Reiki
What Is a Reiki Attunement?
An attunement is a procedure a Reiki teacher performs on a student during a class, which practitioners describe as giving the student the ability to channel Reiki. According to the International Center for Reiki Training, the teacher touches the student’s head, shoulders and hands and uses special breathing techniques. The NCCIH says there is no scientific evidence for the energy Reiki is based on, but the role of training is tested indirectly whenever researchers compare real Reiki with a sham given by an untrained person.
How do practitioners describe it?
The ICRT’s description calls the attunement “the process by which a person receives the ability to give Reiki treatments.” It is given by the Reiki master during the class. In the ICRT’s account, the energies are guided by a “Higher Power,” flow through the master into the student, and make adjustments in the student’s energy pathways, connecting them to the source of Reiki.
The ICRT also says an attunement lasts for life, and that further attunements at the same level refine and strengthen the practitioner’s Reiki energy.
What happens during one?
In the ICRT’s description, the master touches the student’s head, shoulders and hands, and uses one or more special breathing techniques. It takes place as part of the class, alongside instruction in giving treatments.
What do students say they feel?
The ICRT reports that some students feel warmth in their hands, and others see colors or have visions of spiritual beings. It also says that an inner experience is not necessary for the attunement to have worked, and that “most simply feel more relaxed.”
Can science test it?
Not directly. What researchers can test is whether a trained practitioner does better than an untrained one. In the placebo-controlled trials gathered by a 2022 review of Reiki studies, sham Reiki is typically given by someone with no Reiki training who imitates the hand positions. The review also notes practitioners’ belief that Reiki flows more strongly with higher levels of attunement and more years of experience.
Questions to ask before your attunement
Ask the teacher: What exactly will you do during the attunement, and will you touch me? Can I ask questions or decline any part of it? What, if anything, should I expect to feel? Knowing the answers beforehand lets you take part on your own terms.
This article is general information, not medical or psychological advice; talk with a licensed clinician about your own situation.