one day actually 'burst' out of the client's back like a red golf ball. The following week she awoke to find the red ball banging to get back into her back! All of the treatments resulted in the release of emotional sufferings of anger, rage, hurt, and old resentments from a very young age. Counseling and serious discussion of all of the issues followed the releases. Every time some strange object was released and sent direct to the violet flame and up to God. There are far too many to describe here e.g. a worm, a coiled snake, a black beetle with blue spots, something 'chuckling', something 'hiding' (evidently from me - the healer!!) In the end she was completely healed of her cancer.

The coincidences between this client and the second client were quite remarkable and neither of them knew or had any contact with the other and no information was ever revealed. The second client began with a large 'black thing' flying off the top of her head. At one stage she also felt and 'saw' a red ball shoot out from the solar plexus area! Equally each revelation brought all the old pains and stresses from several years ago and it easily related to the time the cancer started.

During many of the treatments both clients were aware of 'other hands' working and actually saw several other people on different occasions. Indeed there are so many strange but wonderful situations that are far too numerous to mention. The information from both case studies has been a massive learning curve for me and I know that Reiki is the most magical gift this world can possess. I need also to state that healing powers came to my hands before I had heard of Reiki but since the continuing study and practice to become a Reiki Master the healing power is absolutely staggering. Both clients experienced considerable healing and one is completely healed. The other is making wonderful progress and continues to come for treatments which leave her feeling filled with sparkling energy.

I completely love the work that I am doing and hope that one day Reiki will be spread far and wide. It is the positive joy of Love that allows release of the negative powers of the opposite. Nothing can defeat Love which has patience, kindness and forgiveness all rolled into the very meaning of the word Love. Margaret Evans MICT IIHH

Reiki Heals Bilirubin Count
My new grandson was born May 12th. I felt an immediate connection to him since I was present at his birth. We had him home all of 24 hours when we were notified that he had to be immediately hospitalized at the NICU for blood and bilirubin problems. He had a bilirubin of 24 upon admission and they would not release him until the level decreased to 9-10. Each day he only decreased his count a point or two at a time, despite being under bilirubin lights for 24 hours/day. By the fourth day of his hospitalization it was only down to 17.8 and it didn’t look very promising for a discharge home yet. I decided to go to bed early that night and it suddenly dawned on me that I should send Reiki.(duh!) I began saying things that just came out of my mouth without thinking, while I was sending the Reiki. I told him that grandma was sending and surrounding him with white healing light, brighter and stronger than the bili lights he was under. When I was done with my session, the number 10 came to my mind. I went to sleep. The first thing next morning we called the hospital to see what the 5am reading was and if it had decreased at all. I knew in my heart it had, but when my daughter in law started laughing and crying, I knew it was good. Not only had his bilirubin "remarkably" dropped to TEN, but he was going to be discharged that day!!! I called my husband to report this miracle, and his response was "what took you so long"!!! Jeannie Miranda

Reiki Heals Ear Infection
A few years ago I had this lady come to me for a Reiki treatment. Not knowing of her condition I began my session, but while working around her ears noticed something terribly wrong around her left ear. After completion of the session I inquired if she had something wrong in that specific area. She went on to tell me she was scheduled for surgery the following morning because of some inner ear infection that doctors had been unable to correct after a number of months of treatments. She went back to the hospital that night and the next morning she called saying the surgery had been cancelled because sometime during the night while sleeping her ear had broken, and whatever was inside had run out on her pillow. The doctors had no explanation but she said she knew it was because of the Reiki treatment. She went on to say that after the treatment something started moving inside her ear and she had a peaceful feeling like never before. John Prior

Getting Reiki Into A Hospital
As a new Reiki Master, I was eager to share Reiki with everyone. Without knowing there were actually limitations, I charged forward and approached our hospital oncology center with the idea of establishing a Reiki evening for their patients. After a one hour presentation, they whole heartedly accepted! After I received the news and shared it with other hospital personnel, I was told it should have been impossible to establish a Reiki share due to hospital policy. Well, Reiki came through anyway!!! We are in our sixth month of once a month free Reiki for Cancer patients and our patient load has tripled, to the point of having to move to a larger space within our medical center. Our volunteers have been dedicated and all of them admit that they gain more peace and comfort than possibly the patients who receive Reiki. What a gift Reiki has been in my life and the lives of those who share Reiki with others. Patricia Scheder

Thyroid Healed
My name is Lisa Ross, and I have been a licensed Massage Therapist for 10 years, and a Level II Reiki Practitioner for 6 years. I am currently expending my opportunities by studying medical billing/coding. Throughout my studies, one main point remains consistent: the cost of providing healthcare, in addition to the continually rising costs of medications, is in urgent need of re-evaluation.

It seems very simple to me that “experimenting” with combining alternative forms of medicine with traditional medicine is a necessary endeavor worth undertaking. I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 1998, just after graduating from Massage Therapy school. After considering many options, I decided to have the right portion of my thyroid removed, because the only way to confirm a pathology report was to remove the gland. All was successful, however, in an annual routine sonogram of my left thyroid, another “nodule” was found in September 2003. Several doctors recommended I have surgery as soon as possible, due to the previous finding of thyroid cancer. I requested to wait 3 months, and then repeat the sonogram. My Endocrinologist agreed.

I performed Reiki on myself every night before bed, from September 2003 to December 2003. When I went for my follow-up sonogram of the left thyroid portion, the nodules “were gone”. I truly have no doubt that my Reiki sessions made this possible, for me. Not only was I able to avoid another surgery, no additional costs were necessary for any additional treatments.

This is just my story; now imagine the impact Reiki could have on the entire healthcare community if just 50% of all patients agreed to try using Reiki prior to seeking other more costly healthcare. If Reiki was able to be used professionally, in a hospital environment more regularly, just think of all the savings that could result.

I certainly hope this helps, as I am always trying to assist in anything that is for the good of all humanity. I appreciate your time, and best of health to all. Regards, Lisa Ross, N.C.T.M.B.

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Free Downloads

Our web site now offers free downloads of useful information including, the Reiki symbols, class teaching outlines, a client information form (given before a treatment), William's lineage and many other forms useful for teaching or giving Reiki sessions. To learn more about this, please click here:
http://www.reiki.org/Download/FreeDownloads.html

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Events

Reiki Class Schedules
William's Classes
Maui ART/Master Class November 7-9, 2008
Maui ART/Master Class November 14-16, 2008
Maui Karuna Reiki® Class November 21-23, 2008
7 Day Residential ART/Master Training
7 Day Residential Karuna Reiki® Training
Pre-Retreat ART/Master Class - Lake George, NY
Labor Day Retreat - Lake George, NY

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Reiki I & II Class Workbook

Need a Reiki manual to use in your Reiki I or II class? I wrote this manual when I first began teaching Reiki. I have constantly updated it to contain the latest and most valuable information. It is now used by over 4000 teaching Reiki masters. To find out more, Click Here: https://www.reikiwebstore.com/ProductPage.cfm?ProductID=52&CategoryID=2

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Reiki Master Manual

This Reiki Master Manual is used by over 2500 Reiki masters as their class workbook. Combined with the Advanced Reiki Training manual, its 160 pages cover all important aspects of advanced Reiki practice as well as providing a user friendly guide for giving all the attunements and teaching all the Reiki classes including the master level. It has been edited to contain the latest information on the symbols, attunements and history of the master level. It focuses on the Usui/Tibetan style of attunements, and also includes the original Takata style as well. Illustrated with more 34 drawings and photographs.

The information in this manual has been researched for accuracy and is based on the use of original documents and interviews with Reiki masters in Japan.

Teachers!

Use this manual when you teach Reiki master classes. Buy 5 or more and get a 30% discount This manual is also used in conjuction with Reiki, The Healing Touch when teaching Reiki I&II classes.

CP412 - $19.95, ISBN 1-886785171, 160 pages, 8-1/2" x 11, Spiral Bound To find out more, Click Here: https://www.reikiwebstore.com/ProductPage.cfm?ProductID=50&CategoryID=2

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Reiki Tables

We looked all over to find a set of Reiki/Massage tables that would best serve the needs and values of the Reiki community. I am happy to say that not only is the Earthlite series by far the finest and highest quality Reiki/Massage tables available today, but they are also manufactured with care and respect for the environment. Because of this, they are considered to be the world's #1 brand in Reiki/Massage tables and accessories! All tables are rated for professional use and come with a full warranty - starting with the Inner Strength line Element table at $238.00! Click below for complete details. Save Money - Our prices are lower than Earthlite's prices!

https://www.reikiwebstore.com/SearchResult.cfm?CategoryID=9

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Reiki and other Healing Books

The Reiki Touch - A Reiki Tool Kit
The Spirit of Reiki
Reiki, The Healing Touch
Reiki Master Manual
The Book On Karuna Reiki®

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Send Us Your Reiki Stories, Articles and Comments

I know many of you have had interesting Reiki experiences where you or someone else was healed or received benefit from Reiki. We are interested in reading about this and so are our readers! Please send us your Reiki stories. Also, if you have written an article about Reiki you would like to share with others send it to us using the form below. By sending in your Reiki stories or articles, you give permission for them to be published in this newsletter or in other Center or Vision publications.

You may find it easier to first compose your story article or comment, using a word processor and then highlight it, copy and paste it into the form below. Note that we cannot guarantee that everything sent in will be published.

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Reiki Story, Letter to Editor, Comments or Questions Input Form

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© Copyright 2008
All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or utilized in any
form or by any means, including electronic or mechanical without written permission.

The International Center for Reiki Training
21421 Hilltop St., #28, Southfield, MI 48033