When people talk about a Reiki master, most of them picture the last of three levels. You reach it, you get a certificate, and from then on you're a master. I understand the term a little differently, and that has to do with the Japanese word dō 道, the way or path. In this article I'd like to explain what I mean by the Master Path in Shingon Reiki and why it runs for two years.
What a "way" means in Japan 道
In Japanese, the character 道 is attached to many arts. Shodō 書道 is the way of writing, chadō 茶道 the way of tea, budō 武道 the way of martial arts. All of these have ranks and exams, but nobody would say you're done once you reach a certain rank. The same goes for the calligraphy I practiced every day with the Zen monk Hoon Kenmyo while I was a student in Heidelberg. Put simply, a rank is a station, and the way is what keeps going.
Shingon has a term for this, ajari 阿闍梨, a Japanese transliteration of the Sanskrit ācārya. An ajari is someone who, after long practice, has received the transmission that allows them to pass it on. Even then, the practice doesn't stop. If anything, it becomes everyday life.
What the Master Path in Shingon Reiki is 二年間の道
The Master Path runs for 24 months. Each month a new initiation is added, each one into the power of a Buddhist spirit, for example Fudō Myōō, the Immovable Wisdom King and great protector who frees you from negative influences, Senju Kannon or Dainichi Nyorai. The ritual, the meditation and the deepening in the community belong with it. The roots of this practice lie in esoteric Buddhism, Shugendō, Shintō and shamanic Daoism. You'll find more on some of these beings in the articles on Fudō Myōō, Kannon and Dainichi Nyorai.
There are three forms. Standard is the monthly online path with one live initiation a month. Premium adds all the live events of those two years, including Shingon Reiki 1 and 2, and, after the two years, the master initiation, which is where your path as a master really begins. VIP is Premium plus a one-to-one session with me every month. You can attend the live events at whatever intervals suit you. There are no waiting periods between levels.
Why two years? Because perception doesn't refine itself over a weekend. It's a bit like a grain of rice you put in the soil. First it forms roots, and long before you see anything above ground, a lot has already happened underneath.
What the Master Path is for 自己
The Master Path is first of all for you, for mastering your own path. At the start it isn't a path for initiating others. Anyone who wants to give Shingon Reiki initiations themselves after those two years can then begin the initiation path. I think this order makes sense, because you can only pass on from your own experience what you've carried yourself for quite some time.
Who the Master Path is for 誰
Not everyone who practices Shingon Reiki walks the Master Path, and that's perfectly fine. Some find what they're looking for in Shingon Reiki 1. Others go on to Shingon Reiki 2 and then deepen individual spirits through the live events.
Some people come to the Master Path with years of practice behind them. Others come with a feeling they've had since childhood, that there's more to it all. I know that feeling well. As a child I was already fascinated by written characters, as if they were sacred symbols. At some point life covers that feeling up, and the Master Path can be a setting to pick it up again. What you mainly need to bring is the willingness to practice regularly, including in the weeks when nothing special seems to happen. That's what the community is there for.
How the individual initiations and rituals unfold is something you experience along the way. If you'd like, take a quiet look at the three forms on the Your Path page. What first brought you to Reiki?
Three forms, one path
Standard, Premium or VIP. If you'd like, take your time and see which form fits you.
The Master Path