One of the stories I’ve heard about Mrs Takata was about how
she was tested by some Native American chiefs.
I was delighted to hear more of this story, and see some documentation
about it that deepened my understanding, at the Takata Archives presentation I
attended in February this year.
The story goes that Hawayo Takata met a Native American
chief and gave him a Reiki treatment, He asked Takata what she thought she was
doing. She explained that she was using
natural life force energy to heal. He
found that this was very similar to his own culture’s understanding of healing,
so he asked Takata if she was willing to be tested. One of the things I learned from the Archives
presentation was that Takata was always willing to be put to the test, her
faith in Reiki being unshakable.
which he found helpful.
It was therefore arranged that she, the Native American
chief and some of his fellow chiefs would meet in a hotel in America. For the test, they asked Takata to send them
distant Reiki healing to their room along the corridor. This she duly did at the arranged time and when
they met again later that day, they declared that she was indeed a powerful
healer.
What I had not known until I attended the presentation was
that they not only told her this, they also gave her a certificate declaring
that she was recognised as a natural healer.
She was even given a Native American name which translates as ‘Little
Flower’.
This document, together with many others, is now part of a
special collection that will be held as part of an archive of resources for all
Reiki students. The collection contains
a variety of things that belonged to Hawayo Takata. For many years they lived in boxes in Phyllis
Furumoto’s home, until she decided that the time had come to open the boxes so
that this precious collection could be properly catalogued and cared for in a
way that would make it available to the world-wide Reiki community.
She gathered a team of people to look at what was in the
boxes and decide what to do with it all.
The boxes contained newspaper articles,
handwritten letters and never before seen photos, golf trophies (Takata was a
keen golf player) and many other documents.
It was a huge task!
One of the people who took part in this work in the Archives
Team was Joyce Winough, and she is coming to the UK again in October to talk
about this amazing work and share some of what they found in the boxes. When I attended the presentation in London I
found it very moving – both to see photographs of Takata I had never seen
before, and also to learn more about her family history and history of Reiki. Often what was shared confirmed stories I had
heard like the one above. Tapes of
Takata telling various stories were also played, which I had not heard before. It’s moving to hear Takata’s voice talking
about her Reiki experiences.
So if you are a Reiki student and are able to get to
Birmingham in October I strongly recommend you attend the Takata Archives
Presentation taking place. You will be
able to see a picture of the certificate from the Native Americans amongst many
other treasures! It is also touching to
share this experience with Joyce and other Reiki students.
