How many people perform acamana before chanting the diksa mantras? I estimate that there may only be a handful practicing this as per the injunctions. One also needs to understand - What is the purpose of doing acamana? ‘acamana’ leads to ‘bhuta-suddhi’. How is this? ‘Om visnave namah.’ What does that mean? ‘Oh Lord Visnu! Since You are omnipresent and since You are seeing me, taking you as witness, I offer my obeisances i.e. whatever material pride I have, like I consider this body to be myself, etc... Renouncing all such misidentifications, I am surrendering myself unto You. Try doing acamana like this.
See, if you do not perform acamana first, then what will happen? All desires for material sense enjoyment will enter your heart. So proper acamana involves one’s internal mood. Just by taking water and sprinkling it on the head saying “Om Visnu!” without meditating upon Him and without giving up the desire for sense enjoyment - what’s the use?
So, first surrender unto Him.
After performing acamana, with a steady mood, you should sit like this [upright] while chanting your diksa mantras. What does being ‘steady’ mean? The body has become steady [by sitting properly], now make your mind steady as well. The mind that is dancing among the objects of sense gratification, jumping from one leaf to the other… make it steady, fixed on one leaf. And what is that leaf? Your worshipful deity, whose mantra you are about to meditate upon. Focus your mind entirely upon Him.
5th April 1998, Mathura
