Protection Symbols: The Four Symbols of the Ancient Japanese Tradition

  • 2018
Table of contents hide 1 Cho Ku Rei, the Symbol of Power 2 Sei He Ki, the Mental-Emotional Symbol 3 Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen, the Symbol of Distance 4 Dai Kô Myô, the Symbol of Mastery 5 The 4 Symbols of Protection

“The symbols are sensitive signs, last impressions, indivisible and above all involuntary, which have a specific significance. A symbol is a feature of reality that, for a man with his alert senses, immediately and obviously designates something that cannot be communicated through the intellect. ”

- Oswald Spengler

Reiki Protection Symbols were historically kept secret, and only those who studied this healing practice could meet them. The great teachers were the ones who passed this knowledge to the students during the initiation to the Second and Third degree of Reiki.

Today, knowledge of Protection Symbols is available in books and through the Internet.

These Usui Reiki symbols are sacred, and were intended to be kept confidential . However, it is possible to discuss their nature, the way they work and their history while maintaining the commitment to respect and honor them at all times .

However, it is known that these Protection Symbols are not exclusive to Reiki, since their use extends for a long time before the existence of Dr. Usui .

The jumons (known by Western tradition as the names) that accompany the Usui Reiki protection symbols are not as mysterious as believed. They were created from the Japanese Kanji, and can be found in any Japanese dictionary. However, the first two symbols are different. Although the jumons are written in Japanese symbology, the symbols themselves could be shamanic or come from a Buddhist practice of Japan, in which they combine symbols of the ancient Sanskrit with the Japanese Kanji. That is why these cannot also be found in ancient Sanskrit sutras, unlike what many believe. It is much more likely that Usui received these Protection Symbols in his mystical experience on Mount Kurama (north of Kyoto ), or that he had knowledge of them through Zen Buddhist culture or other religious groups with whom he studied.

Reiki Protection Symbols are transcendental in their operation. While most of the symbols have an effect on the subconscious mind of the one who uses them, they access the source of Reiki directly and indicate a change in how Reiki energy works, regardless of the internal state of the person.

Cho Ku Rei, the Symbol of Power

The first of the Protection Symbols is the Cho Ku Rei .

Now, much debate has taken place throughout history about the true meaning of the jumon of this symbol. But perhaps the best known is the translation of Takata-Sensei, put the [spiritual] power here. However, Masahisa Goi (founder of the religious group Byakk Shink kai ) writes in The Future of Humanity :

At the beginning, Great God took His body, His light, and divided it into several rays of light. Then direct 7 light rays to operate as the power source of human beings. These 7 rays of origin, which I call Chokurei (direct spirits of God), are the image of God working in this world of humanity ... "

(NOTE: This translation is not official, I have done it from an English translation.)

Here, she literally translates it as ' direct spirit ' ( 直 霊 ' in the presence of the spirit ' in Japanese Kanji).

This symbol can be used to increase the power and flow of Reiki, or to achieve the most intense Reiki concentration in any particular place or part of the body. In addition, it is used to enhance intention.

It can in turn be used for cleaning energy in food, drink or possessions. In addition, it is usually used as an amulet for protection .

Although in the Western tradition this symbol is usually used in conjunction with other Reiki protection symbols, in the Japanese lineage it was first used in isolation.

Sei He Ki, the Mental-Emotional Symbol

The second of the protection symbols is the Sei He Ki .

This symbol could be a derivation of the character ' Kiriku ' (' Hrih ' ह्रीं in Sanskrit), one of the many shuji (' seed characters ') used by Buddhists of the Mikkyo current as a point of concentration in meditation.

There has also been much debate about the meaning of the jumon of this symbol, mainly because in the Katakana script it presents two forms: Sei He Ki せ イ へ キ ( 正 癖 in Kanji) and Sei Heiki せ イ へ イ キ ( which in turn can be 平 気 or 平 気 in Kanji). In view of the possibilities, translations vary. For the kanji of Sei He Ki, the closest translation would be ' inclination, idiosyncrasy '. On the other hand, Sei Heiki is closer to the translation we know, since the first kanji script is translated as ' composure of emotions ' and the second, as ' composure of the spirit '.

The second of the protection symbols is used in the treatment of mental and emotional conditions, including anxiety, stress, fear, depression and addictions. It is also used to break free from "emotional armor."

Some also use it to improve memory, and to reprogram how to respond to a specific situation or habit.

Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen, the Symbol of Distance

The third of the protection symbols is the Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen .

In reality, this is not a "symbol" in itself, but a stylized combination of five Kanji characters. In fact, Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen ( 本 者 是 正念 ) is the symbol and the jumon.

Over the years, there have been many suggested translations, even some far removed from reality. For example, it is said that the translation of this jumon is ' neither past, present, nor future' .

However, perhaps the clearest translation of this protection symbol is ' Right Thought (or Right Full Consciousness ) is the essence of existence '.

This symbol, as its designation of “distance” suggests, is used to send Reiki at a distance, be it person, animal, place, event, situation and even through this great illusion that time is. Many practitioners use this symbol because of the need to connect with others (metaphorically speaking).

In addition, the symbol of distance can be used to establish an interaction with divinities, spirits and ancestral energies.

Dai Kô Myô, the Symbol of Mastery

The fourth of the Protection Symbols is the Dai K My .

In this case, as in the previous one, both the symbol and the jumon are a conjunction of three Kanji characters ( ). The translation in this case is very clear: Great Bright Light, in reference to the Nature of Illumination .

The primary use given to the fourth of the protection symbols is, for many practitioners, to transmit Reiki initiations to others. It can also be used as a point of concentration during meditation.

As a Symbol of the Master, it contains the phenomenon of Reiki itself, and for practitioners of many of the different branches of Reiki, this symbol represents the energies combined from the three previous symbols, although at a more subtle level.

The 4 Protection Symbols

Although over time the practice of Reiki has been developing different branches and positions about the symbols, the evidence shows that at the beginning only these four were the symbols of Master Usui .

From 1980 onwards, many Reiki practitioners have been using modified versions of the original symbols, and have even completely replaced them. In addition, new symbols and meanings have been added. But this is a practice that is inevitable in traditions that are transmitted culturally orally, from teachers to apprentices.

In some currents, the symbols have been related to the elements Earth (CKR), water (SHK), fire (HSZSN) and Air (DKM). However, upon discovering that the idea of ​​four elements is Western and that in Japanese tradition the elements are five, they have tried to "discover" the fifth lost symbol.

In any case, culture and tradition will always be dynamic issues, which, like everything else, undergo mutations with every step of man over time.

AUTHOR: Lucas, editor of the great family of HermandadBlanca.org

SOURCES:

  • https://www.reiki.org/reikinews/usuisym.html
  • https://www.chakra-anatomy.com/reiki-symbols.html
  • https://www.thoughtco.com/usui-reiki-symbols-1731682
  • http://www.reiki.nu/treatment/symbols/chokurei/chokurei.html
  • http://www.aetw.org/
  • https://es.wiktionary.org/wiki/sei
  • http://www.ihreiki.com/search/results/fe7d6676108b129717771f26c24aba38/
  • http://www.aetw.org/reiki_symbols_u_a.htm

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