History of Reiki
Exploring the History of Reiki: A Journey into Energy Healing and Holistic Health
By Dennis Bluthardt, Namaste Studios
Originating in Japan, Mikao Usui created the practice of Reiki, which emphasizes using the body’s vital energies for healing. Contrary to what some people may think, Usui did not come up with the idea of using energy to heal; he was merely the first to use it systematically in the form we now call Reiki. Unlike other types of massage that involve understanding human anatomy, Reiki uses knowledge about the mind and how it acts and reacts daily.
Reiki is supposed to reduce stress, relax, and heal emotional and physical wounds. Reiki practitioners transfer energy with their hands to different body parts, meaning that their hands are placed on or near a recipient’s body to transfer life force from one location to another.
If you could not only uncover the secret early history of a godless Reiki built on the humanist, spiritualistic principles of intention and energy transfer, you would also find out how you can transfer these sacred principles of Reiki to your everyday routine.
You will also discover what secret techniques many Reiki practitioners use to boost their skills and daily energy levels.
The secret Principles of Rei-Ki that you were NOT taught (by at least a few pages);
The positions of unique Reiki hand positions.
Things you can visualize to achieve your objectives and
You can do different things to have more satisfying “healing” relationships.
What is Reiki?
Reiki is a Japanese hands-on healing practice that focuses on channeling Ki (life force energy) to enhance oneself and others’ physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
In Japanese, two parts make up the word Reiki:
Rei is Japanese for universal.
Ki is Japanese for the vital life force energy that runs through all living beings.
When this life force energy is in balance and operating optimally in the mind and body, individuals experience what some may call “optimal health” and “harmony” in all areas of their health (physical, emotional, and spiritual), personal relationships, and lives.
In a traditional Reiki session, one hovers their hands a few inches away or gently place them upon specific parts of the recipient’s body and intensifies their thoughts toward mentally sending or boosting the recipient’s body and soul with vital (positive, love-based) life force energy.
When this divine healing energy begins to touch the recipient’s body, it is easily absorbed and delivered to help rid the mind and body of stress, induce relaxation, release feel-good endorphins, reduce pain, and act as a “jumpstart cable” to the body’s built-in (biological) healing abilities.
This divine healing energy, transferred from the giver, is so potent that it can reach the human body virtually anywhere on Earth, any time, any day, and even long after the practitioner has completed their hands-on Reiki healing session (distance Reiki).
Somewhere in the body and soul, the divine healing energy of the universe is missing. Pain (chronic pain), suffering, and negative experiences reside where the purest life force energy of the universe is missing or imbalanced.
By bringing more divine healing energy into the soul (and the body by default), individuals will advance to a deeper state of consciousness, joy, and personal success faster and more effortlessly than promised by other practices of its kind.
The History of Reiki
Scholars of Reiki report that during a twenty-one-day meditation retreat on the island, an exhausted but determined Usui had an intense spiritual experience that left him imbued with a powerful healing energy (Haberly, 1996). They explain that the name “Reiki” is a term Usui coined to describe this newly developed system of natural healing. He took the Japanese words rei, meaning “universal,” and ki, meaning “life energy,” to describe this healing form’s characteristics. In doing so, he defined Reiki as a new branch of the natural holistic healing arts.
Usui is described as a gentle, humble man who told his students he was “no physician or religious leader” (Haberly, 1996, pp. 1-2). His motivation was to communicate a message to the world. Reiki is both a hands-on healing practice and a spiritual practice. It is a system of self-healing that encourages individuals to put their general self-development first. Usui believed those seeking Reiki should strive to be good, “god-like” people who sought a deeper contact with the cosmic self in pursuit of self-improvement (Haberly, 1996, p. 3). He held fast to his view that healing should be carried out to bring humanity closer to oneness rather than to save lives.
Usui promoted his art in Western countries but traveled no farther than Hawaii. All the places he visited had significant Japanese populations, where he began to gain international influence. He also published an article in an English newspaper in Hawaii.
After Usui comes a complicated lineage of Reiki power and authority situations; different terms describe the practice in Western Reiki and other forms. Usui himself may have been involved in gaining other similarities that are widely present in Reiki traditions today. Most Westerners expect to receive a “Reiki Master” certification if initiated into the third degree. Within that expectation, the certificate is written by the master teacher, a regular linguistic Western teacher aspect. The student’s perspective is called natori, which has existed in Western culture for an extended period. Although the tradition is widespread, it is not likely the original tradition used by Usui. The four schools banded to create a cohesive timeline and series of practices contrasted with other major groups.
Reiki Basics
Five founding principles of Reiki offer guidance to a more spiritual life:
I will let go of any anger, just for today
I will be grateful, just for today
I will not worry, just for today
I will do my work honestly, for today
I will be kind to every living thing, just for today
Today, I will demonstrate kindness to every living being.
Reiki is also a valuable tool for induced deep relaxation. During Reiki treatments, the body is brought to a place of deep relaxation where it can let go of tension, stress, and the everyday thoughts of life that prevent you from moving forward. There are several types of Reiki, and each branch specializes in its unique flavor and techniques. Some branches of Reiki are Hayashi Reiki, Usui Reiki, and Karuna Reiki.
Reiki has been reported in some instances as helping to reduce and manage anxiety, insomnia, and depression and to help with chronic pain, reducing side effects, and recovery after surgeries or illnesses.
How to Get Started with Reiki
For Reiki novices, the initial advice is to be open to learning. Understand that Reiki is an energy medicine that promotes relaxation and emotional well-being. Your first practical step may be to find a certified local practitioner in your area who can provide valid testimonials. Some may do this right away. In contrast, others may steer away from an introductory session and prefer to get a sound theoretical understanding of Reiki before experiencing its immediate benefits.
Similarly, you may take a course and learn how to do Reiki immediately with others who prefer to know about the therapy and how best to direct natural healing energy before you’re keen to move on to holistic health and wellness. Everyone is slightly different, but it’s nice to know (before starting) that for everything you plan to do, you may be prescribed reading – and this doesn’t just mean articles about “how-to” and the origins and principles of Reiki (though no recommended list would ever be possible without the beginner’s go-to, step-by-step guide).
Reiki is a practice of healing that first originated in Japan in the early twentieth century, and it’s based on the idea that a life force energy always flows through people. Its founder was Mikao Usui, who developed the practice on the heels of his powerful spiritual experience. Reiki’s history is inherently and deeply embedded in energy healing, using the concept of a life force energy to promote hand healing through the body’s balance of hot and cold energy forces. If that all seems like a lot, there are things to unpack!
Indeed, on some elementary levels, Reiki is exceptionally straightforward. It is a practice that profoundly involves channeling energy to facilitate healing. It’s also incredibly non-invasive and can be performed in person or at a distance! But no matter how near or far, it’s a deeply relaxing experience that creates feelings of peace and wellness from within. For people who have decided to integrate Reiki into their spiritual practice and are looking for a spiritual history to guide their thoughts and actions, it is less so the blind faith of the masses that brings them the ease they seek in their practice, but rather a quiet meditation on the overall applications of touch healing.
Generally, I never recommend people decide en masse that any one practice or locomotion is the definitive form or shape of healing; people should seek what attracts them and go with what looks most interesting. I recommend never going to any one movement now expecting magic or the endless baptism of God’s presence in your life but initial feelings of peace and simple relaxation (in and of itself, marking a definitive path toward effective healing). Holding this action inward as a mode of personal feeling and experiencing helps guide you toward your appropriate and most definitive means of whole-body healing.
To learn more, visit Reiki at Namaste Studios to book a Reiki session. Additionally, you can find more of our Reiki Blogs here.
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