Kenyoku Hō

Kenyoku Hō: Returning to Clarity

In traditional Japanese Reiki, Kenyoku Hō, often translated as “dry bathing” is a simple yet profound ritual that anchors presence, centers awareness, and honors the container of practice. 

When to Use Kenyoku Hō

• Before a Reiki session: to shift into a receptive, focused state.
• After a session: to return to center and gently close the energetic space.
• Before or after meditation or daily practice: to mark a conscious beginning or completion.

The Purpose of Kenyoku Hō

Kenyoku Hō is not about washing something away; it’s about cultivating clarity. Each gesture signals to body, mind, and spirit that you are crossing a threshold into or out of sacred space. It serves as:

• A ritual opening, inviting presence and connection.
• A grounding anchor, drawing you into the here and now.
• A clear marker of transition, honoring the rhythm of beginning, offering, and completion.

By returning you to neutrality, Kenyoku Hō allows Reiki to flow cleanly and intentionally, giving form to the quiet respect at the heart of practice.

How to Practice Kenyoku Hō

Move slowly and let the breath lead each motion.

Step 1:  

• Place your right hand on your left shoulder, fingertips resting just above the collarbone.
• Inhale gently.
• As you exhale, sweep your hand diagonally across the chest to the right hip.

 Step 2:  

• Place your left hand on your right shoulder.
• Inhale.
• As you exhale, sweep your hand diagonally across the chest to the left hip.

 Step 3:  

• Place your right hand on your left shoulder once more.
• Inhale.
• Exhale as you sweep down again to the right hip.

 Step 4:  

• Turn your left arm palm-up.
• Place your right hand on the left shoulder
• Inhale.
• As you exhale, sweep your right hand down the left arm sweeping off the fingertips.

 Step 5:  

• Turn your right arm palm-up.
• Place your left hand on the right shoulder
• Inhale.
• As you exhale, sweep your left hand down the right arm and sweep off fingertips.

 Step 6:  

• Turn your left arm palm-up.
• Place your right hand at the base of the left shoulder
• Inhale.
• As you exhale, sweep your right hand down the left arm and sweep off fingertips.

 (This completes three diagonal sweeps, alternating sides: right → left, left → right, right → left.)

A Return to Center

Kenyoku Hō is a quiet pause a way to meet the present moment, your breath, and the open channel through which Reiki flows naturally. Used to begin and end every session, it creates structure, coherence, and clear intention. It honors the unseen threshold between everyday life and the sacred space of Reik