Reiki and the Challenge of Maturity

Reiki and Its Journey from Japan to the West

When I speak about Reiki, I am referring to Usui Reiki Ryōhō —Shin Shin Kaizen Usui Reiki Ryōhō—, the Reiki school.

Reiki, understood as a way of relating to life energy and the divine, is ancient; yet Reiki as a school and practice is relatively young. It emerged in the 1920s.

Although it is Japanese, its development and current understanding are more closely related to the West than to Japan itself. Reiki grew, expanded, and flourished in the West, not in Japan, where it does not have the same presence or reach it achieved abroad.

When Hawayo Takata, following her teacher (shihan) Hayashi Sensei, began to teach Reiki and offer sessions —known as Reiki treatments—, both the teaching and the understanding of the method had already changed. It is now widely acknowledged that Hayashi Sensei placed a stronger emphasis on healing in his teachings. As a result, Usui Sensei’s original approach, primarily oriented toward spiritual development, had already taken a significant turn.

In texts and teachings attributed to Usui Sensei, we find ideas such as: “Your spirit, as a small universe, must unite with the great universe” or “First heal the spirit; then the body becomes healthy.”

In the Reiki Ryōhō Hikkei, the internal manual used within his school and transmitted through the Gakkai, Usui Sensei responds to what Reiki is with a simple and precise formulation: “The Usui Reiki Ryōhō method takes hands-on healing as its starting point.”

Therefore, the Usui Reiki Ryōhō taught by Usui Sensei and the Reiki that spread throughout the West and later returned to Japan are not exactly the same. It is the same method with a different emphasis: one more oriented toward the cultivation of the spirit, the other more focused on healing.

The Return of Reiki to Japan

In the 1990s, Reiki returned to Japan through Western teachers, such as Frank Arjava Petter.

Despite being a Japanese practice, many of the first Japanese students perceived it as something foreign, even writing “Reiki” in katakana, the script used for foreign words.

However, some lineages that had preserved the practice within Japan soon became visible. From this, one of the main distinctions in contemporary Reiki emerged: Western Reiki and Japanese Reiki.

That said, Japanese Reiki schools today are generally less traditional than many believe. Or, at least, they are not as closely aligned with Usui Sensei’s teachings as they are with those of Hayashi Sensei.

For example, the Jikiden Reiki Institute, based in Kyoto and led by Tadao Yamaguchi, is grounded in the teachings received from his mother, Chiyoko Yamaguchi, a direct student of Hayashi Sensei. Its approach clearly follows the line of Hayashi.

Gendai Reiki Hō, founded by Hiroshi Doi, is an explicit synthesis of Japanese and Western Reiki. Doi initially trained in Western Reiki and later had contact with the Gakkai, eventually establishing his own international system.

Hyakuten Inamoto, a Buddhist monk of the Jōdo-shū school, founded Komyō Reiki Dō, a system with a strong spiritual orientation and Buddhist influence. Its approach is simple and direct, though it does not aim to be an exact reproduction of Usui’s original teachings.

The organization closest to the original transmission known today is the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai, founded in 1922 and still active. However, it remains a closed and discreet group, even for Japanese students, and has chosen not to engage with the global evolution of Reiki.

Contemporary Reiki and the Competition Between Schools and Teachers

For these reasons, contemporary Reiki lacks a shared regulatory framework. Schools and teachers operate with considerable freedom.

Some organizations, such as Jikiden Reiki, Reiki Alliance, or Gendai Reiki Hō, attempt to preserve a certain coherence. However, they do so within their own lineages, which can lead to an implicit competition over who is closest to the original method.

In Japan, there are differences and a certain distance between lineages. The Gakkai, for its part, remains entirely apart, without recognizing the validity of other lines.

In the West, this dynamic has gone further. Many teachings have incorporated elements from other traditions —Tibetan, Egyptian, Indian— moving progressively away from the original Japanese context.

And yet, in recent years, some teachers have begun to return to a more sober and origin-oriented understanding.

For those approaching Reiki for the first time, all of this can feel confusing. One must choose between traditions, schools, and approaches —often without a clear reference point.

Reiki and Lineages

Lineage holds an important place in Reiki teaching. It represents the chain of transmission from Usui Sensei to the present teacher.

As shown in works such as The Reiki Sourcebook by Frans Stiene, there are many different lineages within Reiki’s development over the past century.

However, it is important to clarify: lineage is a historical reference, not a guarantee of depth. It does not ensure that a teacher will be right for you, nor that their way of teaching will resonate with you.

For this reason, lineage numbering —increasingly emphasized today— should not be a decisive factor when choosing a teacher.

For me, the key is affinity with the teacher. Everything else, while relevant, comes second.

Reiki transmission only becomes meaningful when it is practiced and integrated into life. And that requires trust.

Reiki Rarely Walks Alone

Beyond the differences between schools, there is something striking in Reiki’s expansion: it rarely appears on its own.

It is often integrated into broader contexts: holistic therapies, yoga centers, mindfulness spaces. Even Reiki sessions are frequently offered alongside other practices.

It is unusual to find a space dedicated exclusively to Reiki. As if it were not enough.

Many teachers have felt the need to add elements: tantric, esoteric, energetic, shamanic practices… And sessions are combined with massage, channeling, crystals, angels…

Perhaps we do not fully trust Reiki. Perhaps, for many, Reiki is not enough.

My experience, however, has led me to a conclusion close to what Hyakuten Inamoto has expressed for years: in Reiki, less is more —and deeper.

Reiki is not only enough; it is profoundly complete. And for that very reason, I am concerned about where it is heading.

Perhaps it does not need additions, but silence.
Perhaps it does not need expansion, but maturity.

When Usui Sensei began teaching, he could hardly have imagined its evolution. Yet, in its original form, it seemed complete.

Reiki has needed to adapt, to grow, to merge. But perhaps the time has come for it to walk without support.

Reiki is a complete, sober, and profound path of spiritual development and healing.

Are we moving in that direction?