What is the morning ritual that Mikao Usui asked us to do each day?
September 9, 2026
Reiju is not more powerful than an attunement; it is different. Reiju is a spiritual blessing, a ritual in which teacher and student move into the same open space together so the student has a direct experience of what it means to be Reiki. An attunement, which probably evolved from Reiju, is a Western ritual for doing something to the student: giving symbols and mantras and conferring a level.
Well, I never wrote that, and I didn’t say it. I am not saying Reiju is more powerful. It is definitely different. It has a different intention, a different practice, a different ritual, and I think that is more the point. This is not about power.
Reiju is very much about how we move into a space, and how a student moves into that space with us, and we share it together. The student gets an initial experience of what it means to be Reiki.
You can have as many Reiju as you want, and you should, because each one is a reminder from your teacher of what Reiki is. Reiju is often translated as a spiritual blessing, and that is a direct translation. If we think of it that way, we are receiving a blessing again and again, and the more blessings we have in life the better.
An attunement, on the other hand, is something that probably evolved from Reiju and is used in Western forms of the system of Reiki. It is very much about doing things to students: giving them symbols and mantras, which we do not do with Reiju, and saying that the student is now a Reiki I or Reiki II or Reiki III. It is quite a different idea.
The name. Reiju, 霊授. Rei is spirit, the same character as in Reiki, and ju means to bestow or grant: a spiritual bestowal, usually translated as a spiritual blessing.
Where it sits in the system. It is one of the five elements of the system, alongside the precepts, meditation, hands-on healing, and the symbols and mantras. It is offered at every level, and in Japan it was given again at every meeting, not once per level.
A common misunderstanding. That Reiju switches something on in you. Nothing is installed. The teacher opens a space, the student steps into it, and what the student experiences there is already their own.
Try this. If you have a teacher, ask for Reiju again, even years after your training. If you are a teacher, offer it at every gathering, not only at courses.
You might also ask: What actually happens during a Reiki attunement? · What if your Reiki attunement never really worked? · Can you be over-attuned to Reiki?
Receive Reiju regularly and learn to offer it inside Shinpiden+.
More questions answered: Reiki Questions Answered.
