Phenomenon of Deeksha
Oneness founded by Sri Amma Bhagavan seeks to alleviate human suffering at its roots by awakening humanity into oneness, wherein every individual feels connected to all that is. The central understanding of Oneness is that inner transformation and awakening into higher states of consciousness is not an outcome of a mere intellectual understanding but a neurobiological process in the brain, whereby one’s experience of life is redefined at its core. This is achieved by the process of the Oneness Blessing/Oneness Deeksha, which is a process of transfer of divine grace that initiates a journey into higher states of consciousness. The Deeksha is believed to affect the different lobes of the brain, thereby reducing stress levels and intensifying the levels of love, joy and awareness. Millions in India and abroad testify to the calming and awakening effects of the Oneness Deeksha, which is now gaining recognition as by far the easiest and most effective approach to enriching human consciousness.
So what exactly is Deeksha and how does it work?
Tracing back its roots to ancient Vedic Indian tradition, Deeksha was basically a process of a spiritually awakened master initiating a disciple after long years of intense training. The master would actually impart his spiritual wisdom and / or state of consciousness through touch, glance or through a deep intent, better known in Sanskrit as Sparsha Deeksha, Nayana Deeksha or Smarana Deeksha.
This practice of laying on of hands and awakening a disciple to higher states of consciousness is well known in human history, except that such a happening was a very rare event. In both the Vedic and Tibetan Buddhist traditions, the minimum duration prescribed for preparing a disciple before he/she is ready to receive the benediction from the master is usually 12 years during which the disciple is subjected rigorous physical, psychological and spiritual disciplines and ordeals by the master to basically shatter the ego & make him/her vulnerable and open to the divine benediction.
Sri Amma & Sri Bhagavan’s deep passion to awaken humanity as a whole to Oneness has revolutionized this phenomenon of deeksha today.
The Oneness Deeksha or Oneness Blessing as it is referred to in many other parts of the western world is sourced in their divine intent.
And the series of incidents which paved the way for this phenomenon to flow into the world is a very interesting story, humanity could forever cherish.
How it all came to be…
It all began with Sri Bhagavan seeing a mystical golden orb of light standing before His eyes when He was anything between 3 to 5 years of age. Sri Bhagavan was very naturally impelled to incessantly chant a mantra revealed to Him by this Golden Orb of light and each time He uttered the mantra, He used to feel His deep intent to end human suffering being impregnated into this golden ball, thus charging it with his divine state of consciousness. This phenomenon went on without a break for 24 hours of a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year for 18 years thereafter and one day when Sri Bhagavan was about 27 years of age, the Golden Ball suddenly disappeared from his gaze and the chanting process stopped abruptly. Sri Amma too was subjected to a similar process of intense austerity as a child. Neither Sri Bhagavan nor Sri Amma had really any control over the series of mystical happenings and severe austerities they were naturally subjected to in their childhood. All they knew was a deep passion to help humanity awaken into Oneness and they were being impelled to prepare this Golden Ball for their massive mission in the future.
In July 1989 in the Jeevashram school founded by Sri Amma-Bhagavan, the very same Golden Ball of divine grace descended into many students after receiving the deeksha from Sri Krishnaji (Sri Amma Bhagavan’s son). This divine descent unleashed a phenomenon of divine grace and inner transformation in the students that was incomparable with any other spiritual phenomenon of our times.
Many students and parents were swept by this wave of grace and the whole school had suddenly transformed into a heaven on earth, with so many children experiencing a variety of states of consciousness accessible only to the great yogis and saints of yore.
It was this phenomenon that reiterated Sri Amma & Sri Bhagavan’s premonition that the time was ripe for the world to receive this benediction they had been preparing for since their early childhood and thus came into existence the ‘Oneness’, which has ever since touched the lives of millions of individuals through the phenomenon of the Oneness Deeksha.
While Oneness too has its unique teachings and spiritual practices, Sri Amma Bhagavan emphatically declare, ‘any teaching, including those given by us would remain a teaching unless you have a direct experience, which is possible only through divine intervention!’ Thus, the programmes of Oneness are centered on the phenomenon of the Oneness Deeksha/Oneness Blessing, which facilitates this most sought after divine intervention, making every teaching, every spiritual precept he/she has ever followed, into a personal experience.
It is this understanding that sets apart Oneness from many other existing spiritual traditions, which emphasize on intellectual understanding and meditation alone as the path to liberation.
Awakening or enlightenment, according to Oneness is a happening, a benediction bestowed upon us by the divine and not an achievement. This stand of Oneness is supported by the understanding, which is now slowly beginning to gain scientific recognition also, that awakening is a neurobiological shift in the brain and one cannot really cause a shift in his/her brain merely through an intellectual understanding.
Oneness in many regards has a highly scientific approach, quite evident in many of Sri Amma-Bhagavan’s teachings and this actually comes as a relief to the many followers of the movement ranging from the younger generation and the intellectual/elite classes, who abhor blind belief and unscientific philosophy at all levels.
The Oneness Deeksha phenomenon also transcends religious and cultural barriers from the fact that it only chooses to awaken each to his/her own spiritual tradition by facilitating a neurobiological shift, thus making religion a matter of personal choice and convenience.
Sri Amma-Bhagavan’s spirituality basically highlights the destructive tendencies of the human mind arising from the sense of separation, thus making spirituality more a passive acceptance of the ‘what is’ than an active strife towards attainment of spiritual values. And in today’s world rampant with destructive tendencies, one would definitely benefit from an awareness of his/her selfish tendencies, which would naturally lead to their dissolution and pave the way for higher values to take birth. Sri Amma Bhagavan have thus reinstated spirituality as a way of life to be lived in every household and have made their unparalleled contribution to human awakening through the Oneness Deeksha.