Reiki: What happens with a bad attunement, and what can I do to avoid it?
Not all attunements are good. But what happens with a bad attunement?
First of all, what happens with an attunement, what IS an attunement?
What happens with an attunement is that it develops your energy system to have channels for certain kinds of energy to travel along. Attunements can also sometimes connect you to (theoretically) endless sources of energy, such as how reiki connects someone to the reiki source. So, what happens in a reiki attunement is that you open up a connection to the source of reiki so that (unless blocked/damaged somehow) you will never run out of reiki energy in your body. Reiki channels are also formed everywhere in your body so that you can send reiki easily. Channels specific to energy sensing are also grown/improved.
All of this development is fueled by the reiki source and the reiki you are given.
Okay, so what happens with a bad attunement?
Energetically:
If your connection to the reiki source is shitty, what happens is that the channels grow and develop, yes, but since the connection to the reiki source is shit, you won't pull energy from the source and instead will "run out" of reiki energy in your body. Once this happens, the attunement will begin pulling from your energy in an attempt to complete itself. This hurts a lot. Additionally, sending reiki to yourself to complete the attunement will be extremely difficult, so if you don’t have a reiki buddy to call on (whether a friend, another student, or your master)...good fuckin luck dude, you’re gonna feel shit for a while. Additionally x2, your reiki channels need to be sustained by flow from the source of reiki energy. Without this source your attunement may weaken, or worst case scenario lose your attunement over time.
Channels may be incomplete or undeveloped. This results in weak, pathetic, and/or bad quality reiki energy.
Incomplete/Underdeveloped channels may disintegrate with time, causing you to “lose” your attunement (especially if your source connection is shit).
An attunement from someone who’s energy clashes with yours could cause “fighting” against the reiki energy; your original energy system attempts to reject the reiki/the energy from the master because it sees it as harmful (if it’s fighting it, it likely is though there are ways to handle this so you do not have to get rid of the attunement/reiki channels entirely.)
An attunement may rush to completion, causing tangles with other energy channels in your body. This may cause problems with those other channels as well.
Feelings-wise:
If the reiki has run out and is pulling energy from your body, you WILL feel like utter shit. It’s a certain whole body pain that feels markedly different from physical pain but still hurts a ton. It feels more “internal” or on “a different layer” from physical pain; this is because the pain is felt in your energetic or astral bodies. This will feel similar to if a spirit is draining your energy non-consensually and going way overboard.
Obviously this should be considered AFTER you’ve made sure it’s not from any physical, mental, or emotional issues
Ability-wise: You may have trouble doing any kinds of energy work; raising energy, sensing, sending, and receiving energy may all become difficult Spellwork may become difficult
What can make an attunement worse/lower the quality of the attunement/#JustShitReikiMasterThings?
Your reiki master does not know energy work, or only knows the very very basics and no intermediate/advanced material.
Advanced/Intermediate defined as: Forming energy grids, reading/healing energy systems (simply KNOWING a style of energy systems such as the chakra system and BEING ABLE TO PERCEIVE someone’s energy system in real-time are two entirely different things), distance energy healings, and anything else you can think of that you’d need prior energy work knowledge/experience to be able to do.
Another reason knowledge of energy work is important because in the case this happens, they may either 1) not believe you whether due to ignorant fluffy beliefs(“Ummm reiki is ONLY beneficial and NEVER harmful sweaty, what are you talking about it’s impossible to get harmed!! Namaste!!! uwu”) or ignorant lack of info beliefs (“Ummm I don’t think this is possible just because it’s never happened to me [and my clients haven’t had the energy work skills to tell this was happening either]”) or 2) not have the skill to help you (if they don’t have distance reiki experience, or can’t read energy systems, etc)
Your reiki master gives you the attunement and does not: 1) give you reiki for an extended period of time afterwards (preferably at least 30 minutes minimum), and/or 2) have everyone in your class send reiki to each other for at least half an hour. Note that just giving the attunement itself is usually only about a 5 minute process, but the main/largest energy system developments can take as short as an hour, or several weeks depending on how much reiki you are given to supply that development. There is also a theory that addresses the system developments: it takes at least 3 days to move through each chakra/energy point which is why you should take at least 21 days between level 1 and level 2 for the energy to have worked its way through your whole system. And why you want at least 6 months between level 2 and level 3. After master level you will always be dealing with the energy constantly cycling through you to clear out and develop your reiki system (ty @crystalwitch-in-the-tardis!)
You clash with the rest of your reiki master’s energy signature/their overall energy. My guys, when someone attunes you they’re going to be messing with your energy on a very in-depth level. If their energy hurts you or doesn’t feel good in some way, it’s going to hurt a looooooooot more when they attune you. You may say, “but won’t they be attuning me with just reiki energy?” Technically, yes you’re right, that’s what’s SUPPOSED to happen. HOWEVER, what happens in reality is that reiki gets colored by someone’s energy; it gets snippets, or maybe much larger than “snippets” if their channels don’t have the proper valves to prevent energy mixing. So when they send reiki to you/do your attunement, in addition to reiki you may be getting a good deal of their other energies as well.
Your master doesn’t know jack shit about reiki. A reiki MASTER, not knowing reiki? It’s more likely than you think. HHHHHHhhuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh. Uuughhhhhhhhhhhhh. uuuuuuAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAnyways it’s really common. Yeah. Someone who jumped all the way to Master without doing research into reiki, how it works, general styles (examples: Usui Shiki Ryoho, Violet Flame, Dragon Reiki, Angel Reiki, etc), traditions of reiki (western versus eastern), they don’t know how to use the symbols or have limited knowledge of their uses, etc etc.
The Reiki Master gets easily offended if you question them at all or try to learn more (ESPECIALLY if they try to use their status as a Reiki Master(™) as a way to demonstrate that They Know More Than You, You [Fucking] Novice.) This isn’t directly attunement related but it WILL matter if you get a shit attunement and need help.
Not trying to demoralize you, but incompetent reiki masters are the most common ones unfortunately. Do your research and ask plenty of questions.
This is really scary!! What can I do about it/How realistically should I worry?
Well, to find a good Reiki Master, do the opposite of the above! I assume you have sufficient brainpower and I was thorough enough that you can figure those out. But in addition to those:
Don’t whack on finding someone over the internet. A super amazing attunement done over a distance is going to be better than an average or even shit attunement done in person. (Also, there’s a symbol specifically for distance reiki/attunements so do not fret!) Look for photos or videos of them doing reiki on others; if you can sense reiki energy from the video (and it WILL be noticeable if they are the real deal) then it ups their chances of being legit. Visually (with your third eye and not your physical eyes of course), they will glow, the recipient will glow, their hands will glow and oftentimes, similar to a glowstick, if they’re drawing symbols you’ll see after shades of the symbol. If pictures aren’t an option, you should be able to tell by their knowledge. (Do study up on reiki on your own...I don’t plan on being an all-inclusive guide anytime soon lol.)
What makes a shit attunement more bearable?
You have energy similar to reiki; usually energy derived from earthen sources such as plant energy, fae energy, lots of water, earth, or air, energy of any other nature spirits, light energy, holy/divine; generally “light” or earthen considered energies.
You have energy work skills (go you!) or your friends have energy work skills and could help out.
Your friends have reiki skills and could help out.
Your reiki master is open-minded and can help you.
It’s not your first reiki attunement ever.
It’s a higher level (Reiki II and III and/or Master would be more bearable as you at least have reiki channels in the first place.)
What makes a shit attunement worse?
You have dissimilar energy to reiki; usually non-earthen sources such as void energy, void-aligned demon energies, eldritch (ESPECIALLY if you have the darker/more intense strains….hooooo boy).***
Tfw no energy work or reiki friends, and shit master
It’s your first reiki attunement ever*** (Explanation below)
***THESE TWO ARE THE LARGEST FACTORS. If you have these two factors...man. Phew. It’s a trip (this is what happened to me… ;v; )
To end this article, I want you to know that unless you fit those two Largest Factors it probably won’t be that terrible. Note that a lot of this applies to your very first attunement ever. In follow-up attunements it likely will not be anywhere as terrible. Your first attunement is the most important one as you’re getting the ability to do and send reiki for the first time ever. If your first attunement does end up being shitty, don’t lose hope because it CAN be fixed! Again, with the right preparations and a skilled reiki master, a terrible attunement will be the exception and not the rule. If you have a great master, one that fits all the above stuff and more, you will have nothing to worry about!!
Suggested Reading on Reiki:
Reiki for Life by Quest
The Reiki Sourcebook
The Big Book of Reiki Symbols
The Original Reiki Handbook of Dr. Mikao Usui
