October 13, 2026
Reiki
Reiju: What We Know and What We Don’t Know
What Reiju means, how its transmission has evolved, and what we can —and cannot— say about its history, its effects and lineage in Reiki.
Reiki teaching is usually organized into three levels. In the West, we know them as Level One, Level Two, and Master Level; in Japanese, they are called Shoden, Okuden, and Shinpiden.
This structure can give the impression that learning Reiki means climbing a ladder: completing one course, receiving a certificate, and quickly moving on to the next. However, the levels should not be understood merely as an accumulation of techniques. Each one offers a different way of deepening the same practice.
Moving forward does not always mean going further. Sometimes it means returning to what is essential with a more mature perspective.
Shoden can be translated as “first teachings.” It is the beginning of the path and, at the same time, contains what will accompany the practitioner throughout their life.
At this level, we learn what Reiki is, explore its history, and become acquainted with Usui Mikao Sensei. We study the Gokai, the Five Principles, and receive Reiju, the initiation or transmission that has traditionally formed part of Reiki teaching.
We also learn how to practise self-treatment and offer a basic session to another person. Depending on the school, practices such as Gasshō meditation, Kenyoku Hō, seated treatment, and different traditional ways of using the hands, gaze, or breath may also be included.
Everything is new, and yet the central gesture is very simple: to place the hands and remain present.
Shoden is not a lesser level or merely a preparation that we should move beyond as quickly as possible. It is the foundation. A practitioner could spend a long time—even an entire lifetime—deepening their understanding of self-treatment, meditation, the principles, and the practice of treating others.
At the first level, we learn how to practise Reiki. Over time, we begin to understand that we are also learning how to be present.
Okuden is commonly translated as “inner teachings” or “deep teachings.” At this level, three Reiki symbols and their corresponding uses are introduced. We learn distant Reiki—Enkaku Reiki—and different techniques related to mental and emotional balance, habits, situations from the past, and the purification of spaces.
We also deepen our understanding of byōsen, the sensations that arise in the hands during a session and help guide the practice. Heat, tingling, pulsation, cold, density, or pain may all form part of this perception. Learning to recognize these sensations requires attention and experience, not imagination or effort.
The second level broadens the possibilities of Reiki. Precisely for this reason, it requires a sufficiently stable foundation. The symbols can be fascinating, and new techniques naturally awaken our curiosity, but Okuden should not displace what was learned in Shoden. Self-treatment, the Gokai, and meditation remain fundamental.
The word “inner” offers an important clue. It is not simply about practising Reiki in a wider range of situations. It is about observing more deeply what happens within us while we practise: our expectations, our need to achieve results, our impatience, or our desire to feel something special.
Reiki becomes broader and, at the same time, more intimate.
Shinpiden can be translated as “mystery teachings.” In many Western schools, it corresponds to the third level or Master Level, although some traditions divide it into two separate courses.
At this level, the fourth symbol is learned, the previous teachings are reviewed and explored more deeply, and students learn how to transmit Reiki and perform Reiju. Someone who completes this training may acquire the knowledge required to teach, although receiving a Master certificate does not automatically make anyone a master.
The word “master” can be misleading. It seems to describe someone who has already arrived, who understands and has attained mastery. My experience has been quite the opposite: the longer I practise, the more aware I become of what I do not know.
I completed my training and began teaching when I was very young. Not because I felt ready, but because a group of friends insisted that I should be the one to teach them. The words flowed. So did the silences. However, I learned much of what it means to teach Reiki afterwards: through practising, listening to students, and recognizing my own limitations.
Shinpiden should not be a coronation, but a responsibility. Teaching Reiki naturally requires knowledge of the techniques, but it also requires having practised, accompanied other people, made mistakes, and learned from them. It requires clarity to distinguish personal experience from universal truth, and honesty not to promise what Reiki cannot promise.
There is no single answer that is right for everyone. Each school establishes its own criteria, and each person learns at a different pace.
More important than waiting an exact number of months is asking whether what we have learned has truly been practised. Has self-treatment become part of our life? Do we know the hand positions without constantly depending on the manual? Have we offered sessions to others? Have genuine questions arisen from experience?
We do not need to master everything before continuing. We never master everything. But it is wise to allow time for the teaching to become more than information.
The rush to move forward often belongs to the same mindset we bring to the rest of our life: we want to arrive, complete, and obtain certification. Reiki invites us to relate to learning in a different way.
Shoden, Okuden, and Shinpiden are not three separate practices. They are three moments within the same path.
Shoden brings us back to the body, the hands, and everyday practice. Okuden broadens and deepens our relationship with Reiki. Shinpiden invites us to take responsibility for its transmission and to recognize the mystery that remains even after many years.
The levels help to organize the teaching. But true transformation does not happen when we move from one level to another. It happens between one course and the next, on ordinary days, when no one is watching and we sit down to practise.
Perhaps the whole path can be summarized in something much simpler:
Learn. Practise. Return.
And keep returning.
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