What is Shaktipat?

In my meditation teaching work, I often get asked, “What is shaktipat?”

Shaktipat is the descent of Grace - the transmission of spiritual energy or shakti.

There are many views on whether shaktipat is “received”, “given”, or “taken”. Some teachers “give” it, some realized Masters “transmit” it with no formal initiation process, and sometimes it is a spontaneous transmission direct from Universal Consciousness.

Forms of Shaktipat:

Spontaneous Grace: This spiritual awakening occurs spontaneously as an act of Universal Consciousness, with no involvement from a human Master. This is rare and considered the most powerful initiation.

Transmission of Spontaneous Grace from the human Master: The student receives awakening simply by being in the presence of the Guru or  Master teacher, without undergoing any formal initiation process.

Formal Shaktipat Initiation from a Guru or Master Teacher: The teacher initiates the student by awakening the kundalini energy, the dormant divine power, within the recipient. The recipient may receive formal shaktipat initiation in the following ways:

• Touch (Sparsha Diksha): The teacher physically touches the initiate to awaken the energy, often on the ajña chakra (third eye), heart center, or at the base of the spine, the mūlādhāra chakra.

• Gaze (Chaksushi Diksha): The teacher transmits the energy through gaze, often through an eye-to-eye connection between the teacher and initiate.  

• Mantra or Word (Shabda Diksha): The teacher gives the initiate a mantra or sacred word charged with shakti, spiritual power. By repeating this mantra or word, the initiate opens themselves to receive transmission and awakening of the kundalini energy.

• Intention (Manasi Diksha): The subtlest and rarest form of formal transmission from teacher to student, this requires complete surrender from the initiate. This form of shaktipat is where the teacher initiates the seeker through thought or intention alone, regardless of distance.

• Object: Shaktipat can be given through an object that the teacher has charged with their energy, such as a fruit, flower, shawl, or prayer beads (mala).

  
  

Role of the Recipient:

While shaktipat transmission comes either direct from Universal Consciousness or the human Master teacher, the recipient's state of mind and receptiveness is of utmost importance. Shaktipat can never be forced, and the student must be open to receive it in whatever form it comes.

To receive shaktipat effectively, a person must have or be actively cultivating the following qualities:

• Receptivity:  A receptive state of mind with trust in the teacher helps to create a strong spiritual connection for transmission of the energy.

• Surrender: If holding agendas or intellectually resistant, the student will not easily receive transmission; their ego and mind will block it. Surrender to the process of transmission is essential. Expectations and preconceptions about the nature of the shaktipat need to be discarded to allow for free-flow of the transmission.

• Readiness: Shaktipat is an act of grace occurring only when the student is spiritually ready. A Master Teacher will recognize this readiness in a student.

  
  

The Experience of Receiving Shaktipat:

The experience of shaktipat is highly personal and can manifest in different ways. Once the dormant kundalini is awakened, the recipient may experience:

• Physical Manifestations of the Shakti: These are called kriyas, (literally: “action”) and include things like involuntary body movements, shaking, vocalizations, surges of energy, spontaneous yogic postures, or feelings of tingling or heat.

• Emotional Shifts: Emotional blockages may come up to be witnessed and then released, which can cause waves of intense emotion, including fear, grief, and other emotions. Strong feelings of bliss and ecstasy can also arise.

• Mystical Insights and Visions: Shaktipat can lead inner visions, spiritual insights and understandings, heightened states of consciousness, deep inner peace, and profound states of meditation.

• Quickening of Spiritual Growth: The transmission of shaktipat, in whatever form it comes, acts as a quickening, propelling the recipient forward on their spiritual path towards self-realization and enlightenment. Shaktipat has one purpose: the spiritual evolution of the one who receives it. However, it is important to remember that Shaktipat is an initiation; it initiates your spiritual process. Lasting spiritual growth will require ongoing personal discipline and practice. You will need to integrate and assimilate that which has been bestowed on you through shaktipat—the awakening of the kundalini shakti, your inner meditation energy.

• Kundalini Shakti Herself is the Teacher: It is very important to remember that once you are initiated through shaktipat, the kundalini energy becomes your inner teacher, guiding you on your inner journey. The more sincere and committed you are to your inner work, the clearer this guidance will become.