There are some important things that you need to know about practicing Reiki. Understanding the true nature of the system of Reiki is important to achieve the most benefit. If a Reiki student only focuses on the healing aspect, she is missing out on truly helping herself and others. I have been putting the pieces of Mikao Usui’s system together for the last ten years so I could share this with the correct information about practicing Reiki.
Reiki is a system of self development first
The system of Reiki is primarily about personal development. Mikao Usui was looking for enlightenment, not a system of healing. He was looking to cleanse his spirit so that he could be unburdened by the challenges of the physical world. His focus was on anapanasati, or mindfulness practice, and he developed meditation techniques and a set of principles to guide one to inner peace. Students who originally came to Usui were seeking the same inner peace and self development.
Usui and his students would meet regularly to meditate and discuss various aspects of practice. Besides the principles, they would also discuss and meditate on the Gyosei – poems of the Meiji Emperor.
Reiki was developed over Usui’s whole life
The system of Reiki was developed over the course of Mikao Usui’s lifetime. He did not learn it on the last day of a 21 day retreat or fast, as many Reiki Masters teach. Mikao Usui studied many form of spirituality, including Buddhism, Shintoism, and Shugendo. Like many other spiritual teachers, he was looking for a way to achieve enlightenment. And like many other spiritual teachers, he had many students throughout his adult life. His teachings grew and evolved over time as he grew and evolved.
Energy healing was a later addition to Reiki
Mikao Usui did not develop the system of Reiki out of a desire to do hands on healing. There were many systems of energy healing in Japan during Usui’s time. This was not a lost technique. In his own words, “I accidentally realized that I have received healing power when I felt the air in mysterious way during fasting.” Reiki healing ability did not come to him as symbols in bubbles, but a moment of clarity, satori in Japanese, during a ritual fast. The reason the healing aspects are so emphasized is two-fold. First, that is the part of the practice that non-practitioners see the most.
Second, the students most responsible for passing on Reiki after Usui’s death came to him to learn the healing aspect. After the earthquake in Kyoto in 1924, Usui and his students went out and helped as many people as they could. This was the first time his name and practice became well known. A group of Naval officer came to learn this healing technique. Since that is what they wanted to learn, he focused on that area for them, knowing that the other benefits of Reiki would come about naturally. Because in healing others, you are also benefiting yourself.
The important points about practicing Reiki
Only by practicing all aspects of Reiki can a student really utilize Reiki for full benefit. The primary focus of Reiki is the development of oneself. Mikao Usui spent his whole life developing this practice, and he learned many lessons along the way. And while it is beneficial to your own self development, healing others was added on to the system of Reiki much later. Students who learn about practicing Reiki the complete way will find a very beneficial system that helps them in all parts of their life.