Exploration in Arizona

I am writing this article in a hotel room in Green Valley Arizona, where I have come to participate in a Reiki master intensive. Last week I attended another intensive known as Usui II, in which masters have the opportunity to explore the form of teaching Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki in the way it was taught by Hawayo   So I apologise if this newsletter has some errors as I was not able to complete it before leaving home, so am writing on an unfamiliar machine!

The Usui II is usually taught by Phyllis Furumoto and Paul Mitchell, who together hold what is

The group of masters who gathered for this time of exploration came from many different countries and had varying years of experience. I love being in international groups and this one was a very special experience at this poignant time.  I found that we were a group who were good at taking responsibility for ourselves. As someone commented it was also a group in which no unkind word was spoken.

We shared Reiki treatments every day and have also been sending distant Reiki to Phyllis, her partner Joyce and others at Phyllis' home who are caring for her. We were delighted to hear that Phyllis is in minimal pain, much less than the doctors predicted, which is probably due to the Reiki being sent to her from all over the world by many many Reiki people.

This week some of the same group will continue to work together to explore how we can continue the legacy of Takata and Phyllis when she is no longer with us.

Phyllis has been part of my Reiki journey since I was a young master and it is difficult to imagine her not being around, so this work will be tender and probably quite intense, so I am very glad that we will be sharing more Reiki. It is good to be with other Reiki masters and to be able to offer some support to Joyce at this difficult time.

I feel so honoured and grateful to be here at this special time and thank all those who have supported me to be here.  Only a month ago it seemed almost impossible that I would be in Arizona for this work.
known as the Office of Grand Master. Sadly Phyllis was unable to be with us because she has now entered the last days after living with cancer for almost 10 years. She had hoped to join us via a video link and did so on the second day, but unfortunately this proved too exhausting for her so the rest of the week was led by Paul alone.

A Principle of Kindness

Last January, reflecting on where my Reiki work would be going in the year ahead, I decided I would like a short phrase to express what I hope to offer the world through this work.  I had attended a workshop called "Reiki for a Better World" which had got me thinking: what would make the world a better place that Reiki can offer?  What I came up with was: kindness.  I therefore decided to try to write all my newsletter articles for 2017 with the underlying focus of "Reiki for a Kinder World".

I found that it was not difficult to find many aspects of kindness that come through the practice of Reiki, from the kindness we offer ourselves as we self treat (hopefully every day) to the kindness of giving healing to family and friends.  I have also found that the self treatment helps me to be in a calmer state, so that I also move through the world in a kinder way: being less stressful means that I am less irritable.  It also allows me to be more sensitive to the needs of others.

I was therefore very interested to read, in the recent Office of the Grandmaster newsletter, articles from both Phyllis Furumoto and Paul Mitchell about a Reiki principle of kindness. 

Phyllis, writing during her stay in Japan, talked about how her grandmother had not specifically listed the Five Reiki Principles that we are familiar with, but that each had been mentioned with a story during her teaching.  After Takata's death her masters met and acknowledged the 5 principles or Precepts as follows:

Just for today do not worry

Just for today do not anger

Honour your parents teachers and elders

Earn your living honestly

Show gratitude to every living thing

What Phyllis commented on was that in the direct translation of these principles from the Japanese there is also a sentence about being kind to others.  Phyllis and Paul both remember this being included in Takata's teachings but somehow this was not specifically included in the Reiki Principles in English.  As Phyllis comments, Takata translated not just the words, but also some of the underlying qualities that in Japanese culture do not need to be spoken because they are so fundamental: that of respecting elders and Nature.

So I find it interesting that I had found my way to including this quality of kindness even though it was unspoken, through many years of holding the Reiki Principles as we receive them in English and also my Reiki treatment and teaching practice.  I have often observed the kindness of people who meet to treat each other at Reiki Shares.  It's easy to take this for granted and forget how in many other groups there isn't this level of trust and consideration.  Something about the grace of Reiki helps people to let go of judgement while giving each other Reiki.

So I am interested to hear that this quality of being - of showing kindness to others - seems to have surfaced for more conscious discussion in the Reiki community.   I intend to continue to hold it as a focus for the coming year.  Our world can benefit from more kindness, even in the smallest act of offering Reiki to another person who is in pain.  Will you join me?

If you would like to read more about this you can read the articles from Phyllis and Paul here.  You can also sign up for to receive the newsletter here.

Happy 25th Birthday Reiki Association

This month I will be going to a very special Reiki gathering: the 25th Birthday of The Reiki Association (TRA).  I attended inaugural meeting of TRA in August 1991 at Harborne Hall in Birmingham.  It was the first time 100 Reiki people from differing Reiki systems had come together in the UK.  Being a member ever since has meant a lot to me both personally and as a Reiki master and practitioner.

At the time Reiki masters and students coming together in community was unusual: there were Reiki organisations in other parts of the world, but they were for masters only or 1st and 2nd degree students.  So TRA started out on a path of inclusiveness by being an organisation for masters and students together.

The other inclusive aspect of TRA is that it is open to people of all Reiki systems/styles (although members must have received their initiation in person from a Reiki master).  It was not an easy decision to be open in this way because at the time many of the differing Reiki systems were evolving and there was some hostility and defensiveness between the different styles.  So the decision TRA made in those early years to be open to all Reiki systems was not an easy one and has been challenging over the years.

Reiki Gatherings have always been an important part of TRA's activities.  The picture here is of the first weekend gathering TRA organised in Sutton Coldfield in 1994, with Phyllis Furumoto as special guest.  Phyllis always encouraged TRA to remain open and inclusive and her attendance at several of the gatherings over the years has helped to foster this.

Gatherings are an opportunity for Reiki people to share Reiki treatments, experience being in community, connect and re-connect with friends, share stories and have fun - as well as the more formal aspects of annual meetings.  These  gatherings have offered the experience of being in community with people who have different ways of teaching and practicing Reiki and differing beliefs.  Like a microcosm of human conflicts through-out the world, gatherings are a place for differences to be acknowledged and accepted, our uniqueness and also connection through Reiki celebrated.  We have learned to move beyond the distrust and conflict to a place of resolution and peace.

I feel fortunate to have been involved in TRA since those early years (as TRA's administrator from 1992 to 2004 and on Council from 2009 to 2014) and it has certainly contributed to my development as a Reiki master.  Through this involvement I've made many good friends and learned to surrender to being in community!  I also met and became friends with Phyllis Furumoto, Paul Mitchell and Rick Bockner - all students of Hawayo Takata.  Wanja Twan - another of Takata's students and the woman who initiated my Reiki master - also attended a TRA gathering.  Being able to listen to the wisdom of these more experienced masters has been a great gift from TRA that I value highly.

Representing TRA in the development of the National Occupational Standards for Reiki and on the Reiki Regulatory Working Group (which became Reiki Council) were also opportunities to develop compassionate ways of working with people of differing views!  This work is the foundation for my practitioner training, through which I aim to offer Reiki students a deeper connection with their Reiki practice.

So I will certainly be dancing for joy at this year's TRA gathering, celebrating our years together as an inclusive community!