परम कल्याण कारी शिव दर्शन साधना – Shiv Darshan Sadhna Param Kalyankari Shiv Darshan Sadhna (The Supremely Auspicious Vision of Shiva)

I received this sadhana through Shiva's own grace. I had installed a mercury (Parad) Shivalinga, given to me by my Guru, before Shivratri. My Sadguru ji, out of immense grace, had given me a 21-kilogram mercury Shivalinga, and along with it, he had given the boon that this Shivalinga would be unique in itself and would, in its own right, be called the thirteenth Jyotirlinga. It was installed in the village of Kakarhatti, district Solan, Himachal Pradesh. Shivratri was approaching, and I stayed there and began Shiva sadhana, performing an abhishek (ritual bathing) each day after reciting the Shiv Amogh Kavach 21 times. It was morning, and one day, while gazing steadily (tratak) upon that divine Shivalinga and reciting the Shiva text, a divine flame suddenly emerged from the Shivalinga, its divine light beginning to spread throughout the entire chamber. Before my eyes, that flame grew quite large and transformed into the supremely auspicious form of Shiva, with five faces and many arms. Seeing that divine form, my entire body turned as still as ice. It felt as though this state of absorption would never break. My eyes remained open. The spiritual strength that those few moments granted me cannot be compared to anything else, and a strange music seemed to echo in my ears, along with the sound of this divine mantra. After a few moments, that form transformed back into a flame and slowly merged back into the Shivalinga, and from that moment, this mantra became, for me, as supreme as the Guru mantra itself. I performed its sadhana and became united with that supreme element. On Shivratri, while people outside were performing Shiva worship, I sat inside chanting this mantra. There was a room adjoining the temple. I entered a deep state of meditation. As people performed the milk abhishek upon Shiva outside, I felt that the milk was being poured upon my own body, even though it was being poured onto the Shivalinga. Whatever worship materials were being offered to the Shivalinga, I felt them upon myself. This state lasted quite a while, and when I came outside and looked up at the sky, I saw an elderly figure dressed in white, with rays of light emanating from his entire body, standing before my eyes. He blessed me from a distance and then disappeared. In this way, I had a direct encounter with the very essence of Shiva. Who was he — some accomplished being (siddha purush), or Shiva himself — I cannot say, but the bliss I received is difficult to express in words. My life became blessed through Shiva's grace. This sadhana, while granting spiritual energy, gives the seeker a higher state of being, and many shortcomings in their life are removed. Through this sadhana, a bliss akin to deep meditative absorption (samadhi) is easily attained. The body remains bound within a special energy at all times, and life becomes immersed in bliss. One remains in a state of joy at all times. Victory is attained over the impurities of the mind, along with success in sadhana.

Method

You may begin this sadhana on any Monday. You may perform it at any temple or at home. For this, you need a picture of Lord Shiva and a Rudraksha mala, and if performing it at a temple, you may worship Shiva ji and sit near the Shivalinga. It can be performed at any time, morning or evening. Worship the picture with incense, a lamp, naivedya (food offering), flowers, fruits, and so on, and light a ghee lamp. Perform Guru worship, then Ganesh worship, and then Shiva worship. Before this, say "Om Shreem Om" in all four directions while sprinkling water — this purifies the directions. Then perform pranayama 5 times — that is, breathe in and out — so that internal purification takes place. Then chant the following mantra for 21 rounds using a Rudraksha mala. You may begin this sadhana at any time before Shivratri — you may begin 11 days in advance; do not do less than this. More days bring greater benefit, and continue until Shivratri. On Shivratri, perform worship across all four parts of the night — meaning, worship is performed four times during the night, and each time you must chant 5 or 11 rounds of the mantra. Perform aarti in the morning, and you may then go about your work. In fact, this mantra should be chanted as much as possible. I have personally experienced many benefits from it. This sadhana need not be performed only on Shivratri — it can also be begun on any Monday and completed over 21 days. So those who cannot perform it on Shivratri may begin on any Monday instead.

Mantra

|| Om Hans Soham Param Shivaye Namah ||