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The Gokai:
The Five 'Principles', 'Precepts' or 'Ideals' of Usui Reiki
Copyright © 2006 James Deacon
The Gokai
"The
secret method of inviting blessings, the spiritual medicine of
many illnesses (Shôfuku no hihô, Manbyo no rei yaku)
Just for today (Kyo dake wa):
Don't get angry (Okoru na)
Don't worry (Shinpai su na)
Be grateful (Kansha shite)
Work hard (Gyo wo hage me)
Be kind to others (Hito ni shinsetsu ni)
Mornings and evenings sit in the gassho position and repeat these
words out loud and in your heart (Asa you gassho shite kokoro
ni neji kuchi ni tonaeyo)
For the improvement of mind and body (Shin shin kaizen)
Usui
Spiritual Healing Method (Usui Reiki Ryoho)
The founder, Mikao Usui (Chossô, Usui Mikao)"
*
* * * *
The
Significance of the Gokai
Many
people believe that the gokai - the Five Principles or
Precepts - are an important key to the system that is Usui
Reiki Ryoho.
Perhaps it is that they are not just 'important' but rather 'VITAL'
- that they are the very CORE of Usui-sensei's system - that the
Precepts themselves are:
"The secret method of inviting blessings, the spiritual medicine
of many illnesses" spoken of in the introductory statement
which comes directly before the Precepts themselves.
The Precepts themselves are 'keys' or strategies to apply to life.
In
fact, at least two of the Precepts clearly fall in the
cartegory of straight-forward, direct 'preventative medicine'.
[See article: Just
For Today.. ]
Different
versions of the gokai?
As
you will be seen below, there are numerous slightly
different paraphrased translations of each of the five principles.
In
a couple of renditions of the principles, no's 3 and 4 are merged
together [1] (and
in one case, principles 1 and 2 are also combined into a single
principle [2] ),
yet whatever the version, these differenty-worded translations
still essentially all deal of the same five concepts:
anger,
worry, gratitude, work, kindness
"Honour
your parents..."
Some
people have commented why one version of the principles has 'Honour
your parents, teachers and elders' where the majority of others
have the 'gratitude' principle
On
several occasions Takata-sensei expressed the principles in slightly
different wording - in an attempt to clarify the core sentiment
for the students present at the time - and this is partly why
different people use slightly variant wordings.
It
was common for Takata sensei to state the 'gratitude' principle
as "We will count our blessings" or "... be grateful
for our many blessings" and to qualify this by explaining
gratitude included honouring our fathers and mothers, teachers
and neighbours - and even our food.
To
Takata sensei, the greatest of the five was Gratitude.
"Mornings and evenings..."
The
'user instructions' presented with the formal Japanese version
of the principles (at the top of this page) tell us:
"Mornings
and evenings sit in the gassho position and repeat these words
out loud and in your heart"
And
as a result, many people seem to consider the gokai as
being something to only use in this way - seeing them simply
as a set of 'positive-thinking' affirmations - or alternatively,
as some form of, as it were, 'magic incantation'.
Yes,
we may practice gokai sansho (repeating the five
principles three times) both on rising and on going to bed - and
this can help to imprint them on our subconscious - but
I feel too much emphasis is placed on chanting them, and
possibly not enough on living by them.
Stronger
feeling when recited in English or Japanese?
Some
people claim to get a stronger feeling whilst reciting
one paraphrased English (or other language) version of the principles;
yet others, while reciting the 'formal' Japanese version; but
in my opinion, the real power of the gokai only
truly manifests in the instances of their application in
the midst of daily life.
Examples of some of the slightly different paraphrased
translations of each of the five principles.
Just for today [i.e. focus in the here-and-now]:
Principle
1
has been variously stated as:
Do not anger
Don't get angry
Thou shall not anger
I will not be angry
I will let go of anger
Principle
2 has been variously stated as:
Do not worry
Don't be anxious
Thou shall not worry
I will not worry
I will let go of worry
Principle
3 has been variously stated as:
Be grateful
Show appreciation
Thou shall be grateful for the many blessings
I will give thanks for my many blessings
I will count my many blessings
Express your thanks
Show gratitude to every living thing
Honor your parents, teachers and elders
Principle
4 has been variously stated as:
Work hard
Study diligently
Devote yourself to your work
Earn thy livelihood with honest labor
I will do my work honestly
Be diligent in your business
Principle
5 has been variously stated as:
Be kind to people
Be kind to others
Be kind to thy neighbors
I will be kind to every living thing
I will be kind to every living creature
Show compassion to every living thing
*
* * * *
A personal
phrasing of the gokai
- from my Ajari-yuga Empowerment-Deepening
Reiki Meditation:
_________________
NOTES:
[1]
eg:
Do not anger
Do not worry
Do your work with gratitude
Be kind to others
[2]
Today only, anger not - worry not
Do your work with appreciation
Be kind to people
