Philippa Burden

I first came across Reiki in 1990. Up until that time I had been married, raised a child, worked in catering for many years until I spent a year travelling which gave me the time to think about my own path. On my return I studied yoga and reflexology. It was my work as a reflexologist that led me to Reiki, developing in me a deep interest in holistic health.

When I received my first treatments, I was bothered by frequent headaches. Reiki did not appear to help them, but what I did notice was that it began to bring to my consciousness and so start the process of healing events in my childhood. This process of healing the cause of a problem was not one I was familiar with at the time and took a while for me to connect up the benefits.

A few months later I met my Reiki Master, Kristin Bonney and was immediately drawn to the simplicity and universality of Reiki. I liked the idea that anyone could learn Reiki; my notion was that I would have to be a very special sort of person to be able to use my hands for healing. I took First Degree Reiki in 1991 and found it to be a piece of the puzzle which I did not really know I had been looking for. Reiki very quickly became a central part of my life and I was immediately drawn to the community aspect of the practice, getting involved in the local Reiki sharing groups as well as the then very young Reiki Association.

I decided to train as a Reiki Master with Kristin Bonney the following year and after two years training was initiated on 10th August, 1994. Since then I have been teaching Reiki classes in Kent, West Sussex and Northern Ireland. I aspire to bring to my classes this sense of simplicity which first drew me in, so that my students will feel the confidence to use their Reiki hands and begin their journey of self-discovery.

I am a member of the Reiki Alliance, an international community of Reiki Masters, who honour the lineage of Usui, Hayashi, Takata and Furumoto and who practise the Usui System. I feel greatly enriched by being part not only of my local Reiki community, the national one but also this global network. Reiki is taught all over the world in many different cultures and transcends the barriers of religion, class, colour and race.