Reiki Study

[Spindrift]

Does anyone have a link to studies debunking reiki?

[StewartP]

Emily Rosa's science project on Therapeutic Touch
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9804/01/therapeutic.touch/

[born]

Emily Rosa's science project on Therapeutic Touch
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9804/01/therapeutic.touch/
No link, but I can share this with you. I have done some looking into this myself.
In my research I was directed to an, at the time 87 year old Chinese temple Master as they called him. He was supposed to be an authority on Reiki.
I asked him about Reiki. He started to yell: "It's ruined! It's no good any more!", and on and on he went in a tither. When he calmed down, he explained that to become a Reiki practitioner involves a lifetime of preparation, in his way of thinking, in a temple existance. When you are deemed right for the knowledge, you are taught. When you are deemed reday to do so, you may pass this knowledge on to only one person in your lifetime. It is not to be used to make money, nor is there to be a charge for such service. This he told me had ruined Reiki. Tainted as he put it. It is not for the purposes of making money.
Take that to the bank.

[Walk The Line]

Take that to the bank.

What bank do you recommend?

[Starthinker]

What bank do you recommend?

The Quantum Bank of Atlantis.

[born]

The Quantum Bank of Atlantis.
One with on site access to a "Greed Machine"

[StewartP]

In my research I was directed to an, at the time 87 year old Chinese temple Master as they called him. He was supposed to be an authority on Reiki.
Can you tell me his name and where he was? Is he still contactable?

Because I thought Reiki had Japanese origins.

[born]

As this was 10 years ago, I doubt that he is still alive, and I would have to go back that same 10 years to retreive his name and location information. It is no longer relevant to me, but perhaps someone else might like to pursue a similair line of investigation. I was not expecting to need such details of what was my own investigation, some 10 years after the fact.
I would say, consider the information as food for thought, and nothing more, and pursue your own line of investigation in this regard if you are so inclined.

[StewartP]

As this was 10 years ago, I doubt that he is still alive, and I would have to go back that same 10 years to retreive his name and location information. It is no longer relevant to me, but perhaps someone else might like to pursue a similair line of investigation. I was not expecting to need such details of what was my own investigation, some 10 years after the fact.
I would say, consider the information as food for thought, and nothing more, and pursue your own line of investigation in this regard if you are so inclined.
I do take your point. But perhaps you could recall what city it was in? You stated that this was undertaken during your own "research" into Reiki. You recall the Chinese master well enough to remember his words, perhaps you still remember the city, or even the street/quarter where he was based.

What was the result of your research, by the way? Did you form any opinion on the Reiki and its efficacy?

[Kenny 10 Bellys]

If it's simply the laying on of hands, I think we can be fairly sure that unless your hands are coated in Ibuleve or some other contact analgesic you're not going to do much for the patient.

[Spindrift]

There was an article in the local paper about a woman setting up shop.

And in a great example of objective journalism, lo and behold, the reporter is a "patient" of the woman. So of course there was absolutely nothing in the article to balance with the woo.

[T'ai Chi]

Emily Rosa's science project on Therapeutic Touch
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9804/01/therapeutic.touch/

This is an interesting one too, written by Rocky Mountain Skeptics:

http://www.rationalmagic.com/RMS/rms-edit.html

[Soapy Sam]

If Reiki therapists can detect an energy field with their hands, then they can clearly do so blindfold.
Yet when I asked a reiki therapist, who said she could easily detect my energy field, to close her eyes and tell me when I moved, she was not able to do so.
When I sat absolutely still, she thought she could feel me moving near her.

This supports my suspicion that reiki practitioners can be quite genuinely feeling "something", but what they feel is internal to them rather than to any other person. It seems quite feasible that a person might feel some response of her nervous system to the known presence of another person , and misinterpret that as actually feeling an emanation from the other person.
Ever sit close to an attractive stranger on the train? Feel anything? Of course you do- but is what you felt an internal response to the stranger or reception of an emission from the stranger? There's a worldview paradigm shift in how you answer that question.

I'd like to see simple blind tests of whether a reikologist can actually detect the presence of someone behind a screen on a better than chance basis. I would expect any effect (no matter how honestly believed in), to vanish.

[manvkap0]

No link, but I can share this with you. I have done some looking into this myself.
In my research I was directed to an, at the time 87 year old Chinese temple Master as they called him. He was supposed to be an authority on Reiki.
I asked him about Reiki. He started to yell: "It's ruined! It's no good any more!", and on and on he went in a tither. When he calmed down, he explained that to become a Reiki practitioner involves a lifetime of preparation, in his way of thinking, in a temple existance. When you are deemed right for the knowledge, you are taught. When you are deemed reday to do so, you may pass this knowledge on to only one person in your lifetime. It is not to be used to make money, nor is there to be a charge for such service. This he told me had ruined Reiki. Tainted as he put it. It is not for the purposes of making money.
Take that to the bank.

hi born...can u give me info on whom & where exacty did u meet that monk ! who was that old monk of china ? it's urgent & serious ! if u believe then i'm the most help-needed guy in the world with a uniquest reiki experience !

[NewtonTrino]

Every time I get a massage it feels really good. That proves reiki right there.

[crimresearch]

I get all of my pizza from 87 year old Chinese temple masters too.

[manvkap0]

haha

I've got a blog made for my friend on Reiki's dangers !
Google this >> "Reiki is ruined"

the top link u get in search is my blog !
after it is this forum's page ! ;-)

this is my blog's link to tell straightly:-
reikidanger.blogspot.com

[akama1]

One thing about Reiki, It can ruin friendships.

Had a friend who was paying good money for training in reiki as well as therapudic/sport massage etc. I was her guinea pig, and it was awesome for deep tissue massages. but when she got into reiki, she really believed it. So me being skeptical and pointing out the issues whilst she was working on me, and Me not having the same effect that her trainers had when she "layed on hands" caused her to doubt herself, and then blame me. It ended up being the begining of the end. And went from being close to not hearing from her in over 10 years.

The mumbo Jumbo she was using to explain what the teachers taught her was painful to the ears.

< edit> holy thread necromancy Batman < /edit>

[100]

hi born...can u give me info on whom & where exacty did u meet that monk ! who was that old monk of china ? it's urgent & serious ! if u believe then i'm the most help-needed guy in the world with a uniquest reiki experience !

His last activity was nearly 6 years ago. I doubt he's going to answer.

[manvkap0]

yeah i understand that !
but, i do what is my duty !
hope someone can answer me something abt this !
:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

[SamWilkinson]

This is from a December 2009 article:

The two largest scientific reviews of reiki, published last year in International Journal of Clinical Practice and in November 2009 in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, reveal that reiki is not an effective treatment for any condition.

Reiki practitioners never touch their patients anyway. What they claim is that they are channeling the "universal life force" through their hands, which they move around over the body but not touching it.

They claim to heal people but they don't. I don't know why Reiki isn't as illegal as trying to sell $100 bottles of water as a cure for cancer.

[crimresearch]

This is from a December 2009 article:

The two largest scientific reviews of reiki, published last year in International Journal of Clinical Practice and in November 2009 in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, reveal that reiki is not an effective treatment for any condition.

Reiki practitioners never touch their patients anyway. What they claim is that they are channeling the "universal life force" through their hands, which they move around over the body but not touching it.

They claim to heal people but they don't. I don't know why Reiki isn't as illegal as trying to sell $100 bottles of water as a cure for cancer.
Because you can actually produce the bottles of water in court as evidence?

[Wolrab]

I could kick myself for not referring my older brother to a reiki master. He has uncontrolled diabetes and went septic. He had a right below the knee amputation and survived. Did I mention I don't like my brother?

[Aridas]

One thing about Reiki, It can ruin friendships.

Had a friend who was paying good money for training in reiki as well as therapudic/sport massage etc. I was her guinea pig, and it was awesome for deep tissue massages. but when she got into reiki, she really believed it. So me being skeptical and pointing out the issues whilst she was working on me, and Me not having the same effect that her trainers had when she "layed on hands" caused her to doubt herself, and then blame me. It ended up being the begining of the end. And went from being close to not hearing from her in over 10 years.

The mumbo Jumbo she was using to explain what the teachers taught her was painful to the ears.

< edit> holy thread necromancy Batman < /edit>

Heh. Yeah, this is something of an amazing case of necromancy.

Interestingly enough, I have training as a massage therapist, including Reiki on the side. That said, when I learned it, it was made perfectly clear that it was very much not a treatment for everyone. I'm surprised that your friend wasn't directly informed of this. In somewhat wooish terms, it could be explained as some people just not being sensitive enough to feel anything. Granted, it screams placebo and likely is such. At least mostly, if not all. I can still do it, either way, but... Heh.

This is from a December 2009 article:

The two largest scientific reviews of reiki, published last year in International Journal of Clinical Practice and in November 2009 in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, reveal that reiki is not an effective treatment for any condition.

Reiki practitioners never touch their patients anyway. What they claim is that they are channeling the "universal life force" through their hands, which they move around over the body but not touching it.

They claim to heal people but they don't. I don't know why Reiki isn't as illegal as trying to sell $100 bottles of water as a cure for cancer.

I'm curious about the source of some of your claims. There are a number of "energy-based" modalities, a relatively small subset of which are Reiki. As far as I know, Reiki, in each case that I've seen, definitely includes touch. Light touch, but still touch, unless you're dealing more with distance healing. There are quite a few very similar practices, though, that are not touch based. I wouldn't be surprised if a practitioner decided to just call some of them Reiki for the name recognition.

As for the illegal comment... since when have placebos, in general, been illegal? At worst, it's just another placebo.

[pakeha]

^^^
"Claiming to cure" is the central issue, I think.
But I'd also include those woo-ish diagnostic procedures Reiki prectitioners claim to be able to do as possible grounds for legal action.

[crimresearch]

^^^
"Claiming to cure" is the central issue, I think.
But I'd also include those woo-ish diagnostic procedures Reiki prectitioners claim to be able to do as possible grounds for legal action.
The whole premise of Reki is that the magical universal life force energy (and the magic symbols) do all the work, no medical knowledge needed. What diagnostic procedures are you talking about?