Reiki Classes

Dr. Anne Reith – Certified Usui Reiki Master/Teacher.

Cupped hands facing upward surrounded by words associated with Reiki against soft blue background

For more information about Reiki and the Reiki classes, feel free to click on any of the links below:

What is Reiki?
Support is growing for Reiki
Video about how Reiki can be used with animals
How does Reiki work?
What does Reiki energy feel like?
Reiki, Christianity, and other religions
How does someone learn Reiki?
Levels of Reiki training and certification
Reiki symbols
Reiki attunements
Reiki cleanses
Reiki guides
How to locate a Reiki Master/Teacher who is “right” for you

Click below for more detailed descriptions of Usui Reiki classes

What is Reiki?

Reiki (“RAY-kee”) is a Japanese word meaning “spiritually guided life force energy.” It is an energetic healing technique that can be used alone or in conjunction with any form of medical, psychological, or therapeutic treatment.

This simple and yet profound healing technique can be learned by anyone and can be used on yourself, others, animals, and plants.

A Reiki healing can be conducted in person or sent from a distance. It can also be used to empower and cleanse objects (e.g., crystals) or areas (e.g., your home or office). It is totally natural and cannot cause harm!

NOTES:

Although Dr. Anne is not currently teaching Reiki, the form of Reiki she taught for almost 20 years is called Usui Reiki, which was founded by Dr. Mikao Usui in Japan.
She also incorporated other healing modalities into her classes, including Tibetan Reiki symbols, Karuna Reiki®, pranic healing, Hands of Light, and much more!

Support is growing for Reiki

Although Reiki is well-known and very popular in the Far East, support for Reiki in the Western part of the world has grown substantially in the last two decades. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) now recognize the remarkable effects of Reiki as energy medicine.

Many research studies have proven that Reiki healings can lead to statistically significant improvements in the mental, emotional, and/or physical condition of the recipient. Even the Mayo Clinic and the NIH now agree that “85% of all disease in the body occurs because of an emotional imbalance due to our energies within.”

Due to the ever-growing body of research support for Reiki, new opportunities are emerging for Reiki Practitioners within more traditional areas of Western medicine. For example, Reiki is now regularly offered through hospices, cancer treatment centers, and hospitals, such as Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Johns Hopkins Hospital.

In another sign of acceptance, nurses, massage therapists, athletic trainers, counselors, chiropractors, and professionals in many other fields can now receive continuing education units for Reiki classes.

Larry Dossey, M.D., who is the author of The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things, says, “Reiki is increasingly being incorporated into modern medicine because of one compelling reason…it works.”

Video about how Reiki can be used with animals

Reiki can be used very effectively with animals, as is beautifully displayed on this video involving the treatment of a wolf.

How does Reiki work?

Reiki is a simple and yet powerful healing technique that works to balance the energy system of the body.

It is believed that when the “life force energy” (AKA: chi) within the body is balanced, this often leads to improvements in health, increased relaxation, and improved well-being.

If someone’s “life force energy” is low or blocked, then they are more likely to experience “dis-ease” of the body, mind, or spirit.
If it is high and flowing smoothly through the body (i.e., through the meridians), then the person will be more resistant to disease, resilient when dealing with emotional upset, and experience greater overall happiness and peace of mind.

Reiki’s goal of balancing the person’s energy is similar to that of acupuncturists or acupressurists. However, unlike the professionals in these fields, Reiki Practitioners are using energy. Therefore, they do not necessarily need to touch the body; it can be done either “hands-on” or “hands-off.” It can also be sent from a distance.

It is believed that the “life force energy” that is channeled through a healer during a Reiki session comes from God/Source/Spirit. Because God cannot do harm, that means that Reiki can never do harm. For that reason, it is totally safe to use in all settings.

However, because the energy is guided by God-consciousness, the Practitioner cannot guarantee a specific outcome. The energy is guided by God/Source/Spirit to where it is needed on a physical, emotional, mental, and/or spiritual level. Receiving this “life force energy” during a Reiki healing session is always helpful, but the specific outcome is always determined by God and is for the highest good of the recipient. The role of the Reiki Practitioner is simply to be a channel for the Reiki energy.

What does Reiki energy feel like?

For the recipient: The Reiki energy is most often felt as warmth. However, many report feeling a variety of body sensations, including tingling, light pressure, or coolness. Emotions may also be experienced (e.g., happiness, sadness), but the most common outcome is relaxation. Research consistently shows that relaxation promotes all types of healing.

For the Reiki Practitioner: The same physical sensations described above are very common when channeling the “life force energy.” Because the energy is channeled through the healer, it will not deplete the energy of the healer. Quite the opposite: As healers channels the Reiki through their bodies, they actually receive a healing, which typically results in improved health and well-being of the healer.

Reiki, Christianity, and other religions

Although Reiki is spiritual in nature, it is not a religion, nor is it associated with any organized religious group. You do not have to hold particular beliefs or give up any of your current beliefs in order to receive a healing or to become trained in Reiki.

In fact, you don’t even have to believe that Reiki works in order for it to be effective. As long as the healer is willing to serve as a channel of the “life force energy,” then the energy will flow through the healer and to the intended recipient.

However, because the energy used during Reiki sessions comes from a spiritual source, it is very common for students to report that they become more spiritual and feel more connected with their personal religious or spiritual beliefs after becoming a Reiki Practitioner. They often say that Reiki helps them feel God’s presence in their lives rather than simply having an intellectual understanding of God/Source/Spirit.

NOTE: If you would like to read more about how Reiki and Christianity (& other organized religions) complement each other, you are invited to explore the following website: https://www.christianreiki.org/.

How does someone learn Reiki?

Anyone can learn and benefit from this amazing healing technique. It has now been taught to millions of people around the world!

In your Reiki classes, you learn how to serve as a conduit or channel for the “life force energy” (AKA: chi), which flows through you and into the person receiving a healing. However, Reiki is not taught in a traditional sense (i.e., reading books, learning the concepts).

The ability to serve as a conduit for the life force energy is a skill that is “transferred” to the student by a Reiki Master through something called an attunement (see discussion below). This transfer of ability is not dependent on individual talent or abilities, nor does it take years of practice. In fact, as soon as the transfer is complete (i.e., you have received an attunement), you are fully capable of accessing the Reiki energy.

Levels of Reiki training and Reiki certification

Because of the breadth of information that needs to be covered and the power of the energy involved, Reiki is traditionally taught as a series of classes or “levels.”

At each level of training, the student:

Is provided with information about Reiki and the techniques covered in the class.
Learns certain Reiki symbols (see discussion below)
Receives an attunement (see discussion below) from the Reiki Master. The attunement activates the student’s ability to access the life force energy and use the Reiki symbols during healings.
Opportunities for practice are typically provided.
A certificate of completion is provided at each level of Reiki training.

At IMPART, each level of Reiki used to be taught on a single day, for several hours each day (6-8 hours). However, some Reiki Masters will teach one level over several days, or they might teach several levels over the course of several back-to-back days.

Click on the link below for a detailed description of each level of Reiki as it used to be taught by Dr. Anne:

NOTE: In the United States, there is no agency that oversees the content or quality of Reiki training. Reiki Masters are encouraged to honor the methods used in the traditional teaching of Usui Reiki. However, each Reiki Master is solely responsible for the content of their classes; consequently, class content and approaches can differ.

Reiki symbols

One of the unique characteristics of Reiki is the use of Reiki symbols. Each level of Reiki includes learning and being attuned to different symbols, and these symbols are believed to enhance or strengthen the “life force energy” that is flowing through the Reiki Practitioner.

All Usui Reiki classes include what are referred to as the “traditional Usui Reiki symbols.” However, other Reiki symbols do exist and are sometimes included in Usui Reiki classes. For example, Dr. Anne used to include several Tibetan Reiki and “non-traditional” symbols in her classes.

Here is a list of the symbols that Dr. Anne used to include at each level of her Reiki classes:

Reiki I – 1 symbol
- Used to start and stop the flow of “life force energy”
Reiki II– 4 symbols
- Mental healing
- Emotional healing
- Past life healing
- “The Distance Symbol,” which allows you to send Reiki energy across distances or through time
Reiki III – 4 symbols
- Balancing chakras
- Spiritual healing (2 symbols)
- Assisting souls to cross to the Light
Reiki Master – 3 symbols
- All symbols used during the attunement process

Reiki attunements

The transfer of the ability to serve as a channel for “life force energy” is called an attunement. Receiving an attunement is often reported to be a profound spiritual experience.

Just as a Reiki Practitioner serves as a channel for the “life force energy” during a healing, the Reiki Master/Teacher serves as a channel or conduit for the attunement energy. Each attunement is guided by God-consciousness energy and is unique to the needs of each student.

It is believed that the attunement will accomplish the following:

Open, balance, and cleanse the chakras
Widen the meridians within the body
Raise the vibrational rate of the cells within the Reiki Practitioner’s body
Create a special link between the student and the source of the Reiki energy
Activate the Reiki symbols that are taught at each level

Although most people simply feel very relaxed when they receive an attunement, some students report having psychic or spiritual experiences. This can include receiving messages from guides, seeing or hearing things, or even connecting with past lives.

The student may also feel a variety of body sensations during the attunement (e.g., warmth, pressure, or tingling in the hands or other parts of the body, feeling lighter or heavier than usual). For 24-48 hours after an attunement, dreams are often reported to be more vivid. And as an added benefit, receiving an attunement often increases psychic abilities (see NOTE below).

The Reiki Practitioner’s attunements are life-long. They do not “wear off,” even if the healer goes through very stressful periods or does not use the energy for a long period of time. Although not necessary, some people do choose to be “re-attuned” because it feels wonderful. Being re-attuned is like receiving a high-powered healing.

NOTE: Anne recommends that her psychic development and mediumship students take Reiki because it will often “jump start” or expand psychic and mediumship abilities. The reason for this is that the attunements open up the same energy channels (i.e., chakras, meridians) through which psychic and mediumship information is received (e.g., clairvoyance, clairaudience, clairsentience, claircognizance).

Reiki cleanses

Receiving an attunement will sometimes result in a cleanse. This is much like any “detox” that might be experienced when, for example, someone fasts or completes a liver or colon cleanse through the use of herbs, supplements, or certain foods.

Because an attunement is given to the student at each level of Reiki, a cleanse is possible at each level. The type of cleanse that is experienced can vary by class level, but each person’s experience is unique.

Any cleansing symptoms can occur either before, during, OR after an attunement is received. In fact, sometimes as soon as someone makes the decision to take a Reiki class, their Reiki guide(s) will start the cleansing process in order to spread out the cleanse and allow the student more time to adjust.

Although some students report no cleansing symptoms at all, here are some possibilities for those who do report symptoms:

Physical (e.g., intestinal issues, flu-like symptoms, fatigue, rashes, runny nose)
Emotional (e.g., being emotionally-reactive, resurfacing of old sadness/anger/hurt)
Mental (e.g., healing negative thinking or obsessions)
Spiritual (e.g., healing relationship with God, issues related to past experiences within organized religion)

Anne compares a Reiki cleanse to cleaning out the pipes under your house. The attunement, in part, widens the chakras (i.e., drains) and meridians (i.e., pipes) in your body, which is done so the healer can be a better “channel” through which the “life force energy” can flow. Due to stressful events in our lives, often there is unnecessary energy or “junk” that is stuck in our chakras and meridians that can inhibit the free-flow of Reiki energy. By widening them and then flowing the “life force energy” through them during the attunement process, that “junk” that has collected in our chakras and along the walls of our meridians gets flushed out, leaving us a clearer channel.

Although not always pleasant, everyone reports that they are glad that they went through their Reiki cleanses. In addition to leaving the Practitioner better able to serve as a conduit for the healing energy, they also end up feeling better physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually after the cleanse is complete.

Reiki guides

When students are attuned to the Reiki energy, they will be joined at the spiritual level by at least one Reiki guide. This spiritual helper can be thought of as the source of the “life force energy” that is channeled during healings. It also directs the energy where it is needed within the recipient.

Although it can differ from person to person, it is not uncommon to have no idea what this spiritual entity looks like, sounds like, etc. But many will report “knowing” that their guide is present in their lives, especially when they are conducting a healing.

With time and practice, the Practitioner and Reiki guide(s) begin to work as a team to bring healing energy to the Earth plane. The guide(s) will be with the Practitioner for the remainder of their lifetime.

How to locate a Reiki Master/Teacher who is “right” for you

Start by identifying Reiki Master/Teachers in your geographic area. Here are ideas about how to do this:

They often will advertise online. Most reputable Reiki Master/Teachers will have a website, Facebook page, and/or advertise their classes through online social media sites, such as Meetup.com.
They sometimes post notices at businesses, such as health food stores, new age bookstores, or locations that offer classes in psychic development, spirituality, or new age thought.
Another way to locate a Reiki Master/Teacher is to contact Reiki Practitioners in your area and ask them if they would recommend their teacher.
Dr. Anne has an online Directory of IMPART Certified students, including some who are now offering Reiki classes to the public. Most of them are located in the Southern California area, and some use Dr. Anne’s Reiki manuals when teaching their courses. (NOTE: Nicole Higashi and Emily Celis are using the Reiki manuals that were written by Anne.)
NOTE: Be sure to ask Spirit to guide you to the right teacher.

Once you identify several possible options, Dr. Anne recommends that you do your research:

Explore information that is available about them (e.g., website, reviews).
Read through the written information that they provide about their Reiki classes, which will likely give you an idea about their communications and teaching skills.
If you cannot locate enough information about the Reiki Master/Teacher online, then you can call or email them. They should be willing to answer your questions. If they are not willing, then they probably aren’t the right teacher for you.

Possible questions to explore either while doing online research or when corresponding with them include:

Can you tell me about your background with Reiki (e.g., how long have you been conducting healings, how long have you been teaching Reiki)?
Are there any prerequisites to your Reiki I class, such as meeting with you, receiving a healing from you, or taking other classes you offer?
How many levels of Reiki do you teach?
- NOTE: Some Reiki Master/Teachers only offer 3 levels of Reiki, which is a more traditional approach. However, this does mean that less content is typically covered (e.g., techniques that use Reiki energy).
How many hours/days of instruction are required at each level?
How much do you charge per level?
What is the content of each level of Reiki, including which symbols will be taught?
How much time is typically spent in lecture and practice during each level?
Is a Certificate of Completion provided at the end of each class?

Throughout this research/conversation, pay attention to whether the Reiki Master appears to be knowledgeable about Reiki and have adequate experience to be a competent teacher. Also, take note of whether the teacher presents information in a caring manner that is supportive, respectful, and empowering.

Most importantly, be aware of how you are feeling during your contact with this teacher. Trust your inner guidance about whether or not it feels like a good fit for you. Always listen to your heart (or gut)!

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Reiki is not licensed by the State of California and is NOT intended to replace traditional Western medical or mental health treatments.
Be sure to Join Anne’s Online Community to receive:
- Announcements about class offerings, new Blog posts, and new online products when they become available.
- New & Full Moon Reports.
If you have additional questions, feel free to email us at Anne@AnneReith.com or call (714) 599-0017.

Visit our Facebook page to receive Anne Reith’s daily inspirational quotes and announcements.

By Anne Reith, Ph.D.