Reiki was re-discovered by the Japanese Dr. Mikao Usui in the early 1900's. In its eastern-world form it's a way of life, that the healing qualities are just a benefit and not the center. There are 5 principles to reiki:

1) Just for today - do not worry.

2) Just for today - do not anger.

3) Honor your parents and elders and teachers.

4) Earn your living honestly.

5) Show gratitude to everyone and everything.

In the western-world, reiki is often taught and passed on as a healing tool alone. Reiki is made of two kanji letters:

Rei - which means Universal

Ki - (or Chi) which means Life Force, or Energy.

It is important to note that reiki is not the practitioner's energy, it is an energy that comes from the universe, or god if you will, and is only being channeled through the practitioner's body into the person receiving it. There is a nice saying about reiki: "When ego goes, reiki flows" - the practitioner must know and accept the fact they are only a channel for this energy, and that they will receive no credit for any result or effect on the receiving person - for good and bad.

The energy balances the body and allows it to heal itself, whether it is physically, or mentally/emotionally.

Reiki is not a religion, and does not conflict with any religion. Anyone can become a reiki practitioner once they go through a process called "Attunement". This process lasts around 20 minutes, and is performed by a Level-3 practitioner, also know as Reiki-Master. The attunement opens the channel in which reiki flows through the person's body and allows it to flow smoothly through it. Reiki is believed to be a sentient energy, that's what differs it from other types of energy - it will move to the areas it is needed the most in the body and balance them without the need for directions.

There are 3 ways of performing a reiki treatment, the first is to lay-on hands, the second is to pass with the hands just over the body without touching, and the third is a treatment over a big distance (the 3rd one can be performed only by a level 2 or higher).

There are three levels in reiki:

Reiki I- the first level, introduction to reiki and learning how to do treatments.

Reiki II- the second level, a more advanced phase, includes distant healing and mental/emotional healing.

Reiki III- the third level, also known as Master level, includes learning how to attune others into reiki.

Some people do believe there are 4 levels, the first and second levels are the same, level 3 is split into two - a reiki master, and reiki master-teacher, which is considered a 4th level that only once you achieve it you may attune other people. This depends on the branch of reiki you're master belongs to as these branches are great many in number, and each has a slightly different beliefs about reiki.

The information that appears in this article, includes the common beliefs that all reiki branches share.