It may be a gesture of respect that Usui Sensei was given the title of "Dr."

Obviously there's much we don't know - and may never quite know. We might never have had Reiki in the West (at least not for as long as we have) were it not for Takata Sensei. She may have had her reasons for modifying her message to suit the audience - and also what they may have been willing to hear (the teacher only shares the information they believe their students are ready to hear and in a context that is meaningful for them.) I cannot judge her. I did not walk in her shoes, or try to learn and pass on a spiritual tradition during a time in our nation's history where there was a lot of animosity and fear towards things that were Japanese. I see her as a brave woman, a Bodhisattva in her own right and I hold her in high respect. I admire her devotion and tenacity; as a woman, mother, healer and teacher, she does not deserve derision. She deserves our deepest appreciation for bringing this gift to the West.

Wayne, as far as Andy's comment goes, I don't think he was saying he was disinterested. It sounded to me like he was expressing a desire to focus on what was of primary importance to him, which is, practicing Reiki. (That is just what I got out of what he said.)

Check out my latest post in the Reiki History section as it is relevant to this - more particularly though the radio broadcast from 25th Feb, referred to at the end of that post. That interview discusses the Oral Tradition of Reiki and the role of storytelling as a way of transmitting the energy of the system.

http://www.reikilearninglounge.com/spiritual-historical-research-f12/listen-to-hawayo-takata-talking-about-mikao-usui-t786.htm

Dragonfly wrote:
It may be a gesture of respect that Usui Sensei was given the title of "Dr."

Or it may be he actually did recieve a doctorate. It says on the memorial Usui sensei studied & travelled widely. To Europe, America & China.

The memeorial said he was a hard working & far superior student. It's not hard to put stock in what an official document says, i feel, .

Dragonfly wrote:
I did not walk in her shoes, or try to learn and pass on a spiritual tradition during a time in our nation's history where there was a lot of animosity and fear towards things that were Japanese.

In fact, there was a lot of interest in Japanese culture then. Zen buddhism in particular was becoming very popular in US. We gotta remember Pearl Harbour was in the 40's, and US began to obviously set aside it's animosity, cuase it's well documented the varied things from Japanese culture that began to be embraced from the 60's onwards.

warmest wishes
Wayne