The word reiki (ray-key) is Japanese and is translated as “universal life force or energy.” In the West reiki is used in two ways:

1. Reiki with a lower case r is a name for life force energy in Japanese.

2. Reiki with a capital R is the common name in Western cultures for a hands-on healing art or system that was developed in Japan in the late 1800s by Mikao Usui.

When Hawayo Takata brought Reiki to the United States and began her practice, the same word was used to express both the energy and the healing system.

Over the last 20 years Reiki has become widely known and is taught and practiced throughout the world. New systems or disciplines are evolving using the Reiki energy as it moves from culture to culture.  Today the word “Reiki” has become a generic term. Many systems  coin names for their specific practice and most originated from the discipline developed by Mikao Usui in Japan in the late 1800s.  When we say  “we do Reiki” it can vary greatly from one person to the next.

What is reiki energy?

Responses to this question will always vary. Very simply,  it is life’s natural movement. It is the ebb and flow, a dynamic found in all that exists. Reiki is the intangible force that is life itself.  Reiki is a Japanese word to express this concept. Every culture has a word or phrase to express the same idea.

What is a Reiki healing system?

There are more than 90 different Reiki  Healing systems in the world today. Each one has its own structure and its own definition but most would say that Reiki is a gentle hands-on healing art that encompasses self-healing, treating of others, and treating animals and plants.  It supports us to restore the natural flow in the body,  the mind, and in the emotions we experience daily. It  touches our soul.  The experience of a treatment brings us back to our center; it helps eliminate or deal with pain on all levels; it gives us clarity to take our next steps; it provides a deep relaxation to cope and reduce the stress from our daily lives and it rejuvenates those areas in us that have become resistant and sluggish.

Reiki can be used as a personal tool for self-healing and development; many times it is used to accompany family and friends through illness and difficult moments in their lives.

It is also recognized as a complementary medicine and can be found in hospitals and medical practices to assist with chronic and acute illness. It is commonly found in hospice services under comfort care. In Australia it has been termed “spiritual medicine.” 

What is Usui Shiki Ryoho?

Usui Shiki Ryoho is the Japanese name for the Usui System of Natural Healing.  It is a healing system using reiki energy that was started by Mikao Usui in the late 1800s and was passed on to Dr. Chujiro Hayashi who established a Reiki Clinic in Tokyo.  Mrs. Hawayo Takata, a Japanese immigrant in Hawaii became a student of Dr. Hayashi’s in the early 1900s and upon his death became the Lineage Bearer. Takata moved to the mainland of the United States in the early 50s and brought this Reiki  discipline with her. She practiced and taught in the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada until her death in 1980. After Takata’s passing, Phyllis Lei Furumoto, her granddaughter, was recognized as a Grandmaster and Lineage Bearer of  the Usui System of Natural Healing by the majority of the 22 masters Takata had prepared.  Today Phyllis Furumoto teaches worldwide as well as serving the community the Lineage Bearer of Usui Shiki Ryoho.

Usui Shiki Ryoho has a well defined and simple form of practicing reiki. It  is used by thousands of committed students, practitioners and masters worldwide.