Dakshina
A core Siddha Yoga practice of making monetary offerings to the Guru. In the practice of dakshina, the student honors the Guru, the source of grace and the highest knowledge, through giving. Siddha Yogis practice dakshina with regularity and discipline as part of their sadhana and offer it without specifying its use or expecting personal gain.
Darshan
A Hindi term (from the Sanskrit darshana) meaning “being in the presence of a holy person.” On the Siddha Yoga path, darshan is seeing, perceiving, and knowing the Guru through being in the Guru’s presence or having an experience of the Guru’s presence within.
Kundalini Shakti
The primordial power, or shakti; also, the power of spiritual evolution as it manifests in a human being. The Sanskrit word kundalini literally means “coiled one,” while the Sanskrit word shakti means “power, energy, strength.” Kundalini Shakti is so named because the dormant form of this spiritual energy is represented as lying coiled within an individual in a subtle energy center near the base of the spine. This energy—when it is awakened and guided by the Siddha Yoga Guru and its progress is aided by the seeker’s own disciplined effort—brings about the seeker’s purification on all levels, physical and subtle, and leads to the seeker’s permanent experience of their divine nature.
Mahasamadhi
When a saint leaves their physical body and merges with supreme Consciousness. The anniversary of this sacred event is a time to honor and pay tribute to the saint’s teachings and attainment. Baba Muktananda took mahasamadhi on the night of the full moon in October 1982.
Mantra
Sacred syllables with the power to purify, protect, and transform the one who repeats them. A mantra received from the Siddha Guru is enlivened by the Guru’s grace. The Siddha Yoga mantras include Om Namah Shivaya, Guru Om, and So’ham.
Sadgurunath Maharaj ki Jay
An invocation in Hindi that means “Hail to the true Guru!” On the Siddha Yoga path, it is uttered at the beginning and completion of a satsang, Siddha Yoga practice, or auspicious moment to invoke the Guru’s grace and express gratitude to the Guru.
Sadhana
A Sanskrit word that means “leading straight to the goal; a means of accomplishing [something]; spiritual practice.” The sadhana of Siddha Yoga students includes committed engagement with the Siddha Yoga practices and focused study of the Siddha Yoga teachings. The goal of Siddha Yoga sadhana is spiritual transformation that leads to Self-realization.
Shaktipat
A Hindi term (from the Sanskrit shaktipata) that means “descent of power; descent of grace.” On the Siddha Yoga path, shaktipat is an act of grace—the initiation (diksha) by which the Siddha Yoga Guru transmits divine energy to an aspirant and awakens that person’s Kundalini Shakti, the inner spiritual energy. Shaktipat-diksha signals the beginning of Siddha Yoga sadhana, an inner journey that culminates in Self-realization.