Written in response to a comment on a recent post:

I have some thoughts:

1. Do you think reiki is a good idea for people who are emotionally “messed up” like you mentioned in number two? I’ve often thought that it isn’t a good idea for unstable people to delve into the energy practices like kung fu or vajrayana buddhism. But do you think reiki will help heal them?

2. Does reiki heal a person who gives reiki? For example, would someone who gives reiki a lot always be healthy?

Thanks for the comment and questions..

1. Yes, from experience I can definitely say that Reiki helps a great deal with people who are emotionally “messed up”.

I have also heard what you said about people not recommending meditation to some people with severe emotional issues. I think that is probably a good idea, because a lot of “stuff” can bubble to the surface in meditation, because you are increasing your self aware concentration, and the ego usually rebels pretty strongly against that (hence the throwing up of challenging memories and feelings..), in which case gardening or some other more grounding activity may suit better.

But, Reiki is not something that you need to be very good at concentration or letting your mind rest in its natural purity, to receive.

Reiki works just fine whether you are concentrating or not. A lot of people fall asleep during Reiki sessions.

And, in Reiki practise and healing, it is also not essential to have any cathartic experiences of insight and realization about the root of an emotional problem, as in traditional counseling (mind Reiki is not a replacement to traditional therapies).

I came to Reiki in my darkest days. Heavy doubt and negative projections onto the world and people. Suffering strong depression. Basically, all my problems were mental.

Why Reiki worked well for me was that I did not have to do anything. I could just lie down.

I did not (at first) think deeply about my attitude and mental situation. I just knew that somewhere along the way I had lost the ability to be happy, and I felt luke warm, to say the least, about life and the goals society was telling me were of value.

My main, very non scientific explanation is that Reiki just works. I just started to (gradually) feel happier. Technically, what happened was my energy got clean. The smoke, and negative energy washed away. And the channels started to repair and strengthen. Which allowed the natural feeling of contentment to shine more strongly through in my mind.

Now, I am not saying I am perfectly content, but I can tell you I am a LOT happier. And, the deeper I take spiritual practise the more like myself I feel. Authentic, genuine.

Reiki can certainly bring up things. Reiki has clearing symptoms. Like what happens when we say we are “purifying” something in Buddhism. And, if someone is really ready for a change in their energy it can happen just from putting your hands on them.

The thing is that different people react in different ways to Reiki. Because, essentially Reiki is loving energy. Aswell, as healing energy. And, if you are in a really dark place, you may have a very violent reaction to kindness. But, Reiki is a gentle healing energy. Yes, it has strength and spiritual power, but, it is not forceful. (Wrathful)

So, I personally feel that Reiki is excellent for most people. The main problem I think people have with Reiki is that it is not fast enough for them. If you really want to see results with Reiki you need to give yourself a treatment, a couple of times a week, every week, for a year or two. It is very gradual. (Although, not linear)

Anyway. That is probably enough dribble. Ask more questions if you want, in the comments.

2. Yes. It is taught that Reiki heals the person giving and receiving, equally.