Dive Into Reiki with Graziano Scarascia

DIVE INTO REIKI: Graziano Scarascia is a Reiki Master and teacher based in Italy. He started practicing Reiki in 1990, studying both Western and Japanese styles. The author of two Reiki books, Graziano is also a clinical psychologist and the current national manager of Italy's Department of Holistic Science & Technique of AICS (Culture and Sport Italian Association). Additionally, he is the founder of the Italian Reiki school ReikiLife Cifor.

Graziano has been involved for four years in a holistic project hosted by one of the biggest Shopping Centers in Italy. Through this project, he offers free consultations and Reiki treatments to the shopping center's customers. He also conducted a research project about Reiki's effects published by the medical Magazine Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine.

So, Graziano, welcome. Thank you so much for saying yes to this interview!

GRAZIANO SCARASCIA: Thank you so much for having me here. It is really a big pleasure to be here with you for this interview and have a good time with you.

DIR: I would love to begin like every interview: can you tell us about the first time you came into contact with Reiki practice?

GS: Well, I was 16 years old. At that moment, I was living in Switzerland, in Lucerne. A friend of mine, his mother, had just come from Germany, and she was a Reiki master. She was organizing a first level, and he said, "Do you want to come?" I was already practicing martial arts and was very interested in the energy field. But at that moment, I didn't have the money to take this course, so I had to [say no]. 

But Reiki remained in my mind. When I was 22, my parents when back to Italy. They opened their own business. I stayed [in Lucerne] maybe four years. My mom always said, "Come back. What are you doing there? We need that you come to help us." La mama, no? So, finally, I surrendered to my [mother's wishes] and went back to Italy.

At that moment, I was in Latina, near Rome, working at a discotheque. I knew a saxophonist practicing the Nam Myoho Renge Kyo Buddhist [mantra] from Nichiren Daishōnin. He invited me to go practice with him. I was very pleased about the singer of his group, they were living together, so I said, "OK, I will come to practice." But I had another [interest], maybe to know better this girl. So, then I started to practice Nam Myoho Renge Kyo. Every day I went there to practice, and it was very interesting. So much so that I practiced for five years. 

Suddenly one evening, he came to me and said, "Hey, listen, there is a Reiki course we have to go to." He got me a book. He said, "Read it. Tomorrow morning we have to wake up and go to Ostia, a nearby city, to take this course." Reiki came back into my mind, and I remembered I had heard about it in Switzerland. So, I said, "OK, let's go." And so I had my first Reiki class.

Graziano Scarascia

DIR: That's an interesting way to find Reiki. Most people get a session, or, in my case, I found it on Google. So, you started with Western Reiki?

GS: I started with Western Reiki, yes. I took the first level. Then after a year had passed, I took the second level with the same teacher. 

If I compare then and now… For example, he lent me a manual [made pf a few pages]. I had to draw the symbols, and he said, "Now we have to burn them." And I said, "Why?" "Because they lose the power." And I was very scared. "Oh, my God. If I write them somewhere, maybe they will lose their power, and I have this burden on mi for my whole life."

Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen was very difficult to memorize, you know? I was full of doubt. "Did I do it right? Maybe it's not like this?"

With time I understood a lot of stuff. But it was very interesting: this secret way to teach the second level of Reiki. 

From then on, eight years passed before I got my Master's [level]. Because I was not interested in teaching, and I was very shy. A very introverted guy. My main approach was the therapeutic way and treating people.

And I remember I was very "inside" Reiki. I studied, and I read a lot of books. I trained a lot to make my hands more sensitive, to feel people's biofield, and chakras diagnosis.

And I remember, I woke up, and at eight in the morning I took the bus, then took the train to Rome. I had three to four people to treat. Then I came back to Latina, I came back to Savaglio, where I was living, and I was completely immersed in the magic of Reiki. This period was very important for me. Because when I became a teacher, I had a very big background in therapeutic issues. 

But I also practiced meditation a lot. I went to a lot of retreats, even crazy retreats, like one on New Year's. Instead of going partying, I remember it was a retreat of five days without talking to people. Just meditation all day. Dynamics meditation, mantra meditation. And we didn't have to talk to each other. It was really interesting, you know why? Because maybe after two days, I watched people around me, and I would say, "OK, now he will watch me and want to talk with me." And it was exactly like this. Or I would go, "Now she will start to cry." And she started to cry. 

So I found out that verbal communication is important, but non-verbal is very strong. When you attune to this level and vibration, you get a lot of information. This retreat was very interesting for me. And I did several like this. 

DIR: I am trained in Japanese-style Reiki, which includes a lot of meditations, but I think it's great that—if you are trained in Western-style—you then balance it with meditation. So, how did you move towards a more Japanese style of Reiki from there?

GS: When I got my Master [certificate], I started a new [journey]. First, I was the guy who wanted to be a good therapist and help people heal to feel better. And then the teacher [journey] was obsessive. I wanted to know all the existing systems, and I had to get them and I had to study them. Because I wanted to find out the secret of Reiki. 

I always had the perception that something was missing. "I miss something. I have to know more." So, I got my Master's in a lot of systems in the Western style: Raku Kei, Karuna, and so on. And then, for the first time, something called the Usui Teate came to Italy with Frank Arjava Petter. I said, "OK, I have to go and do this, for sure. I want to see what is this Japanese Reiki." It was very interesting because when I was there, it was this, "Oh, I already do this." Or, "Oh, this I already talked about that I have to do it like this." So, it was a way to discover that a lot of information was already inside me. I just had to find a way to let it out. 

Then I went to Komyo Reiki with Hyakuten Inamoto. The first time he came to Italy, I had this initiation to get my Master's. And then Gendai Reiki. And all [of this] completed my formation as a Master. So I was a super Master with super styles in my lineage. But then, suddenly, I got into a crisis. I had a deep crisis in which I put everything in question. I said, "No, something is wrong here." 

This was a tipping point for me. Because exactly when I put everything in question, I took a step forward in Reiki. I stopped to read and listen to others. And I started to listen to myself and my inner voice, which was a very creative moment. It's like Reiki really started to flow. And in a very unexpected way. It was not just hands-on healing. Reiki came out when I was cooking or when drawing something. Or when I was talking to someone. For the first time, I felt I embodied Reiki. It was not something outside of me anymore. Something that I have to connect to or have to do something to have it. 

This, for me, was very important; it completely changed [my practice] and was a game changer. 

DIR: You went from performing rituals to embodying the essence of the practice. In the end, it's the precepts. And the more we embody them 24/7, the happier we are. 

But sometimes, we must go through all these studies to question our learnings and make the leap. I think, however, that as teachers and practitioners, we are often scared of questioning. So I appreciate that you bring forth the importance of inquiry. So, how many teachers did you have, like 300 hundred? 

GS: I had a lot!

DIR: How did you decide what to teach?

GS: Now, I teach self-empowerment. Actually, if you talk with me about Reiki to [express in words] how I see Reiki today. Because it doesn't match anymore the common stuff that people generally say about Reiki. 

It's been 30 years since I practice Reiki. I didn't start yesterday. And I was active [throughout that time]. At a certain point, when I became a Master, I worked like everyone else, and I tried to get money to have fun and a good life. At a certain point, I heard a voice that said, "This is what you have to do in your life. You are good at it; do it!" 

So, I decided to [quit my job]. Everybody was against me. "What are you doing? What is this Reiki? Nobody will follow you. You will be hungry. You will not earn money through this. Don't do it. It's a mistake. You have a [job] that gives you money; why risk it?" MY parents too were a little bit worried about me. I said, "No, don't worry. I will manage it."

I left my work, I left that city where I was and moved to another. Then I started to teach. I went from gym to gym. I made presentations. Everywhere they got me a spot, I was there and was talking about Reiki. I opened my school. People started to follow me. This was very important too for me. To have faith in myself. This changed a lot of the perception I have about myself. Before, I was the introverted, shy guy, the one on the side may be watching. Then, suddenly, a lot of energy I had inside was asking to come out. There was [a sense of] urgency. I followed it. It was very interesting because it started to flow.

At first, too, I was very idealistic about Reiki. I had a lot of mystical ideas and spiritual ideas because I came from a school a little bit like this. So my first five, six, seven years, I taught a bit in the traditional way. But then I changed. Because I started to see the critical point of this teaching. I said, "It doesn't work like this. If I make a reiki course in two days, it is not enough. It won't work." 

So I said to myself, "You have to change it." And I did. 

I think I was one of the first schools in Italy that started to offer more professional courses. So, the first level was one year; the second level was one year; the master level was more, even one year and a half course. I changed the way of teaching completely too. I had these models in front of me that were my teachers'. The Master was the one, the leader, the one you have to follow, the one that opens your channel, the one that connected you to power, the one that can heal you, can help you, and all this. 

At the time, [I decided to] step back, step back, step back and give the leadership to the students. And it is actually now my main way to teach. I am there and try to help them believe in themselves, to [see] inside [themselves], connect with their talents and potential, and stop delegating. There is no symbol, initiation, or something outside you that will fix your problems. You have to do it. Reiki is a good tool that can help you but everything achieved is not because of Reiki, the Reiki master, or whomever. It is thanks to you. 

It's in accordance with the meaning of DKM, this big bright light you have inside you, but you don't see it. You don't see it because you are looking somewhere else. You are identifying with something you are not. If you identify with something you are not, you can't see who you really are. My main work now… is to empower people. I try to help them see how beautiful and special they are. And to find out they have the potential to have a good life, to be happy. Everything is already there. You just have to take it and use it. And stop always delegating. 

Delegating is always like you're going to someone to drink. No, search your own water. Search the source. Then when you find the source, you are independent. This is my main mission with Reiki at the moment.

DIR: I would like to highlight two things you said: as a teacher, being a bright light to people can find their own light. You listened to that inner voice that told you to teach Reiki and had faith but followed it with action. Because a lot of time, we rely on faith to bring things to us versus pairing faith with action.

Talking about action, often we complain there is no Reiki research. You decided to create your own. Can you talk about it a little?

GS: I did this research with my colleague, Luigi Christiano. It came about because in my field, psychology, or when talking to doctors who were students of mine, there always had a [somewhat] skeptical attitude towards Reiki. And there were, like yes, we know it makes you feel relaxed. But you know relaxation has a lot of benefits. Your muscles relax, and the pain may go away.

The scientific method is like this; they have a pattern. And they say, "OK, you lay down, the light is dimmer, nice soft music, and then someone comes and touches you. All of these have a big impact on the mind." And it is true. Especially the touch. Touch has a very strong impact on the human body in a hormonal way. 

I was involved in this project in this big shopping center. I asked myself why not use this context to do research. And this time, I want to try to isolate the effects of Reiki. I want to see what happens if I take out all of these variables, like the light, the music, and the touch. Another factor is that [the people used in the research] must never have had a Reiki treatment in their lives. So, they would not have a bias. If they already receive Reiki treatments, they may have some expectations about it. So, these 70 people [used in the research] never had any Reiki treatments. They came in. I didn't tell them anything; I didn't make conversation for relaxation before. Outside, they had already signed the release, but that didn't tell them much; it just asked, "Do you know Reiki?" If they answered yes, but I didn't know anyone who would offer it, I have not received a session yet, then OK, they could be part of it. These were the admission criteria we had. 

Once in, I made them lay down and said, "Don't close your eyes." There was a strong neon light on top and all the noise from the shopping mall. 

DIR: That is so not relaxing!

GS: I know! Imagine someone telling you, lay down and don't close your eye, and nothing more. They would ask, "What will happen?" and I answered, "No talking." It was very important. Because even when you talk, you have an influence. Even your looks and how they perceive you can have an impact. So, I really tried to take out all influences and made a byosen [scanning] first. Then I treated from head to toe the positions usually used in Western Reiki. I stayed a little bit more on the points I felt they needed to get more treatment. 

In the end, I said, "Get up and sit down." And I handed them the questionnaire with Likert scales. They had to rate their perception from 5, very much, to 1, nothing. For example, Did the light disturb you? Did you feel cold? Tingling? Did you get paid? Did you feel relaxed? All the feelings you can have during a Reiki session. 

We took the data and analyzed it. What came out was really interesting. We became aware that a high percentage of people felt relaxed. 

DIR: Wow, and without touch.

GS: Without anything. A lot of people felt this sensation of heat, and I wasn't touching and was like this [gesture indicates a distance of approximately 6 inches]. Part of the people who had pain, the pain went away. They also had cognitive perceptions, and some thoughts changed. Maybe at first, they were a little bit sad, and after they felt good. 

Then we had a final question, "Would you do it again? Would you take a Reiki course?"

It's the first research made by someone in that way. There is a lot of Reiki research being done in several fields–about cancer and other fields. But this is perhaps the first in which we try to isolate the effects of Reiki. 

We could take it further because as they lay down, they may feel something and create expectations…

DIR: You are more optimistic than I am. Because if I am lying down, I would next expect anything good to happen by default; I would think you may chop me into pieces. So it goes both ways!

GS: [Laughs]

DIR: You did a paper on your research. How was it received?

GS: I was asked to present the outcome. For example, the European Reiki Group invited me. The Portuguese Association also gave me the Hayashi Research Award for this research. It is a drop in the ocean. But it can be very interesting for future research. They can see what we did and say we can do this better. We can do it in another way. I also made some webinars in Italy to share the results.

I think a Reiki master that also has the possibility to do research should do it. Now in the hospital [where I work], they are thinking of the approach they want to do with Reiki but also with mindfulness. Because I [mastered] mindfulness. We want to apply these techniques to people with heart diseases to manage their emotions their fears. Because after a heart [attack], it is very difficult to go back to normal life. You always feel it can happen again. We want to give them tools and instruments to manage these feelings: Reiki, mindfulness, and meditations. We're working on this kind of research now. 

DIR: I want to round up the research topic by highlighting a few things. Most of us want to do it but find it hard to organize. So, it was you and a partner. Consistency seems to have been crucial: the same practitioner. Same place. Same environment. Also, understanding the psychology of human beings and relaxation. So taking those variables out. I think some other studies also make sure people are not on medication. 

So, if people want to research, they should be aware of these variables. Additionally, you invested a lot of time doing [70] free sessions. 

GS: Yes, and not all research about Reiki and mindfulness gets published. You have to pay for it. But this research was published by a magazine. So, actually, I don't have the publisher's rights. This is why I can talk about it but can't share it. For us, this was a confirmation that we did a good job. 

DIR: You are also a psychologist. We often say Reiki is beneficial for mental health. As a professional, can you elaborate on how Reiki practice supports mental health?

GS: Yes. I can give a practical example. Let's take the Five Principles. At first, when I teach them, I see people are very enthusiastic about them: don't anger, don't worry, be grateful, and so on. They learn to say it in their minds. They come to me and say, "Oh, I printed them. I put them in the refrigerator. It's the first thing I see when I start the day. I wrote them on a post-it at work. [I put it on] my PC. But when I said, "OK, but what kind of effect do they have on your life?" Then they start: "It's difficult. They are nice, but I don't know how to apply them."

So, I tried to make them, and I made worksheets for them. It's a cognitive strategy to make them more aware. For example, anger I classified into four. And then I put in days, hours. And it went like this: So now you are maybe angry. After things happen… and you calm down, you take this worksheet and write: Monday, 8 o'clock and the kind of anger you felt. Then in the evening, they have to analyze it. Why did I get angry? What happened? Because it is not possible not to get angry. It's a human emotion. You will have it, but you can manage it. 

I always tell them to stick to one precept for a week, then go to the next. Then the new cycle will be one month. One month on anger, one month on worry. And I tell them at the end of the month, make a statistic. Which type of anger is the stronger in your life, and then start to work on it. Which worry is the strongest in your life, and then start to work on it. 

This actually works. I tell them too, to have a diary. Write every day and try to bring out the most important factors you saw that day. That can be emotions, happenings, or talks. 

This way, you can take a precept and put it in your life to make them work. So, my psychology studies helped me give people a strategy to apply [the precepts.] The precepts are the most powerful tool Reiki gives you.

DIR: I agree. In my opinion, the Precepts are a tool that helps you expand your self-knowledge and improve your life over time. Hands-on healing relaxes and helps heal, but the Precepts are an active tool. Before I worked with the Precepts, Reiki practice did not have much of an effect on me. I felt better, and my skin glowed. The transformation came from working with the Precepts. In reflecting on why do I always get so angry? Why do I freak out?

Additionally, I feel people feel very guilty about the Precepts. Because they get angry, they worry. And the Precepts are not about not feeling these emotions but using them for self-exploration. 

Changing gears, can you tell me a little bit about the state of Reiki in Italy?

GS: [There is the scientific perception.] Some hospitals experimented with Reiki. They did some projects to use Reiki in hospitals. I think who presents the project is also important. You have to have credibility first before you can give credibility to something. There were several doctors who tried to… even they did research. There are different Italians who have done the research.

Then there is the social perception of Reiki. And I don't want to say Italy is worse than other places, because I think we have almost the same issues everywhere. 

What I see… And this is also very relative. Because now, I see things from the point of view of someone who, for 30 years, actively researched Reiki and has a more mature point of view and a different awareness of Reiki. So, I can't compare myself with someone that started maybe one year ago and is still in the process I was.

DIR: Yes, the process we all went through.

GS: I am critical because not everybody has 30 years of experience. It will be fair to debate with someone who has also practiced for 30 years. If I talk with someone who has maybe two or three years of experience and I want to give them my point of view, they will say, "What you are telling me is not Reiki; this is something completely different."

And I can understand that.

Most people in Italy see it as something very mystical. Something where someone comes and activates your channels. This is crazy also. As teachers, we have to change this. We have the responsibility to say the truth. We don't open anything; everything is already open. And saying that [you open channels means] that you want to have the power. Because if you open something, you are also able to close it. It's not possible that you can open something and not close it. And this would be a very big responsibility. So, everybody is open. And Usui said it, 'We all are Reiki."

Listen, you opened Pandora's box!

DIR: [Laughs.] What you are saying is true also for New York and possibly everywhere!

GS: When we talk about this stuff, we need to [assume] a moral and ethical responsibility to say the truth to people. Reiki is not a dogma; it's not a religion. But when we make people believe that to enter this community, you need to have your channels opened, you have to believe this energy is wise, intelligent, and will do everything, then there is discrimination. It means this energy will [look around and] say, "Nathalie, you took Reiki? Then I can pass through you! Francesco, you didn't get Reiki training; sorry, I can't!" This is crazy. If it were like this, I would stop being a Reiki master at that moment. But thank God it's not like that. Everybody is welcome.

Rituals are important in human society. We have thousands of rituals, and they generally are used to [mark a] change. You pass from one situation to another situation—from not being in the community to being in the community. 

The ones who represent the community, we just allow you to come into the community. And we want to celebrate it with an initiation ceremony. 

I say it like this: it's just the first step you make to start to go inside, and I want to celebrate it. I accept you in my school and lineage, and I want to make a ceremony. But far away from all this power stuff of "I open you, and now thanks to me, you can go and use all this energy." This is crazy. 

When I talk to people generally in Italy. They never asked me what do you teach in your courses for one year? They say, "Yes, but how can you open the channel with this initiation or activation?" It means that for them in Reiki, it goes like this: activation, and then you become a healer. And this is a big, big, big mistake. 

Because if you want to be helpful to someone in a therapeutical way, you have to have competencies. You cannot lay your hands on someone and then think that something magical happens and you are just a vessel. And this energy passes, and you are not responsible about. You don't give anything. This is crazy. Where does my energy go? It disappears? It cannot disappear. I am here. I am thinking. I am breathing. 

Even if this other person has a personal outcome, maybe starting to cry or having a big emotional moment, how are you managing it? What are you going to do? So, we need to be competent. I always say the first step is to heal yourself. Then when you heal yourself, you need to start mastering these tools. Then you can approach others. You need to understand a lot of stuff about the human being: the mind, the body; it's not just hands-on healing. 

I think we know very little about this. And what we know is biased. It's what we were told. But when you start to experience it, it is a game changer. You start seeing [the practice] in another way, you know? I could stay here and talk about it for hours, but…

DIR: I know, and I think you are making a point consistently: the need for self-empowerment. And of us, as teachers, "give" this ability to a student; we are not empowering them. 

GS: Exactly. 

DIR: Often, we get to Reiki because we are not happy. That's why I got into Reiki, and I was like, "Hey, I touch people, and now everything is good!" That is a big oops. 

GS: And this is dangerous. Because if you think you can heal someone, it means you have a lot of responsibility. It means I can't sleep at night. Because if I sleep eight hours, how many people I [am not healing]. And no, everyone has their own responsibility to improve their lives. And you can just give them tools. So this is really a big mistake, a dangerous mistake. 

Even [during treatments], you don't give energy. You pass the information.

Imagine this: we are now breathing, but do you see the air? No, you don't, but you are breathing. When you breathe in, then you breathe out. So when we refer to Ki and Rei, when you breathe in, the source comes from the outside, from the Rei. And when you breathe out, it changes something, when it goes in and out, and this is new information for the whole.

So, when you practice Reiki, you don't give energy to him; you give energy to the field. And the other takes in the energy, which is also the information you are passing. Then you have to metabolize it to get awareness about some stuff. And this can make [people] improve. 

Like this, it's even nicer. It means you, [the client], took the responsibility to change your life. It's not because [someone] treated you or gave you something. And you go like thank you, thank you. 

I think this is very important. 

DIR: I have one last question, and you can choose what you want to share. Can you give us a light-hearted insight that was a great lesson or a simple tip to improve our practice? 

GS: Yes. You know, the reality you see around you is like you represent it to yourself, and it's not like it is. And so, if you want to change something, and change something outside, you have to start with yourself. 

It means take everything life offers you: Reiki, meditation, whatever is fit for you, and then try to embody it. Be this. Be meditation. Be Reiki. And you will explore in this process how much insights and awareness you will bring to yourself that they will have a big impact and will reflect on reality. 

This can be difficult. Someone comes to me with difficulties and suffering, and when you go and say, "Hey, listen, nobody will heal you; take your problems and solve them." But the good news is that you have everything you need to do it. So, start believing in yourself. Believe in yourself. 

DIR: In your true self, the other self is always thinking weird things.

GS: [Laughs] Start with yourself, and then start believing in your true self. I think this is very important. I like to say this: the practitioner or the Master is like the darkness in the cinema or the silence at the opera. You don't see it, but it is necessary. It helps you to [listen to] the opera, it helps you to watch the movie. But it's your movie. You are the main actor. 

DIR: That is a beautiful metaphor. Because without darkness, it's hard to see the movie.

GS: And without silence, you can't hear the opera. This is your opera that is going on.

DIR: Hopefully, it won't be a Verdi opera. 

GS: [Laughs].

DIR: I like it because the more I teach, the less I try to speak. We are not there to explain and process everything for our students; we need to give them the space to explore. 

Is there anything you would like to add, Graziano?

GS: No, I think we are good. What had to be said was said.

DIR: And beautifully so! Thank you so much. It was great to get to know you better.

GS: Thank you.

Drawing inspired by Graziano.