Takata's Usui

Since returning from Japan, I have been meditating on Takata's Usui. The familiar story of the Christian man who came to America, and was at the University of Chicago, and finally returned to Japan, to Kurama Yama, and achieved a form of enlightenment with Reiki.

The story, dear to so many for so long, debunked, in favor of the "historic Usui." But what of Takata's Usui? What was the point she was trying to teach.

I have just read Amy Rowland's newest book, "The Complete Book of Traditional Reiki" that includes both stories, and re read Virginia Samdahl's biography written by Barbara Lugenbeel. The story that Samdahl tells is slightly at variance to the story that Amy Rowland learned from her beloved teacher Beth Gray, so like the story told by Fran Brown and Helen Haberly.

But let us look at Takata's Usui for just a moment, not the historic person by any means, but the person Takata Sensei wanted us to know about. What was she trying to say to us?

Here is an analytic summary:

Takata's Usui, taught to an American audience was Christian, and although Japanese, had lived in the United States for some time - in some ways, he had become like many of those she was writing for, someone they could identify with. And he was seeking something, he was seeking "to heal."

Finally, unable to find the pathway to heal within Christian America, Usui returned to Japan. And he asked Buddhist monks, "do you believe that Buddha could do these things." And they answered, "we are a church, we are more concerned with the spiritual."

And so Takata's Christian Usui, coming back from the US, looked within Buddhism, not to be a Buddhist or to follow the Buddhist path but to find within Buddhism the lost secret of healing.

He was not seeking a religion, he was seeking a way to heal.

Takata's Usui was pointing the way for American's to see a pathway for themselves. The compassion and healing that were within Buddhism, but not the religion itself, simply the path to heal.

Seen in this way, Takata's Usui still speaks to us today, still has a value, the story, though lacking historic fact, gives a message from Takata Sensei.

I see people trying to go beyond Reiki. Seeking channeling and projection out of body of consciousness. And these things can be so easy yet so difficult. Here's an interesting fact, Virginia Samdahl was, prior to meeting Mrs Takata one of the most famous channelers of her time. She was a pyschic of considerable fame. Beth Gray also had fame in this area. What drew them to Reiki? A simple artform, meant simply to heal?

Here is what I have found. In trying to teach the arts where people "go beyond Reiki," the driving force that gives the capacity is compassion shown others. It all comes together. It is when we give compassion that we change ourselves, change our own substrate, raise our own potential as individuals and as a human race.

And so Reiki is the "Secret Method to invite Happiness" - it is the way to grow our own potential, to go beyond what we thought we were - not simply by raising our vibrational level, but by using a very simple method that passes compassion to others, the secret of "healing" that is common to all religions, but is not itself a religion.

We continue to seek the Mikao Usui who lived, but we should not forget the Usui that Takata taught us.