As a result a series of meetings were held in early 1991, culminating in the foundation of the Association of European Reiki Practitioners (AERP) on 5th June 1991 in Bristol. This somewhat cumbersome title was designed to make two points: firstly that this was for Reiki practitioners, with the express purpose of dealing with matters such as legislation, training and insurance; secondly 'European' because it was hoped that our European colleagues, constrained by Roman Law, could eventually benefit from an organisation established under the lesser restraints of British Law.

The First Annual Meeting:  The inaugural members meeting was held in August 1991 in Birmingham. With just under 100 people present it was the largest gathering of Reiki people from different Masters to have taken place in the UK at the time. A constitution was provisionally adopted and an Executive Committee elected. It was decided that the founding members should stay on in an advisory role as 'the Board'.

The First Year: Regular meetings began. The possibility of becoming a charity was discussed, as was the kind of training that might be needed to comply with the forthcoming EC regulations. Newsletters began to be published on a regular basis. Links were established with Reiki Outreach International which continue to the present. As more people heard of the Association there was a growing interest and by the next AGM, held in October 1992, there were approximately 250 members.

The origins of the Reiki Care Service/Reiki Care Service:  It was at this AGM that the proposal was made to set up a telephone tree to help members in crisis. A member had died of cancer during the year and it was felt that, had the members known she was ill, she could have been sent Reiki. It was decided to ask for volunteers on the membership form. It was not until September 1993 that someone was found to begin organising these volunteers into a telephone tree. The service was successfully re-launched in 2000 under a new name: the Reiki Care Service, for members only, using a website in addition to the telephone to handle requests.

What Reiki Means for this Association: In 1994 it became clear that there needed to be consistency about what the Association recognised as Reiki. There was considerable difficulty in defining this. A draft definition document was drawn up, based on one published by The Reiki Alliance and inspired by Phyllis Furumoto and Paul Mitchell. In order to be sure that the Association was moving in the right direction with the Usui System as its focus, a special meeting was held in January 1995 to decide whether or not the Association should recognise Phyllis Furumoto as the Lineage Bearer, and to discuss the definition document. The consensus from this meeting was to recognise Phyllis and, while there were some concerns and reservations, there was general support for the definition document.

At a significant Board meeting in July 1995 the Board agreed that Phyllis Furumoto, as Lineage Bearer, holds the authority for the Usui System, so it was to her that the Association needed to look for a definition. At the Annual Gathering in 1995 Phyllis gave a talk defining the Usui System. The members present were asked for their feedback, which was overwhelmingly positive. Over the years Phyllis has maintained close contact with the Association and her contribution has always been inspiring and often challenging. In recent years we have also welcomed Paul Mitchell, Head of the Discipline, to our Gatherings.

Training and Referrals:  Initially various courses, such as Anatomy and Physiology and First Aid, were to be offered to members. The possibility of offering insurance was discussed and it was also agreed to draw up a Code of Ethics. However the idea of offering training was questioned and, after further discussions, the idea for students to be apprenticed to a more experienced practitioner or Master arose. A syllabus was drawn up and the term 'Mentor' was settled on for the title of the trainers of the apprentices. The Mentoring Initiative Co-ordinators began work on preparing a mentoring training. However the Mentoring Initiative raised fundamental questions, which required deeper discussion. In 1997 the apprenticeship scheme was shelved, but it was necessary to find another way for The Reiki Association to deal with the hundreds of enquiries about practitioners received each year. The Treatment Referral Scheme was therefore established in early 1998. Under this scheme there are certain criteria practitioners need to fulfil, but they do not receive any further training or accreditation. The mentor training finally did take place, but the mentors are there to support members, not as trainers for practitioners. Insurance for members was also negotiated at favourable rates.

Lists of these practitioners are sent to anyone requesting information about Reiki, together with a leaflet about Reiki and information about what to expect from a treatment. In order to address enquiries from people wanting to learn Reiki, a Directory of Masters has been published, beginning in 1997.

Setting Up A Formal Structure:  In the autumn of 1993 it was recognised that the constitution, adopted at the inaugural meeting, did not sit comfortably with the Reiki community and also did not express the ways of working of the Association that were evolving. For example, the importance of using Council Form for the discussion of important or difficult issues was recognized. It was therefore agreed to write a more appropriate constitution. The first important step was the writing of the Statement of Identity. A first draft was put together at a Board meeting in Llangollen in July 1995. Working with a professional facilitator this was transformed into a document that would be clear and easily understood by the public, which was adopted at the AGM in 1996. It was also decided to re-structure the group of people responsible for management decisions, so one smaller group, to be known as The Reiki Association Council (TRAC) was created. The first Council was elected at the same AGM.

Annual Gatherings One of the main benefits of the Association is its potential for bringing Reiki people together. The inaugural meeting had been the first time in Great Britain that Reiki people from different lineages had come together in any great number. The first national Reiki Gathering was held at Gaunts House in Dorset in 1993. The experience of so many people coming together and giving and receiving Reiki was so wonderful that it was decided to combine the AGM and the next Gathering, so making the Association's business part of a long and enjoyable Reiki-filled weekend. This would give people time to be together, share Reiki and have some fun as well as attend the AGM. The first Reiki Association Annual Gathering was therefore held in Sutton Coldfield the following year. The fact that Phyllis Furumoto had accepted the invitation to be present ensured that the 1994 Gathering and AGM was well attended and a great success.

Subsequent Gatherings have moved around the country and to Ireland: in 1995 to Chester, 1996 to Cork in Ireland, 1997 Erskine near Glasgow in Scotland and 1998 Coventry, England. In 1999 the Gathering found a new and possibly permanent home at Buckland Hall in a beautiful setting in Mid-Wales. In 2001 The Reiki Association celebrated its 10th birthday with a wonderful gathering at Buckland Hall. Many founder members attended as well as Phyllis Furumoto and over 100 members. It was a wonderful celebration of the first ten years.

At all the Gatherings until this year either Phyllis Furumoto or Paul Mitchell have been special guests. Their talks have stimulated discussion and helped clarify the direction of the Association. The Gatherings have also offered the chance to talk, share Reiki, eat, dance and sing together, with many new friendships made. As a result of the community's enjoyment of getting together, other smaller Gatherings are now being organised.

Keeping in TOUCH: The other important benefit of membership of The Reiki Association was the magazine TOUCH. From the start this has been the way members are kept up to date with the activities of the Association, but it has also always been an important forum for sharing ideas, stories and other forms of inspiration. The magazine has evolved from a few typed pages to a much more elaborate printed magazine. The content has always depended to a great extent on the members' contributions.

At the end of 1999 an exciting new venture was begun with the link up with Reiki Magazine International. Members then had a subscription to this magazine included with their membership fee. The Reiki Association also had at least one page regularly in Reiki Magazine International, reaching a wider readership all over the world. (Unfortunately RMI was discontinued in 2007).

A growing Community: Over the years the community of The Reiki Association has grown continuously. . From around 100 at the end of 1991 membership has increased year by year to an averadge of around 1,000. This reflects the growth of the Reiki community in the UK, Ireland and worldwide. The Association has always welcomed links with Reiki people in other countries and has numerous overseas members. An Irish Reiki Association has been established and is flourishing.

A Dutch branch of The Reiki Association was established in 2001 by Miep Seelbach-Scholte. In 2002 this group became a separate organisation, with support from The Reiki Association. They use some of TRA's documents and ways of working.

A founding principle of The Reiki Association is that membership should be open to all people with Reiki, while holding the Usui System as the core of practise. In time this will hopefully lead to deepening mutual understanding and respect.