Online Reiki?

Learning Reiki is a Personal Choice

As online Reiki courses become more and more available in this age of technology and online learning, the question is asked – is online a viable way for me to learn Reiki?How we learn and experience something we desire to know about is a personal choice we make.

There are individual learning styles, life styles and the purposes for which we intend to use our learning involved in making decisions about how and where and when to learn a particular thing.

Reiki is imparted from teacher to student via a series of attunements, or Reiju (blessings), combined with intensive teaching and class practice. Because of the prevalence and emphasis on “distance” Reiki, many teachers offer online Reiki courses, providing attunements from a distance using this technique. One could liken learning Reiki online versus in-person to getting a hug over the phone as compared to a physical embrace. Reiki attunement affects the mental, emotional, spiritual and physical body of its recipient. While a phone hug is great when nothing else is available, it is not anywhere near the same as an in-person expression of love and oneness, which are the spiritual, emotional and physical elements of a loving hug and are also the key elements of a deeply experienced Reiki attunement.

Usui used to initiate students with no ritual other than to sit in Reiju with them. Proximity and oneness created the channel for the student’s attunement.  Were he alive today, perhaps he would use a telephone or technology, perhaps he would remind us that personal connection, intention and oneness are the elements of Reiju not to be ignored.

Some Factors to Consider in Choosing How to Learn Reiki

As of this time, with our many resources for learning and with Reiki being required as a part of other training programs, such as yoga or as part of a spiritual education or even medical background course, students are looking for convenient access and are used to being able to get their requirements completed using online resources. These needs fuel the growth of online Reiki learning – some is available as “free” and other courses create an online income stream for Reiki teachers. The consideration here is the quality of the experience. To understand and experience Reiki and appreciate it as the spiritual healing tool it has the potential to be in conjunction with a yoga practice or a medical treatment, should one consider the most personal experience of it, or should one fulfill the requirement as conveniently as possible to move on in one’s chosen direction? To learn for oneself and one’s family, what are the circumstances of the need for learning? What time-frame is important and what teachers are available to meet your present needs? These are valid questions, and how you proceed to fill your requirement or desire to learn Reiki is a series of personal choices.

A good way to make your own decision might be be to experience an in-person Reiki treatment and then arrange for a distance Reiki session for yourself. While distance Reiki is very effective and lovely, there is a different quality of experience in an in-person Reiki session. After this personal experience, you may feel better equipped to make your decisions about how to bring Reiki into your life in a meaningful way.

Essential Elements of Learning Reiki are not Reproduce-able Online

As a Traditional Eastern practitioner and teacher, Crystal Reiki gently suggests that in-person Reiju and the opportunity to interact with your teacher and other students on a personal level during Reiki training are vital experiences of energy, love and teaching that are essential to forming a good beginning. As well, the class practice and group Reiki sharing experienced during in-person classes are simply not reproduce-able in online learning. Crystal Reiki therefore only offers in-person training and attunement, feeling that Reiki is best learned in person, spirit-to-spirit, heart-to-heart, person-to-person, wherever and whenever possible. For information on available classes please visit Crystal Reiki’s class page and individual level descriptions, Shoden, Level I and Okuden, Level II.

May you flourish in your Reiki journey!

COVID NOTE:

Due to Covid, I and many of my colleagues who prefer in-person training, have become much more adept at online training. I have personally found one-on-one online training to be a rewarding and effective attunement and training for my Reiki students.  As our online lives grow and become more robust, so has Reiki training and learning adapted to those needs. As always, the selection of, and student-teacher relationship with, your teacher are essential elements in the richness of your learning experience!

Try Reiki!