Like A Bolt of Lightning

One of the most difficult aspects about the spiritual path is that it's sometimes hard to determine exactly how much progress one has made. Of course, there are the obvious indicators of spiritual progress such as the development of the virtues, being at peace with oneself and others, etc. But other matters, such as achieving illumination and enlightenment as well as development of the higher subtle bodies, don't present any easy markers of progress. It's not like weightlifting where you can track how much weight you're lifting now versus last week then adjust your workout accordingly.

Therefore, perseverance in the spiritual path is crucial in order to succeed. It's also important to keep an open mind and be aware, because sometimes the direction of one's path can make unexpected turns.

I suppose the best way to illustrate what I'm saying is through an example, and I think one of the better examples would be the story of Mikao Usui, the modern progenitor of Reiki. I say "modern progenitor" because the healing system known now as Reiki has been in existence for thousands of years and has been called by different names, just like pranic healing. Which brings me to one other thing: you may be asking why a pranic healer is talking about Reiki. And I say, why not? Can you imagine if the only type of food in the world was meatball spaghetti? What if I wanted pesto, or friend chicken? Diversity is the spice of life.

We may not understand all the workings of the Universe, but one thing we can be sure of is that everything has its place, and each piece that we find and explore only adds to the wonder that is Creation. Spreading Light to the world is not a competition and any sense of ownership we may have about certain achievements are merely an illusion of duality (you can digest this phrase at your leisure, but for now let's get back on topic).

Before we proceed further, we need to cover some relatively recent history in order to get a more accurate rendition of events. The reason for this will be explained later.

Reiki was introduced to the West by a Japanese-American immigrant by the name of Mrs. Hawayo Takata. She had gone to Japan in the early 1930s and discovered Reiki when she was looking for an alternative means to cure her illness. She then proceeded to learn Reiki under Chujiro Hayashi, a contemporary of Mikao Usui (Mr. Usui had died in 1926). In 1937, just a few years before the outbreak of World War 2, Mrs. Takata returned to Hawaii in order to teach Reiki.

In the 1990s, some Reiki practitioners wanted to do more research on the history of Reiki and through this process discovered that Mrs. Takata took certain liberties in relating how Mikao Usui discovered Reiki. She also embellished certain details about Mikao Usui's life. This development motivated the researchers to gather more information and even visit Japan in order to get a clearer understanding of Reiki's history. The reason it took so long for the different pieces to be put together was influenced by two factors:

1. Mrs. Takata mentioned that all Reiki teachers in Japan had died as a result of World War 2, so she was the sole surviving source of Reiki in the world. Moreover, she forbade any more research into the history of Reiki. Out of respect for her wishes, early authors of Reiki books went with the "official" history as related by Mrs. Takata. It was only after Mrs. Takata's death in 1980 that the restrictions against further research slowly eased.

2. The Usui Reiki Ryoho Gakkai (the organization founded by Usui after he discovered Reiki) went underground after World War 2 because the Americans banned all forms of alternative healing practices. Only Western medicine was to be used although later on some alternative healing modalities such as acupuncture went through a tedious accreditation process so that they could be publicly practiced again. The Gakkai did not choose this route and instead became a secret society, so secret in fact that hardly anyone in Japan knew about the existence of the organization. Therefore, it was difficult to get any corroborating information about Reiki in Japan.

Fortunately, the researchers mentioned earlier were eventually able to make contact with members of the Gakkai, resulting in more accurate information coming to light. All the details of the revised history as well as the background material can be found at the website of The International Center for Reiki Training. All the information was taken from the book Reiki The Healing Touch by William Lee Rand.

With the above clarification out of the way, let's take a look at certain details of Mikao Usui's life that pertain to the topic I am talking about. The records say that Misao Usui discovered Reiki when he went on a 21-day meditation retreat in Mt. Kurama, where he had started his studies in Buddhism as a child. Interestingly, Mr. Usui did not go to the retreat to learn a healing system. In 1922, Mr. Usui was experiencing a life crisis both in business and personal matters, so he went on the retreat in order to find a way to resolve his problems.

According to the revised history, during one of Usui's meditations, great energy poured down through his crown chakra, filling him with spiritual light along with an understanding of how to solve his personal problems. In his excitement, Usui started running down the mountain and in the process stubbed his toe on a rock. Just like any normal person with a stubbed toe, Usui reached down to cup the bleeding toe in his hand. On doing this, Usui felt energy course through his hand into the toe, stopping the bleeding immediately and making the pain disappear. This is when Usui realized that he had been given the gift of healing (in charismatic Christian parlance, one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit). For the next four years, Mikao Usui devoted his life to spreading Reiki and healing as many people as he could before dying of a stroke in 1926 at the age of 62. But the seed he had planted continued to grow as Reiki is one of the most recognizable energy healing systems in the world today.

Based on the description of great energy coming down to the crown and being filled with spiritual light, we can infer that Masao Usui achieved spiritual illumination or at least a certain degree of it. Not only that, it was the beginning of his soul mission of spreading Reiki to the world. If you would notice, Mikao Usui received illumination at the late age of 58 years old, and while 4 years may not seem like much time to fulfill a spiritual mission (one he seemingly did not ask for, at that), when you are spiritually empowered you don't really need a lot of time.

What does this show us? For one, manifestation of spiritual progress can come like a bolt of lightning out of nowhere and lead us into something we were not even looking for. Second, even though we may not know it, we are being guided in life and led somewhere. If not for Usui's personal problems, he wouldn't have gone on that crucial retreat. If not for stubbing his toe, he wouldn't have immediately discovered the healing energy he was given. More often than not, problems in life are also signals from our Higher Selves to urge us towards a certain direction. Third, illumination is such a coveted spiritual achievement among those who haven't had it, but higher spiritual achievement is a responsibility and involves some type of world service. This is why it can take several lifetimes of preparation and why progress may not always be apparent right until before the moment arrives.

The key then is to always be faithful in our spiritual practice. Like what Jesus said, we know neither the day nor the time, and He will come like a thief in the night. For all we know, any one of us may be called to greater spiritual service tomorrow. This is why we need to be still and be aware of the urgings of our Higher Selves.

Of course, progress in the spiritual path is much facilitated when one is following a true spiritual tradition. In this case, the meditations and techniques are safer and proven, and one also has the wisdom of the guru and his spiritual lineage to rely upon.

Ironically, I learned one of the more subtle twists about persevering on the spiritual path through a boxing website. In that website, the author states that one's goal isn't success. Success is inevitable as long as one perseveres long enough. Rather, the goal is to stay motivated.

Stay true to the course, and someday in this lifetime we may just get that lightning bolt of illumination.