What is the Japanese word for a Reiki practitioner?
September 15, 2026
The second symbol and its mantra. In the West it was labelled mental and emotional healing. In Japan the mantra means our natural inclination, and our natural inclination is to be our true self. Its characteristic is harmony: the balance between earth and heaven in which we start to feel what we really are.
I am going to say symbol and mantra here, because it is about both. I would say it is probably the second one, because in the West its characteristic was called, I think, mental and emotional healing.
But in Japan the mantra for the second symbol actually means our natural inclination. And our natural inclination is to be our true self. If that is the case, then this practice is there to take us to that space.
Its characteristic is considered to be harmony. When we come into balance between the earth and the heavens there is a sense of harmony, and in that harmonious space we start to feel what our natural inclination truly is.
The name. The symbols are shirushi, 印, and their mantras jumon, 呪文. The second pair is the one whose Japanese meaning, natural inclination or habit, was replaced in the West by a job description, mental and emotional healing.
Where it sits in the system. The symbols and mantras are most often taught at Okuden, the second level. The second pair belongs with the work of coming into balance: earth energy at the hara, heavenly energy at the crown, and harmony between them.
A common misunderstanding. That the second symbol is a tool you apply to a client’s emotional problems. It is a practice you do on yourself, to return to what you naturally are; what happens for a client follows from that.
Try this. Chant the second mantra for a few minutes as a meditation rather than as part of a treatment, and notice where in the body you settle.
You might also ask: What is the real purpose of Reiki symbols? · Am I using the Reiki symbols wrong? · Are you chanting the Reiki mantras correctly?
I teach the Japanese meanings of all the symbols and mantras inside Shinpiden+.
More questions answered: Reiki Questions Answered.
