Reiki is an ancient form of channelling energy. It is a thousands year old tradition of healing which was found in a 2.500 year old sunskrit sultra by a Japanese Buddhist priest, Dr Mikao Usui in the late eighteen hundreds. Traditional Usui Reiki, or Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki has become better known simply as 'Reiki'.

The word Reiki (pronounced in the west as Ray-Key) is Japanese and is defined as universal or spiritual (Rei) life force energy (Ki). It is a very powerful healing system, but also a very simple healing system, which anyone can learn to use on themselves and others to help develop a sense of wholeness on a physical, mental, emotional and spiritual level.

Dr Mikao Usui was born on the 15th of August 1865 in Tania-Mura village (now Miyama-Cho) in Japan. He began his Buddhist studies as a small child. As time went on he explored a number of different forms of Buddhism. He travelled extensively and learnt several different languages, so he could not only study Buddhism, but also other texts on spirituality and healing which included Sanskrit Sultras. He was also an expert in a variety of martial arts so he had a good understanding of Ki.

Dr Usui was a learned scholar who also taught. One day he was challenged by one of his students and asked if he believed  in the Buddhist stories of healing, and if so, when they were going to be taught how to heal? He couldn't answer the question and on that day decided to find the answers to this great mystery. Eventually Dr Usui ended up a Zen monastery. The abbot encouraged Dr Usui and advised him to meditate to find the answers he was seeking. Dr Usui went to a sacred mountain, mount Kuri Yama 17 miles from Kyoto. He meditated and fasted for 21 days. It was here that Dr Usui received the symbols essential to healing.

In April 1922 Dr Usui opened his first clinic in Harajuku, Tokyo where he practiced and taught Reiki. It is said he passed on his COMPLETE teachings to 17 people. One of them being Dr Chujiro Hayashi. Dr Chujiro Hayashi was a retired naval commander. He trained Reiki practitioners, both men and women, including 16 masters. He opened a healing clinic in Tokyo where healers would work in pairs or groups on people. It was Dr Hayashi who formed the Reiki symbols into first, second, and third degree Reiki.

One of the people who went to Dr Hayashi's clinic for healing was Mrs Hawayo Takata. Mrs Takata came from Hawaii. She was so impressed that she begged Dr Hayashi to teach her Reiki. Eventually he agreed, and Mrs Takata worked without pay in his clinic and in return was initiated into the first and second degree of Reiki. She returned to Hawaii in 1937 and opened the first Reiki clinic in the West. In 1938 Dr Hayashi passed on the final level of teaching to her.

By the time of her death in 1980, after 42 years of teaching Reiki, she had trained 22 masters. It is through them that Reiki has spread so widely throughout the western world.

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