Reiki questions & answers
My answers are based on my Reiki knowledge, experience and research. The answers to give a very good picture of the growth of Reiki following Usui’s time. Remember these are my answers, not official answers of any organisation. Just my thoughts.
Do I have to start at Reiki 1? Why can’t I simply do any of the Reiki courses?
Reiki is a journey that starts with Reiki 1. Many people choose to simply ‘do’ Reiki 1 and leave it at that. They do it for their own self development and healing and for giving Reiki treatments to their family members and pets. Those who want to progress their Reiki, perhaps doing Reiki as a part-time hobby or job move on to Reiki 11 (2) getting insurance and advertising for clients. After a while at this stage some decide that they want to become a Reiki Master and ultimately teach Reiki to others.
Why can’t I simply do an online Reiki course? There are plenty of those around and they are so much cheaper than going to a class.
One of the most important component of Reiki teaching is being in the Reiki energy of your Reiki Teacher. Reiki training is a magical time. Usui always taught in person as did those Reiki Masters before you until very recent times when the online training was available. Reiki training involves being attuned to the Reiki energy and this needs to be carried out in person. If you decide you want to progress with your Reiki to treating others then you need Practitioner insurance and the majority of insurance companies will only insure you if you have followed the traditional in-person Reiki training. Also if you wanted to be able to give Reiki to someone in a conventional medical setting you need in-person training to be eligible to be in a recognised Reiki Register.
What is a lineage?
This is your Reiki family tree with your ‘branch’ being traceable to Mikao Usui, Usui being the initial seed that started this great tree of Reiki.
Why are there so many different Reiki’s?
Mrs Takata passed away in 1980. At this time there was a divide in Reiki with one style of Reiki following the teachings of Phyllis Lei Furmoto, Mrs Takata’s granddaughter whilst another group were following another of Mrs Takata’s Reiki Masters -Barbara Weber Ray.
This is explained in more detail in Reiki Precepts and Styles
If Reiki was to be available to all then why is Reiki training, especially Reiki Master, expensive?
In Hayashi’s time the cost of Shoden (Reiki 1) and Okuden (Reiki 11) was about double the salary of a young teachers monthly pay, however the cost of Reiki treatments was minimal, or an exchange took place. If the recipient had nothing to give then the treatment was given freely.
In Hayashi’s time only the rich could afford Reiki training.
This, I should imagine, is why Mrs Takata charged the $10,000 for Reiki Master Teacher training and some Reiki Masters still do. However after Mrs Takata’s death Iris Ishikuro, her great friend and as I understand it, her cousin, decided to change this pricing system, reducing the charge of Reiki Master Teacher.
This is explained in more detail in Reiki Precepts and Styles
Was Mikao Usui a doctor?
He was not a doctor in a medical sense. I think Mrs Takata referred to him as Dr as a sign of respect. In Japan he is referred to as Usui Sensei. a term reserved for a teacher (in martial arts).
Is there a big difference between Eastern and Western Reiki?
This was a big question for me as initially a couple of years after becoming a Reiki Master I discovered Reiki Evolution and the Eastern Reiki teaching of Taggart King. I did an amazing Reiki training with Taggart too. The information he was giving on the original teaching of Usui was fascinating and this brought many of the Reiki questions I had. I then had the choice of teaching as I had originally been taught (then described as Western Reiki) or this newly found Eastern Reiki.
How true was the traditional Western Reiki story I had been given in my training?
In 2018 at a Reiki Council meeting I was fortunate to meet 2 Jikiden Reiki Masters, again Eastern Reiki. I decided to undertake Shoden (Reiki 1) and Okuden (Reiki 11). Again this was a wonderful experience and their information showed me that the Reiki ‘story’ I was given in my Western training was very similar so many of my questions were given substance and answered. I think it was altered slightly because of the differences in cultures, to make it more accepted in the Western World.
Did Mrs Takata change Reiki?
I don’t believe she did as Dr Hayashi went over to Hawaii to help her set up her clinic and her training. There is authentic paperwork confirming this.
It is my understanding that Dr Hayashi’s practices and teachings varied very slightly from that of Usui Sensei. Also that Usui Sensei may have slightly varied the formats of his Reiki healing system to his students.
What are Reiki symbols?
These are symbols given by Usui Sensei to his students to use during healing sessions. They are also used to attune Reiki students to the Reiki energy. These symbols are sacred to Reiki. When Reiki training was first taught in this country it was very bad practice to show the symbols to anyone other than to Reiki 11 level students. Many of us traditional Reiki Master Teacher still teach this.
Did Dr Usui travel the world in search of the answer to Reiki?
Not actually, he did do a fair bit of travelling to other countries. It is said that at one time he was a Shinto missionary! Later on in his life he was the private secretary to Count Shinpei Goto, a very prominent
Japanese politician who became the Minister of Health and Usui accompanied him on many trips abroad, travelling
as a public servant.
Why are the precepts I’d been taught differ to the ones on Usui’s memorial?
The main difference is that Mrs Takata added Honour your parents teachers and elders because in Eastern tradition that goes without saying, but in Western culture we have to be reminded of this sometimes.
Why was my certificate run up by my Reiki Master? Surely with something this important there should be a specific certificate issued to all Reiki students?
As there is no statutory register for Reiki every Reiki Master produces their own certificates
Did Dr Chujiro Hayashi really take his own life?
Yes he did. He had been a top level Naval official and with the coming of World War 2 my thought is that he simply couldn’t bear the fact that he was going to be called back up to fight.
What is the Gakkai?
The Gakkai was started by Mikao Usui, basically his organisation for Reiki Masters. The Gakkai is still running today but is very much a closed order not wishing to interact with the Western way of Reiki.
Did, as Mrs Takata said, Reiki die out in Japan after Hyashi and Reiki was reintroduced with Western Reiki?
Almost; it is said that it almost went underground as Japan embraced the Western culture. Follwng the defeat of Japan in World War II and the enactment of Japan’s post-war constitution on May 3, 1947 the USA strongly suggested that Japan began trading worldwide and – what we call conventional medicine took the place of the traditional forms of medicine and Reiki became frowned upon by the majority of people including officials – I’m not sure if it was banned but it was certainly not encouraged.
Why don’t you teach Reiki on line?
Teaching Reiki on line contains none of the essence and substance of Reiki. Reiki is such a magical experience that is shared with your Reiki Master Teacher. Reiki is a special energy or vibration. This energy can only be transferred in person. Besides this, should you want to progress into giving Reiki treatments in a medical setting you will, most likely, need a special Reiki certificate that carries the Reiki Council logo and a certificate from the Government backed CNHC (Complementary and Natural Healthcare) Register. To gain these certificates there is a strict criteria that is required with one of these being that you must have received your Reiki training in person and you must have a recognised Reiki Lineage with in-person training throughout. Most insurance companies require your training to have been in person to be eligible for Practitioner insurance.
Reiki Council? Who are the Reiki Council?
The Reiki Council is made up of Reiki Organisations who work together to define Practitioner standards for those wanting to work in a conventional medical setting, plus standards for Reiki training to teach these standards. The Reiki Council works for all Reiki Practitioners to raise awareness of standards in the giving of Reiki and the training of these standards. Reiki Council works with many styles and schools of Reiki including Japanese/Eastern Reiki. My organisation, The Reiki Connection, is a founder member of the Reiki Council.