Usui Reiki Ryoho and Usui Shiki Ryoho are two branches of an energetic, natural and spiritual healing system originally from Japan.

The two branches of the energetic healing system designed by Usui have similar philosophies but have different development perspectives.

Usui Reiki Ryoho

Usui Reiki Ryoho represents the simplified name of the healing system – Shin-Shin Kai-Zen Usui Reiki Ryo-Ho, conceived and developed by the japanese Mikao Usui at the beginning of the 20th century, based on the universal energy of life.

The determining element that led to the emergence of the Usui Reiki Ryoho healing system was the famous meditation of several days, from February-March 1922, carried out on the sacred mountain Kurama by Usui, after which he had a profoundly enlightening mystical experience about universal energy of life currently known as Reiki energy.

Reiki Ryoho can be translated as “spiritual healing method” and Usui Reiki Ryoho can be translated as “Usui’s spiritual healing method”.

Shin-Shin Kai-Zen Usui Reiki Ryo-Ho can be translated as “Usui Reiki Treatment Method for Improving Body and Mind”.

It should be noted that, according to the statements of two Reiki researchers – Hiroshi Doi Sensei and Toshitaka Mochitzuki Sensei, before Mikao Usui created his own Reiki healing system, there were already other spiritual healing methods in Japan that included in their name the phrase Reiki Ryoho or the word Ryoho.

In this sense, the two Reiki researchers mention that a Japanese healer named Matiji Kawakami created a natural healing method called Reiki Ryoho in 1914.

The same researchers mention that another healer – Matiji Kawakami described his healing method in a book entitled Reiki Ryoho la Sono Koka, in translation “Reiki Healing and Its Effects” which was published in 1919 in Japan.

The two researchers also mention that in 1915 another Japanese healer – Reikaku Ishinuki created another natural healing method called Reikan Tonetsu Ryoho.

Furthermore, the same researchers state that in the same period, two other healers – Kogetsu Matsubara and Seido Reishojutsu created the natural healing method called Senshinryu Reiki Ryoho.

By using the words Reiki Ryoho in the name of his healing method, Mikao Usui seems to have known of the existence of the other healing methods (Reiki Ryoho) mentioned above and wanted to highlight and distinguish his healing method from the others by the introduction of his name – Usui in the name of the healing method.

Over time, the Usui Reiki Ryoho healing method became the most popular healing method, while the other Reiki Ryoho healing methods disappeared through disuse.

In the beginning, Usui’s healing method consisted of placing his palms on the painful area of the patient and channeling the flow of Reiki energy there through his palms for as long as he thought necessary, as he did with the woman who was suffering from mass pain that he treated when he descended from Mount Kurama in March 1922.

Usui also developed a simple method to transmit Reiki skills. He would give Reiki attunements simply by holding the students hands and mentally manifesting the intention to transmit the Reiki ability to the student.

Usui improved his healing method over time, noting that the greatest progress occurred in 1923, after the earthquake and tsunami in Kanto which caused a very large number of injured people who needed treatment.

After the Kanto earthquake, Mikao Usui created several methods of Reiki practice (including Gassho meditation, Gyoshi ho), as well as a new attunement method called Reiju kai. With Reiju kai, Reiki giving is done much faster, in accordance with Usui’s desire to create more Reiki practitioners and teachers in a shorter time.

In his desire to improve his attunement, Usui created and experimented with several methods of Reiju kai

Thus, in an interview given in Japan, a Reiki researcher – Hiroshi Doi highlighted that Usui performed Reiju kai in several ways.

In addition, other Reiki researchers reported that Usui offered students even more sets of attunements in order to enhance the students’ Reiki skills. From Usui’s point of view, multiple sets of attunements allowed the Reiki energy to be channeled more strongly and more effectively so that it could heal more types of problems, faster and more deeply.

From the old sutras, Usui chose to use 3 symbols (those currently received at Level Two Reiki) in his Reiki school.

Most Reiki schools that consider themselves Usui Reiki Ryoho retain the practices taught by Mikao Usui during his lifetime and avoid New Age influences.

Usui Reiki Ryoho uses the traditional Japanese energy system and does not include the Chakra system that is used in the other branch of Reiki – Usui Shiki Ryoho.

Usui Reiki Ryoho is based on the 5 Reiki principles established by Usui and preserved in the other branch of Reiki based on Usui’s teachings.

The development of the Usui Reiki Ryoho branch is carried out in two main directions. The first is the practical research that involves reading old Reiki books, consulting with specialists in Japanese religion, culture and healing practices, studying with various Reiki teachers to find out their philosophy regarding Reiki, etc. Finally, these ideas are analyzed and new perspectives of the practices taught by Usui are offered.

The second direction of development is the personal practice of each Usui Reiki Ryoho practitioner.

The Usui Reiki Ryoho teaching is structured on 3 levels: the First Level called Shoden by Usui (which translates as “First Teachings”), the Second Level called Okuden (which translates as “Inner Teachings”) and the Third Level called Shinpiden ( which translates as “Teachings of the Mysteries”).

Usui Shiki Ryoho

Usui Shiki Ryoho can be translated as “The Usui System of Natural Healing”.

The term Usui Shiki Ryoho was created by Phyllis Lei Furumoto – a Reiki master in the lineage of Mikao Usui, Chujiro Hayashi, Hawayo Takata.

Phyllis Lei Furumoto mostly maintained the form of the systematized Reiki practice of her predecessor – Hawayo Takata, but she also brought some improvements in order to make the new Reiki method clearer and easier for the Western world to assimilate.

Thus, for example, Phyllis Lei Furumoto maintained the use of the Master symbol (received at Level Three Reiki) introduced by Takata.

Takata appreciated that it is no longer necessary to teach Byosen scanning – a technique to find the best hand positions for treatment, an assessment Phyllis Lei Furumoto agreed with.

Some Usui Shiki Ryoho masters still use Byosen scanning, but most appreciate that finding the best hand positions for treatment is done intuitively, guided by Reiki Wisdom as Phyllis Lei Furumoto chose.

Practitioners of Usui Shiki Ryoho listened to Usui’s advice to his students to constantly improve the Reiki healing method and proceeded to create new methods of giving and treatment, unlike Usui Reiki Ryoho users who kept the methods created by Usui.

Unlike the Usui Reiki Ryoho philosophy, the Usui Shiki Ryoho philosophy as described by Phyllis Lei Furumoto, involves the Four Aspects of Usui Shiki Ryoho and the Nine Elements of Usui Shiki Ryoho.

The Four Aspects of Usui Shiki Ryoho, in order, are: Healing Practice, Personal Development, Spiritual Discipline and Mystic Order.

The Nine Elements of Usui Shiki Ryoho, in order, are: Initiation (Attunement), Symbols, Treatment, Oral Tradition, Spiritual Lineage, History, Money, Precepts (the 5 Reiki Principles), Form of Teaching.

Unlike Usui Reiki Ryoho which requires the client to receive the Reiki treatment sitting on a chair, Usui Shiki Ryoho requires the client to receive the Reiki treatment lying horizontally.

Also, the use of Usui Shiki Ryoho involved (initially) 4 Reiki attunements for the First Reiki Level and a single attunement each for the Second and Third Reiki Levels, while the use of the Usui Reiki Ryoho method involved several attunements or even sets of attunements for each Reiki level.

Over time the 4 Reiki chords from the First Reiki Level were incorporated into a single chord.

Some Reiki masters in the line of Mikao Usui, Chujiro Hayashi, Hawayo Takata, Phyllis Lei Furumoto have incorporated all the Reiki chords for the 3 Reiki levels into a single chord.

Moreover, some Reiki masters with outstanding results in Reiki healing and in teaching Reiki teachings claim that attunements for all three levels of Reiki can be obtained all at once following a meditation in which Reiki wisdom is invoked (and optionally the support of Mikao Usui or of him and of the other later Reiki masters). In support of this thesis, they invoke first of all the remarkable results obtained by them as well as the enlightening experience of Usui on the sacred mountain Kurama where he received the Reiki grant he needed directly from the Reiki Wisdom.

Unlike the Usui Reiki Ryoho branch where Reiki is given only in person, in the Usui Shiki Ryoho branch Reiki is given both in person and at a distance, but also through recordings (written, audio or video); all tuning methods having the same efficiency according to the majority opinion of Usui Shiki Ryoho masters.