Sekhem Initiation Through the Four Bodies and the Tenth Gate

The First Initiation: Mantra and Inner Prayer

Initiation, or Diksha, unfolds through four bodies, and therefore through four types of Diksha. The first is connected with the physical body. It is called Anupaya, a primary or first spiritual initiation, concerned with the small and immediate method of practice.

In this initiation, the spiritual master gives a mantra. The practitioner chants it as a prayer and calls upon the inner God. The original guru is the inner God. The physical master guides the practitioner in how to connect, how to chant and how to pray, while the inner guru provides the grace through which the connection becomes real. Both are necessary.

The teachings of the scriptures and the physical guru increase the desire to know. They address who you are, what the soul is, who God is, what truth is and how enlightenment may be attained. They establish the importance of the guru, the importance of God and the importance of the soul.

Practice begins through the mantra. As desire increases and becomes strongest, the mantra becomes enlightened. It may first be seen or heard as a divine sound. When that sound begins to arise within, there is no longer a need to chant continuously. Meditation starts to become automatic. This is the first initiation.