How Long Does Reiki Training Take? From Reiki 1 to Reiki Master
Updated: Sep 29
Learning Reiki does not take long. Reiki 1 can be learned in a weekend in person or in a few weeks of self-paced study online. Reiki 2 and Master follow, and many people move through all three levels within a year. What takes longer is the practice itself. The certificate marks the beginning, and your hands keep learning for years after it.
I have taught Reiki since 1998. Here is the honest timeline, level by level, and what I recommend to my own students.
Reiki 1: a weekend to a few weeks
Reiki 1 (Shoden, "the beginning teaching") is where you receive your first attunement, learn the five precepts, and begin giving Reiki to yourself. In person it is often taught over a weekend. Online, you move through it at your own pace.
What matters most at this level is daily self-practice. I encourage students to give themselves Reiki every day for a while before they go on, even a few minutes at a time. That daily practice is what makes the next level land. If you want to start now, here is how to do Reiki on yourself.
Reiki 2: once Reiki 1 has settled
Reiki 2 (Okuden, "the inner teaching") brings the three Reiki symbols and distance Reiki. Many teachers ask for weeks or months between Reiki 1 and Reiki 2. The reason is simple: the symbols build on a practice that is already alive in your hands.
Reiki Master: when you feel ready
Master level (Shinpiden, "the mystery teaching") brings the master symbol and the ability to attune others. Some people come to it within months of Reiki 1. Others take years. Take the time you need. I explain the Master level fully in How to Become a Reiki Master Online.
A realistic timeline
Reiki 1: a weekend in person, or a few weeks of self-paced study online
Between Reiki 1 and Reiki 2: several weeks to a few months of daily practice
Between Reiki 2 and Master: whenever the practice asks for it
Certified through Master: often within a year
Why the practice keeps growing after you certify
In Mikao Usui's original society, students met regularly for years and received reiju again and again. Reiki integrates through repetition. Each day of practice, each session you give, each time you return to the precepts, the practice settles a little deeper into how you live.
That is still true. The certificate says you have received the teachings. The years of practice after it are what make you a practitioner people trust.
Some students want company for those years. The Mystery School is my year-long apprenticeship, where Reiki is the vehicle and awakening is the deeper subject.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to learn Reiki?
Reiki 1 can be learned in a weekend in person or a few weeks online. Many people move through all three levels, Reiki 1, Reiki 2 and Master, within a year, and keep deepening their practice for years after.
How long does it take to become a Reiki Master?
You can reach Reiki Master certification within a year, depending on your pace. I encourage time between levels so each one can settle. The maturity of a Master grows with years of practice.
Can I learn Reiki at my own pace online?
Yes. In my online course you move through Reiki 1, Reiki 2 and Master whenever you are ready, and the videos, manual and meditations are yours for life.
How long does it take to become a Reiki Master Teacher?
Teaching grows out of the Master level and out of experience. In my school, people who feel called to teach Reiki train alongside me through the teacher path of the Mystery School.
If you would like to learn Reiki with me, the online course takes you from Reiki 1 through Master at your own pace: Study Reiki with me. Not ready to enroll? Begin with my free audio, How to Become a Reiki Master.
By Bronwyn Ayla, L.Ac., founder of the Wu Wei School of Reiki. Bronwyn teaches in the Usui Reiki lineage descending from Mikao Usui through Chujiro Hayashi and Hawayo Takata.
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