I was taught that Reiju and Reiki Attunements are two different things. However, almost every Reiki Master I know refer to attunements as Reiju, so to them Reiju is just the Japanese word for an attunement. The only other Reiki Master I know of, who, like me, was taught that Reiju is different to an attunement is my friend Johann van Greunen. His Reiki Master learned Usui Reiki from Penelope Quest. It would seem that Penelope Quest is the key here, because she also taught my Reiki Master, Torsten Lange.
Penelope Quest explains what Reiju is, in her book The Reiki Manual:
There are a number of Masters who include some traditional Japanese techniques in their Reiki Master training, such as methods of meditation and energy cleansing, plus a form of blessing or spiritual empowerment called Reiju, which Reiki students in Japan would receive on a regular basis to enhance their flow of Reiki and to aid their spiritual development. In the West the method of performing Reiju isn’t known by many Masters, but when it is, it tends to be use during Reiki sharing groups or other gatherings of Reiki students or Masters, on either a regular or occasional basis.
Paging through my Master manual, I see that Torsten wrote:
“Whilst an attunement is commonly only used during the Reiki training courses, Reiju can be given at workshops, Reiki shares, or during treatments if this feels appropriate. Each Reiju deepens the recipient’s awareness of Reiki. Some Reiki teachers started to replace the traditional Western attunements with Reiju, but I would not recommend this because an attunement is generally more strongly felt than Reiju”
My understanding of Reiju is that it’s like a “mini attunement” or “attunement top-up” which is not the same as the attunement ceremony that activates the Reiki energy in students during a training course.
Frans Steine, who is also in my lineage, but in the Eastern line, whereas Penelope Quest is in the Western line, states in an article on his website:
Let’s first establish that Reiju is the Japanese word for the initiation or attunement we perform within the Reiki system. In Japan, there is just one word for these rituals; initiation and attunement are the English translations we have given to the word Reiju. There are different styles of Reiju in Japan. Some are very simple (without symbols or mantras), and some are very elaborate (with symbols and mantras).
When it comes to the debate about Reiju and attunements, it often depends on what you were taught and by whom. As Frans states, there are various ways a teacher can bless their students with Reiki energy. This is just one example of how Reiki techniques have evolved and how they differ from teacher to teacher. Even if a Reiki teacher passes on attunements and/or Reiju exactly as they were taught, a student may forget the process or find that certain rituals don’t resonate with them at the time of learning. When that student eventually becomes a Reiki teacher, they might then choose not to pass on those teachings, causing certain techniques to “fall through the cracks.”
I’ve had two experiences of Reiju – one receiving and one giving.
When Alexandra de Angelis, a Reiki Master Teacher for the Reiki Academy London, visited Japan in December 2022 she offered Remote Reiju to her Instagram followers on the day she visited Mount Kurama. I jumped at the opportunity and messaged her my name so she could add it to her list. In this Instagram reel you can briefly seeing holding her hands in a triangle shape in front of her face. This is a gesture that forms part of the Reiju ceremony.
My other experience was of giving Reiju to a group of students at Johann’s quarterly Reiki gatherings at his home. I was humbled and honoured that Johann trusted me to give the spiritual blessing to his students. It was the first time I had given Reiju so I was a bit nervous, but as we all know, Reiki will flow regardless. as long as our intentions are strong – which I can assure you, mine was.
The next time I will be giving Reiju it is going to be Remote Reiju during the three Integrating Reiki With Other Healing Modalities webinars. I will continue in the manner I was taught: to give Reiju at student gatherings to enhance the flow of Reiki, and attunements during courses to activate the flow of Reiki – even if it’s just Johann and I who do it this way 🙂
The one thing everyone agrees on is that Reiju, whether that is the “top up attunement” I know it as, or the attunement ceremony during a Reiki training course, is a spiritual blessing. The purpose might differ slightly, but the intention of the Master is always that the students be reminded that they embody, can access, and always will be connected to, the Great Bright Light.
A spiritual blessing indeed.
