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History of Reiki

Reiki, originating from the words raku-kei, is the science and art of spiritual self improvement.  Reiki originated in ancient Tibet thousands of years ago.  The Reiki calligraphy, in Sanskrit, was used in meditation in Tibetan monasteries.  Reiki symbols were painted upon large wall hangings in the monasteries and acted as the centre focus in the practices toward enlightenment by the Tibetan holy men.

What we now know as Reiki, was re-discovered in the 1870's by Dr. Mikao Usui.  As the story has it, Dr. Usui, the president of a small Christian University in Japan, was asked by one of his students "How did Christ heal?". This question led Dr. Usui to resign from his University position and begin a ten year long search for the answer.  His quest led him to many parts of the world, where he studied many different languages, and then finally to original Sanskrit Buddhist sutras where he found ancient symbols that he believed to be the formula for healing.

At this point, Dr. Usui felt he had the keys to healing, but did not know how to awaken his healing power.  He decided to travel to the top of a mountain and meditate for 21 days, to seek the power to heal.  On the final day, Dr. Usui saw a beam of light excelling towards him.  The light struck him in the middle of his forehead, and at that very moment he saw the Reiki symbols and felt them enter his mind and imprint a lasting impression on his memory.  Dr. Usui spent the rest of his life sharing Reiki.  Before his death, Dr. Usui passed the keys of Reiki over to his closest associate, Dr. Chijiro Hayashi, who ran a Reiki clinic in the early 1900's in Japan.

Reiki was brought to Hawaii in 1934 by Mrs. Hawayo Takata, who was born on the island of Hawaii in 1900 and lived in the Hawaiian islands until 1970.  In her mid-thirties, Mrs. Takata became widowed and was extremely ill.  She travelled to Japan to seek treatment.  Whilst there she was guided to Dr. Hayashi's clinic and was healed with Reiki.  She studied Reiki for a year in Japan and later was made a Reiki Master (one who can fine tune and empower others with Reiki energy). Mrs. Takata spent the rest of her life sharing Reiki, and in 1970 she moved to California and began to train others to become Masters.

Until recently, Reiki training followed an oral tradition.  Very little was written about Reiki, and much of Mrs. Takata's teachings have come from her personal diaries and recorded interviews.