The Reiki was found by Mr Mikao Usui (臼井甕男) in 1922 in Japan. After he worked for variety of jobs such as a journalist, a secretary of politician Shinpei Goto (後藤新平) and owed own trade company, Mr Usui was retired and got into the mind training in Zen temple for looking for the achievement to understand whole world (in Buddhism, it called enlightenment 悟りを開く) and finding out ‘what is the purpose of the life' (安心立命_Anjinryumei)「安心」is ‘no worry’, 「立命」means that holding your mind fulfilling that is given from the universe. You should be maintain with calmness in mind without getting influence by anything surrounded and hold heavenly feeling at any time and stay with controlling your mind without being confused due to surrounding things that are including  imeaningless information or fear from own death.

However, it wasn’t easy to find about the things he hoped and asked to the great teacher of Zen and he was said ‘Try to face your own death’ and he decided to fast in the Kurama Mountain. 20 days were passed and suddenly he felt a sensation like lightning attacked his head and penetrating his centre of body and he fainted. When he woke up he felt refresh and calm, He had somek kind of satisfaction. Then he decided to get down of the mountain. It was 21st day since he started fasting.  On the way he tripped over and injured his toes, a nail was come off and bleeding. He applied his hands on the injury and a miracurous thing was happened. His hands stopped the bleeding in minutes and the pain was gone. Bottom of the Mt Kurama, there was a diner and he had the first meal from 20 days fasting. When he looked the waiter, he had horrible toothache and had a swollen cheek and Mr Usui applied his hands and the pain was taken away completely and swelling got much less. He realised his ability of the hands ‘Reiki’ then.

Usui established own Reiki clinic in Harajyuku Tokyo in April 1922. 

12th September 1923, there was a great earthquake around Kanto area including Tokyo and a conflagration broke out. Everywhere there were groans of pains from the wounded. Mr Usui felt pity for them and every morning he went out to go around the town and treating these casualties with free of charge and he cured and saved an innumerable number of people.

He trained 21 teachers who can give attunement. One of the teacher is Mr Tyujiro Hayasi (林忠次郎) who was a Navy doctor and Hayashi taught Hawayo Takata（高田ハワヨ）who lived in Hawaii US as the 2nd  generation Japanese American then Reiki spread to entire world.