October 9, 2010

In 2002, when SPARK offered its first free reiki sessions in the public parks of Manhattan, very few New Yorkers knew what reiki was. Today the environment has changed considerably. Passers-by will ask specifically, “Is that Reiki?”, and after the session the question often becomes, “Can I learn?”

Anyone can learn Reiki. The diverse backgrounds of reiki practitioners range from artists to business executives to truck drivers. No formal education is required. Every practitioner starts by learning Reiki Level I, which is the reiki beginner level and the first of three levels. Level I students learn the basics of Reiki and are capable of performing hands-on energy sessions on both themselves and others.

Reiki Level I classes typically provide eight to fourteen hours of direct instruction. For example, Queensborough Community College’s Continuing Education program offers an eight-hour course. Reiki instructors will, however, expect students to perform self-treatment and to practice on friends and family for weeks or months following the class, or until the students return for Reiki Level II.

Reiki is considered by the National Institutes of Health to be generally safe, and for that reason it may provide a good starting point for those interested in energy therapy and its many benefits. In New York City, outside of SPARK, the cost of a Reiki Level I class currently ranges from $100 to $295.

Dave Gorczynski is president of SPARK, a non-profit organization that has provided free energy work sessions and workshops across New York City since 2002. He writes a regular column about energy work and meditation for the Compact News in New York City's Chinatown. E-mail him at dave@sparkenergy.org.