History and Levels

Background and History
Mikao Usui was born August 15, 1865 in the Gifu district of Japan. He created a system of natural healing that had its roots in Taoism, five elements theory and Traditional Chinese medicine but with some elements of Tendai and Zen Buddhism. He moved from Kyoto to Tokyo where he opened a school or dojo. He passed on the information to several students before dying on March 9, 1926 in Fukuyama. He was NOT a Doctor, his title was Sensei (teacher).

The names of some of these students are known. There were three naval officers: Taketomi, Hayashi and Gyuda (Ushida). His principal student was named Eguchi who studied in 1923. Chuujirou Hayashi was born in 1878 and tool the training in 1925. He used the knowledge to open a healing clinic in Tokyo. Hayashi developed a set of hand positions suitable for clinical use of the system; his clinic employed a method of healing that required several practitioners work on one client at the same time to maximize the flow of energy.

As well as training his practitioners, Hayashi trained several people to teach the system. One of these was a Japanese American from Hawaii named Hawayo Takata. She had turned up at his clinic with a terminal illness, which was later cured. She was made a teacher/master (one of thirteen) on February 21, 1938.

Her teacher/master certificate is notarized in Honolulu and does not confer the title of Grand Master. Hayashi also trained a man named Tatsumi who died October 3, 1996 at an age of over 90 years. Tatsumi kept notes of his training and allowed tracings to be made of his symbols and sketches.

Takata's successors spread the system throughout the west. However over time the teachings have become modified and have lost much of their original focus. In Japan a group of dedicated teachers have revived the original teachings and these are presented in the workshop that Catherine is authorised to facilitate. Traditional Japanese Reiki is based on material provided by Tatsumi-sensei who was a student of Hayashi, it embodies the original spiritual teachings of Mikao Usui.

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Usui-sensei's method of healing is composed of the following components:

The energy and the means of using that energy

A set of ideals to be used by students and teachers of the system

A method of passing on the system

In Traditional Japanese Reiki, the system has been broken down into four divisions:

The Practitioner Division contains material traditionally taught in Reiki first and second degrees. Material taught in classes includes the "precepts" and hand positions. The symbols traced from actual originals passed down from Usui-sensei are presented with factual information about their origins and use.

The Advanced Practitioner Division contains material not explained in Western Reiki systems. This level teaches self empowerment and requires a solid understanding of the Practitioner division material. Students are expected to have audited the Practitioner Level classes at least twice
and have treated at least 100 clients before moving on to The Advanced Practitioner Level however there is no specific amount of time to have lapsed between levels. All three levels will not be offered to the same students in one weekend.

The Teacher Division follows on from the advanced Practitioner division. It enables the student to pass on the practitioner levels and is a from of apprenticeship.

The Senior Teacher Division. Only Senior Teachers can train another Teacher. This level requires a lengthy study of the inner workings of the system and the writing of a thesis and more.






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