As a Siddha Yoga Swami and meditation teacher who leads learning sessions about dakshina, I’ve had the opportunity to converse about this practice with Siddha Yogis of all ages and from all parts of the world. I’m delighted to share my responses to some of the questions I have been asked in those learning sessions and conversations over the years.

• Why is dakshina, making a monetary offering, a Siddha Yoga practice?
• What kind of transformation does the practice of dakshina bring about in Siddha Yoga sadhana?
• It seems easier to recognize the benefits I experience from my practices of meditation and chanting than it is to perceive the benefits of offering dakshina. How can I become more aware of the benefits of this practice in my life?
• I notice pages devoted to Goddess Lakshmi on the Siddha Yoga path website in the section about the practice of dakshina. What is the relationship between Goddess Lakshmi and the practice of dakshina?
• I read on the Siddha Yoga path website that dakshina is a focus of our study and practice during the month of Gurupurnima. What is the special significance of offering dakshina during Gurupurnima?
• Does the amount of dakshina I offer matter, or is the feeling with which I make my offering more important?
• I just graduated from school and started my first job, and I would like to begin a Siddha Yoga Monthly Dakshina Practice. Is it better to start my monthly practice now or to wait until I can offer more?
• I have a Monthly Dakshina Practice and have arranged for automatic payments from my bank account. Sometimes I feel like my practice is “on autopilot.” How can I bring greater awareness to my regular practice of dakshina?
• I’ve enjoyed introducing the practices of meditation and chanting to my children. Do you have any suggestions on how to introduce them to the practice of dakshina?
• When I offer dakshina at a Siddha Yoga Ashram or meditation center, I experience the shakti of the practice. How can I have this experience when offering dakshina on the Siddha Yoga path website?
• I feel dakshina is something very personal. I was brought up not to talk about money in general. However, I have noticed that we are encouraged to share our experiences of the Siddha Yoga practices. What is the benefit of talking about the practice of dakshina?

Why is dakshina, making a monetary offering, a Siddha Yoga practice?

The practice of dakshina is enlivened by the Guru’s grace, as are all Siddha Yoga practices, and thus brings about profound transformation. Because grace is inherent in the practice, the act of offering dakshina can, in itself, expand your understanding and experience of the Guru’s profound gifts.

For thousands of years, the sages of India have known and written about the importance—and mystical power—of offering something of value to honor the Guru, the one who bestows supreme knowledge: the knowledge of the Self.

To understand why dakshina is a core practice on the Siddha Yoga path, consider to whom you are offering. You are making an offering to the source of grace, the Siddha Yoga Guru, whose teachings lead you to liberation. Through the sacred act of offering, your heart opens, and you begin to imbibe the state and qualities of the one you are offering to. In time, the very act of offering dakshina can lead you to experience your oneness with God.

So, the best way to truly grasp for yourself why offering dakshina is a core practice on this path is to reflect on the significance of having the Siddha Yoga Guru in your life. Make it a habit to reflect on how you experience the Guru’s grace and teachings—today, this past month, this past year, since you began walking the Siddha Yoga path.

As you start to see the inestimable value of what the Guru bestows, you will discover why offering dakshina is such an important part of Siddha Yoga sadhana.

What kind of transformation does the practice of dakshina bring about in Siddha Yoga sadhana?

Dakshina, like all Siddha Yoga practices, has the power to purify the mind and generate uplifting thoughts and attitudes about ourselves and the world around us.

Often people tell me that dakshina has brought about a radical change in their understanding of money and their attitude toward the work they do in the world.

For instance, one young adult described to me how, by offering dakshina on a regular basis, he began to look upon his job and his earnings as something sacred. He said that his work has new meaning for him because he is now offering a portion of his earnings to the Guru.

Another person who offers dakshina told me that he has let go of an attachment to always wanting more—more money, more material objects, more status, more everything! He said that he never used to feel satisfied with his life, but after he’d practiced dakshina for a while, his desires began to dissipate. He began to see that what he has in his life is sufficient—and he, too, is sufficient. This glorious sense of contentment comes with a greater sense of self-love and self-respect. He feels lighthearted, and this has transformed his approach to everything in his life.

Perhaps the greatest transformation that occurs through this practice is the deepening recognition of God within.

A Siddha Yogi shared that through her regular practice of offering dakshina over the years, she has noticed a profound shift in her sense of self. Each time she makes an offering, she feels herself merging into that which is limitless and blissful. She becomes more aware of her own divine nature, of the presence of the Guru in her own heart. This experience floods her with profound peace and gives her life an unshakable foundation.

This woman’s experience is an expression of a profound truth. In offering dakshina, we are participating in a natural cycle of giving and receiving—and we’re doing this with the Guru, the grace-bestowing power of God. In this way, as we offer dakshina to the Guru, we begin to experience that the offering, the one who offers, and the Guru are all one.

These are just a few of the experiences that people have shared with me about the transformative power of this practice. As with every Siddha Yoga practice, the benefits are manifold, and you will experience them in your own way.

I find it wonderful to consider that, in addition to the extraordinary life-transforming benefits we personally experience from offering dakshina, this practice benefits countless other Siddha Yogis and new seekers as well. The dakshina we offer to the Guru is received by the SYDA Foundation, which directs these offerings to its core purpose of protecting, preserving, and facilitating the dissemination of the Siddha Yoga teachings worldwide.

It seems easier to recognize the benefits I experience from my practices of meditation and chanting than it is to perceive the benefits of offering dakshina. How can I become more aware of the benefits of this practice in my life?

When we offer dakshina regularly, we make real progress in our sadhana. When we perform any Siddha Yoga practice on a regular basis, we are forging a pathway to the Heart, to the inner Self. One way we can bring this steadiness and consistency to our practice of dakshina is by participating in the Siddha Yoga Monthly Dakshina Practice.

As part of a regular practice of dakshina, the next step would be to approach dakshina consciously, being present, being mindful that this is a sacred practice. You can pause as you’re making your offering or on the day your monthly offering is received. For instance, I like to hold the awareness that I am making an offering to the source of grace in my life. And after making my offering of dakshina, I will sit quietly and ask myself, “What am I experiencing right now? What is the effect of offering dakshina to my Guru?”

It’s also a great idea to keep a journal to articulate your experiences of offering dakshina.

You can ask yourself questions about your dakshina practice:

• What new understandings and inspirations are arising through offering dakshina?
• What changes am I noticing in my attitudes toward myself and others? What changes are happening in my habits?
• How am I relating to and implementing specific Siddha Yoga teachings in my practice of dakshina? For instance, how is offering dakshina increasing my ability to honor myself and the world around me?

Ask yourself questions to become more aware of the transformative effects of your dakshina practice. I imagine that as you journal about what you are noticing and experiencing, you will be surprised by what you discover!

I notice pages devoted to Goddess Lakshmi on the Siddha Yoga path website in the section about the practice of dakshina. What is the relationship between Goddess Lakshmi and the practice of dakshina?

Siddha Yogis honor Mahalakshmi as an aspect of Kundalini Shakti representing abundance, good fortune, and beauty. Goddess Lakshmi is the embodiment of all that is auspicious and bounteous, of everything that sustains existence on this earth. She is every form of wealth—inner wealth and outer wealth.

When we worship Mahalakshmi, we discover and cultivate her qualities within ourselves, and we bring them into the world.

We honor Mahalakshmi by treating all of our wealth, spiritual and material, as a manifestation of the Goddess, as something sacred that is entrusted to us. We take care of our wealth mindfully and with dharmic actions—actions that are beneficial both for ourselves and for everyone around us.

When we attend to the material and financial aspects of our lives with respect and responsibility, we are welcoming Mahalakshmi’s presence in our lives. One way we can do this is by maintaining cleanliness in our surroundings, especially where we live and work. We can also do this by keeping a budget and not spending beyond what we have.

Through the practice of offering dakshina, we care for the supreme knowledge that we have received from the Guru. Offering dakshina honors and nourishes our connection with the Guru—the source of grace in our lives. Dakshina also helps to make the Guru’s life-transforming teachings available to seekers everywhere, thereby uplifting the entire world.

Through this sacred act of offering dakshina, we assume the universal outlook and benevolence of Mahalakshmi, and open ourselves to the peace and joy that come with allowing our innate abundance to benefit all.

I read on the Siddha Yoga path website that dakshina is a focus of our study and practice during the month of Gurupurnima. What is the special significance of offering dakshina during Gurupurnima?

The tradition of Gurupurnima originated thousands of years ago with the sage Veda Vyasa and his disciples, who were looking for a way to express their boundless gratitude to their Guru for the teachings and grace he had given them.

Offering dakshina during Gurupurnima is significant because the celebration of Gurupurnima is specifically dedicated to honoring the Guru. In the act of offering dakshina, we—the disciples—convey our respect for the Guru and our recognition of the immeasurable value of the Guru’s wisdom and grace in our lives and on this earth.

On the Siddha Yoga path, we continue the tradition of Gurupurnima by honoring the Siddha Yoga Gurus and celebrating Gurupurnima for the entire month of July. Each year the Siddha Yoga sangham is extended an invitation, via the Siddha Yoga path website, to offer Gurupurnima dakshina.

In much the same way that repeating the mantra during Mahashivaratri is especially powerful, the transformative power of offering dakshina to the Guru is magnified during the celebration of Gurupurnima.

Does the amount of dakshina I offer matter, or is the feeling with which I make my offering more important?

Everything about the way we offer dakshina matters. This includes the amount as well as the attitude with which we make our offering. As with all the practices on the Siddha Yoga path, we always want to offer our best.

In David Katz’s speech “The Generosity of the Guru’s Grace,” he describes the beautiful Sanskrit term arpana as the “offering of our best” to our Guru—our heart’s natural response to the Guru’s unparalleled generosity. What does “offering our best” mean when we engage in the practice of dakshina?

Offering our best can refer both to determining the amount of our offering and the feeling with which we make our offering. Are we fully present when we make our offering of dakshina? Are we taking the time to connect with the Guru, with our own heart? Are we offering with an understanding of our own worthiness and of the meaning of the action we are performing?

With respect to the amount, we offer dakshina in accordance with our means. So, with that in mind, you can ask yourself: “Considering my financial resources and budget, what amount represents ‘offering my best’ right now?” You can also make a plan for your practice by asking, “What is an amount that I would like to offer in the future?” Keeping this inquiry alive as you engage in this practice is a way of offering your best.

Baba and Gurumayi teach that the mantra, the repeater of the mantra, and the deity of the mantra are one. The same teaching can be applied to the practice of dakshina. I approach my own practice of dakshina with that awareness. For instance, when I make an offering of dakshina on the Siddha Yoga path website, I hold the awareness “I am God. The offering is God. The One I am offering to is also God.” When I do this, I immediately experience a profound sense of peace and happiness within my own heart. I feel at one with my Guru, and I feel at home within myself. It’s very powerful.

As you offer dakshina, consider how to make your offering with the attitude of offering your best. Experiment; try different approaches. Bring a new awareness to your practice and take note of what happens!

I just graduated from school and started my first job, and I would like to begin a Siddha Yoga Monthly Dakshina Practice. Is it better to start my monthly practice now or to wait until I can offer more?

I say, start now! This is because you want to avail yourself of the opportunity to engage in this Siddha Yoga practice and allow yourself to grow and reap the benefits for your life and sadhana right now. Don’t let the notion that the amount you can offer is “too small” keep you from making your offering. Remember: every offering you make to the Guru is sacred.

See your practice of dakshina as a journey. It’s great to have a goal for dakshina, to have a wish to offer more. You can certainly aim for that. But don’t let the level of your current income stop you from making this core practice a regular part of your Siddha Yoga sadhana—and from experiencing the Guru’s grace that will flow through it.

I have a Monthly Dakshina Practice and have arranged for automatic payments from my bank account. Sometimes I feel like my practice is “on autopilot.” How can I bring greater awareness to my regular practice of dakshina?

It’s wonderful that you have made a commitment to this practice and that you recognize your own wish to practice with greater awareness. Just as with all the Siddha Yoga practices, we aspire to perform them consciously so we can give ourselves fully and be present to experience the nectar that is inherent in each practice.

I often say, it’s beneficial after you make an offering of dakshina to take a moment to pause and recognize what you are experiencing. Some people who participate in the Monthly Dakshina Practice take a moment to reflect on this practice on the 20th of each month. This is the day when the automated payment of their monthly offering is received by the SYDA Foundation.

When I reflect on my own monthly practice, it occurs to me that I can suggest three additional ways to bring greater awareness to your practice of offering dakshina: attending to your inner attitude, performing ritual, and infusing your offering with prayer or intention. Now, let me say a bit more about each of these.

The first has to do with the inner attitude or feeling, the bhava, with which you offer dakshina. You can learn more about the significance of offering with an uplifting bhava in Ami Bansal’s exposition “The Tradition of Dakshina.”

A young adult shared with me one way she brings the bhava of devotion to her practice. She said that on the 20th of the month, she visualizes herself with Gurumayi in the Bhagavan Nityananda Temple in Shree Muktananda Ashram. She connects with her heart and sees herself offer pranam with reverence and devotion in front of the murti of Bade Baba. Then with great care and love, she makes her offering of dakshina and meditates with her Guru. She says this is very powerful for her and fills her with joy.

The second category has to do with ritual. This would be an action you perform to make the sacredness of the practice tangible for yourself.

One young adult shared that on the 20th of the month, she journals about the ways she has experienced the Guru’s grace uplifting her over the past month. She says that reflecting in this way connects her with her great good fortune to have a living master, a Sadguru, in her life.

Some Siddha Yogis recite the Mahalakshmi Stotram when they make their monthly offering. Others take a walk in nature. Seeing the beauty and bounty around them inspires them to reflect on the abundance in their lives and their practice of offering dakshina.

A third way for you to practice more consciously is to infuse your offering with your prayers, blessings, and intentions. For example, you can make an offering with the intention to embody a divine virtue such as gratitude, humility, or joy. Or you could infuse your offering with the blessing that people everywhere will experience the light of the Self.

So, be creative! Ask yourself, “In what ways would I like to bring greater awareness to my monthly practice of dakshina?” Then put these approaches into action and journal what you notice. Give yourself the space and time to appreciate the benefits of this practice.

I’ve enjoyed introducing the practices of meditation and chanting to my children. Do you have any suggestions on how to introduce them to the practice of dakshina?

The best way to introduce your children to dakshina is to engage in the practice of dakshina with them.

Many teenagers and young adults have shared with me that some of their most cherished memories are of offering dakshina with their families in a Siddha Yoga Ashram or meditation center and on the Siddha Yoga path website.

Children are natural givers. They innately sense the meaning and joy of giving. This is beautifully illustrated in “The Heart’s Impulse,” an account on the Siddha Yoga path website about a child spontaneously making an offering to Gurumayi in a satsang.

Take the time to reflect on why this practice of dakshina is meaningful to you, and then share that with your child. Share why the Siddha Yoga path is important to you and why you are moved to offer dakshina. The best way you can teach your child about dakshina is to connect with your own wisdom and experience of this practice.

Children enjoy ritual. One mother shared with me how her whole family—her husband and their two young sons—approach the puja altar in their meditation room in their home, offer pranam, and place dakshina in a basket on the puja altar. They say a prayer together, and then they sit and chant. At the end of each month, they offer the amount that they put into the basket, using the online form on the Siddha Yoga path website. She said their children love doing this and have come to understand the power of offering to the Guru through this family ritual.

Children also love stories. For example, there is the inspiring story of Satyakama Jabala from the Chandogya Upanishad, which you can read with your children in the exposition entitled “The Tradition of Dakshina” by Ami Bansal. This story is studied and re-enacted by children participating in the “Satsang for Families on the Siddha Yoga Practice of Dakshina.”

Monthly satsangs for families with children ages twelve and younger are available in Siddha Yoga Ashrams and meditation centers around the globe. For more information about the “Satsang for Families on the Siddha Yoga Practice of Dakshina,” contact the Taruna Poshana Department by sending an email to [email protected].

When I offer dakshina at a Siddha Yoga Ashram or meditation center, I experience the shakti of the practice. How can I have this experience when offering dakshina on the Siddha Yoga path website?

Just as a Siddha Yoga Ashram or meditation center is a sacred environment, the Siddha Yoga path website is also a sacred space. The website is a space where Gurumayi bestows her grace and teachings on a daily basis. In fact, it is Gurumayi’s initiative and sankalpa that led to the creation of the website.

When you offer dakshina on the website, you can take a moment to become aware of this sacred environment and to perceive the Guru’s presence. Make this offering of dakshina as if it were taking place during darshan in a Siddha Yoga Ashram or meditation center.

A woman once shared with me that her husband was usually the one who would make an offering of dakshina on their behalf on the website. Then, on the occasion of a particular Siddha Yoga celebration, this woman decided to make the offering for the two of them. She said that she was amazed by what happened next: “A powerful rush of energy swept over me. I was having darshan. It was like an illuminating moment in meditation, when all of a sudden you understand something in an entirely new way, and you can then watch that ripple out into your life.”

So, as you can see, the apparently mundane action of clicking on that button to make your offering connects you instantly to the one you are offering to.

You can take other steps to help you enter this divine space. Before you make your offering, you can prepare yourself. For example, you can close your eyes and make a prayer. Connect to your heart and your love for the Siddha Yoga teachings and for the Guru. Contemplate what you are grateful for. Then, make your offering with this awareness.

And after you make your offering, sit quietly and notice what you are experiencing within. What is the state of your heart and your mind? How does your physical body feel? Be present. Bringing this kind of awareness to your practice of dakshina can actually transform how you engage with the Siddha Yoga path website overall. You will begin to recognize how it is infused with the Guru’s shakti and how each teaching is there to bring each one of us to the experience of our own divine Self.

I feel dakshina is something very personal. I was brought up not to talk about money in general. However, I have noticed that we are encouraged to share our experiences of the Siddha Yoga practices. What is the benefit of talking about the practice of dakshina?

Here, I want to distinguish between sharing details about your personal finances and speaking about your experience of offering dakshina as a practice on the Siddha Yoga path. When we talk about dakshina, we are sharing the experience we have of offering to the Guru, the source of grace in our lives, and how we have been transformed through this practice. There are many reasons to do that.

You may have read some of the shares from Siddha Yogis about their experiences of practicing dakshina, which you can find among the webpages about dakshina on the Siddha Yoga path website. These shares are so inspiring! Many Siddha Yogis have told me that reading others’ shares expands their understanding and experience of the practice and gives them new ways of offering dakshina with freshness and vigor.

Have you discovered that when you love something, you want to tell others about it? I have! And when you speak about dakshina, what are you really talking about? You’re expressing your appreciation for the Siddha Yoga path. You’re connecting with others on this very inspiring topic. I suspect you’ll find it enjoyable! Additionally, talking with others about your experiences of the Siddha Yoga practices can help you uncover new understandings within yourself. Sometimes, you become aware of some great benefit you have received only when you make the effort to put this gift into words. This is the magic of sharing our experiences.

And when we articulate our experiences, by this very act we are spreading to others our knowledge and enthusiasm about Siddha Yoga philosophy and culture. Whenever we are authentically inspired about something, our inspiration touches others and opens them to new possibilities. When we stand in our own conviction about what is great by speaking about it, we spread light and create positive change in the world.

I encourage all of you who have read these questions and answers to share your experiences through the “Click to Share Your Experience” link below, to build on the conversation about the Siddha Yoga practice of dakshina.

It is truly a joy to share with you my love for this practice that has made such a difference in my own life and my sadhana.

I wish you all well as you embark on your own journey of discovery in your practice of dakshina.

For additional information about ways to engage in the practice of dakshina, read the Commonly Asked Questions About the Siddha Yoga Practice of Dakshina.