History of Western Usui Reiki

Reiki has a very unique history. Although the Reiki energy itself goes back over 2500 years, as evidenced in Sanskrit Sutras, and the writings of Tibetan Monks and Enlightened Masters, the history of Reiki at taught today is much more modern. It begins in the early 1900s. Evidence of Reiki from before World War II remained in Japan and has been rediscovered to the rest of the world very recently.
With roots in Japan prior to World War II, it is not surprising that some documentation was lost. Apparently the survivors of Dr. Hayashi lost to the war the resources allowing them to continue the clinic he founded, and many stopped practicing Reiki for fear of persecution for not 'supporting the war'. Others continued to practice and their students are still practicing today.

If it were not for Mrs. Takata learning Reiki and taking it to America, this healing technique would have been lost to the western world. The war brought with it the loss of valuable memories and knowledge that was present in the group who learned from Reiki's originator, Dr. Usui. Mrs. Takata had to modify the story of Reiki right after World War II to make it acceptable to the Christian, western mind. Hopefully, with an open mind, and with practice, study and intuition, we will bring back any lost knowledge.
The history presented here is primarily the story of Reiki according to Mrs. Takata, with some notations about information from one of Dr. Usui's teaching manual included.
Reiki is a Japanese word meaning "Universal Life-Force-Energy". The "Ki" part is the same word as Chi or Qi, the Chinese word for the energy which underlies everything. Reiki is a system for channeling that energy to someone for the purpose of healing. It was discovered by Dr. Usui in the late 1800's. He was born about 1865, and there are two accounts of his discovery of Reiki; one being that he was a Buddhist Monk and after a 28-year quest, he journeyed to Mount Kurama. The other account is that he was a teacher or perhaps dean of a Christian school in Kyoto, Japan.