READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1below.
REIKI
A. The spiritual practice of Reiki wasfirst introduced in early 20th century in Japan and continues to be used by itsfollowers today with the intention of treating physical, emotional and mentalimbalances and consequent ill-health. The principles of Reiki involvetechniques employed by practitioners they say will channel healing energythrough the subject’s body, and advocates hold that these techniques can alsobe used for self-healing. The name of the practice itself stems from twoJapanese characters, pronounced 'rei’ which translates to 'unseen’ or'spiritual’ and 'ki’ meaning 'life force’ or 'energy’.
B. According to Reiki philosophy, onlyby undergoing an attunement process performed by a Reiki Master is anindividual able to access, then channel this positive energy within, thisability once established is considered to be enduring. Once attuned, it is saidthat an individual has the ability to allow energy to flow to weak or diseasedareas of the body, so activating a natural healing process. Reiki energy isconsidered to be 'intelligent energy’ in that it automatically flows to suchareas; for this reason, practitioners believe that diagnosis of a specificproblem is unnecessary beforehand and that the practice can be used aspreventative medicine and encourage healing prior to the onset of tangiblesymptoms. Since healing initiated by Reiki treatment is entirely natural, manypractitioners are confident that it can be used alongside any other type oftreatment without adverse affect; however, others recommend that since thepatient may undergo significant internal improvement for certain ailments –diabetes, for example – careful monitoring is required since such improvementsmay establish a need for an alteration in medication requirements.
C. A 'whole body’ Reiki treatmentsession typically lasts between to 90 minutes. The subject is required to liedown – often on a treatment table – clothed in comfortable and loose fittingattire. Treatment may involve the practitioner placing their hands on therecipient in a variety of positions; however, some therapists take anon-touching approach, holding their hands a few centimeters away from thebody. Hands are usually held in one position for up to 5 minutes before movingon to the next part of the body; between 12 and 20 hand positions are generallyused. Those who have undergone a Reiki treatment session often state that theyexperienced a pleasant warmness in the area of focus and a feeling ofcontentment and relaxation throughout the session.
D. The healing energy is said tooriginate in the universe itself and is not the passing of personal energy frompractitioner to patient; it is therefore thought to be inexhaustible and thepersonal well-being of the practitioner uncompromised. While some masters andteachers hold that subjects must be receptive to the concept in order forenergy to flow, others believe that the attitude of the patient is of noconsequence and that benefits will follow regardless; for this reason, thosefollowing the latter school of thought say that since Reiki requires noconscious belief it can also benefit the well-being of animals and plant life.
E. Controversy surrounds the practiceof Reiki, some in opposition as they say that Reiki may offer only a perceivedimprovement in health and therefore only a 'placebo’ effect. Whilst thepractice of Reiki itself is not necessarily considered potentially harmful,some medical practitioners are concerned that its benefits may beover-estimated by patients and that, as a result, they’ may ignore or bandonconventional treatments. Others argue against the reliability of Reiki due tothe lack of regulation of practitioners, holding that patients may be leftvulnerable to illegitimate therapists who lack knowledge and skill. While Reikiis not connected to any particular religious doctrine, some religious leadersoppose the practice for spiritual reasons; however, others hold that themeditative principles involved in treatment have enhanced their own ability toexplore and embrace their own particular religion.
F. Limited scientific studies in theauthenticity of Reiki have been conducted. During research conducted by theInstitute of Neurological Studies at South Glasgow University Hospital it wasobserved that there was a significant decrease in heart rate and blood pressureamongst subjects receiving 30 minutes of Reiki treatment as opposed to a groupreceiving placebo treatment of 30 minutes rest. Since the test group consistedof a small number of subjects just 45 – the research recommendations concludeda requirement for further studies. A similarly small preliminary study into thepotential effects of Reiki on patients suffering mild dementia, conducted inthe USA, tentatively suggested that treatment had a positive effect on thesubjects’ memory abilities; however, research limitations included insufficientanalysis of potential placebo affects.
G. Other studies have also attempted todetermine correlation between Reiki treatment and improvement in cancer andstroke patients. Whilst investigations into the first condition indicated aseemingly positive effect on degrees of fatigue, pain and stress experienced bysufferers, the second project failed to reveal a link between treatment andimprovement in the subjects’ condition and rehabilitation. Theories have beenput forward that the benefits of energy treatments such as Reiki may bescientifically attributed to the effect of electromagnetic fields; however, themajority researchers agree that more extensive investigation is required.
SECTION 1: QUESTIONS 1-13
Questions 1-3
Choose THREE letters A-H.
Write your answers inboxes 1- 3 on your answer sheet
N.B. Your answers may be given inany order
Which THREE ofthe following statements are true of Reiki?
APrinciples for self-healingdiffer to those used on others.
BAttunement is said to have apermanent effect on the recipient.
CIts preventative properties aremore significant than cure.
DThere are differences inopinion regarding its use with other therapies.
EThe treatment typicallyinvolves contact between the therapist and the patient.
FThe recipient’s own energy isthe key to the philosophy.
GSome therapists believe apessimistic approach affects results.
HIt is only practiced on humansubjects.
Questions 4-9
Reading Passage 1 has sevenparagraphs A-G.
Which paragraph contains thefollowing information? You can use each paragraph more than once.
4 ______________ A scientific explanation of whyReiki may have positive effects.
5 ______________ An overview of the practicalitiesof how Reiki is performed.
6 ______________ The pre-requisite required toexperience Reiki benefits.
7 ______________ When patients faith andexpectations cause concern.
8 ______________ The immediate effects that can beexperienced by recipients.
9 ______________ The safety of conducting therapyfor practitioners.
Questions 10-13
According to the information inReading Passage 1, classify the following research findings into the benefitsof Reiki as relating to
A
The Institute of Neurological Studies
B
Research conducted in the USA
C
Cancer research
D
Stroke research
Write the correct letter A,B, C or D in boxes 10–13 your answersheet
10 ______________ The groups’ comfort and qualityof life appeared to improve.
11 ______________ No apparent links wereidentified.
12 ______________ Results were compared to acontrol group who did not receive Reiki treatment
13 ______________ Recollection ability seemed to beenhanced.
做真题，得高分，好录取。
托福真题网：
www.tuonindefu.com答案＋we-chat : 836064952
答案
9分达人阅读第14套P1- Andrea Palladio: Italian Architecthttp://www.tuonindefu.com/?p=1502雅思阅读第014套P1:REIKI
