Within the system of Reiki we have primary practices and secondary practices. It is important to know what these practices are as this will help us to get a clearer understanding of what we are practicing and how to progress.
If you can’t heal yourself, how can you heal others?
Spiritual seekers like yourself constantly come across references to the cultural teachings of old: the Yogis, the Native Americans, the Japanese, Aboriginals from Australia or Brazil, the Celts, The Tibetans, the Hawaiians – and many more. Understand – there is a reason these teachings are continuously being placed under our noses! They are opportunities for us to connect with Truth. Pay attention!
USUI Mikao臼井甕男 (1865–1926) is celebrated as the founder of Reiki. While the story of his reception of reiki 霊気 (literally, “numinous energy”) is well-known, practitioners may be less aware of its resonance with Japan’s long history of mountain asceticism. Over a thousand years ago, religious itinerants began secluding themselves in the mountains in order to acquire special powers.
How my recent shugendo training has informed my understanding of the system of Reiki. As some of you might know I recently went to Japan to train with a Japanese Shingon priest, Takeda Hakusai Ajari, who was once a Tendai monk as a disciple of the great Sakai Dai Ajari, learning about Shinto, Shugendo, Tendai and Shingon. This training has brought me different insights into the system of Reiki and Mikao Usui.
As some of you know I just spent a week in Japan deepening my own personal spiritual practice with a Japanese Shingon priest, Takeda Hakusai Ajari, who was once a Tendai monk as a disciple of the great Sakai Dai Ajari, learning about Shinto, Shugendo, Tendai and Shingon.
When I found out about the letters exchanged between Saicho and Kukai, I was just blown away. Imagine two young monks, carefully chosen, to travel to China to study Buddhist teachings and to bring back the select texts to Japan. The year was 804! This is the beginning of a journey of friendship, hope, anticipation, collaboration and rivalry. One of the monks was Saicho, later to be the founder of Tendai School of Buddhism, the other was Kukai, the founder of Shingon school of Buddhism. Even though the storm separated their ships and they each went their own separate ways in China, the passion and dedication of these two men, unknowingly, impacted the history of religion in Japan and in some subtle ways our practice as Reiki practitioners.
Lately, there has been some discussion in the Reiki community questioning whether the founder of the system, Mikao Usui, actually taught the DKM mantra/symbol in the system of Reiki. DKM is encountered in the system’s final teachings of Shinpiden Reiki Level III. Most Reiki practitioners know of DKM through the teachings of Mrs Takata who, in the late 1930s, brought the system from Japan to the West. Mrs Takata taught the DKM mantra/symbol as the last of the system’s four mantras and symbols. Those questioning the DKM’s origins stem from the lineage of Mrs Yamaguchi.
