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Reiki, an ancient Japanese system of energy healing, has evolved significantly since its creation in the 1922, by its founder Mikao Usui. While its roots remain in Japan, the West has embraced, adapted, and expanded Reiki in diverse and fascinating ways.
This guide explores Reiki’s journey from Japan to the West, the emergence of multiple Western styles, Japanese systems now taught outside Japan, and other complementary energy healing modalities.
Mikao Usui, the founder of Reiki, developed a holistic healing system emphasizing spiritual growth, hands-on healing, and mindful energy use. In 1922, he experienced a profound mystical enlightenment on Mount Kurama, which inspired the creation of the Reiki system. Usui personally trained over 2,000 students, of whom approximately 16–20 reached the Shinpiden (Master) level. Most of his Masters remained in Japan and continued the practice there.
A naval physician, Hayashi studied under Usui and established the Hayashi Reiki Kenkyu-kai in Tokyo. Hayashi formalised Reiki techniques, creating a clinic where he trained students in structured hands-on healing. He trained roughly 13–16 Masters, among whom Hawayo Takata became the most notable Western student.
Takata, a Japanese-American from Hawaii, studied under Hayashi from 1936–1938. She returned to Hawaii and later introduced Reiki to the Western world, practicing in Hawaii and the US for decades. During her lifetime, she trained 22 Masters before her passing in 1980. These 22 Masters became the foundation of Reiki’s global spread, many of whom were instrumental in spreading Reiki across North America, Europe, and beyond and many went on to create or influence new branches of Reiki. These Masters, including Phyllis Lei Furumoto, Barbara Weber Ray, and Iris Ishikuro, preserved Takata’s teachings while also inspiring adaptations and new systems for Western students.
For a deeper look at the Japanese systems of Reiki — including Komyo ReikiDo and Jikiden Reiki — please see my companion article: Japanese Reiki: Returning to the Roots.
Western Reiki has developed in three broad ways:
The most widely known form of Reiki is Usui Reiki, named after its founder, Mikao Usui, who established the system in the early 20th century in Japan. Usui Reiki focuses on the laying on of hands and the transmission of Universal life energy to the client. Practitioners serve as channels for this energy, which helps to restore balance and promote healing on all levels: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.
Usui Reiki Ryoho is the traditional Japanese system of Reiki as taught by Mikao Usui. It emphasizes spiritual development, self-healing, and direct experience with energy through meditation and hands-on techniques. This practice focuses on cultivating inner harmony, clearing energetic blockages, and deepening one’s connection to the universal life force.
Rooted in Japanese esoteric practices, Usui Reiki Ryoho incorporates techniques like Reiji-ho (intuitive healing), Byosen scanning (energy assessment), and the use of Reiki precepts for daily living. In this tradition, there is a strong emphasis on the five Reiki principles as a means of spiritual growth.
It is a holistic approach to healing, emphasizing both physical and spiritual well-being. Practitioners are encouraged to develop mindfulness and meditate regularly to enhance their healing abilities.
Usui Shiki Ryoho, was brought to the West by Hawayo Takata, a Japanese-American woman who learned Reiki in Japan and then spread its teachings in the United States in the mid-1900s. This is the most well-known and practiced form of Reiki in the West today.
Usui Shiki Ryoho, follows a structured system that includes three levels of training – Reiki I, II, and Master/Teacher – focusing on hands-on healing, distant healing, and attunements. The three levels or degrees are as follows:
First Degree: Practitioners are taught hand positions and basic techniques for self-healing and healing others.
Second Degree: Focuses on the use of sacred symbols and distance healing techniques.
Third Degree: Reiki Master/Teacher level, where one learns advanced healing techniques and, if desired, how to attune others to Reiki.
This lineage emphasizes simplicity, standardized hand positions, and personal empowerment through Reiki practice. Usui Shiki Ryoho is widely taught and practiced worldwide, making Reiki accessible to a broad audience while maintaining its spiritual essence and healing potential.
•Usui Reiki Ryōhō = the original Japanese name for Usui’s method.
•Usui Shiki Ryōhō = the Westernised “form” as taught by Takata.
•Usui Shiki Reiki Ryōhō = a hybrid name, most often Western, not really a distinct style but a descriptive label.
This is why it looks confusing in style lists — some people mistakenly list all three as “different systems,” but in reality they’re variations of naming, not different practices.
While Western Reiki is the most widely practised globally, Japanese lineages are also taught internationally today.
These systems remind us that Reiki is more than a healing technique — it is also a spiritual practice rooted in Japanese culture.
For a detailed look at Reiki’s Japanese foundations, see my related article: Japanese Reiki: Returning to the Roots.
(Initiated between 1970–1980; Takata passed in December 1980)
Name | Year Initiated | Notes / Contributions |
Barbara Ray | 1979 | Founded The Radiance Technique® (TRT)- (early 1980s). Claimed to preserve Takata’s full teachings. First to formally register Reiki in the U.S. Emphasised Reiki as a scientific and spiritual practice, distinct from Takata’s later lineage. |
Iris Ishikuro | 1973 | Allowed more flexibility in teaching and attunements. Her lineage influenced the development of Seichim and modern Reiki hybrids. Taught Arthur Robertson, who developed Reiki Plus. Her openness influenced Karuna Reiki® later. |
Phyllis Lei Furumoto | 1979 | Takata’s granddaughter, recognised as her successor, became Lineage Bearer of Usui Shiki Ryoho. Founded The Reiki Alliance with Paul David Mitchell and helped spread Usui Shiki Ryoho globally. |
Beth Gray | 1970s | Based in Hawaii, one of Takata’s earliest Masters. Travelled in 1983 to Australia and New Zealand, where she introduced Reiki and trained the first generation of practitioners in the region. |
Fran Brown | 1970s | Authored Living Reiki (1992), an important text on Takata’s methods. |
John Gray | 1970s | Brought Reiki to Canada; taught widely. |
Wanja Twan | 1970s | Swedish-born Canadian Reiki Master, author of A Grandmother’s Reiki; emphasised community teaching. Travelled widely in Canada, the U.S., and Europe, establishing strong lineages of Usui Shiki Ryoho. |
Kay Yamashita | 1970s | Continued Usui Shiki RyÅhÅ. |
Barbara McCullough | 1970s | Less documented, taught within Takata’s system. |
Paul Mitchell | 1970s | Later worked closely with Phyllis Furumoto as Head of Discipline in The Reiki Alliance. |
Rick Bockner | 1980 | Last Master initiated by Takata (Nov 1980). Still active in Canada. |
Mary McFadyen | 1970s | Helped spread Reiki in Canada. |
Shirley Price | 1970s | Taught in the UK. |
Ethel Lombardi | 1970s | Taught Reiki in the U.S.; sometimes credited with teaching Seichim, though she herself focused on Reiki. |
Beth Sanders | 1970s | Continued in Hawaii; limited public information. |
Paul David Mitchell | 1970s | Worked in close partnership with Phyllis Furumoto. |
Anneli Twan | 1970s | Relative of Wanja; less documentation available. |
Kay Wheeler | 1970s | Continued within Usui Shiki Ryoho. |
Virginia Samdahl | 1970s | First Reiki Master initiated on the U.S. mainland (1976). |
Harry Kuboi | 1970s | One of the early Hawaiian Masters. |
Shizuko Yamaguchi | 1970s | Taught locally in Hawaii. |
Takata’s other initiates | 1970s | A few may remain less documented or may have been taught privately. |
Reverend Beth Gray (1918–2008), one of Hawayo Takata’s earliest Western Reiki Masters, was the pioneer who brought Reiki to Australia. Trained directly by Takata in the 1970s, Beth became a key teacher in the Asia-Pacific region.
In September 1983, she arrived in Australia and began teaching Reiki, sowing the first seeds of what would become a flourishing community. Among her earliest students was Denise Crundall, who later became a Reiki Master in 1988, and Barbara McGregor, who went on to establish the Usui Reiki Network in 1990.
Through her teaching tours and commitment, Beth Gray initiated thousands of students across the country. Her work ensured that Reiki in Australia developed strong foundations, rooted in hands-on practice, personal responsibility, and Takata’s emphasis on oral tradition.
Today, many Australian Reiki practitioners and organisations can trace their lineage directly back to Beth Gray. Her influence continues to live on in the way Reiki is practised, taught, and honoured across the Southern Hemisphere.
Beth Gray (Hawaii → Australia/NZ, 1983)
Denise Crundall (1946-2002 (Sydney, Australia)
After 5 years apprenticeship with Beth Gray, Denise recognized her ministry teaching Reiki to, and working with, people living with AIDS and people Living with Dying. On the 4th of July, 1988, in Sydney, Beth announced to the Reiki community that Denise was indeed a Master of the Usui System of Natural Healing.
Denise travelled across Australia and in California teaching and administering to people with terminal illness. Reiki expanded into the wider community and in 1991 she invited John to join her on the journey and to help her to train teachers and to work with Volunteers. They offered healing and teaching to children, teens and all those attracted to the Light of Reiki and insisted that wherever she taught, a healing centre/community should be established and volunteers trained to continue this great work.
Denise brought a unique understanding to the Universal qualities of Reiki; the power of the Rei and of the Ki, and all that lies between. She knew the multi-dimensional nature of this amazing healing modality, and where Reiki fits in the world of Healing. After her death in 2002 her husband John continued her work.
Barbara McGregor (Melbourne, Australia)
Although many energy healing systems are also called Spiritual Healing, I wanted to make a mention of it here. Spiritual healing is a broad, umbrella term that includes Reiki but is not limited to it. A concise but layered definition could read:
So, while Reiki is a system of spiritual healing, spiritual healing itself is a larger category that encompasses many traditions across cultures and time.
While this subject could take us down a rabbit hole, it is not the intention of this article, which is primarily about Reiki in the West.
Reiki was originally taught as a hands-on system: teacher to student, person to person.
This direct energetic transmission (Reiju/attunement) is central to Reiki’s essence. In today’s
digital world, online courses exist, but organisations like Reiki Australia maintain the
standard of in-person training for membership, preserving integrity, safety, and depth of
practice. Although many Reiki Masters now teach Reiki as an online course, with distant Attunements, authentic traditional Reiki requires hands-on attunements, as was originally taught by the Founder, Mikao Usui.
Associations like Reiki Australia emphasises:
To keep up with modern times and also make use of technology many Traditional Masters now teach in-person, but also providing online resources to continue to support their students. Online-only courses alone cannot replace the depth of in-person attunements.
From its roots on Mt Kurama in 1922, Reiki has grown into a worldwide practice with many branches. It is estimated that there are well over 1,000,000 practitioners worldwide.
The majority of Reiki practitioners in our western world practice a form of Usui Shiki Reiki Ryoho brought down through Hawaya Takata’s lineage. Some styles of Reiki, like Komyo ReikiDo, Jikiden Reiki, and Gendai Reiki Ho, preserve its Japanese essence. Others such as Angelic Reiki, Holy Fire, Violet Flame, Reiki Tummo, and more, reflect Western creativity and integration with other traditions.
Alongside Reiki, modalities such as Sekhem/All Love, ThetaHealing, Pranic Healing, Kinesiology/Touch for Health, and Qigong demonstrate how the West has embraced and expanded energy medicine and highlight the interconnectedness of energy practices in the West.
Reiki’s journey reflects both preservation and evolution.
From Usui’s mystical experience on Mount Kurama in 1922 to Takata’s adaptations and myriad Western styles, Reiki continues to inspire, transform, and heal.
Our human ego can sometimes get in the way of us staying open to the magic of Reiki and the Universal life-force energy that flows through every living thing. One is not greater than the other, for there are many rivers to the one ocean, and each person must find their own path. Let us learn more about different methods of personal healing and each other, judge none and accept all as valid for those who choose what resonates with them best.
Energy knows no borders, healing transcends culture. Reiki is love.
Love and Blessings to All,
Carol Macrae 💗🙏💗