Explore a gentle adaptation of the manual’s breathing practice.
Practice workshop
Joshin Kokyu-Ho (Breath and Tanden Demonstration)
Joshin Kokyu-Ho ('soul-cleansing breathing method') cultivates a relaxed, grounded center in the tanden (the lower abdominal center of gravity, about two finger-widths below the navel). This adaptation preserves gentle focus without forced breath-holding or strain.
1. Grounding and Centering
1 minuteSit comfortably with a straight but relaxed back. Rest your palms face down on your lap. Feel your connection with the chair and the floor.
2. Gentle Inhalation to the Tanden
2 minutesInhale smoothly through your nose. Visualize clean, calm breath flowing down through the crown of your head directly into your tanden. Allow your lower abdomen to expand naturally and comfortably; do not hold your breath or strain your lungs.
3. Smooth Exhalation and Diffusion
2 minutesExhale slowly through your mouth or nose. Imagine the breath and attention radiating outward from the tanden, gently warming your hands, circulating through your body, and expanding into the space around you.
4. Settling into Ordinary Awareness
1 minuteRelease the visualization. Allow your breath to return to its unobserved natural pace. Notice the calm sensation in your lower belly and palms before beginning symbol study or self-practice.
Understand the manual's imagery
Pages 16–17 introduce Joshin Kokyuu-Ho, a breathing practice described in the manual as cleansing the spirit. It asks the student to imagine Reiki entering through the crown and gathering at the tanden, a lower-abdominal centre of attention in the text. This is spiritual imagery. You can understand and explore the exercise without treating imagined movement as a measurement inside the body.
The version below keeps breathing ordinary and leaves out the manual's breath-holding instruction. There is no need to take unusually deep breaths, force a rhythm or produce a particular sensation. If attention to breathing is uncomfortable, use the feeling of the chair or sounds in the room instead. Your ability to choose and stop is part of the exercise.
Notice the difference between image and observation
In your notes, distinguish “I imagined warmth spreading” from “I noticed my hands felt warm.” Both can be honest descriptions, but they say different things. Neither needs an explanation about energy channels. You may also write “The image was difficult, so I attended to the chair.” That is a successful adaptation, not a lesser version of practice.
Try this once before symbol study and once on its own, if you wish. Compare which setting you prefer. Keep the comparison about your comfort and attention, rather than deciding which version must be more powerful.
Sources and further reading
- Free Reiki Course Level 2 manual, page 16 — Joshin Kokyuu-Ho begins here.
- Free Reiki Course Level 2 manual, page 17 — Tanden imagery; the lesson deliberately omits breath holding and promised effects.