than being a book about Reiki for the general public to read, this is a copy of the actual training manual given to First Degree students of Reiki Evolution , the well-known UK Reiki training organisation. The manual is different for several reasons. Firstly, it is easy-to-read, down-to-earth and really comprehensive, a complete and clear guide to the practice of Reiki at First Degree, ideal for people finding out about Reiki for the first time, and ideal for practitioners and Master alike. The manual is all about Reiki, and Reiki alone, rather than about various New Age practices that have crept into Reiki over the years, like crystals and Angels and spirit guides. And rather than presenting the Western style of Reiki that is covered in most Reiki books on the market (usually described as traditional Usui Reiki ), this manual focuses on the form of Reiki that was taught by Reiki s founder, Mikao Usui, in the 1920s in Japan, and is based on information coming from a group of elderly students of Reiki s founder. In its original form Reiki was not so much a treatment method as a simple self-healing and self/spiritual-development method which could potentially be used on other people. So in this manual you will learn authentic energy practices that you can use on yourself each day to further your self-healing and your spiritual development, you will focus on the Reiki precepts (in their original form, not the altered Western version), and you will learn about the role of mindfulness in the original system. The manual presents a wealth of background information about Reiki, including an up to date history of Reiki, and you will also learn a simple and non-dogmatic approach to working on yourself and treating others. Many people attending Reiki courses do not receive any sort of a course manual, or perhaps just a few sheets of paper, and the Reiki Evolution Shoden manual will be of great help to those who have already learned Reiki, but who want to have more of a solid introduction to the subject, or who want to learn more about the system that Reiki s founder was teaching, rather than the Western version taught on most Reiki courses. It also provides a comprehensive introduction to Reiki for those who are interested in finding out about Reiki for the first time.