Abhiseka

Abhiseka is a form of Buddhist empowerment by besprinkling. A master gives an abhiseka to a disciple or anyone destined to receive one. Many dharmas require an abhiseka in order to begin practice. When giving an abhiseka, the master empowers you by pouring the 'dew of wisdom' onto the top of your head. This will quickly increase your wisdom, extinguish all kinds of disasters, and improve your luck and physical health. The empowerment from an Abhiseka also brings the blessings of previous Masters and all Buddhas, and helps turn the soul of a person around to betterment.

While practicing esoteric dharma we engage the three mysteries of Body, Mind, and Speech. Mudras, visualizations and mantras are used to open up secret channels in the human body resulting in the development of supernatural powers. As you progress, you will encounter many obstacles such as wandering thoughts. The Abhiseka helps alleviate these obstacles, enabling you to rapidly achieve purity of mind, and allowing you to attain enlightenment much more quickly.

As you read the sutras, you really have to understand it's completeness and do accordingly. In the process of doing and practicing and working on yourself, you will also run into many obstacles and difficulties. Very simple, this world you live in today, this environment, it's not the same as 2500 years ago when the first sutra was written. In Shakyamuni's time, over 2000 years ago, the political and economic system, people's perception of the world and their understanding were completely different than today's world. Personally, I feel the people then were much more simple and purer in their minds. In those days, many people began their pursuit of awakening and could easily attain to that state, but they still had to overcome many obstacles and personal difficulties.

That's why gradually over these past 2000 years, the enlightened teacher, in order to help his students, developed systems of abhiseka. It simply means baptism, Buddhist baptism. Ahbiseka is a way to overcome obstacles, cleanse the karma, and turn the soul of the receiver around so he can bypass all these obstacles.

I remember a few days ago somebody asked a question, "Is there a way or method we can open up all these chakras?" In the Hanmi school, we don't talk about the chakras, we talk about the middle vein or the meridian line through your whole body. Yes, there is a method, I can open it up, and you can attain instant, complete opening. As I have answered a few days ago if some of you remember, if an average person learns the correct method and practices accordingly with great self-discipline, he will successfully open up his middle vein in 30 years.

In the esoteric school, if a student decides to become initiated as the formal disciple of an enlightened teacher, then the teacher will have to perform abhisekas for the student, because it's the duty of the teacher to help the student to attain enlightenment. Then the first step of opening up the middle vein only requires 30 minutes.

What kind of disciple is qualified to have his middle vein opened by his teacher? Only a disciple who has been a year or more with his master and who has memorized all the basic mantras he has been taught, and practiced them diligently so he has laid a strong foundation so he can receive that.

-Excerpt from dharma talk by Living Buddha Dechan Jueren, Amherst Massachusetts, 28 Sep 2002.

view History of Buddhism: Origination of Buddhist Abhiseka, June 3, 2003