Before we address the question, “What is Reiki”, it’s important to know what we are. Quantum physics has discovered that everything in our three-dimensional world is made of energy. Look at an object beside you. It’s made of a specific composition of molecules that make it what it is. In fact, it can be reduced to a specific number of molecules arranged in a certain way. These molecules are composed of atoms which are composed of protons, neutrons, and electrons made from even tinier particles of various quarks and gluons. Zooming in even further, we see these particles are made of nothing more than vibrating strings of energy held at a specific frequency. Known to sages of times passed, quantum physics has now caught up to confirm this. This energy has been compressed and made dense enough to produce our material existence. Everything in our experience of three dimensions is made up of this densified energy.

Physically, you are no different from the object you have just observed. What makes human beings so special is our faculty of consciousness. The connection between this consciousness and the energy that makes up everything is communication, often in the form of intention. Everything is energy, including our thoughts. When we consciously hold an intention, we are sending out energy - one of a specific vibration and frequency that communicates with the energy of the object of our intention (e.g., a client's energy field). Bearing this in mind, we can now better understand what energy healing is.

Reiki energy healing is a Japanese system of natural healing created by Mikao Usui in the early twentieth century. However, it can be argued that it was developed much earlier but was lost to time. Reiki involves the practitioner using light touch or holding the hands above the client's body with the intention of guiding energy into healthy flow. This healthy flow of energy promotes the body's natural self-healing abilities. Reiki's benefits are vast, ranging from relaxation to miracles. It’s frequently used for stress relief and pain management, and also complements the treatment of chronic diseases. Remembering what you learned above, we can see how the intention of guiding the energy can create a meaningful result in the client. As the old saying goes, energy flows where consciousness goes.

Reiki works through the conscious direction of energy. The practitioner acts as a conduit for the energy rather than the source, allowing the energy to flow through them to concentrate it toward a specific area - usually one of the chakras. The practitioner can often feel intuitively where this energy is needed. This functions much like water through a garden hose where the energy would be water and the practitioner is the hose. Much like a hose, the practitioner does not need to do much of anything other than hold the intention to heal. Similarly, the client need only have the intention to allow healing. The rest is up to Source, God, the universe - whatever floats your boat. The practitioner as the conduit focuses the energy and the client’s body calls the energy it needs. There is intelligence within us that is beyond our thinking minds and knows where energy needs to be.