Qualities of the Japanese Women in Reiki - Courage

One quality that stood out among the Japanese women whose stories we follow in Women in Reiki was courage. Here are just a few examples from some of those women.

Chie Hayashi

Chie Hayashi was married to Chujiro Hayashi, who had a successful Reiki clinic based in Tokyo. Chie would often help out at the clinic where Reiki students would give group treatments to those needing help. In 1940, the former naval captain, Hayashi was forced to make the decision to end his life. We know that the reason he did this was because his conscience would allow him no part in the preparation for, or the actual Japanese invasion of Hawaii. Chie Hayashi was good friends with Chiyo Sugano, Chiyoko Yamaguchi’s aunt. They shared what was happening in their lives with each other and Chie Hayashi told the Suganos about the harrowing decision Chujiro Hayashi had had to make. It was a matter of honour. Though it may be difficult for us from our current perspective to fully understand, for him, his conscience meant he had to do the honourable thing for himself and his family. This meant ending his life.

After this, the Hayashi Reiki Institute would have been compromised in the government’s way of thinking. This meant it was too risky for his male students to step up and run it. Instead, Chie became the head of the Institute and continued to support those involved. The members and branch leaders needed help to continue, especially as these were difficult times. Hayashi ending his life would be viewed as suspicious by the authorities and the activities of the group may well have been being observed. As far as we know, the clinic officially closed, yet she continued teaching and holding Reijukai there as well as travelling to various other branches of the Institute to do the same. Imagine witnessing your husband ending his life and in the midst of your grief having the courage to do all of this! It’s important to appreciate what she did in the context of times for women too. As you can see from photos at the time, it was highly unusual, often unheard of, for women to head organisations. What she was doing at what must have been one of the hardest moments in her life was pioneering.

Other Japanese Women in Reiki who encompassed Courage

Kimiko Koyama was the driving force behind the revitalisation of Usui’s Gakkai in the post-war period, when many of the Shihan (teachers) had died during the war, hence the branches closed. Koyama embraced the spirit of Reiki and her house became the centre of the Gakkai activities during this time. She assisted Taketomi and Wanami (both heads of Usui’s Gakkai) diligently and open-heartedly and her dedication caused Wanami to pass the presidency of the Gakkai to her on his death. The first woman to take on such a role, she stepped up and headed the organisation for more than 20 years.

Another courageous act we see from two of the women in our book. To appreciate this, it’s important to understand that in Japan, arts such as Reiki, Tea Ceremony, martial arts, ikebana etc. all use what is known as the Iemoto system. This traditional way of passing on knowledge through schools or associations dictates that any person can only teach those who are two levels below them in their learning. This ensures a quality of teaching is passed on because the teacher has enough experience of what he or she is teaching. In this way, only the head of the organisation is able to teach full teachers. The Hayashi Reiki Institute used the Iemoto system, as Usui sensei had. This means that though they were teachers with a great deal of experience, and had permission to teach some levels of Reiki, neither Chiyoko Yamaguchi nor Hawayo Takata were officially able to teach full teachers – simply because they had never become the head of the organisation. However, they both recognised that under the circumstances, if they didn’t step up to teach full teachers, Reiki would face dying out altogether. We know firsthand that Chiyoko Yamaguchi found this a difficult decision to make, fearing she was going against what her teacher, who she revered, held sacred. Yet, her courage to do so has led to tens of thousands of people having access to the Reiki she had learned and lovingly used for more than 60 years. Hawayo Takata must have had the same decision to make, and her willingness to step up allowed Reiki to spread throughout the West.

Gokai - gyo-o-hagame and courage

We see courage in many of the women’s stories in Women in Reiki, these are just a couple of examples. The courage we speak to here can be related to the fourth principle of the gokai gyo-o-hagame. The translation, do your duties, could also be translated as responsibilities. It means fulfilling whatever needs to be done in your life, whether that is picking up kids from school, taking out the trash or looking after parents, and doing it with a heart filled with gratitude and kindness. It also encompasses the bigger moments in life, those that take tremendous courage to step into, like Chie Hayashi's decision to step in as head of the Hayashi Reiki Institute after her husband's death.

We will talk more about another aspect of gyo-o-hagame later in this blog series.

Courage has been necessary, and continues to be necessary in most women’s lives today. I’m sure we all have women we know in mind when we think of courage.