Fast Reiki Practice

Fast Reiki What?Reiki practitioners sometimes write to me wanting to share the faster practice they’ve discovered, claiming they get the same “results” with only five minutes of self practice.

Others say they were taught techniques to make their practice a “fast train” instead of a local.

Some masters say teaching is the “fast path,” so they no longer bother with hands-on practice — not on themselves and not on others. (I continue to learn by practicing on myself and others, and wonder how those masters can teach something they no longer practice — but we’ll leave that for another day.)

What’s the rush?

What does fast mean in the context of practice? Are we competitive athletes practicing to run a race faster?

Or do we practice Reiki to balance the ambition that glorifies fast? Don’t we practice on ourselves — and with others as we are able — to stay close to center, resilient and happy in everyday life, humble before the marvels of our simple practice?

Where is the fast Reiki train going, and what does fast mean for the future of Reiki practice?

That is an important question for our diverse community to contemplate. Please place your hand on your heart for a moment, and then scroll down to respectfully and concisely share your thoughts in the comments.

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16 thoughts on “Fast Reiki Practice”

  1. Thank you for this post.
    I was searching the internet to see if I was alone in having DIFFICULTY slowing down for Reiki.

    I have attended levels I, II classes by my Reiki master as a refresher; and to offer the students someone to practice with. We set a timer typically, and every time, I find I feel “complete” or “finished” within 5 minutes (approximation).

    I will typically download images very very quickly, and then almost feel like I’m “faking” it for the next 10 minutes. I have this issue at home as well, when we do our monthly distance healings.

    Always they’re typically a very powerful 5 minutes, and I need to ground myself immediately afterwards.

    Is there something I am doing wrong here? I am trying to increase my meditation practice to “slow my roll” as they say, but I feel guilty whenever I practice now. And that is not something I want to bring to the table, literally.

    Thank you!
    Christina

    1. Christina, I’d like to start by saying this is something I am more comfortable addressing in an individual mentoring session, as I respect the uniqueness of each person. There are many possibilities here, and I don’t want to appear to be offering a “quick fix” — clearly that’s not my perspective, ergo the post! 🙂

      That said, you asked for help and I want to respond as I am able, by offering some areas you might want to contemplate for yourself, if they seem useful.

      Why not sit with the feeling that you are “complete” or “finished” to learn more about that assessment? You could try experiencing the agitation, or sense of a door having closed (excuse me if that’s not the correct language to describe what you feel) from a peaceful place within, and see what lies beyond it.

      Your language implies a goal orientation that is quite different from a practice orientation. You say you feel guilty; contemplate where that is coming from. For example, is it a transient experience you could sit through and let pass, just as people occasionally have a tearful moment during practice? Or are you judging yourself and your practice without realizing it, and deciding you are somehow doing it wrong or you are not a good enough practitioner, or judgments along those lines that are not part of Reiki practice, but rather the wanderings of the mind?

      You started by saying you have trouble “slowing down for Reiki.” I don’t slow down for Reiki. Rather, my practice opens a place of stillness within me. And sometimes that happens fast, and sometimes not so much, or not so deep. 🙂

      Regardless where I am at the end of any individual session, my practice has influenced me in the direction of stillness.

      You might also look for how your daily hands-on self practice is changing your life in other ways. For example, are you sleeping better? More content? Clearer?

      May I give you a reading list of articles that might be helpful?
      Practice Makes Present
      Spiritual Practice? Energy Medicine? What’s the Difference?
      Reiki: Spiritual Practice or Energy Medicine?

  2. Hello Pamela,

    Thank you for this post. There are no short cuts. We live in a world where people have “no time”. The best way to “find” time is to slow down, breathe, and give ourselves Reiki. It changes our perception of time, and allows us to be present with ourselves and the world.

  3. I love reikiing myself in divine timing (as I practice with reikiing others, too) … the hands knowing when to change position … without any outward “timer” … there’s no wanting to try to control the divine energy’s flow – and, why should I, why should we? How could we?

    It’s all about surrender, coming home and being there in a peaceful, quiet, healing space.
    Stillness, awareness, tranquillity, the Reiki energy flowing naturally in its divine quality of unconditional love.

    Of course, a little Reiki is better than none – if it’s really not possible to take one’s time – and benefits from putting on hands even for a “short time” may be great.
    Putting one hand on the heart, taking a deep breath going through an emotion with responsibility enables us to master ourselves – this is part of my Reiki practice, too, but it does not replace a complete session.

    Let us honour Reiki by giving it “time”.

  4. Masters that believe they’ve discovered the Reiki fast track in my opinion are fooling not only themselves but their students as well.

    My experience is quite the opposite. Yes, you can teach and not practice on yourself but your classes become very theoretical, lacking in the heart felt love of sharing Reiki.

  5. Thank you, Pamela, for opening up this issue. I had never heard of the “five-minute” treatment. Personally, I relish every minute that I spend in daily Reiki self-treatment, often as much as an hour, and will set my alarm on mornings to make sure that I have as much time as possible for this calming, centering practice before having to take on daily tasks. No rush. Slow and sure.

  6. I think in all cases we should be guided by the energy.
    I have conducted sessions that have run for two hours, and sessions that have lasted 30 minutes. Often sessions include a mixture of healing and bodywork modalities, but this is not always the case. Most of my Reiki-only sessions are upwards of 40 minutes, and each session takes as long as it takes.
    If time is a barrier and 15 minutes is all that is available, then a little Reiki is always better than none, but ideally (for me, personally) the session is complete when the energy has waned 🙂

  7. I find every time I have a chance to take a break, rest a few minutes and every time I lie down, Reiki is there for my comfort and healing. As soon as I start Reiki on myself, “fast” is not there. Reiki may be concentrated on one or two positions where I intuitively feel it is needed or I may go thru several positions or the whole body scan. To think that I need to get this done fast does not add to the benefits of Reiki. That would add stress to the healing process. Sometimes Reiki may take one minute and sometimes it may take 30 minutes on myself, or even longer. Each time is not “fast” and each time is the correct time. Reiki is loving, gentle and beneficial for my healing and healing for others. thank you, Pam for promoting the healing benefits and knowledge about Reiki.

  8. I find my Reiki practice slows me beautifully. Even on those days when I have only a very limited time I can sit in practice I slow, my breathing slows, my heart rate slows, I settle, I relax. Most days my little chime timer on my iPad is set to intervals of 2 minutes and with the 8 hand positions I steal 16 minutes from the craziness of modern life. Some days I have to set the time to 1 minute and sometimes I can set it at longer intervals. But even if I only manage a 8 minute practice the benefits are always so beautiful. That peace, that slowing, that sense of being. I do add to that the hands on practice as I go to sleep at night, often getting no further than the first hand position, or just settling down with my hands on heart or the solar plexus. Long gone are the days of wanting me to do a “fast” practice as if fulfilling a commitment and then crossing it off my days to-do list.

  9. I am a Traditional Reiki Master who, out of curiosity, also became a “Master” in a form of energy work that calls itself “Practical Reiki.” The centerpiece of this modality is the 5-minute treatment, and also the lack of symbols. It might or might not be a valid healing modality, but is not descended in any way from Usui. It was derived from “Kundalini Reiki,” which was channeled by Ole Gabriensen from an ascended master named Kuthumi., or so he claims. I think that the use of the term “Reiki” in this case is a deceptive marketing practice, and we need to be clear that people who practice this modaility are not practicing Reiki, but something else. I do not consider them to be part of the Reiki community, although they are certainly part of the broader energy healing community. I have never heard of 5-minute “Reiki” treatments apart from this group, but I live in a small town. Is that a trend in the big city?

    1. Thank you Jeanette!

      I wanted to know what the “the faster practice” to be able to comment and know am relieved to know about “Practical Reiki” and especially your assessment!

      My self-Reiki practice supports me in entering the great inner “refuge” that includes stillness, silence and spaciousness. I am all-grateful to have Reiki in my life and much if not all of that is the freedom I have in “being” whole and complete in myself without having to do anything! I could elaborate however this is probably sufficient as a comment.

      Thank You, Pamela and all!

  10. To me, Reiki practice is the antithesis of “fast”. It is about slowing down to the present, placing hands and allowing… “Human being” mode, as opposed to “human doing”. Maybe it’s my age, but fast and competitive don’t look attractive or clever to me – I’m not sure they ever did but I felt I had to play along.

  11. Pamela, again, thank you for this article and your words which resonate with me.

    I self heal morning and night, but find I can only lay my hands on the three torso positions. Reikiing my head is difficult as my arms gets achy. Usually my time self healing runs about 20 minutes each time. Sometimes I have amazing visions while reikiing, yet other times it seems my hands are cold.

    Do you have any suggestions for drawing out my sessions or being able to reiki my own head? My master suggested I try sending myself reiki, she thought it may be more intense than what I do now.

    A bit of a quandry. Thank you again.

    Barb

    1. Barb, first of all, a daily twenty minute practice is not bad at all — congrats on your continuing efforts.

      And yes, it’s wonderful to have the option of a longer practice, and placing hands on more areas. But before addressing that, I want to encourage you to stop judging your practice.

      Visions, hot hands, cold hands — what does it matter? What is important is that you have your hands in place; let yourself settle into each practice as it is, knowing the practice is balancing to you where you are each time, and no one notices everything that is happening in that process. An intense experience is not a better practice; whatever we experience is just the tip of the iceberg.

      Since we all have different practices, I don’t know what you mean by the three torso placements, or what your head placements are. I have four torso placements, as described here https://reikiinmedicine.org/daily-practice/how-to-practice-reiki-self-treatment. Maybe the suggestions in that article will make it easier for you to reach your head as well.

      If you want a longer practice, there is always the option to stay longer in whatever placements you can comfortably access.

      Also, analyze why your arms get achey. Is there a way to better support them, such as by practicing on the crown, face and throat while laying on your side, resting your arms on a pillow?

      If the aching is from muscle weakness, you could do very modified downward dog yoga posture or standing push ups against the wall to slowly build your strength.

      Find your trapezius muscles and engage them as well, so you are not relying solely on your arms. Flexing your hands with outstretched arms, and rotating your hands with the arms above your head can also be helpful if you are able to do it. Be mindful to find where your threshold is every time you do this, and work it gradually.

      1. Pamela,

        Thank you so very much from my heart for your beautiful advice. I had never thought of lying in my side to reiki my head.

        I have fibromyalgia, and since working with reiki for two years, I do find that my arms and shoulders get very achy whether I am giving or receiving.

        Thank you too for the reminder that laying my hands on myself is what really matters.

        Blessings
        Barb

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