THE
REIKI NETWORK |
| R e i k i , p u r e a n d s i m p l e |
The History of Reiki |
He named this harmonizing energy Reiki; universal energy, because he had noticed that while giving a Reiki treatment one’s own energy is not reduced or even used. Hayashi set up a Reiki clinic in Tokyo and we believe formalized a series of hand positions to use in treatments, as opposed to Usui’s more intuitive approach. Hawayo Takata (1900-1980) who travelled from Hawaii to Japan in 1935, was ill with a stomach tumor and was guided to Hayashi’s Reiki clinic rather than submit to an operation. She was healed.  Mrs. Takata then persuaded Hayashi to teach her Reiki and to show her commitment, agreed to stay in Japan for as long as he thought necessary. A year later she returned home to Hawaii. In February 1938 Hayashi came to Hawaii and initiated her as a Reiki Master. She devoted her life to Reiki, teaching and giving treatments. It is through Mrs. Takata and the 22 people that she trained as Reiki Masters in the period 1970-1980 that Reiki spread around the world and became a most remarkable success story. Hawayo Takata first told the story of Reiki. She taught that Mikao Usui was driven to find a healing system that all could use, he searched far and wide, from Tibet to America but finally, with no answer as yet, returned to a monastery on Mount Kurama, near Kyoto, went into deep meditation and then had an enlightenment that led to the development of Reiki. According to this story Usui worked with Reiki in the slums of Kyoto and there he came to the realization that it is important to give people the possibility of personal responsibility. Rather than merely treating people with Reiki he started to give them Reiki as an instrument in their own hands. He traveled all over Japan, taught people about Reiki and attuned them to this energy. Over time western Reiki Masters have traveled to Japan to find more about Usui. It is now clear that Takata’s story is a myth or perhaps one can say an allegory highlighting aspects of Reiki. Beginning with the researches of Reiki Master Frank Arjava Petter, we now know that Usui was for a time a Civil Servant in Japan, that he then ran his own business, which, whilst initially successful, then began to fail, or perhaps he lost interest. He spent some time as a Buddhist monk; all sources are agreed that he had connections to a monastery on Mt Kurama. Then somewhere between 1916 and some sources suggest as late as 1922, he developed Reiki. It quickly drew in many people wanting to practice. There is a memorial to him in Tokyo raised through the subscriptions of 2000 of his students. This is perhaps an even more remarkable story than Mrs. Takata’s. There is still much speculation about whether Usui was the originator of the system, or whether he rediscovered it, how closely it is connected to Buddhism or one of the esoteric sects that prevail in Japan. There is no definitive answer, no historical facts. Whatever the source we may be glad that Usui has made Reiki available to all.
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The practice of Reiki as we know it, was developed in Japan by Mikao Usui (1862-1926) who rediscovered this energy-based system of natural healing. 
Reiki tree