Greetings!
I wanted to share some thoughts I’ve had after being asked about receiving Reiki attunements online. A bit of background, there is a growing number of Reiki schools that have 100% online courses, including the attunement process where you receive the gift of Reiki. Traditionally this is given in person so I’ve been asked my opinion of this quite a bit lately. While I have not experienced the online attunements personally, I have heard that they work from a number of people I trust. The attunement process is a sacred process that happens between a Reiki Master and a Reiki student. The Master has the intention of passing along the gift of Reiki to the student and the student has the intention of receiving. The act itself is secondary to this. So by that theory, if the intention is there I think it is possible to receive the attunement online. Now, the tricky part. Attunements in and of themselves without the context of a class structure and a teacher to answer questions and provide a supportive environment are a dis-service to Reiki. I can not tell you how many students have taken my classes after they received an attunement only and didn’t know a thing about what Reiki was or how to use it. This I find to be inexcusable. When we are given the gift of Reiki and become Reiki Masters we become stewards of this beautiful, powerful gift. We do a great dis-service to Reiki by not sharing it’s history, it’s many facets and the techniques that have been proven successful time and time again.
So whether it’s in person or online, use your judgement and intuition. After taking a Reiki I class you should know 1) What Reiki is well enough to explain it to others 2) How to give a Reiki treatment to yourself and others 3) Where Reiki came from, it’s history and it’s legacy and 4) How it is different from other healing modalities. And you should be able to connect with a Reiki Master Teacher to continue to receive support and mentor-ship long after the class period is over. I hope this helps, please share with others if you agree. Blessings to you all!
Francie Soito 