Okuden Reiki level 2, chokurei and sei heki

Okuden the 2nd level of Reiki translates to 'hidden' teachings or the 'deepening'. Okuden takes us to a much deeper level within the roots of Reiki, developing our spirituality and inner essence. Mantras and symbols are involved in helping us understand the different levels of energy, they have no power of their own. They are in fact separate as the kanji eg: the kanji for chokurei means direct spirit, not the symbol, the symbol (the spiral) in the original teachings are recognised as symbol 1, not chokurei.

If we take apart sei heiki (Symbol 2) the sei translated means inner essence as opposed to its outer form, hei translated, means habit.

So we can say that sei heiki means our habitual desire to rediscover our inner essence and true nature. Sei heki is derived from the ancient kiriku which is a seed syllable and is a form of meditation it is found in many places in Japan such as a hospital, doctor surgery or public place. It is also drawn as an art form, making it very special and calming the people who look at it.

Mikao Usui used the two symbols as tools, taking the ancient teachings of the kanji to represent earth and heavenly energy.

When we chant the mantra of chokurei and sei heki, we are in fact remembering to look within and recognising our inner essence, it is always there for us to find.