How do I choose a Reiki teacher?
Answered by Vanessa Chugani · Updated August 2026
Ask who trained them, where, and in which lineage, and confirm the attunement is given live rather than through a recording or automated download. Notice whether they call the chakra system ancient (it isn't) or promise that Reiki cures anything (it doesn't). Someone specific about their own training and honest about the limits is worth trusting.
Choosing a Reiki teacher matters more than choosing a single session, because a session lasts an hour and a training changes how you work for years afterwards. A few honest questions separate a careful teacher from a rushed one.
- Who trained them, where, and in which lineage
- Whether the attunement is given live, not through a recording or an automated download
- How they talk about the chakra system's history
- What they promise Reiki will do, and what they leave alone
Ask about their own training, specifically
A teacher should be able to tell you, without hesitating, who trained them, where, and in what lineage. Vague answers are worth noticing. Vanessa trained in Aachen, Germany in 2006, and became a Reiki Master Teacher in 2019 through the Asian Healing Arts Center in Chiang Mai and separately with Vonny Stella in Ubud. She teaches one lineage, Usui Reiki Ryoho, and is upfront about not claiming any other. Her full training history is here.
Check how the attunement is actually delivered
An attunement given live, with the teacher present in the room or on video, is a different thing from a recording or an automated download played back later. A live teacher can answer a question as it comes up and notice if something needs more time. Ask directly whether the attunement is live, and if the answer is unclear, treat that as an answer in itself.
Listen for how they talk about the history
The chakra system taught alongside Western Reiki gets described as ancient wisdom more often than not. It isn't: it's a twentieth-century synthesis that was attached to Reiki teaching in the 1980s, useful as a way of talking about the body but not a relic of an old tradition. A teacher who says so plainly, rather than reaching for the word ancient, is choosing accuracy over a better-sounding story. More on where the chakra system actually comes from and where Usui Reiki itself comes from go into this properly.
Notice what they promise, and what they leave alone
A teacher who says Reiki cures a named condition, or explains it through quantum physics or a measurable energy field, is overselling something that doesn't need it. The steadier version is smaller: Reiki is rest and support for a nervous system that has been running hot for a long time, not a medical treatment and not a provable mechanism. Feeling very little during your own attunement is normal too, and a teacher who tells you that in advance is setting you up with accurate expectations rather than a romantic one you might feel you failed to meet.
Class size is worth asking about directly. A teacher working with six students or fewer, or one to one, can actually see what's happening for each person instead of moving through a room on a schedule. Vanessa's trainings run at that size, in Canggu or live online, in English or German, arranged around the student rather than fixed to a calendar. If you want to ask her something before deciding, get in touch.
Related questions
What's the difference between a live attunement and a recorded one?
A live attunement happens with the teacher present, in person or over video, so they can respond to what's actually happening. A recorded or automated version has no one watching or adjusting anything. Some teachers offer these as a shortcut, but a live teacher can't teach that way, because it isn't really teaching.
Should I feel something dramatic during the attunement?
Not necessarily. Feeling very little or nothing during an attunement is normal, and a teacher who tells you that beforehand is giving you accurate expectations rather than letting you assume something went wrong. What people notice tends to show up afterwards, in things like sleep or how settled they feel, not always in the moment itself.
Does the teacher's lineage actually matter?
Yes, it shapes what you're taught and how the attunement is passed down. Usui Reiki Ryoho is the original lineage; other systems use the word Reiki loosely for unrelated practices. A teacher who names their lineage clearly, rather than saying 'various traditions,' is easier to trust with something you'll carry into your own practice.