CERTIFIED REIKI TRAINING AND THE IMPORTANCE OF REIKI LINEAGE
THE PASSING ON OF REIKI
Throughout the history of Reiki, the sacred tradition of Reiju has been passed down from Father and Founder of Reiki, Mikao Usui, to his Master students, who, in turn, imparted this powerful energy ritual onto their students and successive generations.
The process of Reiju (Initiation/Attunement) is a profound energetic Initiation that stands as the fundamental and indispensable aspect of the Usui Reiki system, bestowing Reiki students with the ability to access and practice Reiki for themselves and for others by opening the student's energetic channels. In authentic Reiki, this process of passing down from Teacher to Student should always trace back to Reiki Founder, Mikao Usui, the successive line from Teacher to Student is what we call 'Reiki Lineage'.
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The integrity of this in-person, Teacher to student attunement process is vital, and it's important to be aware that online courses professing to teach Reiki most often do not include authentic attunements (or attunements at all) as required for students to channel Reiki.
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As a Practitioner deeply committed to upholding the essence of Reiki, I encourage you to inquire about a Practitioner's lineage, which should always be taught in person (for the Reiju to be passed down by the Teacher) and the lineage must always trace back to Mikao Usui. By doing so, you can ensure that you are receiving the genuine, transformative power of Reiki in your journey of healing and self-discovery.
CERTIFIED LEVELS ATTAINED: 1st & 2nd Degree
MY REIKI TRAINING:
From Western to Japanese Reiki
Deepening the Journey
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In the first three years of practicing Reiki, I was practicing Usui Reiki Shiki Ryoho (also known as 'Western Reiki'). During that formative period, I dedicated myself to daily self-healing Reiki and witnessed the profound healing benefits for both myself and my clients. Despite these positive experiences, I reached a point in my practice and spiritual journey where I yearned to delve deeper into the spiritual practice and enhance the effectiveness of my hands-on healing sessions. I had an intuitive feeling that there was more to explore, something missing from my current practice.
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Uncovering Usui's Spiritual Practices
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In my quest to explore the original teachings of Reiki founder, Mikao Usui, I discovered that he emphasized a set of Spiritual Practices as a foundation for the hands-on healing aspect of Reiki. Surprisingly, these practices were absent from my Usui Reiki Ryoho lineage. I later learned that while Takata Sensei (who was responsible for Western Reiki) removed some of the practices due to their spiritual nature and the dangers they may have attracted given the hostilities between the West and Japan (Buddhist monks were being arrested around the time of World War II) and so Takata Sensei, removed any practices thought to appear too Japanese. She also modified elements of the hands-on healing practice, to streamline it in a way that didn't require practitioners to attain skills to sense where the Reiki was most needed. Beyond that, I discovered that there was a whole set of advanced healing techniques that had almost been removed, in order to further simplify the practice.
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Finding Gendai Reiki, Komyo ReikiDo & Jikiden Reiki
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Eager to embrace these Spiritual aspects of Reiki and additional practices, I explored several Reiki systems classified as Traditional Japanese Reiki. After extensive research, I discovered three Japanese systems of Reiki which all seemed to teach the 'traditional practices': Gendai Reiki, Komyo ReikiDo and Jikiden Reiki.
GENDAI REIKI
Initially, I was drawn to Gendai Reiki because of its impressive lineage. At the time, it appeared to be the only Reiki system with a lineage that traced directly back to the Usui Reiki Gakkai (the Association founded by Mikao Usui), which is now closed to the public. Feeling this might be an opportunity to learn the original teachings as practised within the Gakkai, I trained in Levels I and II.
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The course definitely expanded my understanding of the traditional system, and in a way was a nice bridge between the Western and Japanese systems, but I found that much of the material was heavily Western-based, using Western symbols, Western Reiju and a long list of new-age, non-traditional practices. I came to learn that Hiroshi Doi, the founder of Gendai Reiki, had been trained by Mieko Mitsui in the Barbara Ray lineage, Radiance Technique (a Western system) and, due to the secrecy requirements of the Gakkai, was not permitted to teach the practices as they were used within the Association. As he could not teach the traditional system, he modified the traditional practices, and leaned heavily on the Western ones. It should be said, that Hiroshi Doi does acknowledge that his system a hybrid of Western and Japanese Reiki even though he heavily emphasis the lineage tracing back to the Gakkai.
KOMYO REIKIDO
Komyo ReikiDo and Jikiden Reiki share the same lineage through Japanese native, Chiyoko Yamaguchi. From everything I had read, Komyo ReikiDo appeared to teach the traditional practices of Reiki, and I was excited to learn them! I trained in Komyo ReikiDo for several years, eventually becoming a full Shihan under its founder, Hyakuten Inamoto and I truly believed that there were the practices taught by Chiyoko Yamaguchi, as she learned from Hayashi, unchanged.
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The spiritual focus of the practice as a pathway to happiness, inner peace and enlightenment, transformed both my practice and myself. It felt like the missing aspect of the practice from my Western Reiki training. Komyo ReikiDo also briefly introduced me to the concept of Byosen, the energetic feedback in the hands that signals areas of need, trouble or disease. It taught a very simple version of it, encouraging Practitioners to follow the Byosen rather than set hand positions (which took me a while to adjust to!) but there was no specific technique, associated symbol or much teaching around this. We were encouraged to work intuitively, though there was not much instruction around that either. In addition, and probably for first time since first learning Reiki, I felt that I learned an accurate history of Reiki, although I still had many questions about the changes Hawayo Takata made to both the practice and the story of Reiki.
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My years practicing Komyo ReikiDo deeply shaped my Reiki path in the sense that it opened me to new aspects of the practice. For that I remain genuinely grateful. Having said that, there were aspects of the practice I was unsure about, particularly the symbols and the Reiju and aspect of treatments on others. Like my experience with Western Reiki, there was a nagging sense that something was missing or that didn't feel quite right for me. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but I didn’t feel completely at peace within the system and teachings.
JIKIDEN REIKI & THE ARJAVA REIKI INSTITUTE
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When I learned that Frank Arjava Petter (known as 'Arjava'), the then vice-principal of Jikiden Reiki, was teaching a Level I and II seminar in New Zealand, I booked my ticket instantly! I was so curious to understand the differences between Komyo ReikiDo and Jikiden Reiki, especially since they shared the same lineage and seemed to teach the practices unchanged. Arjava is an incredible teacher, humble, deeply knowledgeable, possesses a wisdom that only someone might attain after living almost their entire lives immersed and committed to spiritual practice. He is someone who lives and breathes the practice. And it shows. His presence alone reflects the qualities one hopes for in a Teacher of this lineage but that isn't necessarily so common.
Following some time of settling into the practice from Jikiden Reiki, everything felt stronger and there was a clarity and intensity that felt different to me than anything else I had practiced. The techniques were unchanged from what Hayashi taught, including the symbols and Reiju and it transformed my practice to a level I didn’t know was possible. For me, it felt like coming home. The doubts, the questions, the quiet yearning for “something more” disappeared. This felt like ground zero, the true, unchanged teachings and techniques passed down from Hayashi. After such a long journey, it was extraordinary to finally land here.
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By learning the traditional practices in Jikiden Reiki, I learned, by default, that Komyo ReikiDo is, in fact, a modified system of Reiki. Some symbols had been removed, others replaced, the traditional Reiju had been changed, many foundational practices had been adapted, some left out, and there was some fundamental teachings that had been left out. It felt to me like Jikiden Reiki taught both the healing and spiritual practices in a lot more depth and I felt so incredibly grateful to have finally found these teachings. It answered all of my questions and aspects I was previously uncertain about, and I was left feeling like it was a point of totally completion for me. It was quite the journey, but every step provided me with a lesson or learning and deepening of my understanding and of my own practice, and I was grateful for that journey too.
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After completing my Jikiden training, when Arjava resigned as vice-principal, I continued studying with him through The Arjava Reiki Institute, where he continues to teach the traditional practices exactly as taught by his late teacher, Chiyoko Yamaguchi, the practices she was taught by Hayashi - unchanged. Arjava also teaches some additional techniques Chiyoko learned from Hayashi that didn't make it into the Jikiden Reiki syllabus along with additional practices preserved within the Usui Reiki Gakkai (the closed association in Japan founded by Usui himself).
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Transformative Practice: The Impact of Jikiden Reiki & the Arjava Reiki Institute
Since embracing the traditional, non-Westernised Reiki healing and spiritual practices into my daily hands-on Reiki Practice, my Spiritual Path has deepened, and I've noticed a profound increase in the effectiveness of my healing sessions both for myself personally and my clients. Clients report experiencing deeper healing in a shorter space of time (and in fewer sessions), deeper relaxation, emotional release, and an enhanced overall sense of well-being.
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Since then, I found freedom in charting my own path, integrating lessons from all my experiences. My Reiki practice remains deeply rooted in the lineage of Jikiden Reiki and The Arjava Reiki Institute and I honor the teachings and practices I've learned and remain committed to sharing this transformative journey with others. I am immensely grateful for the opportunity to share its profound impact with others.
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MY REIKI MASTERS
Jikiden Reiki, The Arjava Reiki Institute and KomyoReikiDo, my Lineage traces back to Usui Sensei, through three Masters who performed the energy attunement known as Reiju before passing it to me (and four others in all other systems I have studied).
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I have had the privilege of studying under five Reiki Teachers in various systems of Reiki, both in Western and all the Japanese Reiki systems, namely Gendai Reiki, Jikiden, Komyo ReikiDo and the Arjava Petter Institute. All these Teachers in their individual ways have enriched my practice and deepened my connection with Reiki and I am incredibly grateful to each for their diverse approaches, wisdom, and experience, which have shaped and broadened my practice and Spiritual Path.
Special thanks to Helen Callanan, with whom I began my Reiki journey. Her generous and prolonged mentorship in the early years of my practice instilled in me a deep sense of service and integrity. Helen consistently encouraged my continued exploration of Reiki and held an unwavering belief in me as a Reiki channel. I’m especially grateful for the many client referrals she sent my way during those formative years, offering me a rare apprenticeship and invaluable exposure to Reiki in action. These experiences were instrumental in shaping me into the confident and experienced practitioner I am today.
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Deep gratitude also goes to Arjava Petter of Jikiden Reiki for his dedication to the practice of Reiki and who has helped me create a practice that is steeped in the integrity of the original spiritual and healing practice envisaged by Usui Sensei.
