Mikao Usui: The Biography of the Father of Reiki Therapy

Mikao Usui is considered the decoder of Reiki as it is applied today. In Japan he is known as Usui Sensei. In this article we will tell you who Mikao Usui was and how he became the father of Reiki.

Mikao Usui: biography

Mikao Usui was born on August 15, 1865, in Tanai Mura, Yamagata District, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.

In fact, Mikao Usui’s given name was Gyohan. Mikao Usui died on March 9, 1926, at the age of 62, in Fukuyama, Hiroshima, Japan, victim of a brain hemorrhage.

Until the mid-1990’s Only a very select group of Reiki Masters knew about Mikao Usui’s biography. Not even the correct dates of birth and death were known. Because of this, there are several versions that tell his story.

Mikao had two children: Fuji, a man, and Toshiko, a woman. Both were born to his wife, Sadako Suzuki.

As you would expect from the author of the Reiki principles, it is said that Mikao Usui was a smiling, kind and humble man, always trying to solve problems.

Image source: Daniela Girotto

The beginning of the story of Mikao Usui: the Kiko

As a young man, Mikao Usui studied Kiko, an art originating in China that serves to improve people’s health using meditation, breathing exercises and movement exercises.

Even today this art is used in some countries of Asia. The practice of Kiko, known to the samurai, makes use of one’s own vital energy to heal other people, totally taking away the vitality of the giver of this energy.

Talented and hardworking, Mikao Usui traveled to China, Japan and several European countries to dedicate himself to study, going in search of knowledge in the areas of medicine, psychology, religion and spiritual development.

In one of the stages of study, Master Usui had his spiritual formation reinforced. Mikao Usui also sought to delve deeper and learn about other forms of Buddhism, especially Zen Buddhism.

Mikao Usui and Reiki

Usui had already spent a period of study at a Buddhist temple, the Tendai, on Mount Kurama, north of Kyoto. When he returned to Monte in 1914, feeling that his mission was still unclear, he spent 21 days fasting, praying, chanting and meditating.

For Mikao Usui, the practice of Kiko was not right, and, according to some historians, he suddenly felt the great Reiki energy on the top of his head, and, in theory already ‘displeased’ with the Kiko methodology, he gave birth to the Reiki healing system. , which is known worldwide today.

As Usui himself said in The only interview of Master Mikao Usuiat work Reiki: The Professional Therapist’s Handbook:

The technique (Reiki) is aimed primarily at mental health and secondarily at physical health. Strengthens the mind and physique.

In fact, it was at the end of his retreat in 1922, during his experience of Satori (enlightenment or expansion of the seven main energy centers of the human body) that he learned how to utilize his energy to heal others without losing his vitality.

The main differences between Kiko and Reiki were the inclusion in the practice, by Master Usui, of spiritual knowledge and meditation without annulling religion.

After regaining consciousness, Mikao Usui knew exactly how to use the technique that would come to be called Reiki.

See also: what is the meaning of the word Reiki

The first uses of Mikao Usui’s ‘new’ technique, Reiki

At first, Usui used Reiki on himself. Then in the family. As he saw positive results, curing various ailments, Master Mikao Usui decided to share his knowledge and benefits of Reiki with the general public.

In Hamjuki, Aoyanla, Tokyo, he opened a clinic where he treated several patients. It was the first Reiki therapy center in the world, where people from all over Japan came to receive treatments and teachings.

In 1923, in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake, Usui mobilized to be able to assist the wounded with his therapy, using his healing power on many wounded and sick.

Because of this, for the great work carried out on behalf of the sick and wounded at a difficult time, Mikao Usui received a commendation from the royal family. After that, his clinic became too small due to the spread of Reiki, its fame and the growing demand. In 1925, his second clinic was opened, this time outside Tokyo.

8 facts about Mikao Usui

• Very different from information disseminated in the West, there is no sign of any connection between Mikao Usui and Christianity;
• Mikao Usui married Sadako Suzuki in 1907 and had two children: Fuji Usui, born in 1908; and Toshiko Usui, born in 1913;
• The ashes of Usui, his wife and their firstborn son lie near the memorial stone in his grave;
• Mikao Usui was a businessman, government official and personal secretary to the politician Goto Shinpei, who after a while would assume the position of mayor of Tokyo;
• The designation of Sensei, Master or Teacher associated with Mikao Usui was given to him by his students. There are no signs that Usui graduated from a university;
• Of the approximately 2000 students graduated by Mikao Usui, only 17 received a Master’s degree.
  Usui has always sought throughout his life to acquire as much knowledge as possible, in areas such as: medical science, divinatory science and energy therapists, among others;
• It is believed that the combination of all these elements was essential for the development of Reiki, a system that has the function of freeing the body and mind;
• In Brazil, more precisely in Brasília, at the Sarah Kubitscheck Hospital, one of the most modern and equipped in South America, Reiki is applied according to Mikao Usui.

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