Mikao Usui’s Teachings

by Frans Stiene

Below are some great teachings and research elements from a wonderful Reiki researcher Hiroshi Doi. I have put some of my ponderings on these teachings of Hiroshi Doi below the quotes in italic.

“One of my students is an Aikido master, and through his colleague, I got my hands on certain documents that used to belong to a person who had studied Reiki under Usui sensei. One of my readers also sent me a series of documents and notes concerning Usui sensei that had belonged to his grandfather. I then visited Usui sensei’s birthplace, where I obtained many documents and information from one of his relatives”

“Usui Reiki Ryoho is transmitted to the world as a simple and effective energy healing method, but hands-on healing is just a gateway; the ultimate purpose of Usui Reiki Ryoho is to elevate spirituality. Usui Reiki Ryoho needs to be practiced with an understanding of Usui sensei’s teachings, which instruct us how to reach a peaceful state of mind by resonating with the reiki energy and to keep our minds calm whatever happens while pursuing our mission, role, and themes of learning. The purpose of life is to attain the maximum state of peace of mind.”

So we can see that the essence of Usui Reiki Ryoho is a state of mind. Lots of people talk about energy but it is really a state of mind which triggers a specific state of energy. This is why we can see this state of mind pointed out again and again in Mikao Usui’s teachings.

“The Five Principles or Gokai of Reiki serve as a guide for life. They are the teachings that Usui sensei himself practiced for years and the effects of which he experienced and taught to his students. Usui sensei explained, “Living according to the Five Principles of Reiki each day is the Mysterious Remedy for all Diseases (the path leading away from all disease) and the Secret Formula for Happiness (the path towards becoming happy).”

This shows that the Reiki Precepts are the most important element of the system of Reiki. Again the Reiki Precepts are all about a specific state of mind.

“The final aim is to resonate with universal energy and lead a peaceful and meaningful life.”

The aim is thus not about how to perform hands on healing.

“Ultimately aiming to reach a state where we resonate automatically with reiki without even being aware we are doing so. When every part of our daily life resonates with reiki, we truly achieve a healthy and peaceful life.”So we see that it is our daily life, today, not just doing some hands on healing on someone or ourselves. And that there i nothing to channel, we are not doing Reiki, we are Being Reiki in all we do today.

“Reiki is the practice of living in resonance with the Universe.”

I am the universe and the universe is me, thus there is nothing to channel just to be. Because how can the universe channel itself?

“The difference lies in the fact that Usui Reiki Ryoho did not start as a method for healing, which was a power granted to Usui sensei when he attained the maximum state of Anshin Ritsumei after pursuing it through rigorous training.”

Thus we have to practice rigorously. This is also mentioned in the Reiki Precepts, practice diligently. And diligently means in all we do today, not just hands on healing once in a while. 

“Seeking the maximum state of Anshin Ritsumei, Usui sensei practiced Zazen meditation in a temple in Kyoto with a desire to “attain this comprehension as the true awareness of the soul and to live in this consciousness.” However, after some three years of training, the key to the ultimate state to which he aspired remained hidden. Becoming increasingly frustrated with the unsuccessful search, Usui sensei asked his Zen master, “How must I train to achieve the maximum state of Anshin Ritsumei?” Without hesitating, his master responded, “Why don’t you try dying once?”

This kind of dying is not death, it is called in Zen the Great Death, the death of the ego, of I, me, mine. So again we can see that Mikao Usui was working with the mind, the mind of attachment, of I, me, mine.

“This is because, while other forms of Reiki Ryoho consisted merely of hands-on healing, Usui Reiki Ryoho was never intended solely as a healing method.”

Usui Reiki Ryoho was created by Mikao Usui to help us lead a happy and healthy life in which the state of mind of meptiness, no I, me, mine, was the most important element. We can see this too within the Reiki Precepts. No I, me, mine, means no anger and worry and this lays bare a state of mind of being grateful, true to our way and our being, and a compassion which does not change according to circumstances.

“Usui sensei himself explained that the starting point of Usui Reiki Ryoho was the concept that people are originally created healthy and happy. The microcosm must resonate in harmony with the macrocosm to recover our initial healthy condition. The ability to heal with our hands is made possible when they resonate in unison. The ultimate state of Anshin Ritsumei is also attained when these levels are in resonance with each other.”

Thus hands on healing is a by-product of rediscovering our True Self. Rediscovering our True Self is when we have the experience of the Great Death, anshin ritsumei, and only then can we truly do proper hands on healing. Anshin Ritsumei is a state of emptiness and compassion.

“He also taught the following two points as ways to strengthen reiki within our bodies. Improve ourselves through spiritual practice. Everything in the Universe is created and developed by the Great Reiki that fills the Great Universe. As each human being is a microcosm, we are part of the Great Spirit of the Great Universe. We all have within our bodies a part of the Great Reiki. Thus, we must focus our minds on cultivating our spirituality to receive more of the Great Reiki.”

Again the mind is pointed out and that the Great Reiki is within our body.

“Usui sensei’s most essential teachings are summarized in the Five Principles, but he also left several others…He resolutely taught members who reached a certain level that “the Law of the Nature of the Great Universe and the spirit of each human being as a microcosm should always be united and exist as one.”. This is Usui sensei’s vision of Satori: “The Universe is me, and I am the Universe.” To further express this same idea, he insistently taught that “The whole Universe exists within me, and I exist within the Universe.” and that “kômyô (brilliant light) exists within me, and I exist within kômyô.”. “When we believe firmly in this truth as part of ourselves, with practice, our speech and behavior become one with the Universe, and we will naturally manifest unlimited vitality. This is humankind’s original state.” He also taught that “Discipline based on nature’s truth will help people to grow spiritually.”

Komyo and Dai Komyo is a traditional Japanese spiritual concept in Zen, Tendai etc… This is the same as Anshin Ritsumei, as Being Reiki as living the Reiki Precepts in all we do.

“Reiki Ryoho first heals our mind and then our body and allows us to live a life of peace and joy while simultaneously healing those who are ill and promoting happiness for ourselves and others.The expressions “to make the person healthy as a whole ” and “first of all to heal the mind” indicate that the ultimate goal was not to cure disease.”

So the ultimate goal was not to cure diseases but to rediscover our True Self, a state of mind of great bright light, dai komyo, that we are the universe and the universe is us.

“Usui Reiki Ryoho heals both mind and body, so if the mind is healthy, the body will naturally become healthy. The mission of Usui Reiki Ryoho is to heal the mind and the body to live a life of peace and joy and, at the same time, help to heal others and promote our happiness and that of others.”

Again and again the mind is the most important element within Usui Reiki Ryoho.

“Three qualification levels were given in the Gakkai based on members’ progress: Shoden, Okuden, and Shinpiden.”

“Among those granted the second level of Okuden, Usui sensei selected spiritually developed students to become Shinpiden, submitting them to intense instruction to impart Anshin Ritsumei, the state of maximum peace he himself had achieved. Shinpiden was not something to be asked for; it was granted exclusively by Usui sensei.”

These days we buy Shiniden…but in essence we can no buy it, we have to rediscover Shinpiden – the mystery teachings within ourselves.

“The content of Shinpiden’s instruction did not exist as a curriculum. As a result, following Usui sensei’s death, instruction regarding the maximum state of Anshin Ritsumei became difficult.”

This is why we see that in many modern teachings the deeper teaching of anshin ritsumei are not being taught and teachers just focus on hands on healing. But if we look at Mikao Usui’s teaching how can we do really the deeper aspects of hands on healing if we do not have the state of mind of anshin ritsumei, the realisation of the state of mind of Being Reiki.

“Even though the Usui Reiki Ryoho is effective in itself, no progress will be made if we go no further than detecting and eliminating Byosen..”

Thus we have to keep practicing diligently and rediscover that we are komyo, the universe in all we do.

“Additionally, we must heighten our resonance with reiki through our daily life; we must attain peace of mind and strive to study every day to approach the maximum state of Daianshin, or absolute peace.”

Daianshin is the same as Dai komyo, realizing the great bright light state of mind in all we do.

“From the very beginning, healing diseases was never his [Mikao Usui] primary concern, and he taught people how to change their way of life. He also aimed to “Promote happiness for us and others.”

And yet that is what many modern teachers focus on. But the real aim of Mikao Usui’s teachings are to be found in the Reiki Precepts.

“Usui sensei often said, “Living each day according to the Five Principles is the path to avoiding all sickness and experiencing happiness.” Accordingly, “Just for Today” is the foundation of all the other principles and teaches us that if we want a healthy and happy life, we must try to live each day as it comes, attaching value to each day. The Five Principles express the spirit of Usui sensei and the quintessence of Usui Reiki Ryoho, and at their core is the knowledge of how we humans, as microcosms, can resonate with the macrocosm.”This is why the Reiki Precepts are the most important element within the system of Reiki.

“Usui sensei pointed out, “Once we have repeatedly used tools like symbols, we will eventually discover that we don’t need them anymore.” Symbols are instruments used for resonating with reiki, so when our daily life begins to resonate with reiki, we will no longer need such tools.”

The symbols and mantras are there to help us resonate with Reiki, that we realize in our mind, 100%, that we are the universe and the universe is us. Thus the symbols and mantras are about a state of mind so that we realize we are Reiki in all we do. They are not for hands on healing on others.

“Likewise, he used to teach that humans have the capacity to resonate with the Universe by using our consciousness, so we should elevate our consciousness quickly to reach a state in which we no longer depend on the power of symbols.”

Here we can see the clear link between our mind – consciousness and the symbols. All the tools within Mikao Usui’s teachings are about a specific state of mind.

“Usui sensei used to talk much about Ikkyu Sōjun, a Zen monk of the 15th century.”

This is why it is so important to understand Zen as Mikao Usui based a lot of his teachings on these traditional elements.

“Usui Sensei had no standard curriculum, and the length of time of the training depended on the spiritual progress of each student. It is said that he gave one-on-one lectures mainly on the right mental attitude needed for spiritual advancement based on his own experience.” 

Again the state of mind is pointed out, the right mental state of mind based on Mikao Usui anshin ritsumei.

“Some groups claim that 臼井霊気療法 Usui Reiki Ryoho was intended to cure disease, as the Japanese word 療法 “ryoho” literally means the curing therapy. If so, Usui Reiki Ryoho would have been just another one of the treatment therapies that existed before Usui Sensei. Usui Sensei said, “I have never studied any methods for disease treatment.” He also stated, “Usui Reiki Ryoho makes us fit and well, moderates our thought and enhances one’s joy of life.” and “Usui Reiki Ryoho heals Kokoro [mind and spirit] first, and then makes the body strong and healthy.” These statements of his clearly mean that he did not give first priority to curing disease. Usui Sensei wrote two descriptive statements that introduce 五戒 Go-kai The Five Precepts: 招福の秘法 “Shofuku no Hiho” “The secret method to invite happiness” and the second one, 萬病の霊薬 “Manbyo no Reiyaku” “The miraculous remedy/elixir for all diseases” that follows it. through hand healing.”

The state of mind of being happy rather than curing diseases.

“Q: How did Dr.Hayashi’s style of Reiki change after he left the Gakkai? Doi Sensei: It is not that his style changed when he left the Gakkai, but that a new style was developed from the beginning of his Kenkyu Kai.”

So Hayashi created a new style.

“But I could find signs that he [Chujiro Hayashi] had already converted the “Usui method” into the “Hayashi method” even before he taught Takata Sensei. He seemed to try modernizing Reiki-ho based on his medical knowledge and experience as a practical therapist.”This is why some traditional Japanese Reiki teachers say that most people practice Hayashi Reiki rather than Usui Reiki.

“Next, although Hayashi Sensei advertised to the public that he taught “Usui” Reiki Ryoho after he had become independent of the Gakkai, he actually taught “Hayashi” Reiki. He adopted his own theories and techniques aimed at curing disease.”Hayashi’s way was about curing diseases and Mikao Usui’s teachings was about a state of mind of Being Reiki, of anshin ritsumei, being the great bright light in all we do. A very big difference and an important element to know.

“Dento Reiki as it was practiced by members of the Usui Reiki Ryoho Gakkai before Usui sensei’s death drastically changed after his passing and even more after the end of Word War II.”

Dento Reiki – Usui Reiki Ryoho was thus drastically changed after Mikao Usui’s death.

“So the old Gakkai members said that Usui Sensei taught the way to Satori very intensely to those who had achieved a certain level.”

This is why practice diligently the Reiki Precepts, the meditation practices, and the internalisation of the symbols and mantras are so important.

“The basic 12 hand positions and the attunements procedures we use today are all derived from Hayashi-sensei’s techniques”

This is because Mikao Usui’s teachings was all about a state of mind and the aim of leading a happy and healthy life.

“Usui Sensei did not give additional healing trainings but I heard that he often taught classes about a Shihan’s mental attitude in order to improve one’s teaching methods when teaching about healing to the members. Though his one-on-one Shinpi-den lecture did not include healing training, I also heard that Usui Sensei’s mentorship greatly enhanced the healing ability of many of the Shinpi-den practitioners, as it strengthened their resonance with the Universe and encouraged the awareness that a human is the small universe derived from the Great Universe.”

Thus no additional healing training but training the mind, our mental attitude and this mental attitude changed the way we do healings.

“When John studied with Takata, he made over 20 audio tapes of her lectures and classes. On one of the tapes she discusses travelling to Japan in order to teach her approach to Reiki. While there, she met some Japanese citizens who were actively practicing and preserving Reiki as they understood it in Japan. Takata regarded their approach as entirely valid, but inappropriate for the West. It was highly complex, required years of training and was closely intertwined with religious practices. She felt these factors would deter students in the West and hobble the spread of Reiki through the world at a time when, in her view, it was urgently needed.” – Hand to Hand by John Harvey Gray

Mrs Takata’s statement ties in perfectly with what Hiroshi Doi has rediscovered about Mikao Usui’s teachings. It took years of training, was intertwined with religious practices, and it was highly complex, as Hiroshi Doi points out Mikao Usui was teaching a deep spiritual practice of which one of the side effects was hands-on healing. But foremost he was teaching students to remember their True Self, Anshin Ritsumei, rediscovering that they are Reiki, a great bright light of love and compassion.