"Reiki (Japan)," World Religions and Spiritualities Project

2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP Reiki (Japan) USUI REIKI RYŌHŌ (Reiki, J
 USUI REIKI RYŌHŌ TIMELINE 1865: Usui Mikao was born to a merchant family of samurai ancestry in Taniai village (modern Gifu prefecture). 1908: Usui and his wife Sadako (née Suzuki) had a son named Fuji. 1913: The Usuis have a daughter, Toshiko. c. 1919 (possibly earlier): Usui reportedly began a three­year period of a semi­monastic life at a Kyoto temple. c. 1922 (possibly earlier): Usui perform ed twenty­one days of austerities on Mt. Kurama, a sacred mountain north of Kyoto, culminating in the mysterious acquisition of the healing powers that became the basis of Usui Reiki Ryhō. 1922 (April): Usui moved to Tokyo and found ed the Shinshin Kaizen Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai (Mind­Body Improvement Usui Reiki Therapy Society, hereafter Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai) and opened a training facility (dōjō) in Harajuku. 1923 (fall) : Usui dedicated himself to treating the casualties of the Great Kantō Earthquake of September 1. c. 1925 : Usui opened a larger training facility in Nakano, at that time in the Tokyo suburbs. c. 1925: Usui’s student Hayashi Chjirō, a retired captain from the Imperial Navy, opened his own organization called the Hayashi Reiki Kenkyūkai (Hayashi Reiki Research Society) in Shinanomachi, Tokyo. 1926 (March 9): While on a teaching tour in western  Ushida   Usui died of a stroke in Fukuyama. His student ō (1865­1935), a retired rear admiral of the Imperial Navy, became the second president of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai. 1927: The Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai erected a memorial stele to Usui at Saihōji, Umezato, Suginami­ku, Tokyo. 1935: Ushida died; Taketomi Kan’ichi (1878­1960), also a retired rear admiral of the Imperial Navy who studied Usui Reiki Ryōhō under Usui, became the third president of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai. 1935 (December): A second­generation Hawaii­born   American, Hawayo Takata (1900­1980), began about six months of studying Usui Reiki Ryōhō at the Hayashi Reiki Kenkyūkai headquarters. The https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 1/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP following year, she took Usui Reiki Ryōhō to Hawaii, where it became known as Reiki. By 1951, Takata began teaching on the North American mainland. 1945 (March 9­10): U.S. incendiary bombing raids on Tokyo create d firestorms that killed over 100,000 and left over 1,000,000 homeless. Raids continued into May, and during this period, many of the early records of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai and Hayashi Reiki Kenkyūkai were likely destroyed. 1946: Watanabe Yoshiharu (d. 1960), a former high school principal who studied under Usui, briefly became the fourth Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai president in the immediate postwar period. c. 1947: Taketomi Kan’ichi resumed his tenure as Usui Reiki Ryōhō president. c. 1960: Wanami Hōichi (1883­1975), a former Vice Admiral of the Imperial Navy who studied under Ushida, became the fifth Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai president. c. 1975: Koyama Kimiko (1906­1999), who studied under Taketomi, became the sixth Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai president. 1984: Mitsui Mieko, who learned Reiki in New York City under Barbara Weber Ray, began to “re­import” Western Reiki (seiyō reiki) back to  1998: Kondō Masaki (b. 1933), a professor of English literature, became the seventh Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai president. 2010: Takahashi Ichita (b. 1936), a retired businessman, became the eighth Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai president. FOUNDER/GROUP HISTORY In the early decades of the twentieth century, thousands of  developed therapies that drew on the powers of the mind and spirit to heal physical afflictions. While these therapies emphasized the primacy of mental and spiritual realms (not necessarily considered distinct from each other) over the physical, many of them employed profoundly embodied methods to access these incorporeal realms. For example, many therapists engaged in practices such as abdominal breathing to cultivate an invisible healing power that they transmitted through their hands into the bodies of their patients. These therapies were generally known under the name seishin ryōhō (“psycho­spiritual therapies”) or reijutsu (spirit techniques), and in many ways were akin to the “mind cures” of late nineteenth and early twentieth century North America (Yoshinaga 2015; Hirano 2016). While examples of these seishin ryōhō survived and even thrived in new religious movements that incorporated under the 1947 constitution (like the jōrei of Sekai Kyūseikyō), the vast majority of these therapies died out during the years of the Pacific War. But one seishin ryōhō from this period flourished in the postwar period without the official status or organizational structure of an incorporated religious body. Usui Reiki Ryōhō (Usui Reiki Therapy, alternately Usui­shiki Reiki Ryōhō or Usui­style Reiki Therapy) was developed in  in the 1920s, adapted for the  American community of Hawaii in the 1930s and https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 2/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP 1940s, underwent further modifications for North American audiences in the postwar decades, and grew to global prominence in the late twentieth century under the name Reiki. Usui Reiki Ryōhō takes its name from its founder Usui Mikao, [Image at right] a largely self­taught polymath. The second child and first son of a family that descended from the powerful Chiba clan, Usui was born in the village of Taniai in Yamagata county (modern Gifu prefecture), on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the first year of the Keiō period, corresponding to  4, 1865 on the Western calendar. His father was a successful businessman and his grandfather had been a sake brewer (Petter 2012: 31­33). Usui reportedly left his home village at an early age and seldom returned, but he and his three siblings (an older sister, Tsune, and two younger brothers: San’ya, a doctor, and Kun’iji, a policeman) later constructed a stone torii (gate) at a local shrine called Amataka  !"#$ In a stone monument that Usui’s organization erected to memorialize its founder, he is remembered as a man of unusual diligence and broad interests, travelling to China and the West to deepen his studies, which included medicine, psychology, physiognomy, history, Christian and Buddhist scripture, Daoist geomancy, incantation, and divination (%#&# 1927). Fukuoka (1974:8) claims that Usui worked a variety of jobs, including as a missionary and a Buddhist prison chaplain, as a public servant, and in private business, but this text is somewhat apocryphal. There are also oral traditions that Usui worked for some time as the private secretary of Gōtō Shinpei (1857­1929), who served as #'#!(s foreign minister and home minister, director of #'#!(s Colonization Bureau, and the mayor of Tokyo, but the Gōtō Shinpei )#! *# ! +#, ! -!#. to confirm this. After the collapse of one of his businesses, Usui is said to have “entered the gate of Zen” (zenmon ni hairi), and lived a semi­monastic life for three years, possibly at a temple in Kyoto (Fukuoka 1974:8). There has been speculation that he was affiliated with the Enryakuji monastic complex of Tendai Buddhism, although there is currently little evidence for this. This period of Buddhist practice culminated in three weeks of austerities on Mt. Kurama, a site north of Kyoto associated with mountain asceticism. Usui later said that his twenty­one days of fasting and meditation culminated in a mystical experience in which he was “mysteriously inspired after being touched by the ether,” causing him to “accidentally realize the spiritual [or mysterious] ability to heal disease” (taiki ni furete fukashigi ni reikan shi, chibyō no reinō o eta koto o gūzen jikaku shita, “Kōkai Denju Setsumei”). Usui’s life history resembles those of other founders of spiritual therapies and new religious movements at this time. His great interest in medicine and religion of both Eastern and Western origin establishes him as an exceptional seeker of new truths regarding human potential for happiness. His spiritual awakening following a period of material hardships, including a failed business, monastic discipline, and ascetic practice on a sacred mountain, is a conventional theme in founder stories. It was likely Usui’s inspiration from a mysterious direct experience, along with his profound, if short, career as a healer and teacher, that caused his eulogist to compare him to the “sages, philosopher, geniuses, and great men” of ancient times and the https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 3/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP “founders of religious sects” (/0121 1927). Yet, despite these similarities, the one text attributed to Usui insists that Usui Reiki Ryōhō is a wholly “original therapy” (dokusō ryōhō), not learned from any teacher but “mysteriously” and “accidentally realized” directly from the cosmos (“Kōkai Denju Setsumei”). Usui only taught for four years before his untimely death in 1926, but in that time he is said to have taught about two thousand students all over 314156 He established the Shinshin Kaizen Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai (Mind­Body Improvement Usui Reiki Therapy Society, hereafter Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai) when he opened his first dōjō (training center) in April 1922, in Harajuku, Tokyo (/0121 1927). He may have chosen to establish his dōjō in Harajuku to be close to the recently completed Meiji Shrine ( Meiji 789:; ) that enshrined the spirits of the Meiji Emperor and Empress, as formal recitation of and reflection on the Meiji Emperor’s poetry (gyosei) is an foundational practice of Usui Reiki Ryōhō (described in the rituals/practices section below). Usui’s memorial recounts that the entrance to his dōjō “overflowed with shoes,” testament to the great numbers who came in search of instruction and treatment (/0121 <=>?@6 A number of details indicate a possible connection between Usui’s rapid success and the 1921 state suppression of the new religious movement Amoto. At that time, Ōmoto had grown to national prominence under its flamboyant leader, Deguchi /5BC1DEFō (1871­1948), and his mediated spirit possession practice called chinkon kishin, which was used for healing purposes, among other things. This practice attracted hundreds of thousands of followers to Ōmoto in the years leading up the “first Ōmoto incident” of 1921, in which Deguchi and other Ōmoto leaders were arrested for lèse­majesté, and chinkon kishin is recognized as playing an important role in precipitating this “incident.” (Staemmler 2009:224­39). In the spirit of other popular religious movements of the early twentieth century, chinkon kichin can be considered a “democratized” spiritual practice, previously the purview of ritual specialists like yamabushi (mountain ascetics) and miko (shrine maidens), but now authorized for use by members of a new religious movement (Hardacre 1994). It could be said that Usui Reiki Ryōhō (among other seishin ryōhō ) similarly democratized healing and empowerment practices previously performed by religious professionals such as yamabushi and Buddhist monks. 3G50HF (2016:331) goes so far as to suggest that Usui Reiki Ryōhō ‘s reiju ritual seems to be an adapted form of chinkon kishin or the related miteshiro otoritsugi, but I am sceptical of so direct of a link. Regardless, the timing of Usui’s rising popularity in the immediate aftermath of Ōmoto’s suppression suggests that some proportion of Usui’s followers may have been former Ōmoto members looking for a new, less politically risky way to connect with the spiritual world for healing. That Ōmoto had been popular among naval personnel and a number of Usui’s top disciples were high­ranking naval officers lends further support to this supposition. Furthermore, the charges that Ōmoto leaders committed lèse­majesté suggest political expediency as a possible factor in Usui’s emphasis on the Meiji Emperor as a spiritual inspiration (Stein 2011). Usui’s memorial relates that the Great Kantō Earthquake of September 1, 1923, was a turning point in his career, as he treated an uncountable number of casualties from this earthquake and the subsequent firestorms that swept through Tokyo and Yokohama (/0121 1927). /F1I tradition claims that Usui received official recognition from the Taishō state for his great efforts in the wake of this natural disaster, but there is currently no evidence corroborating this. Usui’s new fame rendered the Harajuku dōjō too small and he opened a new headquarters in Nakano, then a suburb of Tokyo, in 1925 (/01da 1927). Usui made teaching https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 4/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP tours JKLMNO PJQJN JNO in MJKRS 1926, he wJT on such J trip in western PJQJNU including HiroshimJ JNO SJVJU when he suffered J stroke in FukuyJWJ JNO died. According to the locJX wJY of cJXRMXJZ[NV JV\U he wJT T[]ZY^Z_LU `MZ `Y aestern cJXRMXJZ[LNT S\ _JT T[]ZY. DOCTRINES/BELIEFS Unlike mJNY, if not most, of their contemporJKY reijutsukb JNO seishin ryōhōkb (spirituJX prJRZ[Z[LN\KT JNO psycho­spirituJX therJQ[TZTc in pre­wJK PJQJNU the leJO\KTS[Q of Usui Reiki Ryōhō hJKOXY described JNY of their beliefs JNO prJRZ[R\T in writing. This wJT JZ leJTZ pJKZXY by design. Usui JNO his top disciples discourJV\O their students from writing publicly J`LMZ Usui Reiki Ryōhō, including JOd\KZ[T[NV their treJZW\NZT JNO RXJTT\Te fS[T [T d\K[g[\O [N LN\ Lg ZS\ KJK\ QM`X[R K\RLKOT gKLW ZS\ \JKXY Y\JKT Lg ZS\ ZS\KJQY, J newspJQ\K JKZ[RX\ by the celebrJZ\O plJY_K[VSZ MJZTM[ Shōō, who studied under Usui’s disciple HJYJTS[ Chūjirō. In the opening section of this JKZ[RX\U Shōō writes, “Despite being Jble to heJX JXX diseJT\T with J single hJNd, this therJQY is still hJKOXY known to the public. For some reJTLNU Usui especiJXXY disliked mJh[NV it public, so those trJ[N\O [N S[T TRSLLXT JXTL TZ[XX JdL[O JOd\KZ[T[NVi jkJZTM[ lmnoce This is relJZ\O to the fJRZ thJZU like other trJO[Z[LNJX PJQJN\T\ JKZTU the prJRZ[Re of Usui Reiki Ryōhō is tJMVSZ directly from mJTZ\K to disciple through “secret trJNTW[TT[LNi (hiden). A group of mJTZ\KT collectively evJXMJZ\ students’ progress, formJX[p\O in J series of rJNhTe For exJWQX\U only JOdJNR\O prJRZ[Z[LN\KT who hJd\ reJRS\O the level cJXX\O okuden (“inner trJNTW[TT[LN”) leJKN the three symbolic forms (not to be reveJX\O to others) thJZ mJh\ possible distJNR\ treJZW\NZe qZS\K rituJXT JK\ to performed only by prJRZ[Z[LN\KT grJNZ\O the level of shinpiden (“mystery trJNTW[Tsion”). Thus, these prJRZ[R\T JNO their JTTLR[JZ\O beliefs JK\ not recorded in JNY depth in historicJX written publicJZ[LNTU JXZSLMVS Reiki’s recent populJK[ZY hJT led to numerous publicJZ[LNT JNO websites thJZ clJ[W to reveJl the prJRZ[R\T of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō GJhhJ[ jT\\U gLK \]JWQX\U rL[ lmmos t\ZZ\K nulnce In JOdition to this reluctJNR\ to put their beliefs JNO prJRZ[R\T into writing, JNLZS\K possible reJTLN for the scJKR[ZY of written mJZ\K[JXT from the Usui Reiki Ryōhō GJhhJ[U the HJYJTS[ Reiki KenkyūkJ[U JNO their membership is the presumed incinerJZion of both orgJN[pJZ[LNTv heJOwMJKZ\KT in the Tokyo J[K rJ[OT of 1945. It is likely thJZ there wJT literJZMK\ JZ the time thJZ did not survive the wJr or is being held in J privJZ\ collection. FinJXXY, JT much of the literJZMK\ produced by the Usui Reiki Ryōhō GJhhJ[ JNO HJYJTS[ Reiki KenkyūkJ[ wJT meJNZ for members only, it is possible thJZ leJO\KT of the current Usui Reiki Ryōhō GJhhJ[ possess documents thJZ more cleJKXY explicJZ\ the beliefs JNO prJRZ[R\T of Usui Reiki Ryōhō, but JK\ not reveJX[NV ZS\W ZL ZS\ QM`X[Re RegJKOX\TTU the documents thJZ do remJ[N reveJX J number of beliefs JZ the core of Usui Reiki Ryōhō. qN\ of these beliefs posits the existence of J cosmic force cJXX\O reiki thJZ individuJXT cJN mJN[QMXJZ\ to enJct physicJX heJX[NVU improve bJO hJ`[ZT, JRS[\d\ spirituJX development, JNO generJXXY JRS[\d\ physicJXU emotionJXU W\NZJXU JNO TQ[K[ZMJX _\XX^`\[NVe fS\ \]JRZ NJZMK\ Lg ZS[T reiki remJ[NT TLW\_SJZ WYTZ\K[LMTe xTM[ is recorded JT sJYing thJZ he leJKN\d his therJQY “JRR[O\NZJXXYi when “mysteriously inspired” by “being touched by JN ether (tbyzy )” on KurJWJ^YJWJ, so “JXZSLMVS I JW the founder, it is difficult for me to cleJKXY explJ[N [the essence of reiki JNO the operJZ[LN of his Reiki Ryōhō]” (“KōkJ[ Denju Setsumei”). There is J cleJK legJRY from eJKXY modern shūyō (self­cultivJZ[LNc prJRZ[R\T in thJZ Usui’s prJRZ[R\T JK\ described JT https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 5/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP “correcting he{|}~inds through people’s inn{}€ [liter{‚ ‘he{ƒ€„‚~ †ƒ€„‡ˆ mysterious {‰††}†€Š‹ (tenpu no reinō ni yorite kokoro o tŒŒŽ‘’ shi, “k{”{ 1927). This continuity is {Š• present in th{} seishin ryōhō , including Usui Reiki Ryōhō, posit c{–s{ rel{}†•„Š—†˜Š between the st{}€ of the he{|}~†„” (kokoro) {„” physic{ he{}—™ When {Šš€” wh{} his ther{˜‚ ent{†Š› Usui is s{†” to h{ƒ€ replied: “To w{š the p{}— of righteousness (seidō), first he{ your he{|}~†„”Š (kokoro o iyŒŽ) {„” your bodies will become he{}—‚ {Š well” (“Kōk{† œ€„– ž€}Š–€†‹Ÿ™ Like other seishin ryōhō of its time, Usui Reiki Ryōhō combines the ide{ of self­cultiv{}†•„ (shūyō) with the exp{„Š†ƒ€ sense of rei (spirit) developed in the first dec{”€Š of the twentieth century. While Yumiy{{ (1999:91­98) describes how { number of contempor{„€•–Š new religions, not{‰‚ Ōmoto, repl{ €” kokoro (he{|}~†„”Ÿ with rei, Usui Reiki Ryōhō cle{|‚ discusses { rel{}†•„Š—†˜ between reiki {„” kokoro, {}—•– — the n{}–|€ of the former term rem{†„Š { bit obscure. In {””†}†•„ to the me{„†„ of {„ individu{ spirit (tŒ¡ŒŽ), the ch{|{ }€| rei c{„ {Š• signify sever{ other concepts, including the ment{› the emotion{› the mir{ –•–Š› {„” the mysterious. Thus, while reiki is often glossed {Š “univers{ life force energy” or “spiritu{ energy,” the truth is th{} no ext{„} text from the pre­w{| period {”€¢–{}€‚ {””|€ŠŠ€Š the me{„†„ of the rei in reiki {„” it is likely th{} tr{„Š{}†„ compounds th{} cont{†„ rei (such {Š reinō [mysterious or mir{ –•–Š {‰††}†€Šˆ •| reiyŒ‘’ [mir{ € ”|– ˆŸ Š•€‚ †„ |€£€|€„ € }• ¤ Š˜†|†}–{ ‹ †Š Š•€¥—{} †Š€{”†„ ™ As the term reiki w{Š often used by seishin ryōhōkŒ synonymously with terms like seiki (“vit{†}‚‹Ÿ› prŒ¦Œ ({ S{„Šš|†} word for vit{ energy), {„” {–|{› or to tr{„Š{}€ prŒ¦Œ or {–|{ into §{˜{„€Š€› we c{„ {ŠŠ–€ th{} “ vit{ force ” w{Š {} le{Š} one of reiki ‘s me{„†„ Š (Hir{„• 2¨©ª«¬¨Ÿ™ Reiki w{Š {Š• used to me{„ “ positive energy,” in contr{Š} to ‘neg{}†ƒ€ energy’ (jŒ‘ ), {Š in the du{†Š}† theory of T{{|† Kizō (1912), which w{Š widely­known within the world of seishin ryōhō {„” referenced by other contempor{|‚ ther{˜†Š}Š™ Bec{–Š€ of the existence of v{|ious other reiki ther{˜†€Š ­reiki ryōhō), such {Š T{š{ † Hidesuke’s §†„}{† Aur{ Reiki­jutsu (Hum{„ Body Aur{ Reiki Techniques) {„” W{}{„{‰€ Kōyō’s Reiki K{„ €„ Ryōin (Reiki Restor{}†•„ Ther{˜‚ Center), Usui needed to distinguish his ther{˜‚, br{„”†„ it with his n{€ {„” introducing some innov{}†ƒ€ pr{ }† €Š ­®• —†¯–š† ©°°±«²³Ÿ™ RITUALS/PRACTICES As with the beliefs {ŠŠ• †{}€” with Usui Reiki Ryōhō, the history of its pr{ }† €Š is only fr{ €„}{|†‚ documented. Furthermore, {Š the current Usui Reiki Ryōhō G{šš{† does not permit members to describe its pr{ }† €Š to non­members to ev{”€ possible misunderst{„”†„ Š› I { un{‰€ to write much here reg{|”†„ this subject. However, there {|€ { few things th{} c{„ be st{}€” reg{|”†„ the historic{ record of Usui Reiki Ryōhō pr{ }† € †„ §{˜{„™ First, Usui’s memori{ stone, erected in e{|‚ 1927, [Im{ € {} right] sheds some light on some pr{ }† €Š considered centr{ {} the time of his de{}—™ After s{‚†„ th{} Usui Reiki Ryōhō’s purpose w{Š not to merely cure illness {„” provide he{}—‚ bodies, but {Š• to help people correct their he{|}~†„”Š {„” {}}{†„ well­ being, it outlines Usui’s te{ —†„ « “First, observe the te{ —†„ Š of the Meiji Emperor {„”› morning {„” evening, recite the five precepts {„” engr{ƒ€ them deeply on your he{|}~ind (kokoro ni nen zeshimu).” L{}€| it s{‚Š this recit{}†•„ is to be pr{ }† €” in the seizŒ gŒŽŽō position, kneeling silently with p{Š pressed together {} —€Š} —€† —} ­“š{”{ ©°²´Ÿ™ https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 6/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP The phrµse “teµ¶·¸¹º» of the Meiji Emperor” is vµº¼½¾ but probµ¿ÀÁ references the Emperor’s poetry cµlled gyosei, 125 of which µÂ½ reproduced in the Reiki Ryōhō Hikkei , the hµ¹Ãbook distributed to Usui Reiki Ryōhō GµÄĵ¸ Žſ½Â»Æ Ç·½»½ ÈɽŻ ʽµÊ µ ˵¸½ÊÁ ÉÌ Ê·½Å½»¾ ¿¼Ê determined self­cultivµÊ¸É¹ is µ common trope. A representµÊ¸Ë½ exµÅÈÀ½ is, “With dust, even µ ͽνÀ Î¸Ê·É¼Ê Ê·½ »À¸º·Ê½»Ê ÌÀµÎ ¶µ¹ ÀÉ»½ ¸Ê» »ÈµÂÄÀ½Ï Ð isÑÒÑÓÑ no kizunÑÓi tÑÔÑ mo tomosurebÑ chiri ni hikÑÕÖ o ushinÑÖ×ÖÓØÕÖ ). While reciting morµÀ¸Ù¸¹º poetry for self­cultivµÊ¸É¹ wµ» not in itself µ¹ innovµÊ¸Ë½ prµ¶Ê¸¶½¾ the recitµÊ¸É¹ of these pµÂʸ¶¼ÀµÂ gyosei is µ distinctive µÊʸ¿¼Ê½ ÉÌ Ú»¼¸ Û½¸Ä¸ ÛÁōhō. The “Five Precepts” (gokÑÖ) referenced by the memoriµÀ stone is µ short text µÊʸ¿¼Ê½Ã to Usui, but µ¶Ê¼µÀÀÁ derives from the“Conduct Song” (shosei no utÑ) composed by the ryōhōkÑ (given eµÂÀ¸½Â Suzuki nµÅ½ seishin Bizµ¹ Suzuki Seijirō, dµÊ½» unknown). In his Kenzen TetsugµÄ¼ (HeµÀÊ· µ synthesis of prµ¶Ê¸¶½» from neo­Confuciµ¹ self­ cultivµÊ¸É¹ µ¹Ã those from Christiµ¹ Science µ¹Ã New Thought, Suzuki outlined these five precepts [Imµº½ µÊ right] to be recited dµ¸ÀÁÜ “TodµÁ only, do not µ¹º½Â, do not feµÂ, be honest, fulfil duties, be kind to people” (kyō dÑÓØ wÑÝ ikÑÕÑÞßÝ osorezu, shōjiki ni, shokumu o hÑàØÔi, hito ni shinsetsu ni , Suzuki 1914:27). In compµÂ¸»É¹¾ µ cµÀligrµÈ·Á signed by Usui reµÃ»Ü “The secret method of summoning hµÈȸ¹½»»¾ the mirµ¶À½ drug of µÀÀ diseµ»½Ü TodµÁ only, do not µ¹º½Â, do not worry, be grµÊ½Ì¼À¾ fulfil duties, be kind to people” (shōfuku no hihō, mÑ×áâō no reiyÑÓßÝ kyō dÑÓØ wÑÝ ikÑÕß×ÑÝ shinpÑÖ sunÑÝ kÑ×ÒãÑ shite, gyō o hÑàØÔØÝ hito ni shinsetsu ni). The memoriµÀ stone contµ¸¹» µ similµÂ text which it mµÄ½» cleµÂ should be recited twice dµ¸ÀÁ, while in seizÑ gÑÒÒãō (silently kneeling with pµÀÅ» pressed together µÊ chest height). “Reciting the five precepts,” it sµÁ»¾ “will engrµË½ them in your heµÂÊ䟹ÃÏ (gokÑÖ o tonÑØåØÝ kokoro ni nen­zeshimu ). It continues, “when you recite [these words] morning µ¹Ã evening, in seizÑ gÑÒÒãō, you nurture µ humµ¹½ µ¹Ã heµÀÊ·Á heµÂÊ䟹þ µ¹Ã »½½ Ê·½ ÍÉÁ ÉÌ Ãµ¸ÀÁ ȵ¶Ê¸¶½Ï ÐseizÑ gÑÒÒhō ÑÒÑæâß nenju no sÑÖ ni junken no kokoro o yÑÒãÖ×ÑÖÝ heisei no okonÑÖ ×Ö çßÓß ÒØÒãÖÔßÕß ×Ö ÑÕÖ, èĵõ éêëìíÆ Philosophy), Usui Reiki Ryōhō wµ» not the only seishin ryōhō to combine Suzuki’s Kenzen TetsugµÄ¼ with vitµÀ¸»Ê¸¶ teÑåØ (hµ¹Ãä·½µÀ¸¹º¾ pronounced “tµÁäµ·äʵÁ”). For exµÅÈÀ½¾ the ʵ¸ Aurµ Reiki­jutsu (Humµ¹ Body Aurµ Reiki Techniques) creµÊ½d by TµÄµº¸ Hidesuke µÂɼ¹Ã the sµÅ½ time Usui developed his Reiki Ryōhō, contµ¸¹» mµ¹Á prµctices thµt closely resemble Usui Reiki Ryōhō, including µ five­fold recitµÊ¸É¹ thµÊ more closely https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 7/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP resembles Suzuki’s formulïðñòó thïó Usui’s gokôõ, ïöð÷òøù÷ it is uncleïú whether Usui or Tïûïùñ directly influenced one ïóòð÷üú ýþïûïùñ ÿ
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ÿÿ A number of Usui ïó Hï ï ÷ñs students ïùúüü thïð gokôõ ïó gyosei recitïðñòó were the bï ñ of Usui Reiki Ryōhō’s efficï ïó whïð distinguished Usui’s methods from those of other prïðñðñòóüú Tomïü÷ñ Gizō (188ÿ   ïó industriïöñ ððøúóüd­politiciïó who hï studied under Usui, listed recitïðñòó of the gokôõ in the morning ïó evening ï the first of ï series of “heïöð÷ methods” in his memoir (Tomïü÷ñ ïó Nïùï ïï 1951:335). Tomitï Kïññ ïóother student of Usui who went on to found his own reiki therï , tïøù÷ð ï prïðñü cïööü jōshin­hō (“heïúðñó purificïðñòó method”) in which prïðñðñòóüú sit in the seizô gôō position described ïòü reï ñóù the gyosei in their kokoro (“heïúðñó  Regulïú prïðñü Tomitï writes, will “more ïó more purify the spirit (seishin)” ï “the emperor’s kokoro expressed in the gyosei illuminïðü òóüs own kokoro ” (1999 [1933]:63). And Yïïùø÷ñ þï ïò ÷ò ü òð÷üú ï ðúïñóü   øñs student Hï ï ÷ñ Chūjirō, writes thïð the recitïðñòó of gokôõ ïó gyosei “distinguished [Usui Reiki Ryōhō] prïðñðñòóüú from other heïöüú  (2:79). As previously mentioned, there were literïöö thousïó of other seishin ryōhō ïð the time, including severïö others cïööü reiki ryōhō, so distinguishing chïúïðüúñ ðñ would hïü üüó ûü ðò ð÷ü øü ò  øñ üñûñ  ōhō. The recitïðñòó of the gyosei ïó gokôõ wï the foundïðñòó for other meditïðñòó prïðñü to purify the kokoro ï well ï prïðñü to chïóóüö reiki through the hïó  breïð÷ ïó eyes. Advïóü prïðñðñòóüú were tïøù÷ð to project reiki to ï distïnt recipient, often using his or her photogrï÷ These chïóóüöñóù prïðñü ïúü thought to heïö bodies of physicïö mïöï ñü  ï well ï to “correct bï hïñð  (ô !õ o kyōsei), (kyojô ), indecision (yūjūfudô"), ïó nervousness (shinkeishitsu) including worry (hô"#$"), weïûóü (“Kōkïñ Denju Setsumei”). In order to perform techniques including distïóü treïðüóð (enkô ryōhō) ïó treïðüóð of bï hïñð (seiheki), ï ïóüd prïðñðñoners leïúó three symbols to be trïü or visuïöñ%ü  ïó not to be disclosed to the uninitiïðü The first symbol, which increï ü the ïòøóð of reiki flow, seems to derive from Shintō/Dïòñ ð sources, the second, used in correcting bï hïñð  is relïðü to Sïó ûúñð chïúïðüú hrīḥ (&  kiriku), ï òñïted with Amidï Buddhï ïó the third is ï tïöñ ïó bï ü on five Chinese chïúïðüú  including the compound shōnen, which in Buddhist contexts meïó “right mindfulness,” one of the steps of the Eightfold Pïð÷ These techniques ïúü tïøù÷ð in ï succession of levels, with more grï ïðñòó thïó the three­fold system of First Degree, Second Degree, ïó Mïster Degree common to most contemporïú forms of Reiki prïðñü Also, whereï most contemporïú Reiki prïðñü in which Reiki Mï ðüú perform initiïðñòó for eï÷ degree once, rïúüö or never repeïðñóù them (see Beeler ïó &òóûüú 2ÿ ), chïðüús of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gïûûïñ ïó the Hï ï ÷ñ Reiki Kenkyūkïñ prïðñü ï rituïö cïööü reiju (“bestowing reiki ”) ïð every meeting. Horowitz (2ÿ ïúùøü ð÷ïð ð÷ñ úñðøïö ñ üúñü úò ð÷ü ü òðüúñ 'ø ÷ñ ð kô"(ō initiïðñòó ñð üö üúñü úò ïöøðñòó ïó empowerment rituïö of Indic origin cïööü ô)õṣekhô. The centrïöñð ïó periodicity of this rituïö to Usui Reiki Ryōhō is evident in the fïð thïð pre­wïú chïðüú of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gïûûïñ ïó Hï ï ÷ñ Reiki Kenkyūkïñ referred to their meetings ï reijukôõ (reiju meetings). There is no one cleïú explïnïðñòó of this rituïös meïóñóù but it could constitute ï technique by which the individuïö is connected to the cosmic source of reiki, rituïöö úüüóïðñóù  øñs experience on Mt. Kurïï https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 8/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP The h*+,-./*01+2 method (te345 67ōhō) of the pre­w*8 Usui Reiki Ryōhō seems to h*9/ predomin*+:0; used one h*+,< where*= most contempor*8; Reiki line*2/= te*ch the use of two h*+,=> [Im*2/ *: right] This is evident in the *8:1?0/= published in the M*8?. 4, 1928 issue of Sund37 M3@A@BC@ written by M*:=D1 Shōō (187E1933) * pl*ywright who h*, studied under H*;*=.1F *+, by *+ *+G+;HGD= p*:1/+: of M*:=D1< who outlines how his tre*:H/+: experience tr*+=IG8H/, him from * skeptic to * hesit*+: believer. M*:=D1 refers to Usui Reiki Ryōhō *= “* ther*J; th*: he*0= *00 dise*=/ with * single h*+,K (sekishu m3AL7ō o jisuru ryōhō), *+, his p*:1/+: *0=G refers to it *= “single­h*+, ther*J;K (sekishu ryōhō). The p*:1/+: describes how M*:=D1Ms right h*+, bec*H/ so p*1+ID0 during the tre*:H/+: th*: he h*, to ch*+2/ it for his left (M*:=D1 1928). The projection of “ki *+, light” (“Kōk*1 Denju Setsumei”) in this “single­h*+, ther*J;K closely resembles the pr*?:1?/= of jōrei *+, okiyome used by v*81GD= new religious movements including Sek*1 Kyūsei­kyō *+, M*.1N*81> These movements expl*1+ :./18 J8*?:1?/=M /Ific*?; HG8/ 1+ :/8H= GI JD81:; *+, JG00D:1G+ :.*+ O=D1 P/1N1 P;ōhō (Stein 2EQRF> LEADERSHIP/SPTUVWXUTISV For *YGD: * h*0I-?/+:D8; *I:/8 Usui’s de*:.< the centr*0 le*,/8=.1J of the Shinshin K*1Z/+ Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1 w*= composed of officers of the Imperi*0 N*9;. By 1926, twenty of Usui’s students h*, *::*1+/, the r*+N of shih3A (instructor), three of whom were n*9*0 officers. The re*8 *,H18*0= Ushid* [DZ*YD8ō (1865­ 1935) *+, T*N/:GHi K*+M1?.1 (1878­196EF< respectively served *= the second *+, third presidents (k3@BCō) of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1> The third, n*9*0 c*J:*1+ H*;*=.1 Chūjirō, st*rted his own org*+1Z*:1G+< the H*;*=.1 Reiki Ryōhō Kenkyūk*1 (H*;*=.1 Reiki Ther*J; Rese*8?. Society), which served *+ import*+: role in the tr*+=H1==1G+ of Usui Reiki Ryōhō to the West. The Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1Ms fifth president, W*+*H1 Hōichi (1883­1975), w*= * former Vice Admir*0 who studied under Ushid*> The centr*01:; of officers from the Imperi*0 N*9; ch*+2/, in 1975 with the inst*00*:1G+ of the long­serving sixth president, Koy*H* Kimiko (19E\-Q]]]F< who studied Usui Reiki Ryōhō under T*N/:GH1 K*+M1?.1 with her husb*+,< * sociology professor. Thus, except for * J/81G, GI * I/^ HG+:.= 1+ :./ 1HH/,1*:/ *I:/8H*:. GI :./ ^*8, the top le*,/8= GI the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1 ^/8/ IG8H/8 +*9*0 GIficers for *0HG=: I1I:; ;/*8=> The decline of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1 in the immedi*:/ postw*8 period m*; well h*9/ been precipit*:/, by this close rel*:1G+=.1J with the Imperi*0 N*9;. While the org*+iz*:1G+ h*, dozens of br*+?./= *+, thous*+,= of members *?8G== [*J*+ during the pre­w*8 period, it is in * long period of decline since the end of the P*?1I1? W*8. The post­w*8 dissolution of the N*9; under the 1947 constitution must h*9/ neg*:19/0; imp*?:/, the public prestige of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1 le*,ership *+, public perception of the org*+1Z*:1G+> This could expl*1+ the brief period in 1946 when W*:*+*Y/ Yoshih*8D (d. 196EF< * former high school princip*0 who studied Usui Reiki Ryōhō under Usui, bec*H/ the org*+1Z*:1G+Ms fourth president. It is possible th*: Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1 members, with their recit*:1G+ of the Meiji Emperor’s poetry (described in * following section) *+, connections to the Imperi*0 N*9;, could h*9/ been reg*8,/, *= religious n*:1G+*01=:=< *+, if the org*+iz*:1G+ ever espoused strong n*:1G+*01=H< this tendency h*= since f*,/,> Either w*;, the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G*NN*1Ms insul*81:;, which d*:/= to the 192E= (M*:=D1 1928), seems https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 9/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP to h_`a grown even more pronounced during the postw_b period, perh_cd due to _efghijcabg_k sentiment during the U.S.­led lmmnc_fgoep the continued rise of biomedic_k _nfqobgfr, the est_skgdqjaef of n_fgoe_k he_kfq insur_emap _et the growing _ddomg_fgoe of simil_b forms of he_kgeu (like jōrei _et okiyome) with controversi_k eav bakgugond jo`ajaefdw The org_eiz_fgoe of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G_xx_g currently seems to be _f _ crossro_tdw The mostly elderly le_tabdqgc looks b_mx to Koy_j_ys presidency (c. 1975­1998) _d _ sort of recent ‘golden _uay th_f they would like to restore. However, membership h_d _u_ge declined _zfab her retirement in 1998, due to low r_fad of recruitment _et the _ffbgfgoe of elderly members p_ddgeu _v_r. They h_ve h_t difficulty recruiting _et ret_gegeu _ new gener_fgoe of younger {_c_eada members, despite {_c_eys so­c_kkat “spiritu_k boom” of the 2|||dw Tod_r only five Usui Reiki Ryōhō G_xx_g br_emqad rem_gep with _e offici_k tot_k of _ccbo}gj_fakr five hundred members, _kfqonuq the number who regul_bkr _ffaet meetings is consider_skr sm_kkab th_e th_fw Although the two presidents who h_`a followed Koy_j_ both spe_x fluent English, _et could h_`a est_skgdqat ties to the flourishing intern_fgoe_k Reiki community th_f expresses strong interest in “tr_tgfgoe_k {_c_eada Reiki,” the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G_xx_g h_d only recently begun to _tjgf foreign members, of whom there _ba _ q_etznkw While the m_ge focus of this _bfgmka is on Usui Reiki Ryōhō _et the Shinshin K_g~ae Usui Reiki Ryōhō G_xx_gp there _ba _kdo _f le_dfthree other groups of rel_fat pr_mfgmes in contempor_br {_c_n. The l_buadf of these is those {_c_eada who pr_mfgma so­c_kkat “Western Reiki” (seiyō reiki), usu_kkr simply c_lled Reiki (written in k€‚ ). Western Reiki is the product of the H_v_gghsobe {_c_eada Americ_e H_v_ro T_x_f_ [Im_ua _f right] (19||hƒ„ |†p who studied under Usui’s disciple H_r_dqg Chūjirō _f his org_eg~_fgoeys he_t‡n_bfabd in Shin_eoj_mqgp Tokyo, beginning in December 1935. By _kk _mmonefdp T_x_f_ h_t _ close rel_fgoedqgc with H_r_dqg _et he is s_gt to h_`a n_jat her his successor just before t_xgeu his own life on the brink of the P_mgzgm W_b in 194|w l`ab T_x_f_ys forty­five ye_bd pr_mfgmgeu _et te_mqgeup she h_t over ten thous_et students, _et she w_d p_bfgmnk_bkr _mfg`a on the North Americ_e m_gek_et from the mid 197|d until 198|w During this fin_k te_mqgeu period, she _kdo tr_geat _f le_df twenty­two M_dfab students (i.e., Reiki instructors). Although T_x_f_ t_nuqf _ number of cl_ddad in post­w_b {_c_ep her form of Reiki, with its modified initi_fgoe ceremony _et distinctive hour­long ‘found_fgoe tre_fjaefy (twelve h_et positions held for five minutes e_mq†p does not seem to h_`a re_kkr spre_t in {_c_e until the 198|dp when Mitsui Mieko (d_fad unknown) “re­ imported” Reiki from the United St_fadw ˆgfdng sam_ja _ ‰agxg ˆ_dfab netab Š_x_f_ys M_dfab dfntaef ‹_bs_b_ Weber (l_fab B_bs_b_ Weber R_r† in New York City in the e_bkr 198|d _et beg_e to te_mq Reiki in {_c_e in 1984, publishing _ tr_edk_fgoe of her M_dfab ’s book _ few ye_bd l_fab (R_r 1987). This tr_edk_fgoe w_d the first {_c_eese monogr_cq on the subject of Usui Reiki Ryōhō, _kfqonuq e_bkgab texts exist th_f describe rel_fat cb_mfgmad ta`akocat sr dfntaefd oz Œdng awuwp ˆgfdng ƒ„Ž| ||Ž‘’ Šomit_ ƒ„„„ ƒ„ŽŽ‘†w https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 10/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP After Western Reiki, the second­l“”•–—˜ group of Reiki pr“™˜š˜š›œ–”— in “ž“œ is composed of two line“•–— he“Ÿ–Ÿ by students of Y“ “•¡™¢š Chiyoko (1921­2££¤¥ who, like T“¦“˜“ received initi“˜š›œ— from H“§“—¢š Chūjirō in the 193£—¨ Chiyoko’s son, Y“ “•¡™¢š T“Ÿ“› (b. 1952), he“Ÿ— “ line“•– c“©©–Ÿ š¦šŸ–œ Reiki (Direct Tr“œ— š——š›œ Reiki), “œŸ “ ›Ÿō­shū (Pure L“œŸ Buddhist) monk n“ –Ÿ In“ ›˜› Hy“¦¡˜–œ (b. 194£¥ he“Ÿ— “ line“•– c“©©–Ÿ Kōmyō Reiki (Bright Light or Enlightenment Reiki). These line“•–— were both developed in “ž“œ šœ ˜¢– ©“˜– ª««£— “œŸ ¢“¬– —šœ™– “™­¡š”–Ÿ ®›”©Ÿ®šŸ– ¯›©©›®šœ•—¨ A third form of “ž“œ–—– Reiki line“•–° known “— the Gend“š Reiki­hō (Modern Reiki Method), is “ hybrid of Usui Reiki Ryōhō “nd Western Reiki founded by Doi Hiroshi (b. 1935). In the seishin sek±² (Spiritu“© World) milieu of mid 198£— “ž“œ (“ cultur“© movement influenced by the New Age), Doi studied “ gre“˜ number of he“©šœ• mod“©š˜š–—° including Western Reiki in “ž“œ under Mitsui Mieko. In 1993, Doi bec“ – “œ Usui Reiki Ryōhō G“¦¦“š member under the le“dership of Koy“ “ Kimiko. In 1995, Doi cre“˜–Ÿ the Gend“š Reiki Hīringu Kyōk“š (Modern Reiki He“©šœ• Associ“˜š›œ¥ “œŸ beg“œ te“™¢šœ• Gend“š Reiki­hō, which consciously fuses elements of the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G“¦¦“š³s pr“™˜š™– with those of Western line“•–— to “integr“˜– E“—˜–”œ “œŸ Western Reiki methods” (tōz±² reiki­hō no tōgō, Doi 1998: 54). By me“œ— of the Internet, Doi m“Ÿ– connections with North Americ“n “œŸ Europe“œ Reiki pr“™˜š˜š›œ–”— “nd bec“ – the first signific“œ˜ “ž“œ–—– te“™¢–” to te“™¢ outside of “ž“œ since H“§“—¢š³s te“™¢šœ• tour in the H“®“šš“œ Isl“œŸ— in 1937­ 1938. He w“— one of the key spe“¦–”s “˜ the first Usui Reiki Ryoho Intern“˜š›œ“© conference in V“œ™›¡¬–” “œŸ ™›œ˜šœ¡–— ˜› ˜”“¬–© “œŸ ˜–“™¢ šœ˜–”œ“˜š›œ“©©§ Ÿ–—žš˜– ¢š— “Ÿ¬“œ™–Ÿ “•–¨ There is “ history of discord, even disd“šœ° “ ›œ• Reiki’s diverse line“•–—¨ Among Western Reiki groups, B“”´“”“ Weber f“ ›¡—©§ cl“š –Ÿ th“˜ she “©›œ– h“Ÿ been given the complete system by T“¦“˜“ “œŸ th“˜ T“¦“˜“³s other M“—˜–” students h“Ÿ to re­tr“šœ with her. Tod“§ Y“ “•¡™¢š T“Ÿ“› m“¦–— “ simil“” cl“š th“˜ his mother dis“¬›®ed In“ ›˜› Hy“¦¡˜–œ before her de“˜¢¨ And the Usui Reiki Ryōhō G“¦¦“š h“— been l“”•–©§ uninterested in inter“™˜šœ• with other line“•–— for dec“Ÿ–—° only recently “•”––šœ• to “™™–ž˜ members who h“Ÿ previously studied Western Reiki. The f“™˜ th“˜ Doi te“™¢–— modified versions of their pr“™˜š™–— without “¡thoriz“˜š›œ h“— not helped m“˜˜–”—¨ Although m“œ§ Reiki pr“™˜š˜š›œ–”— receive initi“˜š›œ in more th“œ one line“•–° “œŸ there seems to be movement tow“”Ÿ more toler“œ™– of differences in belief “œŸ pr“™˜š™–° inter­line“•– tensions rem“šœ “œŸ the prospect of “ gener“© pe“™– in the immedi“˜– future seems unlikely. ISSUES/CHALLENGES While cert“šœ elements of Usui Reiki Ryōhō dr“® on religious tr“Ÿš˜š›œ— “œŸ resemble religious pr“™˜š™–° the question of whether it constitutes ““ religion” is “”•¡“´©–¨ The Usui Reiki Ryōhō G“¦¦“š “œŸ subsequent Reiki Ryōhō org“œšµ“˜š›œ— such “— the H“§“—¢š Reiki Kenkyūk“š r“œ¦ “ ›œ• the numerous groups in “ž“œ “th“˜ developed “”›und “ loc“© religious pr“™˜š˜š›œ–”, such “— “ diviner or he“©er who h“— “ number of regul“” clients “œd devotees, but th“˜ h“¬– not co“©–—™–Ÿ into org“œšµ–Ÿ religious groups or sought form“© registr“˜š›œ “— such” (Re“Ÿ–” 2£ª¶·ª£¸ª1). To distinguish between such groups “œŸ form“© religious org“œšµ“˜š›œ—° Shim“µ›œ› coined the phr“—– “new spiritu“©š˜§ movements” (shin reisei undō 2££¹¥¨ But, “— Bodiford writes reg“”Ÿšœ• the rel“˜š›œ—hip between “ž“œ–—– m“”˜š“© “”˜— “œŸ religion, “— “even in Western https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 11/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP contexts … the terms religion º»¼ spiritu½¾ lº¿À consistent º»¼ generºÁ º¿¿ÂÃļ definitions … it should not be surprising … thºÄ ÄÅÂÆÇ ºÃÃÁÆ¿ºÄÆÈ» ÄÈ ÉºÃº»ÂÊ ¿È»ÄÂËÄÊ ÆÊ ÌÇÂÍλÄÁÏ ÃÇÈÐÁÂѺÄÆ¿Ò ÓÔÕÕÖ×ØÙÔÚÛ Bodiford’s º»ºÁÏÊÆÊ could be ºÃÃÁƼ to º»Ï number of phenomenº in ɺú»ÂÊ culture, but it is perhºÃÊ pºÇÄÆ¿ÎÁºÇÁÏ ºÃÃÇÈÃriºÄ to the Usui Reiki Ryōhō GºÀÀºÆ of the pre­wºÇ erºÜ which resembled its contemporºÇÏ mºÇÄiºÁ ºÇÄÊ in severºÁ wºÏÊ× its identificºÄÆÈ» with mysticºÁ ºÊÿÄÊ of emperor worship, its connections with the ɺú»ÂÊ militºÇÏ ideºÁÊ of “spirituºÁ educºÄÆÈ»Ò (seishin kyōiku), the reference to Usui Reiki Ryōhō GºÀÀºÆ centers ºÊ dōjō , º» educºÄÆÈ» model thºÄ somewhºÄ resembles the ryūh½ system of trº¼ÆÄÆÈ»ºÁ ºÇÄÊ with its emphºÊÆÊ on hierºÇ¿ÅÆ¿ºÁ rº»ÀÊ º»¼ fºÑÆÁƺÁ lineºÝÂÊÜ º»¼ the vows ( kishōmon ) to protect the esoteric secrets tºÎÝÅÄ to º¼Þº»¿Â¼ students. As we hºÞ seen, mº»Ï of Usui’s top disciples, including the two presidents who succeeded him, were high­rº»ÀÆ»Ý nºÞºÁ officers, º»¼ Usui Reiki Ryōhō GºÀÀºÆ leº¼ÂÇÊ recount thºÄ these officers thought thºÄ Usui Reiki Ryōhō would be º» expedient prº¿ÄÆ¿Â for militºÇÏ ÃÂÇÊÈ»»ÂÁ ÄÈ ÃǺ¿ÄÆ¿ÂÛ The Usui Reiki Ryōhō GºÀÀºÆ todºÏ fº¿ÂÊ º» existentiºÁ chºÁÁ»ÝÂÛ Its dedicºÄion to mºÆ»ÄºÆ»Æ»Ý its trº¼ÆÄÆÈ»ºÁ prº¿ÄÆ¿ÂÊÜ including º policy of grº¼ÎºÁ º¼Þº»¿ÂÑÂ»Ä over yeºÇÊ º»¼ º» unwillingness to º¼ÞÂÇÄÆÊ to ºÄÄǺ¿Ä new members, is tied to its stºÝ»º»Ä membership numbers º»¼ ºÝÆ»Ý leº¼ÂÇÊÅÆÃÛ While Reiki prº¿ÄÆÄÆÈ»ÂÇÊ I hºÞ spoken with, both in ɺú» º»¼ ºÐÇȺ¼Ü exhibit greºÄ interest in joining the Usui Reiki Ryōhō GºÀÀºÆÜ its structure mºÀÂÊ it difficult to join, due to policies requiring the recommendºÄÆÈ» of º current member º»¼ the ºÐÆÁÆÄÏ to regulºÇÁÏ ºÄÄ»¼ meetings, mostly held in the Tokyo ºÇÂºÛ As meetings ºÇ only conducted in ɺú»ÂÊÂÜ significºnt knowledge of the ɺú»ÂÊ lº»ÝκÝ is prº¿ÄÆ¿ºÁÁÏ º requirement ºÊ well. These policies ºÇ Ê» ºÊ ʺÌÂÝÎºÇ¼Ê ÄÈ ÁÆÑÆÄ ÑÂÑÐÂÇÊÅÆà ÄÈ ÄÅÈÊ ßÅÈ ºÇ ÊÆ»¿ÂÇ ºÐÈÎÄ ¼ÂÞÂÁÈÃÆ»Ý ÄÅÂÆÇ ÃǺ¿ÄÆ¿Â for spirituºÁ cultivºÄÆÈ» º»¼ heºÁÆ»Ý others rºÄÅÂÇ thº» cºÃÆĺÁÆàÆ»Ý on their stºÄÎÊ for prestige º»¼ mºÄÂÇƺÁ gºÆ»Û In º» ºÝ when estimºÄ¼ millions worldwide engºÝ in prº¿ÄÆ¿ÂÊ derived from Usui MikºÈÜ º»¼ when these internºÄÆÈ»ºÁ Reiki communities clºÑÈÇ for historicºÁÁÏ ºÎÄÅ»ÄÆ¿ prº¿ÄÆ¿ÂÊÜ it is somewhºÄ ironic thºÄ the orgº»ÆàºÄÆÈ» ÄÅºÄ ÅºÊ ÈÊÄ»ÊÆÐÁÏ ÃÇÂÊÂÇÞ¼ ÄÅ ÑÈÊÄ ÄǺ¼ÆÄÆÈ»ºÁ ÌÈÇÑÊ ÈÌ áÊÎÆâs prº¿ÄÆ¿ÂÊ ÊÄÇÎÝÝÁÂÊ ÄÈ ÑºÆ»ÄºÆ» membership numbers due to their very dedicºÄÆÈ» ÄÈ ÅÆÊ ÃÇÆ»¿ÆÃÁÂÊÛ IMAGES ImºÝ ãÖ× äѺÝ ÈÌ áÊÎÆ åÆÀºÈÛ ImºÝ ãÔ× áÊÎÆâs memoriºÁ ÊÄÈ»ÂÛ ImºÝ ãæ× çÅ èÝÈÀºÆ èÓéÆÞ êÇ¿ÂÃÄÊÚ Æ» áÊÎÆâs hº»¼Û ImºÝ ãØ× êÅÈÄÈÝǺÃÅ ÈÌ ëÂÆÀÆ Åº»¼ źÁÆ»ÝÛ ImºÝ ãì× êÅÈÄÈÝǺÃÅ ÈÌ íºßºÏÈ çºÀºÄºÛ REFERENCES Beeler, Dori, º»¼ ÉÈ»ÀÂÇ, ÉÈîº»Û 2ÕÖïÛ “Reiki (West).” The World Religions ½ðñ Spiritu½¾òóòôõ Project. Accessed from https://wrldrels.org/profiles/ReikiWest.htm on 18 ÉÎÁÏ ÔÕÖïÛ https://wrldrels.org/2017/01/24/reiki-japan/ 12/15 2/10/2018 Reiki (Japan) – WRSP Bodiford, Williö÷ø 2ùùúø “Religion öûü Spirituöý Development: þöÿöûø Pp 472­5ù
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