The roots of Reiki
Mikao Usui was the founder of the Reiki system. He was a Buddhist scholar born in 1865. His life changed suddenly in 1922 when he faced some personal and financial difficulties, and he decided to go on a 21-day retreat on Mt. Kurama, north of Kyoto. While meditating on the retreat he had a miraculous spiritual experience and awakening that gave him his ability to heal others and to pass this gift on to others through attunements. An attunement is the passing on of energy from a Reiki master to a student so they too can now offer this special gift of healing to others. This led Mikao Usui to create his style of Reiki and he dedicated his life to helping others.