There is a common mistaken belief that you will gain ‘more power’ faster by speeding through the levels to gain certification or the promise of some magical wand at the end of the process. But actually, waiting and integrating at each level of Reiki is a far better thing to do, for yourself and for the deeper understanding of Reiki. Even if you have come from a different Reiki school, we will usually ask you to go through the wait period again, as every level, even if you have done it before, opens an enormous opportunity for growth and integration.
At Reiki Level 1, whether you are totally new to Reiki or have had the Reiki attunements from another teacher, all your energy centres (Chakras) are expanded and often there is a time of release and integration as your body becomes used to the Reiki pouring from your hands. There is a time required for you to test out the benefits of Reiki, and also to test out your own level of commitment. Are you really interested in personal growth, in self-empowerment? Or are you really not that bothered to do it yourself, and would prefer to charge ahead and do do do? Self-empowerment is a time for inward reflection, and also a commitment to spend time with your self-healing. A daily self-practice will open up so many opportunities for insights, healing, and rest. You will be surprised by just how much you can learn through the simple act of lying or sitting still and nurturing yourself. At Level 1 it is critical that you learn the simple skill of quiet dedicated daily practice, or the other higher levels will frankly be wasted. If you cannot enjoy the simple pleasure of self-nurturing, the deeper levels will be equally meaningless. This is why at the Reiki Centre we insist on a two month self-practice in between Level 1 and Level 2.
At Reiki Level 2 you learn an enormous amount of new tools including sending to others and also sending directed healing to specific issues and trauma. This requires inner wisdom and a connection with your intuitive force. For those who rush through Level 1 and straight on to Level 2 it is assumed that you already have this inner sense – but for most of us, it is simply not the case. The majority of us have been thoroughly detached from our inner voice through years of society brainwashing – what to do and how to think has been so well conditioned into our systems that we often have no clue what is in our best interest, what is our heart’s desire, and what needs healing and what doesn’t. To jump straight into Reiki 2 with its laser pointed tools and more forceful energy can work for some people, but we would strongly recommend patience and a sense of inner readiness. I often describe Reiki 2 as playing ‘Jenga’ – if we push too hard at a block that is not ready to move, we can end up toppling the entire stack. So discernment is required here, and that takes wisdom. Too often I see people who speed through as either not having enough confidence to use the tools and therefore wasting this amazing potential, or too hurried in their rush to ‘fix’ everything and so creating a huge amount of drama and chaos in their lives. Either way is not necessary if only people would stay at Level 1 long enough to know themselves better. If you have a good readiness for Level 2 you will find this level amazing, and you will grow and release old patterns that you never would believe to be possible. This level can continue to unfold for the rest of your life, and you will continue to grow, deepen, release and feel freer and more happy year after year. You could stay here for years and years before feeling a push to move on; the longer the better honestly.
At Level 3/Master we enter an entirely different dimension of transformation, I often quote level 3 as the ‘mother of all workshops’ and people think ‘oh that’s nice’, and then a few months later come crying to me lamenting how their lives have become totally unrecognisable to them. What does ‘transformation’ actually mean to you? To me it means total annihilation! The caterpillar doesn’t become a nice fat flying caterpillar, it becomes a butterfly – there is not one cell that is the same, it has transformed and does not recognise itself. But somehow in our minds we think transformation means we can keep all the nice safe things, and keep our lives in dysfunction but just be happy with it! And if we rush rush rush into this level we will either miss the opportunity to transform, or the transformation will be painful and full of resistance. Caterpillars spend about the same amount of time being in the chrysalis as they do being a caterpillar. Transformation takes time, wisdom, patience, and a huge amount of courage. If you are not ready to take it on, or you don’t think it will affect you much, you will either drop it all as soon as it starts to get a bit confronting, or you will be smashed through it like cheese through a grater – either way, it’s not fun! Doing your Master training over a weekend or over the internet with no real support or mentoring is insane. Transformation requires a community for support, and a Teacher who has already been through it and can light the way. If you have completed your Master training without a transformative experience, you have missed an enormous opportunity for growth.
Whatever Level you end up in, each one is an opportunity for deepening. Even if you stay at Level 1 there is a lifetime of self-healing and opening. Deepening to yourself requires no tools – you can do it just as easily at Level 1 as at Master level, there is no magic wand but the sincere and committed endeavour to nurture yourself. This requires a willingness to stay still and to spend time in the chrysalis, and it also requires the self-commitment to master each level before rushing on. There is an entire world of exploration with Reiki, but you will miss it if you rush through the process and out the other end.
