In the field of science, all that exists, whether manifest or unmanifest, is called a probability. Everything in life remains a probability (wave function), until that moment when an observer observes it, thereby collapsing the probability wave into a particle. This concept of quantum mechanics applies as much to sub-atomic particles as to obviously visible structures like trees, rocks, humans, etc.
Deeksha or initiation is a scientific technique wherein the Avatar collapses the infinite possibilities and probabilities of our mundane existence into the single reality of peak existence or enlightenment.
The human being is a composite structure of body (matter), mind (subtler matter), and pure Consciousness – which is nothing but a replica of the universe itself.
Naturally, the peak possibility of our existence is to merge our individual ‘self’ with the universal energy of the Cosmos, where differentiation no longer exists, and the state of Advaita is experienced.
Deeksha is the Seed of Possibility
The Sanskrit word Deeksha is derived from the root ‘da’ (to give) and ‘kshi’ (to destroy ignorance) – which loosely translates as ‘initiation’.
Deeksha is the direct transfer of spiritual energy by an Avatar through a look, a word, or a touch, which destroys the ignorance of the initiate or disciple.
As thousands of people are discovering at Paramahamsa Nithyananda’s life-changing programs, an Avatar can, with a single gesture, cause a spontaneous, incredible transformation on every level: the miraculous healing of diseases, the cognition of subtle truths, mystical experiences, the completion of karmas, conscious ecstasy and restful awareness can happen in a matter of minutes!
Deeksha is the most effortless and blissful way to raise one’s spiritual frequency. A moment’s initiation received in a mood of intense surrender can bring about more irreversible transformation in one’s life than years of meditation and spiritual practice.
Types of Deeksha
The Guru can initiate one in three ways:
- Through a look (nayana deeksha or chakshu deeksha)
- Through a word (mantra deeksha)
- Through a touch (sparsha deeksha)
Nayana Deeksha
For the receptive disciple, who has already expanded his inner space, a mere look from the eyes of the Guru into the eyes of the disciple transmits the Cosmic energy from the Guru into the disciple, often allowing the disciple a transient experience of the entire Cosmos (brahmanda).
For highly receptive seekers, even a side-glance from the Guru’s eyes is an initiation. Such a glance is revered in Vedic tradition as ‘guru kataaksham.’
Today, thanks to modern video-conferencing technologies, devotees around the world gather daily in Nithyanandeshwara Hindu Temples (Aadheenams) and global satsang centers to receive nayana deeksha from Paramahamsa Nithyananda.
Every nayana deeksha results in spontaneous healing, cognitive shifts and spiritual clarity, proving again and again that time and space are no barriers to the power of an Avatar’s initiation.
Mantra Deeksha
The Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism Nithyānanda Paramashivam says:
Manah trayate sa mantrah
The words or truths which show the way to man’s mind are mantras. Mantra is the way to liberation, the way to the higher Consciousness, the way to higher experiences.
The word ‘mantra’ is a derivative of the word ‘maatrika’, sounds which carry a specific conscious vibrational energy. They may be as small as a single syllable or bija mantra (seed syllable), or a complete phrase or shloka.
The repetition of the mantra given by the Guru is called japa.
There exist various levels of japa, from the gross external recitation (vaikhari) to mental recitation (madhyama), to the subtle effortless repetition (paraavak). This is the ultimate form, also known as ajapa-japa or spontaneous japa, which allows the bio-energy of the Cosmos to flow into the system, realigning the bio-memory and muscle-memory to reach the desired goal, which can be anything from health to enlightenment.
Sparsha Deeksha
This is a technique of initiation wherein the Master initiates the disciple through touch, using his thumb or palm to directly transmit his bio-energy into the disciple’s system. The bio-energy so transferred awakens the kundalini energy or resident potential energy of the disciple.
Levels of Deeksha
Deeksha works on three levels:
- The conscious mind
- The unconscious mind
- The physical body and brain
Even in the absence of a Guru, the conscious mind can be cleared by the right teachings, by removing the wrong ideas and taking in clear, correct ideas.
The unconscious mind can be cleansed by cathartic processes and meditation techniques.
But ultimately, for the software change to be permanent, the hardware also has to change. The very brain grooves have to change to hold and radiate the experience of living enlightenment.
It is now known that the brain can rewire itself to accommodate newly learned programs permanently. This is called neuroplasticity. This is the process that happens in the brain through deeksha.
When the Guru touches and initiates a person, not only is the software of enlightened physiology downloaded into him, but the
hardware, the brain itself, is tuned to hold this new software. If he
is completely open during the touch, the software of enlightened
physiology can be downloaded into him, changing the very physiology. His body learns that it can be better than what it is now. With the energy of the Master, both the hardware and software can be changed.
The inflow of pure Cosmic energy that happens through the body of a living Avatar is bio-energy. Such an uninterrupted flow of bio-energy can happen in us only after all the blockages in our channels and energy centers are purified.
The deepest of these blockages, some of which are inherited (genetic), and some of which are strong enough to influence the function of our genes (gene expression), is referred to as bio- memory and are usually difficult to cleanse without the help of a guru or a living Avatar. The more superficial blockages created by our fears, emotions, and mental patterns are called muscle- memory and can be worked upon through meditation or cathartic techniques under the guidance of the Guru.
Science of Deeksha
Deeksha is a deeply mystical process, but it can be explained to some extent using quantum mechanics and molecular biology (Quantum Biology). Physical energy follows the laws of physics, be it Newtonian or Quantum. Thus, the fundamental principles like the conservation of energy remain the same. The total of the energy in the universe is always the same; energy can be transformed from one form to another, but can never be destroyed permanently.
Once energy reaches a biological system, like a human being, it is transformed into various forms and expressions of biological energy, which may be electrical or chemical in nature. This in turn changes the expression of the very physiology of the cell at a molecular level, which can be expressed as changes in genes, signaling proteins, the formation of usable energy in the form of ATP, and so on.
Thus, initiation or Deeksha involves the laws of physics, chemistry and biology, all at the same time.
The science behind the three types of Deekshas
Let us now take a deeper look at the science behind the three types of deekshas or initiations:
Nayana Deeksha
Nayana Deeksha, which does not involve touch and can be conducted across large distances, would use the principle of the presence of mirror neurons in the disciple being able to reflect the energy projected by the living Avatar. This form of initiation begins at the level of the brain, leading to entrainment and coherence of the projected energy from the Avatar.
During deeksha, the projected bio-energy from the Avatar could be in the form of a sankalpa (a conscious concentrated energy), a nissankalpa (a pure intentionless energy), or the release of bio-photons.
It is now known that every cell of the body produces a small quantity of energy in the form of photons, which travel at the speed of light. In a normal cell, the quantum of photons is very small or negligible; however, in an Avatar, the quantum of photons could be so high as to make a visual and physical impact on the disciple. The explanation of Shiva’s Third Eye burning the negative elements of Nature by its mere opening is suggestive of the power of a coherent laser beam.
Mantra Deeksha
In Mantra Deeksha, the chanting of the special mantra creates subtle vibrations which are in tune with the ambient Cosmic energy of Shiva, with spanda as a fundamental potential energy on the verge of manifesting as Shakti.
During Mantra Deeksha, the Avatar intuitively selects the seed syllable or mantra that resonates with the natural vibrational frequency of the disciple, and impregnates it with His pure bio-energy, which will automatically raise the disciple to the next level
of Consciousness. The mantra may be the name of the disciple’s ishta or favored deity (for the devotionally oriented disciple) or an Upanishadic truth (for the intellectually oriented disciple), or even just a seed syllable which works at the pure level of being.
It must be mentioned here that the entire transmission of sacred knowledge and sciences in the Vedic tradition was through an awe-inspiring oral system of memorization and reproduction. The shastrapalakas (protectors of the sacred scriptures) passed on this legacy of information down the ages through their commentaries on the shruti (divine revelations), which were known as smriti.
The reason for the oral transmission of the Truth was evidently not a lack of efficiency or sophistication, as a succinct and highly evolved written tradition also flourished in parallel with it, in the form of the Vedas and Upanishads. Rather, it worked on the principle that Sound is the most fundamental unit of energy which allows for the transition into matter. During oral communication, not only is the meaning of the words communicated, but the very vibrations of the word are imprinted in the bio-memory of the receiver or student.
Sanskrit being a highly sophisticated and phonetic language, the very sounds are embedded with the subtle aspect of their meaning. Thus, a truth transmitted orally from a Guru to a receptive disciple would directly penetrate and alter the bio-memory of the disciple, without even the need for active participation from the disciple’s logical faculties.
Mantras (syllables carrying a conscious vibration), Shastras (expositions of the Truth), Stotras (expressions of devotional ecstasy), and sutras (compact spiritual techniques) were all transmitted orally from Guru to disciple as part of a committed learning process. Apart from embedding the meaning of the words in the bio-memory of the disciple, this form of transmission carried the power to raise the vibrational frequency of the learner, simply through his listening and repetition. Learners were frequently ‘eka-santa-grahis’, able to imbibe and reproduce an entire lesson after a single listening. Several students of Nithyananda GurukulSM have also demonstrated this rare capability.
The Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism Nithyānanda Paramashivam says (as part of a process):
Now I am going to guide you using some unique powerful sounds, and inject those sounds into your muscle- memory to clean it out. You will see how even the small knots in every muscle-memory are removed.
Understand: your entire muscle memory is made out of sound. Each muscle-memory, emotion, experience, has certain passwords.
For example, your whole lust muscle-memory is experienced through only one sound – ‘hoom’. Unless that sound is awakened, your lust memories cannot be removed. Same way, all your love memory is recorded with the password ‘lumm’.
Even if you have a thousand memories, a thousand documents related to a particular emotion, you cannot retrieve even one memory out of your computer if you don’t have the password. Mantras are the passwords of your body.
Your body is not just a computer; it is a live internet connection. If you have the passwords, you can download information not only from your bio-memory, but from the Cosmic bio-memory itself!
If I do the process using this hoom sound, all your lust memories will fall into proper cognizance. It means, you will take cognizance of it as much as your natural prarabdha can allow.
All your muscle-memories can be opened only if the password is aligned. Otherwise it will be chaos. You won’t know which memory will open up in which context, because it is not under your control. Sometimes, a person who creates love in you will create anger instead, and people who have abused you will create romance in you.
When I tune your muscle-memory, thousands of unnecessary muscle-memories will be practically flushed out of your system, and only those memories which you want to cherish will remain alive.
Sparsha Deeksha
In Sparsha Deeksha, the Cosmic energy already present as bio-energy (Kundalini Shakti) in the Avatar or Guru is directly transferred to the disciple, leading to the opening up of the dormant energy of the disciple and awakening him to achieve his true potential.
With the energy transfer, changes take place at the chemical level in the discipline, initiating the production of signaling molecules, neurotransmitters (like hormones), etc. This in turn works at the very basis of molecular biology by transforming and realigning the genetic material of the cell, allowing it to express healthy desirable products and suppress those that are deleterious to the body.
Techniques of Deeksha
Deekshas at the initial level include:
- Shiva Deeksha – being initiated into the lifestyle of Shiva
- Shravana – pure listening
- Purnatva – Completion
- Vak siddhi – manifestation through the power of words
- Healing – opening of the Ananda Gandha chakra
- Third Eye AwakeningSM – opening of the ajna chakra or brow energy center
There are deeper levels of initiation that confer various siddhis on advanced disciples, which are given on an individual basis. This is called shaktipat, and is effective only when bestowed by a living Avatar.