There are five Reiki precepts that have been handed down from Reiki master to student since Reiki was rediscovered by Dr. Mikao Usui in Kyoto, Japan in the last part of the 19th century.
Just for today, I will not worry.
Just for today, I will not anger.
Show gratitude for everything.
Honor my parents, elders, and teachers.
Earn my living honestly.
These echo some of the ideals behind the twelve step programs in addiction recovery. They are also related to the theories and practices of mindfulness that is so popular in therapy and self help. Even though they are phrased differently, the meaning behind these can be seen in many of the religions in the world as ideals of how to live your life as well.
These underlying principles are universal because they are based on positive ideas of what makes up an emotionally, mentally and physically healthy person who is able to function in a healthy way with others in society.
Accepting where you are in life and living in a way that doesn’t hurt yourself or others is a key principle in healing from trauma.
Gratitude is also being seen more and more as a key to being happy.
Reiki is best known for the energy work and healing done by Reiki practitioners, but in order to be able to do that work, these people must live at their highest vibration and it is through striving to live by these key Reiki precepts that they achieve that.
A recipient of Reiki treatments doesn’t have to know or understand these principles, nor does that person have to understand how Reiki works. It is like going to a light switch and flipping it into the on position, you don’t have to understand the principles of electricity or how the currents work in order to benefit from the light that is turned on by the process. The same is true with receiving a Reiki treatment. The recipient can have their energy raised and benefit from it even if they don’t understand it or believe in it.
Reiki can be performed on people, animals, plants, food and just about anything you can think of. It is a flow of energy from the universe into whatever the recipient is. Because everything in the universe is made up of the same energy and light as we are. Energy flows through the planets and stars around us in the sky as well as through the air above us, ground below us and water that makes up the majority of our planet. We are all connected and Reiki utilizes that fact to help us heal ourselves and become the best version of ourselves we can be.
Reiki is practiced for the good of the practitioner and the recipient, but also for the good of the universe. The more people living in a balanced state of energy, with their bodies, minds and emotions performing at the highest level, the better the world functions as a whole.