How necessary are Reiki attunements?

[Lisbet]

I am curious about Reiki. If you practice Reiki (or even if you don't) why are attunements so important? Do you really learn that much in the short Reiki classes that people offer? I am so skeptical of people charging 300-400 dollars for a day or weekend of information that is quite likely available for free elsewhere. Then they up the price for each consecutive attunement. And these people are certified in what way? Because someone else also chanted some words over their head at one point? I've never really been terribly tuned in with ritual or tradition, so maybe it's just my own emotions not allowing me to fully believe. But what are other people's opinions on Reiki attunements? Can you practice Reiki and become good at it with no formal attunements or classes? I would love to one day practice it, but could never spend that kind of money. Especially when I'm so skeptical of the technique.

[wstein]

Originally Posted by Lisbet

I am curious about Reiki. If you practice Reiki (or even if you don't) why are attunements so important? Do you really learn that much in the short Reiki classes that people offer?

Disclaimer, I am not a Reiki practitioner. My dad was.

Reiki is one of many forms of 'hands on healing'. These forms of healing are energy based. Some channel/send 'universal energy' and others send chi (life energy). The many forms vary from simplistic to complete medical systems. Very few require attunements (or similar), most require a fair amount of require training. NO attunements or training are required/needed to do healing. A few percent of people are naturals at using energy and can be quite competent healers without any training or attunements.

Reiki is one of the most simplistic (least comprehensive) forms of healing. It relies heavily on the attunements which is why the training seems minimal. The attunements basically takes all the need to be trained and need for personal talent out of the picture. Because of this pretty much anyone can do Reiki after the attunements. What the healers are doing may seem just like hand waving, this is because the person is not actually doing very much. The healing does not come from them.

The down side is that Reiki is limited in what it is effective for. The issue is that these attunements can interfere with other forms of energy work and are essentially permanent. Think of them as energy tattoos. Unless you intend to become an advanced energy practitioner (use energy for other things or become a professional healer) that might not matter.

[Lisbet]

Originally Posted by wstein

Disclaimer, I am not a Reiki practitioner. My dad was.

Reiki is one of many forms of 'hands on healing'. These forms of healing are energy based. Some channel/send 'universal energy' and others send chi (life energy). The many forms vary from simplistic to complete medical systems. Very few require attunements (or similar), most require a fair amount of require training. NO attunements or training are required/needed to do healing. A few percent of people are naturals at using energy and can be quite competent healers without any training or attunements.

Reiki is one of the most simplistic (least comprehensive) forms of healing. It relies heavily on the attunements which is why the training seems minimal. The attunements basically takes all the need to be trained and need for personal talent out of the picture. Because of this pretty much anyone can do Reiki after the attunements. What the healers are doing may seem just like hand waving, this is because the person is not actually doing very much. The healing does not come from them.

The down side is that Reiki is limited in what it is effective for. The issue is that these attunements can interfere with other forms of energy work and are essentially permanent. Think of them as energy tattoos. Unless you intend to become an advanced energy practitioner (use energy for other things or become a professional healer) that might not matter.

Yes, I was also wondering about that last bit. This definitely peaks my interest about other forms of energy work.

Does anybody practice Reiki as well as other forms of energy healing? I am curious how they might interact or interfere with each other, if they do.

Is that something your dad ever mentioned, wstein?

[LadyMay]

I think the attunements are sort of like someone giving you a lighter so you can light a fire instantly rather than having to go through the process of figuring out how to spark a flame from rubbing sticks together

I think you could learn reiki from scratch but it would probably be hard unless you already have a natural gift for it.

I personally do not like the idea of 'energy implants' as they call them.. anything that is not me should not be in my system. That's just me though.

i like what scarlett said about atunements. also they help you focus the energy. we all have the ability to do healing work-reiki is just a tool to facilitate this process.

i am a reiki master. it took about a year for me to go from level one to master-just because i wanted time between training to practice what i'd learned. i also was taught for free. some people, no matter what business they're in, charge an arm and a leg. my elders told me 'one doesn't charge for healing'.

the healing never comes from the reiki practitioner. someone i know told me 'i healed him'. i told them, no, you did not. the energy did-you are just a vehicle that the energy went through.

wstein made a statement that reiki attunements can interfere with other forms of energy. i'm not quite sure what is meant-i'd need further explanation, but i also do crystal healing and they are compatible. i think where you might run into trouble is when you mix reiki with other forms.

[LadyMay]

Originally Posted by elisi

wstein made a statement that reiki attunements can interfere with other forms of energy. i'm not quite sure what is meant-i'd need further explanation, but i also do crystal healing and they are compatible. i think where you might run into trouble is when you mix reiki with other forms.

What other forms would reiki not work well with?

[Tanemon]

Originally Posted by elisi

wstein made a statement that reiki attunements can interfere with other forms of energy. i'm not quite sure what is meant-i'd need further explanation, but i also do crystal healing and they are compatible.

Spirituality can be a world (or worlds) within which there is always much conjecture and opinion - so what I'll say is also simply a personal opinion. But I tend to agree with elisi's feeling that Reiki can be compatible with other healing modalities and spiritual-development processes.

I took the training (and yes, in some ways it is pretty minimal) and got an initial Reiki attunement, and later got other Reiki attunements. I experienced a very welcome and emotionally freeing response as a result of my first attunement - and also an uplevelling of my physical health and the quality of my personal relationships. The attunement process is more than a ceremony and words. Still, I do not consider Reiki to be either the beginning or the end of my spiritual path or growth.

But on another aspect: I've known people who have gone from Reiki to Reconnective Healing (which is also initiation or attunement based along with some minimal training). These people seemed to have no problem.

[vespa68]

I am a reiki master as well. The attunment just opens you up as a channel for energy work (from a divine source). Its a good start for people who have not done energy work before. Many people who already do energy work dont find reiki useful. I also dont see a problem with going from reiki to other healing methods. I think the more you use energy and feel energy, the more you are open to other things.

[wstein]

Something I need to make clear. In addition to making for easy and reliable activation for the flow healing energy, the attunements also constrain the energy in a way to avoid many of dangers associated with untrained energy use.

Originally Posted by Lisbet

I am curious how they might interact or interfere with each other, if they do.
Is that something your dad ever mentioned, wstein?

What I wrote is a condensation of my experiences in a healing circle I attended with my dad. Though it was Reiki based they allowed other forms of healing as long as you indicated what you were doing before working on anyone. I did several sessions as a healer. My dad (Reiki master/teacher) and I talked about those sessions as well as feedback on my ability from the event moderators.

Originally Posted by elisi

wstein made a statement that reiki attunements can interfere with other forms of energy. i'm not quite sure what is meant-i'd need further explanation, but i also do crystal healing and they are compatible. i think where you might run into trouble is when you mix reiki with other forms.

I am not going to address incompatibilities with specific other healing techniques.

Reiki has incompatibilities related to the sigils that are implanted during the attunement. The first is that they are like firehouses in that they just channel lots of energy. There is little to no control how much energy flows nor where it goes. Many healing practices are more subtle directing specific kinds and amounts of energy to specific places. Second, the sigils are fairly easy to activate and so are easily triggered when doing other types of energy work that use the palm chakras. Third, the flow of energy is always out the palms, not easily allowing for taking, transmuting, or balancing energy.

There are also some philosophical issues with the way Reiki is taught by many of the organizations. I lost count how many ‘newbies’ were told that energy is only for healing. They had no idea that one can do other things with the same energy (communicate, shield, sense, OBE, shifting and enhancing perception, calm, etc). Also they tend to emphasize ignorance in what is actually going on. One is supposed to do what they are taught and nothing else. While that makes Reiki safer and more reliable, it also limits one’s wider awareness of energy and healing. Another issue is that they often teach that the energy can never harm (which it can). This sets up a more is always better mindset which doesn’t apply to ANY energy work.

The Reiki community at large seem unaware of field type energy work (Reiki is flow). Most of medical intuition, enhancing perception, and energy defense is field based. Habits of use and combined with easily triggered sigils make this kind of stuff more difficult.

[sea-dove]

Originally Posted by ScarlettHayden

What other forms would reiki not work well with?

Pranic Healing as taught by Master Choa Kok Sui. I once mixed my reiki with pranic healing methods, the result of doing that was I made the one I did the healing start throwing up blood (I was still sending energy when that happened, of cause I stopped as soon as that occurred), he had to be rushed to hospital.

He was throwing up so much blood it was scary (we had to grab a bucket while someone went and got their car to rush him there). Note he hadnt even been sick. It was someone disabled with celebal palsy I'd been working on. I seriously thought the guy may die (to this day I do not know what ended up happening to that guy once he was in hospital. I have no sense thou I killed him).

I will NEVER mix methods again. Both these Im experienced with and can safely use on their own. (Pranic healing thou can be dangerous if used wrongly, I did nothing at all different in my healing except use my reiki with it)

I had always been told that reiki was completely safe and hadnt been told to never bring in reiki too at the same time while using another energy method.